The Ensemblist

What do you get when you cross Dracula with a podcast? Bite-sized episodes that will have you howling with laughter! Welcome to the official companion podcast for off-Broadway's Dracula A Comedy of Terrors, now playing at New World Stages. Hosted by blood curdling Broadway veteran Andrew Keenan-Bolger, this podcast takes you inside the show's (teeny tiny backstage) world with interviews and games featuring the cast and creatives that helped bring this hilarious comedy to life. So grab a wooden stake, a satchel of garlick, pull out your bloody mary recipe, and settle in under your favorite cape for a podcast guaranteed not to drive you batty! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The premiere episode of 2023 from The Theatre Podcast with Alan Seales - make sure to follow everywhere you get your podcasts. Eddie Izzard is a Tony Award nominated, Emmy Award winning actress who quickly rose to fame in the 90s as a phenomenal standup comedian - producing two of my all time favorite specials Glorious and Dress to Kill. Among her 41 film credits include The Avengers, Ocean's Twelve, Ocean's Thirteen, and Rock Dog. She has around 40 TV credits, is a politician, activist, philanthropist, historian, linguist, has lent her voices to video games and now along with her brother Mark have adapted Great Expectations, the Charles Dickens classic, into a 2 act play now showing at the Greenwich House Theater in NYC where she plays 19 different characters. This episode covers why Eddie ran for Parliament (yes, THE Parliament), how she finds her comedic seams that glue her standup together, why running marathons became a hobby, and what it means that she is exactly 150 years younger than Charles Dickens (spoiler, it doesn't mean much!). After losing her mom at a very young age, Eddie turned to the theatre in what she believes is the need to feel the love from the audience - a substitution for the missing affection from her mother. Connect with Eddie: Get tickets to Great Expectations Twitter: @eddieizzard IG: @eddieizzard FB: /eddieizzard Connect with The Theatre Podcast: Support us on Patreon: Patreon.com/TheTheatrePodcast Twitter & Instagram: @theatre_podcast TikTok: @thetheatrepodcast Facebook.com/OfficialTheatrePodcast TheTheatrePodcast.com Alan's personal Instagram: @alanseales Email me at feedback@thetheatrepodcast.com. I want to know what you think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here's a special preview of the Cautionary Tales podcast from Pushkin Industries. On Cautionary Tales, bestselling author Tim Harford shares stories of human error, natural disasters, and tragic catastrophes from history that contain valuable lessons for today. In this preview, you'll hear about Movin Out', the 2002 Billy Joel-inspired Broadway show created by dance legend Twyla Tharp. When Billy Joel agreed to let dance legend Twyla Tharp turn his songs into a Broadway musical it seemed like a surefire hit. But in previews, Movin' Out was panned by the critics. It was soon headed for Broadway and was set to be an expensive and embarrassing failure. So how could Twyla turn things around and avert disaster before opening night? Hear more from Cautionary Tales at https://podcasts.pushkin.fm/ctbroadway?sid=ttp.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Starring Micheal Urie, Christian Borle, Mary Testa, Lillias White, James Monroe Iglehart, Ann Harada, and tons more of your favorite theatrical geniuses, TWITS is the newest radio play comedy from the Broadway Podcast Network. Visit bpn.fm/twits for more info, or listen and subscribe wherever you are listening to this podcast now! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The latest True Crime / Broadway crossover podcast from Broadway Podcast Network: THIS IS REALITY. A completely true story, still unfolding. How and why did a 25-year-old with a Pikachu bedspread become the #1 terrorist in the United States? In 2017, REALITY WINNER, a highly decorated former Air Force linguist was charged with leaking proof of Russian interference in the 2016 election to the media. Her goal – to help protect Democracy. Reality received the longest sentence ever imposed for unauthorized release of government information - five-years, three-months – for her patriotic efforts. THIS IS REALITY captures the unfolding events of the interrogation, the trial, the imprisonment and the current efforts to pursue clemency with those that were 'in the room' where it all happened.  Produced by Dori Berinstein, Sally Horchow, and Rebecca Aparicio. Part of the Broadway Podcast Network. Visit bpn.fm/ThisIsReality for more info and tickets to the show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For our third episode in this miniseries, we’re so excited to bring you a true renaissance woman in the industry. She’s been an associate to multiple Broadway choreographers, she’s been a dance captain, she’s starred in shows, and she’s also one phenomenal educator, the brilliant Lizz Picini. Currently teaching sold out classes at Broadway Dance Center, Lizz is in high demand with several other projects in the works. We’ll talk about how learning on the job has made her stronger, what insight she’s gained from being on all sides of the table, and why being present- whether that be in the audition room or on stage- is your biggest strength. All right listeners, here’s my conversation with Lizz Picini.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host Christine Shepard leads a roundtable discussion of the return of Broadway with Ixchel Cuellar, Sara Edwards, Cody Renard Richard. They discussed what they want to the new Broadway to look like and how that can be achieved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Karla Garcia booked her broadway debut while still a student at NYU and has continued to channel her incredible talents not just towards an impressive performing career, but also as a breakout choreographer herself. Most recently performing as a swing in Hamilton on Broadway, she’s also choreographing a brand new musical, Other World, slated for its Debut at Bucks County Playhouse in the fall of 2021. We’ll talk about what she’s learned while performing for other choreographers, how she found her own voice as a creator, and the importance of saying yes to opportunities… but we begin our conversation with how she got her start, which interestedly enough is linked to last weeks episode, choreographer Rachel Dolan.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So where do we go from here? When host Mo Brady started this mini-series eight episodes ago, he was positive that there was a way to recognize theatre ensembles. He was so sure of it that he figured the best and most equitable way to do so was to ask the Tony Awards to add a new competitive category for Best Ensemble. At the time, he assumed that recognizing ensemble performances was a no-brainer and that we only had to figure out what we were celebrating in order to move that plan forward.  Oh, how wrong he was.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Berresse made his Broadway debut in the 1990 revival of Fiddler on the Roof. Since then, he's performed in multiple Broadway companies, directed a Broadway musical - even performed on Broadway as the director of a Broadway musical. He currently plays Bob Mackie and Robert Altman in The Cher Show. Here's our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I knew there were other regional award ceremonies that recognize ensemble work, perhaps most notably, the Dora Awards in Toronto. Ahh…: Finally here I thought I could find a sustainable awards model. Like New York City, Toronto is a national mecca for the performing arts, with a long and esteemed track record of both scrappy small shows and major commercial productions. Certainly here I could find an idea of how to move forward. Only to find out that the Dora Awards have recently scrapped their ensemble awards for musical theatre. What is going on here? Not only was I finding that few theatre communities could figure out how to celebrate ensemble work, but some of them are even getting rid of the recognition they once had? I spoke to Dora Awards Manager Scott Dermody about the history of celebrating ensembles at the Dora and why the recognition for musical theater ensembles was recently scrapped. Here’s our conversation...  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Helen Hayes panelist Matthew Kacergis is a DC based arts administrator and arts advocate. He has a long history of performing at regional theaters across the country, and now works as a Project Associate at the DeVos Institute of Arts Management. We talked about the Helen Hayes Awards, the categories they use to celebrate ensemble work and what kind of performances typically get celebrated in those categories. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert Walters is a three-year veteran of the Broadway company of Hamilton. A native Australian, he recently made the trip to Sydney to join the original Australian company of Hamilton. Of course, that journey included the well-known two week quarantine mandated by the Australian government for anyone entering the country.  During his two week quarantine, Robert was kind enough to send us daily voice memos about his life in lockdown. Each day he received a question from me about Hamilton or quarantine or both, and then send me a voicemail with his response. Today we share the second half of Robert’s quarantine experience, where he shares what he imagines life will be like living in his home country for the first time in over a decade. Here, in his own words, in Robert Walters… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we have some really fantastic stories to share from five actors who made their Broadway debuts in 2018. This quintet of triple threats sat down with us in front of a live audience at BroadwayCon 2019 to share what it’s like to have their dreams fulfilled by performing on Broadway.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After hearing from Broadway ensemblist Darius Barnes about his decision not to include a category for Best Ensemble in the inaugural Antonyo Awards, I was curious about this anti-Ensemble award sentiment. Certainly every time that The Ensemblist has posted in favor of this kind of recognition, we see lots of positive feedback in the way of comments, shares, etc. But Darius’ decision had me wondering if there was a “silent majority” of performers who see a Tony Award for Best Ensemble unnecessary. So I reached out to one of my favorite performers in the biz, Afra Hines. She’s a veteran of eight Broadway musicals, including two that have take home the Tony Award for Best Musical: In The Heights and Hadestown. She joined me recently to talk about how she feels best ensembles are already being celebrated and how her experience storming the stage at Radio City was, in her esteem, a celebration of her personal contribution to creating a Best Musical. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey listeners, I’m Justin Mock and this is Choreographers Making Moves: a new mini-series highlighting female choreographers who are making a difference and making a name for themselves in the business. For our first episode, I spoke to someone who got her start working for Debbie Allen and has grown into a Helen Hayes nominated choreographer herself. She’s an educator, filmmaker, and most recently launched Best8BK, an organization creating dynamic, timely and socially conscious theatrical work for digital media: the outstanding Rachel Dolan.  We spoke about how she worked her way to the top, the magic of putting yourself out there— and how to be a brilliant disruptor. All right listeners, enjoy my conversation with Rachel Dolan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month, we are collaborating with Broadway performers Jack Sippel and Brendan Stimson and their new podcast: Again From The Top. In this new podcast, these two Broadway dance captains and creative best friends offer goofy banter and behind the scenes stories featuring special guests who have created some of Broadway’s biggest hits. Listen as they uncover how professionals discovered their unique 5-6-7-8 and take it “Again from the Top”. Today, we are sharing a portion of their full conversation with iconic Broadway legend Angie Schworer. Angie, of course, is a beloved treasure of the American musical theatre. She has performed in 10 Broadway musicals: including the original casts of The Will Rogers Follies, The Producers and Something Rotten! She is also the original performer and the inspiration of the role of Angie in The Prom. A castmate of both Jack and Brendan on various incarnations of that musical, the gentlemen lovingly interview Angie about her unique theatrical training and how she learned how to find her lane and thrive in it. Here’s their conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, listeners! Enjoy this throwback to 2019 and the very first guest from our My First Time miniseries. Our first guest for this miniseries was Ben Crawford. In April 2018, he started creeping ‘round the Majestic Theatre as the title character in The Phantom of the Opera. But before headlining this show, before Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Big Fish and Shrek, he was a replacement in the first Broadway revival of Les Miserables, covering both the roles of Valjean and Javert.  We discussed making his Broadway debut, what he learned understudying two of theatre's most iconic roles and how he brought those lessons to playing the title character in Broadway's longest running show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the last two months, I’ve been speaking to performers who have reopened theatre doors in productions across the world. But we have yet to speak to anyone who is on the team working to reopen shows here in the United States, until now.  This week, I spoke to associate director Gina Rattan. She’s helped lead a number of major Broadway shows over the last decade, most recently working with director Marianne Elliott on Company. She joined me to talk about what an associate director does, her work on Company and how associate directors will be at the helm to bring back many of Broadway’s most treasured shows. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After speaking to producer Eva Price about the commercial Broadway theatre, awards for performances are the kind of thing that can make or break a show’s life. So if awards ultimately behoove the theatrical landscape, why not have more of them? Well, that’s exactly what happened in 2020 when a new awards ceremony was added to the New York theatre industry: the Antonyo Awards.  The Antonyo Awards were created in 2020 by Drew Shade and Broadway Black, an organization that supports Black theatre. Named as a light-hearted reference to the Tony Awards, these awards acknowledged Black artists from both the Broadway and off-Broadway theatre communities. The inaugural ceremony was produced by Shade and a committee of associates, including Darnes Barnes.  Darius Barnes made his Broadway debut as a replacement in the Tony Award-winning musical Memphis in 2011. In the decade since, he’s performed in five additional Broadway musicals: as a replacement in Mean Girls, Cinderella and Spider-man: Turn Off the Dark and an original company member of the 2019 revival of Kiss Me, Kate and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He is also slated to open the new Broadway show MJ the Musical when Broadway returns.  In addition to his obviously busy performing schedule, he worked on the production team of the Antonyo Awards. He joined me recently to talk about how the team created an awards ceremony from scratch - and why he made the decision not to include a category for Best Ensemble. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last year, I got to chat with the president of the Outer Critics Circle Awards, David Gordon. The OCCs bestow awards to both Broadway and off-Broadway theatre, but have never had a category for Outstanding Ensemble in their more than 70 years of existence. So I sat down with David to learn about the OCC nominating process and why, according to him, creating an Outstanding Ensemble Award is a lot more complicated than I had imagined. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Robert Walters is a three-year veteran of the Broadway company of Hamilton. A native Australian, he recently made the trip to Sydney to join the original Australian company of Hamilton. Of course, that journey included the well-known two week quarantine mandated by the Australian government for anyone entering the country.  During his two week quarantine, Robert was kind enough to send us daily voice memos about his life in lockdown. Each day he responded to a unique prompt from The Ensemblist co-creator Mo Brady, which he would then respond to by voicemail and send back. Today we share the first half of Robert’s experience quarantine, where he tells us how he got the call go to Sydney and how he spent two weeks locked in a hotel room high above the city. Here, in his own words, in Robert Walters… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eva Price is a Tony Award-winning producer for her work spearheading the recent Broadway revival of Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! Originally conceived for a cast of principals and chorus, this revival directed by Daniel Fish did away with the show’s traditional chorus and made an ensemble of twelve leading characters. Eva is also one of the lead producers of Jagged Little Pill, a musical with a chorus of 13 performers that work as the conscious of the show’s leading characters. She recently joined me to talk about these two different kinds of ensemble - and how in the commercial Broadway theatre, awards for performances are the kind of thing that can make or break a show’s life. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month, we are collaborating with Broadway performer Shaye B. Hopkins and her new creation: Podcast Portraits. In this new podcast, Hopkins invites guests to share some of life's hairy and hilarious moments and thoughtfully reflect on how those experiences shaped who they are today.  On today’s episode, I got the chance to talk with Shaye herself above the drive that led her to travel halfway across the world to pursue a career on Broadway, as well as to start a podcast of her own. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Come From Away is one of the best examples of ensemble storytelling to hit the Broadway stage this century. Having played more than 1,200 performances at the time Broadway shutdown, the show is a tour de force for a dozen onstage performers to guide audiences through a small town’s response to having a very big role on September 11th. After crisscrossing the country in a series of pre-Broadway tryouts, Come From Away opened at Broadway’s Schoenfeld Theatre on March 12, 2017. Since then the show has played London, Dublin, Melbourne and across both Canada and the United States.  Today, we share a trio of stories from members of the show’s Broadway and touring productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Stephen Sondheim’s Follies, the character of Carlotta sings of her long and varied character in the showstopper “I’m Still Here.” The lyrics share that her decades in the show business have provided her with “plush velvet sometimes, sometimes just pretzels and beer.” The same could be said of today’s episode guest, Cameron Adams. The legendary Broadway ensemblist made her Mainstem debut in the 2000 revival of The Music Man. In the twenty years since she’s been a mainstay on New York stages, performing in an extraordinary 13 Broadway shows.  Cameron joined me over the phone to share some of the most memorable moments of her career thus far, as well as how the industry has changed for ensemble performers in the last two decades. Here’s our conversation… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So, we’re off! Thank you for coming along on my mission to discover how to celebrate, recognize and award great theatre ensembles. As I shared in the first episode of this miniseries, I started this journey wondering why there is not a Tony Award for Best Ensemble? But the more I thought about what such an award would recognize, the less convinced I became that it was possible to quantify what makes theatre ensembles so great. I figured that speaking to a member of the press was as good of a place as any to start. Since theatre press are often the tastemakers for audiences at large, they have experience watching and adjudicating what makes excellent theatre. If the press attend shows in order to convey their expertise about excellent performances, scores, direction and sound design, they could also distill what makes an excellent ensemble. Right? In my esteem, there was no better press member to have this initial discussion with than Jack Smart. Not only does he work for Backstage, the premiere resources for actors in the entertainment industry, his title is “Awards Editor.” His job is literally about awards. So I was lucky enough to speak with him on the topics of what makes a great theatre ensemble and how can they be recognized with awards. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we are taking a detour and not talking about a show that we need. In order for those shows to come back, we need a clear, safe and realistic plan for our industry to move forward. Hadestown cast member Timothy Hughes wrote a letter to Actor’s Equity Association demanding transparency and a seat at the table for union members to be heard when discussing how we go about getting back to work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It’s a question that has been on host Mo Brady's mind for years. Definitely since the infancy of The Ensemblist, but probably earlier. “Why is there not a Tony Award for Best Ensemble?” It seems a simple enough question on the surface. If we can recognize actors playing leading and featured roles in musicals, why can’t we do the same for ensembles. A Tony Award for Best Ensemble would bring legitimacy and respect to the contribution ensemble performers make to shows. It would also bring a level of equity and equality to those performers themselves, making them eligible for the same commandations as our industry’s leading performers.  In this time where we are “paused” due to the Coronavirus pandemic, our industry is engaged in many important conversations. So he figured it was as good of a time as any to throw this into the mix, and formally ask the Tony Awards to add a new competitive category beginning in the 2021-2022 season: Best Ensemble. Except, he couldn’t exactly figure out what he was asking for.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Although not exactly touring in stock, today’s episode guest is indeed still here. Gaelen Gilliland has been delighting Broadway audiences since making her 2005 debut in the musical phenomenon Wicked. Between taking a break as Courtney in Legally Blonde to Bikini Bottom’s Mayor in SpongeBob SquarePants The Musical, she has spent most of her career creating musical comedy gold.  Gaelen is now sharing her talents across the country in the First National Tour of Mean Girls. Looking back at her career spanning six Broadway shows and three National Tours, she delights in how lucky she has been to have worked with some of the most collaborative individuals in the industry.  Jon M. Wailin spoke with Gaelen about the inspiration behind her incredible character work, as well as how life on the road has changed since her first tour twenty years ago. Here’s our conversation . . .  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Travel back in time. Way, way back to a long ago year called 2013, when an overly caffeinated 30-something with a single Broadway credit was looking for a way to stay connected to the community of performers he so dearly wanted to be a part of. It was out of that desire to celebrate, to advocate and to connect that our experiment called The Ensemblist was born. And here we are almost eight years later, sharing with you our 500th episode.  What we found is that for every person who has stepped onstage as part of a theatrical ensemble, there are a multitude of stories to share. Over the years, we’ve expanded our mission - from simply sharing the unknown stories of working in theatre ensembles to make connections between those stories to document and celebrate our collective history.  To commemorate our 500th episode, we asked our podcast collaborators both past and present to share their favorite stories of working on and listening to The Ensemblist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month’s topic took host Christine Shepard on a full quest. She felt like Harriet the Spy gathering info this time around. Half this episode was honestly for her. She learned a lot about stuff she should have years ago, but luckily her learning experience can be somebody else’s. Today we are talking about union membership, specifically AEA or Actors' Equity Association.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 47th Annual Tony Awards were hosted by Liza Minnelli on June 6, 1993. Presented at the Gershwin Theatre, the theme of the ceremony was to commemorate the 100th anniversary of theatre in Times Square. Heading into the ceremony, Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Who’s Tommy led the pack with 11 nominations each, followed by Blood Brothers with six and The Goodbye Girl with five. This season there were no musicals nominated for Best Revival. Well, Mo, the 1992-93 season saw the inauguration of the US’s 42nd president, President Bill Jefferson Clinton and the installation of the nation’s first female attorney general, Janet Reno. Outside of those momentous occasions, the country was mainly dealing with ongoing issues, both abroad and domestically: The United States was still dealing with the aftermath of the Gulf War, waged by the previous administration, and with the nation finally acknowledging HIV/AIDS within the last few years as a nationwide epidemic, the US found itself playing catch-up to dealing with a plague that was ravaging its citizens. In New York, the Broadway industry and community were heavily laden by the effects of the AIDS epidemic, as we see in the telecast. Red ribbons everywhere; emotion overtaking hosts, presenters, and recipients alike; a nominated performance directly addressing the disease AND its stigma; and even an honorary Tony being given to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS for its leadership in the industry’s fight against the disease... we ultimately find a community in mourning, even in this celebratory ceremony of the last hundred years of Broadway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So many of us theatre artists are missing the experience of creating with others. Those who have the opportunity to be in a room making theatre seem to have won a golden ticket for making it through this pandemic. Even those who have traveled halfway around the world to do so. Fredric Odgaard is an original cast member and Assistant Dance Captain of Broadway’s newest juggernaut, Moulin Rouge! The Musical. Fred spent eight weeks running auditions alongside two of his Broadway colleagues: associate choreographer Katie Spelman and dance captain Karli DiNardo. Upon his return to the States, Fred chatted with me about his long-standing relationship with the show’s choreographer Sonya Tayeh and what it felt like to create across the globe when theatre at home is at a standstill. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There has been no seismic shift in the number of actors of color performing on Broadway. Yes, systematic change often comes with incremental progress. However, the recent crop of Broadway musicals seem to provide few examples of such change. I’ve been curious what that feels like for artists of color, so I asked a few into the studio to share their experiences with racial representation in the theatre industry. Today's conversation is with Ann Sanders. Having made her Broadway debut in Beauty and the Beast, she has played a variety of iconic roles including Queen Iduna in Frozen, Anna in The King and I and Christmas Eve in Avenue Q. Here's our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 47th Annual Tony Awards were hosted by Liza Minnelli on June 6, 1993. Presented at the Gershwin Theatre, the theme of the ceremony was to commemorate the 100th anniversary of theatre in Times Square. Heading into the ceremony, Kiss of the Spider Woman and The Who’s Tommy led the pack with 11 nominations each, followed by Blood Brothers with six and The Goodbye Girl with five. This season there were no musicals nominated for Best Revival. Well, Mo, the 1992-93 season saw the inauguration of the US’s 42nd president, President Bill Jefferson Clinton and the installation of the nation’s first female attorney general, Janet Reno. Outside of those momentous occasions, the country was mainly dealing with ongoing issues, both abroad and domestically: The United States was still dealing with the aftermath of the Gulf War, waged by the previous administration, and with the nation finally acknowledging HIV/AIDS within the last few years as a nationwide epidemic, the US found itself playing catch-up to dealing with a plague that was ravaging its citizens. In New York, the Broadway industry and community were heavily laden by the effects of the AIDS epidemic, as we see in the telecast. Red ribbons everywhere; emotion overtaking hosts, presenters, and recipients alike; a nominated performance directly addressing the disease AND its stigma; and even an honorary Tony being given to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS for its leadership in the industry’s fight against the disease... we ultimately find a community in mourning, even in this celebratory ceremony of the last hundred years of Broadway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month, we are collaborating with Broadway performer Shaye B. Hopkins and her new creation: Podcast Portraits. In this new podcast, Hopkins invites guests to share some of life's hairy and hilarious moments and thoughtfully reflect on how those experiences shaped who they are today. This Spring, we will share some of our favorite moments from her interviews, as well as speaking to Shaye herself about the creation of Podcast Portraits. On today’s episode, Shaye chats with Andre Jordan, her colleague on the upcoming Broadway mounting of Diana: A True Musical Story, Andre shares his audition process for the show, the experience of first preview and staying creative in a pandemic. Here’s their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’ve all heard the age old question when a new revival is announced is…why now? Why this show? The revival of Oklahoma in 2019 took a show that so many people know and truly opened eyes to new themes and new thoughts through a really unique production “sans the frills”. Cast member Will Mann shared about how it was created and why some major choices were made. Here’s our conversation! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the Broadway shutdown due to the Coronovirus outbreak passes its catastrophic year anniversary, Megan Ort reflects on being one of the world’s few employed Ensemblists in 2020. As the female swing and Christine Daaé understudy in the World Tour of The Phantom of the Opera, Ort had the distinctly rare experience of being on stage in 2020, navigating international travel, and abiding by strenuous health-code practices in order to perform for sold-out audiences throughout Asia. An experience unlike any other, Ort explains what it was like to perform amidst pandemic fears while watching her home country become devastated by the disease from afar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Usually, our “My First Time” episodes feature Broadway stars looking back at the very first time they stepped on a Broadway stage. But on this episode we are going to hear about a series of firsts from one of the biggest hearts on Broadway, Marisha Wallace.  Since making her national tour debut in 2012 with The Book of Mormon, her career has been filled with firsts in quick succession: her Broadway debut in Aladdin in 2014, to her 2017 West End debut in Dreamgirls. She joined me in the studio during a brief stop in New York, before returning to London to play Motormouth Maybelle in the new West End revival of Hairspray. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, I got to speak to one of my favorite people in the theatre industry. Historian Jennifer Ashley Tepper wrote the book of the history of Broadway theatres. In fact, she’s written four of them: her fourth volume of The Untold Stories of Broadway comes out this week. She joined me recently to tell me about why choosing a theatre is as important as casting your leading lady, to talk through some her favorite stories of the book and about writing a book in a pandemic when the artform she is writing about is on pause. Here’s our conversation... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This month, we are collaborating with Broadway performer Shaye B. Hopkins and her new creation: Podcast Portraits. In this new podcast, Hopkins invites guests to share some of life's hairy and hilarious moments and thoughtfully reflect on how those experiences shaped who they are today. This Spring, we will share some of our favorite moments from her interviews, as well as speaking to Shaye herself about the creation of Podcast Portraits. On today’s episode, Shaye chats with Austen Danielle Bohmer. Her colleague on the upcoming Broadway mounting of Diana: A True Musical Story, Austen shares her education, both formal through university, and experiential teaching in India. Here’s their conversation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 61st Annual Tony Awards was presented at Radio City Music Hall on June 10, 2007. Just like the last ceremony, the 2007 Tonys had no host but instead a score of celebrity duos as presenters. Heading into the ceremony, two musicals were virtually tied for the most nominations: Spring Awakening with 11 nominations and Grey Gardens with 10. Also with a respectable set of 7 or 8 nominations were Curtains, Legally Blonde and Mary Poppins. Nominated for Best Revival were productions of Company, 110 in the Shade, The Apple Tree and A Chorus Line.  The 2006-2007 Broadway season found itself amidst many cultural highs and lows. Right in the middle of President George W. Bush’s second presidential term and his international “War on Terror,” the season witnessed the inauguration of the nation’s first female speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. On a more sober note, 2007 also saw the school shooting at Virginia Tech, which remains the deadliest school shooting in the history of the United States. Culturally, the season also saw the inauguration of the very first version of Apple’s iPhone, propelling the world solidly into the age of the smartphone, allowing all the actors in New York to be able to check their rehearsal schedules, and text their stage managers with they’re calling out, RIGHT from the comfort of their cell phone! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There’s a line in Come From Away that reads “Thank you shopping at Walmart - would like to come to my house for a shower?”Creepy out of context, but in show, it is example of people being helpful and open to other people in a way that feels unfathomable right now. Host Michael Fatica spoke with Alex Finke, a former cast member of Come From Away on Broadway about how this show has a whole new to ring to it in the midst of the events of this past year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Mo Brady talks with Aiko Nakasone - One of the 15 original cast members of Rent. In the conversation, Aiko shares how her experience creating theatre families has influenced her work as both a yoga instructor and financial educator.  Rent is celebrating it’s 25th anniversary this year, and a virtual celebration is streaming through Friday March 6th, 8pm Eastern as a part of New York Theatre Workshops 2021 Gala. Enjoy!  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 61st Annual Tony Awards was presented at Radio City Music Hall on June 10, 2007. Just like the last ceremony, the 2007 Tonys had no host but instead a score of celebrity duos as presenters. Heading into the ceremony, two musicals were virtually tied for the most nominations: Spring Awakening with 11 nominations and Grey Gardens with 10. Also with a respectable set of 7 or 8 nominations were Curtains, Legally Blonde and Mary Poppins. Nominated for Best Revival were productions of Company, 110 in the Shade, The Apple Tree and A Chorus Line.  The 2006-2007 Broadway season found itself amidst many cultural highs and lows. Right in the middle of President George W. Bush’s second presidential term and his international “War on Terror,” the season witnessed the inauguration of the nation’s first female speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. On a more sober note, 2007 also saw the school shooting at Virginia Tech, which remains the deadliest school shooting in the history of the United States. Culturally, the season also saw the inauguration of the very first version of Apple’s iPhone, propelling the world solidly into the age of the smartphone, allowing all the actors in New York to be able to check their rehearsal schedules, and text their stage managers with they’re calling out, RIGHT from the comfort of their cell phone! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, host Kerstin Anderson talks with Daniel Goldstein, the associate director of Come From Away. He was one of the first theatre practitioners in the world to reopen theatre following the shutdown. He talks with Kerstin about traveling to Melbourne Australia to reopen the show, how the theatremaking experience was modified to keep people safe, as well as both the joy and trauma he believes theatregoers will experience as they are allowed to watch live performances once again Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We love a good podcast deep dive. And nothing has been scratching that itch more successfully this year than the new series Out For Blood. The new podcast is a close look (perhaps a too close look) into the Queen of Broadway flops Carrie the Musical.   Two obsessive fans, Chris Adams and Holly Morgan, meet the cast, crew and creators, sift through the mysteries and urban legends, chat to some famous super-fans, and find out how Carrie rose from the dead and reinvented itself as a mainstream musical success story. Today, we have the honor of sharing a portion of their episode that dives into Act I of the show. In this excerpt, you’ll hear Holly, Chris and their guests discuss the overture and opening of the show and they each delighted and baffled audiences. Enjoy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Actor and playwright Rodney Hicks’ RENT journey began 25 years ago at New York Theatre Workshop, when he was just 21 years old. In 2007, Rodney would return to the Nederlander and take on the role of Benny, a part he once understudied a decade prior. Rodney can be seen as Benny in 2008’s RENT: Filmed Live on Broadway, a pro-shot of RENT’s final performance of the original Broadway production. Please enjoy our one-on-one with Rodney Hicks as he memorializes his early memories in the show, his personal journey of self growth and discovery, and what RENT means to him.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choreographer and performer Charlie Williams is no stranger to The Ensemblist, nor is he a stranger to Disney’s mega musical, Frozen, which closed on Broadway last May, but has sparked new life internationally. Charlie has played a critical role in Frozen’s legacy, as both an ensemble performer and Associate Choreographer. When it came to mounting the show in Sydney, Australia, where audiences and performers can finally return to in-door gatherings and performance spaces, Charlie was the obvious choice to step in and train the show’s newest crop of ensemblists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Disney’s Aladdin, beloved animated classic turned hit musical, opened on Broadway at the New Amsterdam theater in March of 2014, directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw with score by Alan Menkin, Howard Ashman, Tim Rice and Chad Beguelin. Featuring both iconic songs originally written for the animated movie as well as some brand new tunes, it received five Tony nominations, and gave James Monroe Iglehart his first Tony win. Ho  Audiences have been dazzled, not only by 100,000’s of swarovski crystals, but the timeless story of street-rat to prince, and trapped princess turned independent woman. Since then the magic of Agrabah has been brought all over the world and to every corner of North America!  On today’s episode, we share some of our favorite stories from members of the Broadway and national tour casts of Aladdin, originally shared on the podcast or on our blog.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices