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[0:01] Alan Seales: Hey everyone, welcome to the final episode of The Theatre Podcast for 2022, right? That's what year it is. I can't even remember what freaking year we are in at this moment. We're gonna do the normal end of year wrap up like I've done every year so far, and we are joined again by my lovely, lovely friend, Diana Salameh, who you may remember from episode 41 and also from the 2020 wrap up, episode 123. Diana, how you doing?

[0:35] Diana Salameh: Hi, Alan. I'm so happy to be here with you.

[0:40] Alan Seales: You were saying a second ago, this is the first full year of theatre we've had since COVID.

[0:45] Diana Salameh: Yeah, since 2019 was the last year that we had a full year of theatre. And finally, again, this year, 2022 was a full year of theatre.

[0:54] Alan Seales: So how many shows did you end up seeing? Like your position, you're still in working at Serino Coyne and your job, part of your job is to see theatre. So what did you get to see?

[1:06] Diana Salameh: Yeah. Oh, I saw a lot of shows. I probably saw 35 or 40 different shows, but there are a lot of things that I went back to multiple times. I'm going through my list. I think I saw Into the Woods four times this year.

[1:16] Alan Seales: Really?

[1:17] Diana Salameh: Yeah. You've been, right? You've seen Into the Woods?

[1:19] Alan Seales: I haven't seen Into the Woods yet.

[1:20] Diana Salameh: What?

[1:21] Alan Seales: No, no. Don't tell anybody that. Don't tell anybody I said that.

[1:24] Diana Salameh: Well, we have to rectify that. We have another week and a half left to go see it.

[1:29] Alan Seales: Can I, can I, okay. Help me out. Help me out. Okay. So I need to go see that. This week, this year, I don't even know how long time is anymore. See, this is how messed up 2022 has been. It's been so much of balancing working from home and going to see the shows and like my kids are getting older and it's just hard. It's freaking hard, but there's been so much good stuff out there. And it's funny going back through the list of shows that I've seen, like RIP to some of the good ones. Hey, I got an idea. Let's, let's give a Tony award to a company for best revival and then have it close a month later. Come on.

[2:05] Diana Salameh: Yeah. I know we've had to say goodbye to a lot of amazing shows this year, but also got to say hello to a lot of great new ones that I think will be here for a while. Into the Woods. I just want to go back to that one for a second, because I think I'm always going to think of 2022 as the year of Into the Woods. Like this show just brought so much joy to the theater community after a couple of years of what was a really tumultuous breakdown and build back up of Broadway, where from the city center production to Broadway, every single cast member that has played any of these roles just has lit up the world. I mean, on Twitter, you know, before, back when we used to use Twitter, like six weeks ago, any time a new person was announced to be in the cast, it just, you see everybody become a theater kid again and get excited.

And so I will think of this as a year of Into the Woods for sure. I mean, from Heather Headley to Sara Bareilles to Stephanie J Block, every single person that has been in this cast has been exquisite. I can't wait to go with you.

[3:10] Alan Seales: We have to go next week.

[3:11] Diana Salameh: Please. All right. I am totally there. How do you feel about, there's some that have criticized Into the Woods actually about like just having repeated stunt casting, because usually, you know, for those who aren't familiar, stunt casting is like when ticket sales start to decline, you bring in a celebrity or something who may or may not have the chops to hold a sustained performance, but they're good for a short amount of time just to sell some tickets. But Into the Woods did something, they did it so differently. And I wonder if, what was the standard contract length? Do you have any idea? Was it like a month, two months or anything?

[3:44] Diana Salameh: You know, it varied. And all of the performers, I mean, people have been coming in and out of Into the Woods on a rolling basis. So it's not like cast one ends on June 1st and cast two comes in on June 2nd. It's been people, you know, making it work for them. And the producer of the show, Jordan Roth, along with Nicole Castrino, Cedric Jansen, they have done an incredible job of getting all of these people in and you define stunt casting, I think, brilliantly in a way that just shows that Into the Woods was not stunt casting. It was all people who were amazing at the role and they made it work with their schedules. And it was like theater camp, but good.

[4:20] Alan Seales: I love how original Broadway cast members, S.J.B., 70 Day Block and Sebastian, real life husband and wife are now going to go on the original, on the tour together. I think that's just cool when that kind of stuff works out.

[4:33] Diana Salameh: I got to see both of them do the role of the baker and baker's wife together. It's so special. It's so special to watch them together. Like you really feel that chemistry. I mean, they're incredible actors, but you feel that authentic chemistry between them. I'm so excited for date night next week. Get ready.

[4:48] Alan Seales: Okay. Okay. We're there. We are totally there. What was, uh, what were some of the other favorites that you saw this year?

[4:53] Diana Salameh: Ooh, Kimberly Akimbo. Two shows that we saw together, Kimberly Akimbo and Top Dog Underdog.

[4:58] Alan Seales: We saw opening night together, I think, or was it first preview?

[5:00] Diana Salameh: We went to first preview of Kimberly Akimbo together and opening night of Top Dog Underdog together.

[5:05] Alan Seales: Yes.

[5:06] Diana Salameh: Two absolute highlights of the season. Talk about joy in the theater community. I think Kimberly Akimbo is one of the most joyful original things that I have ever seen on Broadway. And so that's great. You know, I just got my copy of New York Magazine literally today. Just before this, I was getting my mail. Bonnie Milligan, who plays Aunt Deb in Kimberly Akimbo for anyone who hasn't seen it, was just put incredible, incredible. She, she pleased the Tony Award gods. I hope you're listening to us. Take good care of Bonnie in 2023.

[5:37] Alan Seales: She gets the award immediately for a person who needs more stage time.

[5:42] Diana Salameh: 100%. You always leave them wanting more and they've, Bonnie has left you wanting more of her. Bonnie was just put on New York Magazine's, uh, approval matrix year end roundup as a brilliant performance. She is in highbrow brilliance. Like how unbelievable that just above Lea Michele on the approval matrix. Wow.

[6:07] Alan Seales: Yeah. Well, gosh, I want to talk about, uh, let's talk about Lea Michele for a second. Talk about like a show that got saved, right? Saved by the bell. Absolutely incredible. I have never, I have never in my career seen a show get turned around the way that Funny Girl got turned around. She's incredible. Her partner on stage, Tova is unreal. It's almost like the roles were written for them.

[6:26] Diana Salameh: I saw it. Uh, I haven't actually seen Lea yet. I've seen Julie Benko and, and Julie with, um, with Tova and I went purposely to see Julie and I just want to give a massive, massive shout out in general to Standbys Understudies Alternates and Swings because we wouldn't have a full year of this industry without them because we've had, I mean, we've had full casts out and people from tours flown in to do single performances and whatnot for like weird scenarios. It's just insane. But Julie Benko in Funny Girl, one of my all time favorite performances from the entire year, full stop. She's just incredible. And like you said, against Tova, Tova just, I interviewed Tova on this podcast a few weeks ago and, uh, her word, she's like, that character is so bland and boring on paper. And the way that she breathes life, uh, Tova's character, you know, breathes life into that. It's just brilliant. I absolutely love it.

[7:34] Alan Seales: Yeah. That was incredible. Lea Michele is incredible. I am a huge fan of Beanie Feldstein. It cannot go without saying I love her. I love her in a titular role. I love her in any role. Um, but I think Lea Michele was born to play Fanny Bryce and that's clear on stage. Don't miss it for anybody who's on the fence or thinking about it. It is absolutely not to be missed. What's, um, kind of a, a fun off-Broadway show that you've seen?

[7:58] Diana Salameh: Ooh, easy, easy, easy question. You just threw me a softball. Is that the phrase? You threw me a softball? Yeah. Give you a softball question. Lobbed you a softball. Softball question at the public. Unbelievable. I went absolutely crazy for it. It's worth noting that I am biased in that. I love women. I think women are the best. Um, I'm the co-founder of an organization called the Broadway Women's Alliance. It is, um, it is like in my, my core, my DNA, it pulses through my blood post through my veins. And then you're going to give me a musical about the suffragists written by Shana Taub. I am going to love it. And boy, did I love it. It is incredible. It's primed for Broadway. Um, it made me feel things in my core. I cried, I laughed, I felt inspired when I left the theater. So I can't wait to see what the life of Suffs is beyond the public.

[8:53] Alan Seales: Oh, that's so much fun. I, I, after, um, I think, well, I guess I'll go back like Hamilton, right? I want to say Hamilton before, before I really get into the business of show business. Uh, it was always just like, what's on Broadway. I'm gonna go to a website. I'm gonna go, you know, see whatever the advertisements are and, or whatever the advertisements tell me to see. And, um, it, it was one of those things where after I realized how much of a journey shows have, and it was because of Hamilton, because it starts off off Broadway is workshops and then off Broadway and blah, blah, blah, and it goes on and on and on and on and stuff gets cut. This never makes it to Broadway and just the amount of, of exposure that shows get.

It's really fascinating to me. Uh, I mean, go back to, to Into the Woods, it was kind of the same way. And there are some shows that have a clear path to have to have to be on Broadway. And there's other shows that, you know, they do well off Broadway because of the small house and they don't translate. So, you know, that's a money grab from the producers, but whatever, good thing we're not recording this anyway. So the point, my point being is, is that I, I love when, um, you can get to see stuff off Broadway like that. And, and then see, see it come to life on Broadway several years later. So I'm excited too, to see, to, uh, to see Suffs. Um, there was one, uh, one that I saw recently off Broadway, which was Great Expectations, Eddie Izzard's version. I just saw that two weeks ago, I want to say.

[10:26] Diana Salameh: And, uh, if you're listening to this episode in real time, as it just came out, Eddie Izzard is going to be the next episode, the first episode of 2023. So Eddie just phenomenal person, but, uh, I mean, you know, you're familiar with her standup, right?

[10:42] Alan Seales: It's so funny that Eddie Izzard is coming up this week because I was just watching one of her standup specials this week, a friend of mine, uh, my friend Patrick just turned me onto it and started watching it and she is hysterical. So I was delighted to watch it and I'm hoping to see Great Expectations in the new year.

[10:59] Diana Salameh: It was just extended, right?

[11:02] Alan Seales: Yeah. It was just extended through February 11th, I believe. Um, it was extended before it opened, which is very rare. So that's how, how much praise and everything, but, but Eddie and her brother, Mark, um, adapted this, you know, 10 hours were eight or 10 hours worth of like spoken word down to a two act, less than two.

[11:21] Alan Seales: Welcome to the wrap-up episode of 2022! It's been a year full of ups and downs, but one thing is for sure: Broadway is back, and we're excited to talk about it.

[11:51] Diana Salameh: Absolutely! It's been such a journey, and I think we can both agree that the return of live theatre has been a highlight for many.

[12:15] Alan Seales: Definitely. I mean, after everything that happened in 2020, seeing the lights come back on was a breath of fresh air.

[12:43] Diana Salameh: And the energy in the theatres! You can feel the excitement from the audience and the performers alike. It's electric.

[13:07] Alan Seales: Speaking of energy, what were some of your favorite productions this year?

[13:35] Diana Salameh: Oh, there were so many! I loved seeing "Six" and how it took the world by storm. The way it reimagines history is just brilliant.

[13:51] Alan Seales: "Six" was definitely a standout. I also think "Moulin Rouge!" brought a lot of spectacle back to Broadway.

[14:11] Diana Salameh: Yes! The visuals and the music in "Moulin Rouge!" are just stunning. It really captures the essence of the original film while making it its own.

[14:37] Alan Seales: And let's not forget about the smaller productions that made a big impact. There were some incredible off-Broadway shows this year.

[14:57] Diana Salameh: Absolutely! Off-Broadway has always been a breeding ground for new talent and innovative storytelling. It's exciting to see what comes out of that scene.

[15:17] Alan Seales: Speaking of new talent, did you notice any emerging artists or creatives that caught your eye this year?

[15:37] Diana Salameh: For sure! I think we saw a lot of fresh faces and voices this year, which is so important for the future of theatre.

[15:57] Alan Seales: It really is. Diversity in storytelling is crucial, and I'm glad to see more representation on stage.

[16:17] Diana Salameh: Exactly. It's about time we see stories from all walks of life being told in a way that resonates with everyone.

[16:37] Alan Seales: So true. Now, looking ahead to 2023, what are you most excited about?

[16:57] Diana Salameh: I can't wait to see what new productions are coming to Broadway. There are some highly anticipated shows that I think will make waves.

[17:25] Alan Seales: Yes! And I hope we continue to see more innovation in how stories are told, especially with the integration of technology.

[17:53] Diana Salameh: Absolutely. The possibilities are endless, and I think the pandemic has pushed us to think outside the box.

[18:19] Alan Seales: It's a silver lining for sure. Now, before we wrap up, any final thoughts on 2022?

[18:47] Diana Salameh: Just that it's been a year of resilience for the theatre community. We've come together, and I think that strength will carry us forward.

[19:15] Alan Seales: Well said. Here's to a bright future for Broadway and all of us involved in this beautiful art form.

[19:43] Diana Salameh: Cheers to that! I can't wait to see what 2023 has in store.

[20:11] Alan Seales: Thank you for joining me for this wrap-up, Diana. It's always a pleasure to have you on the show.

[20:37] Diana Salameh: Thank you for having me, Alan! It's been a great year.

[21:03] Alan Seales: And thank you to our listeners for tuning in. We appreciate your support and can't wait to bring you more exciting conversations in the new year.

[21:29] Diana Salameh: Happy New Year, everyone!

[21:57] Alan Seales: Happy New Year! See you in 2023!

[22:43] Alan Seales: State is coming back to Broadway in a Doll's House as well.

[22:47] Diana Salameh: Oh yeah, Jessica Chastain is coming. Katie Holmes is coming to Katie Holmes, she's gonna be off Broadway in a Roundabout show, which forgive me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure it's called The Wanderers. I think so. You know who else is in that show? You know, Sarah Cooper, she did those phenomenal impressions of Donald Trump's sort of like lip dub. You remember? Cooper used to work at Google. I know Sarah from Google. Well, I know her from Making Me Laugh. That's where I know her from. And she's going to be in that show as well, which I'm excited for Katie Holmes, but maybe more excited for Sarah Cooper. I sat front row for American Buffalo this year. And to see Sam Rockwell work from 10 feet away is one of the like, that was a life-changing experience for me.

It was a masterclass in being present in the moment and just watching him wander around that stage and just mess with crap and be in the moment. And I was at the production where the chair broke. So they sat down on the chair and it broke and then like without missing a beat, Lawrence Fishburne and Sam were just like, they were just messing with the chair, continuing their dialogue, trying to figure out what if they could fix it while they were going on with the whole story. And it was just this incredible experience that I saw it. I saw it with James Harkness, you know, from Ain't Too Proud.

[24:09] Alan Seales: Love James Harkness. James Harkness, if you're listening, I love you so much.

[24:13] Diana Salameh: James is the best. So yeah, James and I went and we were afterwards, we were just like, watching Sam work was so inspirational and so great. Like he's on my bucket list for this podcast. I would love to talk to Sam.

[24:24] Alan Seales: All right. Well, hopefully, hopefully someone out there is listening and get him on here. I love to sit. I don't know about you. We've sat really close to the stage before together. You could not get me closer to a stage if you tried. Like I want to be right up front for everything. Opening night of Mr. Saturday Night with Billy Crystal, another amazing star that we had on Broadway this year, kindest, funniest, hardest working man in show business. We were sat in the front row and someone apologized to us and said, I'm so sorry, we had to put you in the first row. And I'm like, are you kidding me? Like you could sit me in Billy Crystal's living room on stage and it will not be close enough. It's I love to sit.

I love to sit as close as possible to the stage. So does my best friend John. He we sit very close to the stage whenever possible. Obviously, you miss something sitting that close, but you gain a lot by like someone's facial expressions and what they're seeing. So I love mentioning shows that I've seen that I didn't record like Mr. Saturday Night. I saw it. I didn't have down and Funny Girl. I didn't have down on my list. Yeah. So I've I'm adding these to my list. I guess I didn't look close enough. It was a big year of theater. Alan, did you see one of the best musicals of the year MJ?

[25:35] Diana Salameh: Of course. Wow. I did. I did. I did. I know there's mixed feelings about MJ and I tell people purely from an objective standpoint of all of the elemental pieces that have to work together to make a good musical. MJ is at the top. Yeah. It is so amazing and the talent that Miles Frost has in his pinky is more than any of us have put together. Just absolutely incredible and there was something else I wanna touch on too that on June 12th, I was red carpet and press room for the Tony Awards. So I got to talk with Miles. I got to talk with Joaquin Calicango with like and I was actually right next to the two of them before they went on Mike to talk about their speeches and stuff or to talk about the awards.

They were they had met each other for the first time standing right behind me. So I was watching them meet each other for the first time both holding their Tony Awards and it was it was one of those moments that I will never forget and you you can't describe it. It's just like being a fly on the wall to watch two of them like the two people identified as the most talented people of this season literally meeting each other for the first time and gushing each other and it was just it was so so incredible and so much fun to watch.

[27:02] Alan Seales: I love that. I love that. I feel there's a lot of things that we've talked about today that are just defined as pure joy. That moment, a lot of the shows, all these moments of coming to Broadway. So just after such a tumultuous couple of years, it's so nice to see that.

[27:14] Diana Salameh: Yeah, I enjoy that we're getting back to a little bit of normalcy. Mm hmm. In that, you know, at least we can make it to the end of scheduled runs and tourism is picking back up but you know, we're not out of the woods like we still deal with COVID. I think it's gonna be forever. I really do think it's gonna be forever like like every year we have flu and cold. I think every year we're gonna have resurgence of COVID.

[27:36] Alan Seales: Yeah and we'll learn more and hopefully we'll find ways of managing it so that people are not getting really sick and hopefully it's not as fatal as it was but I think you're right too. I think we're in this like transitional moment in the world where we're learning to live with something that we hadn't lived with before. I mean, our generation, we have not experienced war or famine or a lot of the other things that generations prior to us have experienced like this in so many ways is our war that we're experiencing but let's not talk about the sad stuff.

[28:07] Diana Salameh: Let's talk about the heart. Heart heals. I said that all through every interview that I had all through COVID. Somehow, I still managed to release one a week since October 2018, right?

[28:22] Alan Seales: Bravo.

[28:23] Diana Salameh: And thank you and throughout COVID, throughout all of the times when we shifted to remote interviews and people were disconnected and down and depressed and we always came back to the fact that that art is a shared experience. Theater is a shared experience. Art heals. It brings us together and you don't even have to speak the same language and you can feel the same thing and that's utterly important to just the betterment of our society and our interpersonal relationships in general. So, I applaud everyone, all the producers who took risks, all of the investors who took risks knowing that they were never gonna see their money back. They just wanted to create art and create music and create shows. So, there's a lot going on in this business of show business that I think a lot of people just take for granted.

[29:10] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[29:11] Diana Salameh: Have you seen Some Like It Hot yet?

[29:14] Alan Seales: Yes, I saw it about a month ago. Yes. Speaking of like big, amazing, takes a village effort. That show, the tap dancing in that show alone is unbelievable. The way that cast can just keep going. That the title song that that closes out act one. You think they're done and then they keep going and then you think they're done again and they keep going again and they just come back and come back and come back and I that show makes me smile every time I see it. I really really loved it and and um my interview with Jason J. Harris and G. Mm hmm. Uh my interview with him, he was he was telling me that um well, they I guess, yeah, it was, they were telling me that my interview was first time they came out as non-binary. So, it was at that point in time and now to see Jay's translation of their real life experience into that character which by the way was based on a movie that came out what in the fifties, right?

[30:24] Diana Salameh: Yeah.

[30:25] Alan Seales: Like phenomenal that this happened about you know, a man transitioning to be non-binary or be a woman in the fifties that was well received but to see Jay's performance like again, Jay and Bonnie right there like these these two people who no matter what are going to need the most stage time ever.

[30:43] Diana Salameh: Yeah. From your lips. Please someone, are you listening? But Jay's performance, I mean, I'm not discounting like Christian Borle, of course, is Christian Borle and phenomenal um but the way that Jay's character is written and the way that Jay translates this, it touches every part of all of the feels that I've got watching that transformation during that show.

[31:04] Alan Seales: Yeah, that's a great example of how the writers of that show um Matthew Lopez who just won a Tony Award for The Inheritance and Amber Ruffin of The Amber Ruffin Show. They did a really great job of keeping it true to the film, keeping it true to the time period but also giving it a modern lens as we as we you know, look back on that time nearly 100 years ago in the film of Some Like It Hot, that character of Jerry Daphne doesn't have quite the same evolution. There are a couple lines that are said here and there but the way they've been able to translate this to stay true but also evolve with a modern lens has been great. I have no doubt that Jay has been a part of that process as it's come together and um Jay sings an incredible number in the second act.

He can knock me over with a feather and I was there on first preview and instantly, I was like, I'm gonna be the first person to stand up. I couldn't because everybody beat me to it. People just leapt to their feet on a standing ovation for Jay and um my uh 2023 prediction is that we're gonna see more of Jay and Jay's performance recognized in award season.

[32:15] Diana Salameh: Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. A nomination of for and all of the awards. I'm putting that out there because it is so so so well-deserved.

[32:23] Alan Seales: Absolutely. Um gosh, there's so many that I see that we've I've seen that I I wanna talk about How I Learned to Drive of course.

[32:30] Diana Salameh: Yeah. Um again, David Morse, his character is just this despicable pedophile but you end up feeling sorry for him at the end of it and and like I think that this the the way that speaks to his talent as an actor that you can have that much compassion for someone who's doing something so wrong is incredible. It's incredible to watch that. Did you get to see that one?

[33:05] Alan Seales: I saw it and I was pretty wrecked by the end of it in confusion and empathy and anger and a lot of feelings leaving that production. So many people saw that production I think 20 years ago when they originated those roles and got to see it again. I'm I'm jealous and envious of those people who could compare those performances but uh that was an absolute highlight of 2022 for me. How I Learned to Drive.

[33:22] Diana Salameh: Yeah, that was great. I mean, I I think Kpop got a bad rap. I really liked Kpop. It was so different and it pushed a lot of boundaries. I don't know if this was, I don't know enough about the backstory. I didn't see it at Ars Nova. I didn't see it off Broadway so I don't I don't have anything to compare it to um but it it worked enough for me on Broadway but apparently obviously did not work enough for others. Did you get, did you have the chance to see it off Broadway?

[33:45] Alan Seales: I didn't have the chance to see it off Broadway or on Broadway. Um that's one that I am sad to have missed this year but alas, there are only 365 days a year. Not enough days to make it to see everything um but I'm sad I missed it and the buzz around it. People were having a great time at Kpop.

[34:05] Diana Salameh: Yeah. Yeah.

[34:06] Diana Salameh: It's weird because this speaks to a lot of the accessibility issues that you have shows like Hamilton that do try to address with like busing in underprivileged schools or whatever the case is to see these shows and give these experiences. And I think the average ticket goer for K-pop was not able to afford the average Broadway price. And so that may be why it did so much better off-Broadway in terms of ticket sales. But obviously, the feedback that I heard was that just it was more immersive and it was more interactive. And I worry about that with Titanic as well. Titanic is one of my favorite, favorite off-Broadway shows. And it's selling out like crazy. It's been extended like three times now.

And it's transferred from one theater from the Asylum, which was a tiny, you know, below Gristini's in Chelsea. Now to the Daryl Roth, which is a huge thing. And then I like I know the cast and the cast is like, it doesn't quite work now that we're in front of like a bigger audience. It needs to be more immersive. And I'm like, well, it works just in a different way. So I hope Titanic stays where it is with a redesigned set. I don't think it's going to work on Broadway. We will. We shall see. But who knows if it's going to if there's plans? We shall see. We also had some pretty big stars come to Broadway this year in 2022. Obviously, we've talked about Billy Crystal already, but Hugh Jackman, Daniel Craig. Have you heard of them? They were on Broadway this year, too.

[35:31] Alan Seales: Yeah, they've done a couple of things. Music Man is one of the three movies that like VHS tapes that I wore out as a kid that got me into theater. So there's West Side Story, Music Man, A Singing in the Rain. Side note, hashtag revival singing in the rain. Let's start that now. No one's on Twitter, so no one's going to see your hashtag, but let's start it.

[35:52] Diana Salameh: All right. Tick tock. We'll tick tock trend it. Yeah, there you go.

[35:55] Alan Seales: That's what the kids do, right? And so Sutton, I think, was so underutilized. That's another one of these roles where I'm like, geez, it's wasted. This character is wasted in this show because Sutton made, I think, one of my favorite moments near the end when Sutton's trying to seduce the evil salesman to try to make him miss his train, remember? And so there's no lines, so she's not doing the script. And that was the funniest moment to me because she got to be Sutton for just a little bit. She got to be true Sutton. I'm like, oh, there she is. There she is. That was great. She is a master of musical theater. There were a few of those moments for me watching Sutton on stage where I could tell that she just brought something.

She made it her own in those moments. I was like an 80-year-old woman from Long Island at The Music Man. The Wells Fargo wagon comes out. I'm slapping my knee. I'm so joyful. I'm smiling ear to ear under my mask. That show made me so happy. Do I think that Hugh and Sutton were perfect for those roles? I don't know. But did they make me happy? Abso... I was going to say a curse word. Can I say a curse word on this podcast? Abso-fucking-lutely. They made me so happy at that show. Yeah. Who else? Who else was big? Daniel Craig, of course, like you mentioned. I had a drink with Daniel Craig at a bar.

[37:29] Diana Salameh: Shut up.

[37:30] Alan Seales: Yeah. I was drinking water, but he got a martini. I just watched the new Knives Out movie the other night. So now I'm all in Daniel Craig mode again.

[37:37] Diana Salameh: Yeah. I have not seen it yet. He also another one who's like a master of his craft. I was in the theater one day when he was getting ready for the performance. He was on stage with Ruth Mega. They were just doing some warmups and getting in character and the focus. He's like a classically trained actor. I loved watching that part of the process and seeing him get ready for Shakespeare on stage. That's one of the shows that I missed too. I never got to see the Scottish play. I'm not scared. I'll call it Macbeth.

[38:14] Alan Seales: There you go. Well, we're not a theater right now anyway. Macbeth, Macbeth, Macbeth. All the world's a stage. All the world's a stage. Gosh, I'm trying to think if I had a favorite. There's different things I like for different reasons. One of my most just like no complaints, I walked away with a smile on my face recently was Ann Juliet. Oh my gosh. So much fun. Just fun, right? Because every song is already a proven hit. Like go fine. Yeah, it's female empowerment. It's a twist on the classic Romeo and Juliet that you already know. And every song that is sung is a song you've already heard because it's been number one on the Billboard charts or close to it over the last 30 years. So it's just I think it's so well put together and the costumes are great and the way that I think it's the way that a solo song when turned into a duet completely changes the meaning is so much fun to play, to use that word play.

Like I Want It That Way turns into an argument between Will Shakespeare and his wife, really named Ann Hathaway. So Ann and Will are arguing saying, I want it that way. No, I want it that way. And it's the best thing. And they start out the damn show with this like near the top, right? And it's just like, okay, this is what it's going to be. I like it. It is the Mamma Mia of our time. I love it. I'd go back any night of the week. Next time I'm feeling sad, remind me to go to Ann Juliet.

[39:51] Diana Salameh: Okay. Okay. Well, we have talked, gosh, we've been talking for a long time. So let's wrap this up. Let's see. So if you had to pick a top, top show from what you've seen in 2022 to see over and over again, once a week for all of next year, what would you pick?

[40:07] Alan Seales: Do I only get to pick one?

[40:10] Diana Salameh: Yes, you have to pick one.

[40:16] Alan Seales: This is hard. How dare you? Alan, this is a really hard question, but like I started this podcast by saying 2022 is the year of into the woods. And for me, it's going to be more of that joy. I want that cast to rotate through every week to be different, but that's the show that I would see once a week, every week for all of 2023, if I could.

[40:35] Diana Salameh: Wow. Well now, okay. Next week, seriously, we got to go because-

[40:38] Alan Seales: We have to go. We have to go.

[40:40] Diana Salameh: I need to feel this power and this passion.

[40:42] Alan Seales: Yes. Yes.

[40:44] Diana Salameh: I was going to say it's a toss up between Some Like It Hot and Ann Juliet.

[40:48] Alan Seales: Wait, you don't get to pick two. I wanted to pick more than one.

[40:52] Diana Salameh: Okay. Ann Juliet then. Ann Juliet, because every time I listen, I've been listening to the cast album now. And I also love the trend of having cast albums come out when the show opens or before it, because now with COVID and everything, people have had time to slow down and plan ahead, which is great. And we've also got some cast albums that are dropping before the show. That's the announcement of the show, which is incredible. But anyway, so I think I'll go with Ann Juliet just because there's so many layers to it and representations there with non-binary characters and female empowerment. And you know the story of Romeo and Juliet and it's pop songs with classical theater thrown in. And it's just, it's a little bit of everything that somehow just works. And I really like it.

[41:40] Alan Seales: Great. I love that. What are you most looking forward to in 2023? I know this is your podcast, but I'm going to do some of the interviewing. Pick one. One show. It's all you've got.

[41:51] Diana Salameh: Back to the Future.

[41:58] Alan Seales: Back to the Future. Okay. Yeah. I'm going with Back to the Future because again, that's one of those like iconic childhood things that you just, if it's right, it's right. And it's going to bring back all the feels. And so along those lines too, someone should be developing a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle musical too. I think you're the one to do that. I believe in it.

[42:13] Diana Salameh: All right. It could just be called The Secret of Views, the musical.

[42:18] Alan Seales: Yeah. Good luck with your ticket sales.

[42:25] Diana Salameh: That was the title of the second movie, The Secret of Views. Yes, because so many people know that.

[42:31] Alan Seales: Oh, come on. Did you not see, okay, along with not seeing Back to the Future, did you also not see TMNT? I mean, I watched it as a kid on like Saturday mornings.

[42:36] Diana Salameh: No, no, not the cartoons, like the full movies with the actors in the suits doing real martial arts. You didn't watch any of that?

[42:46] Alan Seales: I think my answer to that is no.

[42:46] Diana Salameh: My answer to that is no. But I will tell you, I liked the orange turtle and the pink turtle.

[42:52] Alan Seales: Okay. Leonardo, Dantello, Raphael, Michelangelo. Those are the four of them. But there was a girl turtle at one point.

[42:59] Diana Salameh: In the cartoon? Yeah. She had pink on.

[43:06] Alan Seales: Yeah. Okay. So the cartoon took liberties with the original story and that's okay. That's okay. But I'm still, I'm true to the first two of the three movies. The third one was low budget and they went in the past, they time traveled, it was horrible. But one and two, obviously very good.

[43:23] Diana Salameh: Fine, fine, fine. I wish you luck on your Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle musical. I hope it's a musical, not a play.

[43:28] Alan Seales: Oh, yeah. You can't have TMNT as a play. That just gets way too experimental.

[43:33] Diana Salameh: Way too dark, way too dark. I'm going to answer my own question and say that 2023, I'm most looking forward to Shocked.

[43:39] Alan Seales: Yeah. I want to laugh. The music is so good. Written by a Nashville songwriting duo, Brandi Clark and Shane McAnally. So that's my 2023 joy.

[43:53] Diana Salameh: That should be fun. I cannot wait for that as well. I've heard Only Good Things a lot from you.

[43:59] Alan Seales: Cool. Well, for everybody listening, happy new year. Thanks for listening. Thanks for sticking out this podcast with me and with all the guests. And gosh, I'm pulling up my spreadsheet here. This is going to be episode 247. Can you believe that? 247 plus like 20 or 25 bonus episodes that weren't numbered at some point. But I am grateful for everybody listening and for the continued support of the guests and the industry. And of course, I don't know, Diana, Salome, you're the best.

[44:36] Diana Salameh: You're the best, Alan. I'm so proud of you as you talk about that 247 episodes, bonus episodes not included there, building up the Broadway podcast network. I am so proud of you. So I toast to you and happy, happy new year.

[44:49] Alan Seales: Happy new year to you and everybody listening and be safe. And I don't know, what do they always say on Saturday mornings? Get a designated driver? No, they wouldn't say that. Saturday mornings? Kids.

[45:04] Diana Salameh: Don't drink and drive, folks. Say no to drugs. I don't know. Anyway.

[45:14] Alan Seales: Do you know where your children are?

[45:17] Diana Salameh: Oh, yeah. It's 10 p.m. Do you know where your children are? That was always the creepy part.

[45:20] Alan Seales: So creepy. Right?