Tony-nominee and theatre mainstay, Nancy Opel joins us for our first ever pizza party! You Might Know Her From Urinetown, The Toxic Avenger, Honeymoon in Vegas, Sunday in the Park with George, Fiddler on the Roof, and numerous David Ives productions. Nancy generously walked us through the Urinetown experience as it is an all time favorite theatrical piece for both Damian and Anne. Nancy also dished on making her Broadway debut as Patti LuPone’s cover in Evita, being unable to hear her co-stars in The Ice Storm, and becoming the go-to replacement for heavy hitting roles on Broadway. It was a true privilege! 

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Discussed this week:

Nancy Opel IBDB

Stop buying masks, the CDC needs them!

Ryan Haggett presented me w/ the Celine tank I didn’t buy in Vegas

Janet Jackson on tour this summer

Nancy flew herself to NYC to audition for Juilliard and got in

Urinetown (Mark Hollmann & Greg Kotis)

“It’s a Privilege to Pee” from OBC

Urinetown bootleg Nancy Opel’s “It’s a Privilege to Pee” starts at 9:30 twitch of the foot @13:02

Jeff McCarthy (Officer Lockstock) didn’t initially love Urinetown

The Toxic Avenger musical (music by David Bryan of Bon Jovi)

David Ives All in the Timing, Polish Joke, Time Flies) 

Fresh out of Juilliard, Nancy was Patti LuPone’s second cover for Evita on Broadway (only role as demanding is Elphaba in Wicked)

Derrick Baskin in Ain’t Too Proud (did Memphis with Nancy)

After Evita, she did Sunday in the Park with George (Sondheim)

Brent Spiner (Data in Star Trek) was her co-star in SITPWG

Last minute additions to SITPWG: “Lesson #8” || “Children and Art”Gypsy at City Center with Patti LuPone (directed by Arthur Laurents, who wrote the libretto)

Nancy has stepped into many shows: Beautiful, Cinderella, Wicked, Memphis, Fiddler

Nancy replaced Barbara Barrie in the 2004 Revival of Fiddler on the Roof with Alfred Molina & Randy Graff

“Tradition” one of the most famous opening numbers in Broadway history

“Topsy Turvy” added to Fiddler revival

Harvey Fierstein and Rosie O’Donnell came into Fiddler

The Ice Storm (Sigourney Weaver, Joan Allen, Kevin Kline)

Dippity Doo on the windows to recreate ice

Liz Larsen originated the mom (Genie Klein) in Beautiful

Nancy Opel is an audition coach

Pink made “flying” a career

Singing while flying upside down in Honeymoon in Vegas

The Heaviside Layer