The Fabulous Invalid

On this week’s show, Jamie and Rob are back at Orso Restaurant with legendary actor Len Cariou. With a career spanning over five decades, Len created roles in “Applause” and “A Little Night Music” before his Tony and Drama Desk Award winning turn as the title character in “Sweeney Todd”. Len is currently starring Off-Broadway in “Harry Townsend’s Last Stand”, and can also be seen on CBS’s hit dram...

On this week’s show, Jamie, Rob, and Jennifer chat with playwright Theresa Rebeck about her smashing new play, “Seared” at MCC Theater. Theresa was also the creator of the television show “Smash”, and is the award winning playwright of “Mauritius”, “Bernhardt / Hamlet”, “Seminar”, and “Dead Accounts” on Broadway, and “Omnium Gatherum”, “A View of the Dome” Off-Broadway. We discuss all things food,...

On this week’s show, Rob and Jamie spotlight “Soft Power”, the innovative new “musical-within-a-play” currently playing at the Public Theater. They are joined by playwright and lyricist David Henry Hwang, director Leigh Silverman, and two of the show’s stars: Francis Jue and Alyse Alan Louis. Together, they discuss the unique structure of the piece, its inception and content, changes made from Cal...

Part two of a special, two-part episode of “The Fabulous Invalid”, Jamie and Rob take an in depth look at the life, work, and legacies of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon by talking with actors and dancers who knew and worked with them.  From their first auditions to memorable experiences in the rehearsal room and in performance, Mimi Quillin, Jane Lanier, Chet Walker, and John Rubenstein—along with Bett...

For a special, two-part episode of “The Fabulous Invalid”, Jamie and Rob take an in depth look at the life, work, and legacies of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon by talking with actors and dancers who knew and worked with them.  From their first auditions to memorable experiences in the rehearsal room and in performance, Mimi Quillin, Jane Lanier, Chet Walker, and John Rubenstein—along with Betty Buckle...

On this week’s show Jennifer, Jamie and Rob sit down with legendary dancer, singer, actor, choreographer, and all around show stopper, Tony Award winner Donna McKechnie. The group discusses Donna’s amazing career, from “How to Succeed” to Paper Mill’s “Follies”, including the creation of her signature numbers: “Turkey Lurkey Time”, “Tick Tock”, and “The Music and the Mirror”. Finally, Rob gives us...

This week, Jamie and Rob travel to California to visit Pasadena Playhouse and chat with Danny Feldman, Producing Artistic Director. Together, they discuss Danny’s time with the Playhouse and their current production of “Little Shop of Horrors.” A bit later, cast member George Salazar chats about his take on playing Seymour in “Little Shop”, working at the Playhouse, and what life is like post-“Be...

On this week’s episode, Jennifer, Jamie, and Rob sit down with one of the American theatre’s greatest leading men: Norm Lewis. A veteran of twelve Broadway shows, Norm talks about his versatile career, the controversy around “Porgy and Bess”, making history in “The Phantom of the Opera”, and his latest concert with The New York Pops. Before Norm joins the group, they discuss BCEFA’s annual Flea Ma...

Jamie and Rob are back at Orso Restaurant with six-time Tony Award-winning costume designer William Ivey Long. Together, they discuss William’s long and illustrious career on Broadway, with over seventy-five shows to his credit including: “Nine”, “Chicago”, “Hairspray”, and last season’s “Beetlejuice” and “Tootsie”. William shares his inspiration and process, and the secrets of a good fitting! Thi...

On a special bonus episode, Jamie and Rob discuss the fall season on Broadway, including all of the new plays, play revivals, musicals, magic, and special events opening on the Great White Way over the next several months.  This week’s music: “Welcome To The Moulin Rouge” from “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”, “The Wrong Man”, Ross Golan, “(Simply) The Best” from “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, Origina...

Jamie, Rob, and Jennifer kick off season two of The Fabulous Invalid by traveling up to Boston to sit down with star of stage and screen Betty Buckley during the final stop of her run as Dolly Levi in the national tour of “Hello, Dolly!”. Together, they discuss Betty’s illustrious career, what it’s like going on the road at age seventy, and learning new skill sets. We discover the secrets behind B...

On a special summer bonus episode, Jamie and Rob travel up to Garrison, New York to experience the magic of the Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival. After a picnic on the great lawn at Boscobel House and Gardens, and a performance of “Much Ado About Nothing”, they speak with conservatory company member Kayla Coleman, Director of Education and company member Sean McNall, and Artistic Director Davis...

For the season one finale, Jamie, Rob, and Jennifer sit down for an exclusive interview with former First Lady, Senator, Secretary of State, presidential candidate, and Broadway’s biggest fan Hillary Rodham Clinton. They discuss theater and politics (what’s the difference?) and dive deep into Secretary Clinton’s lifelong love of the arts. Then, Jamie gives us a little background on Rob. And that’s...

On this week’s episode, Rob, Jamie, and Leslie—and a couple of special guests—recap the 2019 Tony Awards live from the O&M “After After Party” at The Carlyle Hotel. This Week’s Music: “Well Did You Evah” from the film “High Society,” ”Livin’ It Up On Top” and “Wait For Me” from Hadestown, Leslie Kritzer singing “Day-O” and “No Reason” from Beetlejuice, “Just My Imagination” from Ain’t Too Proud: T...

On this week’s episode, Rob and Jamie are back at Orso for one final time this season. They are joined by actor and producer Tom Hulce who was nominated for an Academy Award for his portrayal of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the film “Amadeus,” and is the producer of the Broadway hits Spring Awakening, American Idiot, and this season’s 12-time Tony Award-nominated sensation Ain’t Too Proud: The Life...

On this week’s episode, Rob and Jamie go over Rob’s “Stage Left” 2019 Tony Award predictions of who “should win” vs. who “will win” in each of the 26 Tony Award categories. Agree? Disagree? Let us know on social media! Find us on Twitter & Instagram: @fabulousinvalid Facebook: www.facebook.com/fabulousinvalid Rob’s reviews: www.stageleft.nyc Email us at: info@fabulousinvalid.com  Jamie Du Mont Twi...

On this week’s episode, Mr. Wiz himself, André De Shields, joins Jamie and Rob for dinner at Orso Restaurant to discuss his 50 year career as a performing artist during which he has played such seminal roles as The Wiz in “The Wiz,” The Viper in Ain’t Misbehavin’, The Jester in Play On!, Horse in “The Full Monty”, and his current Tony-nominated role as Hermes in Hadestown on Broadway. Take a seat,...

On this week’s episode, Rob, and Jamie sit down with Mark Swartz, the Archive Director of The Shubert Archive. Since the mid-'70s, The Shubert Archive has processed and cataloged over one hundred years of theater history, including costume and set designs, scripts, music, publicity materials, photographs, correspondence, business records, and architectural plans. Mark discusses the history of the...

On this week’s episode, Rob, Jennifer, Jamie, and guest co-host Jo Ann Venezano sit down with Jennifer Laura Thompson and Michael Park, stars of Dear Evan Hansen. Jo Ann, who won an Audience Rewards contest to come on our show, is a “Super Fan” or “Extreme Theatergoer” as The New Yorker characterized her; she has seen Dear Evan Hansen 45 times and Spring Awakening over 500 hundred times. Michael P...

On this week’s episode, Rob, Jennifer, and Jamie talk to Broadway casting director, Tara Rubin. For over thirty years, Tara has been casting Broadway shows like The Phantom of the Opera, Cats, Jersey Boys, Dear Evan Hansen, and this season’s hit Ain’t To Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. We talk to Tara about how she got her start, what it’s like working on The Phantom of the Opera for...

On this week’s episode, Rob and Jamie talk to director extraordinaire, Des McAnuff. Over nearly four decades, Des has directed such smash hits as Big River, The Who’s Tommy, Jersey Boys, and this season’s hit Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations. We talk to Des about directing, running a regional theater, and how you don’t say “no” when Otis Williams asks you to direct a show abo...

On this week’s episode, Jamie, Jennifer, and Rob sit down with Tony Award-winning choreographer, Warren Carlyle. Warren talks about his incredible career including his current show Kiss Me, Kate. Before that, we chat about MCC’s Miscast, drawing boundaries, and What the Constitution Means to Me. And a bit later, Rob gives some history on your favorite choreographers.   This week’s music: Eva Noble...

On this week’s episode, Jamie and Rob come to you from the Curran Theatre in San Francisco where they caught a production of The Jungle and sat down with playwright Joe Robertson, founding co-artistic director of Good Chance Theatre, which connects people, stories, and cultures with a focus on refugee populations. The Jungle grew out of the seven months Joe Robertson and Joe Murphy spent running a...

This week, Jamie and Rob are joined by Ted Sperling and John Miller, the music director and artistic advisor, respectively, of the new NYU Broadway Orchestra, a program to train the next generation of pit musicians. Ted is a musical director, supervisor, conductor, arranger, composer, and orchestrator extraordinaire with 15 Broadway credits under his belt, including the current revival of My Fair...

This week, Jamie and Rob sit down with Broadway legend Beth Leavel. We discuss her incredible career, including 13 Broadway roles, and her current star turn in The Prom. Beth talks about her first Broadway audition (for Cats), creating new roles, including two written specifically for her, playing “divas,” and what makes Dee Dee Allen tick. Before we chat with Beth, Rob and Jamie talk about a rece...