Why I‘ll Never Make It Patrick Oliver Jones

In the previous episode you heard from Conor Tague, one of the stars from the Broadway musical How to Dance in Ohio. He shared his experiences in that history-making production as well as the struggles he faced early on as an actor, both at school and in the audition room. Well, now Conor is back to talk more about his Broadway debut and share how auditioning is still a challenge for him by answering the Final Five questions in this bonus episode.
To listen to bonus content like Auditions Stories and get early access to these full conversations ad-free, become a subscriber by going to whyillnevermakeit.com and click Subscribe.
Podcast theme music created by host and producer Patrick Oliver Jones.
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Every Broadway season, one of the most heated discussions about the Tony Awards centers the snubs—those notable shows that didn’t get any nominations. This year they include musicals like The Wiz, Harmony, and The Heart of Rock and Roll. Another one of those shows that was left out made history as being the first Broadway musical to cast autistic actors in autistic roles, and it was called How to Dance in Ohio, based on a Peabody Award-winning documentary of the same name. And today's guest is one of the stars of the musical, Conor Tague.
The musical dates back to early 2018 when the legendary Harold Prince announced he was working on a musical adaptation of the film. But after Prince died the following year, it was Sammi Cannold, a former guest of this podcast, who took over as the show’s director.
How to Dance is the real-life story of a group of young autistic adults and their families as they prepare for their first-ever formal dance. They face challenges and changes to their routines, and they experience all the things you go through when it comes to formal dances and asking someone out on a date—the love and stress and excitement of it all. The musical began previews on November of 2023, officially opening the following month, and played through February of this year. 
Though completely shut out of the Tony Awards, How to Dance did receive Drama Desk nominations for Outstanding Book of a Musical (Rebekah Greer Melocik) and Outstanding Lead Performance (Liam Pearce). Conor and I talk about his experience with the show, but we also dig into his background and how his autism may be a unique and important part of him, but it’s also just one facet of who he is as person and performer.
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Why I’ll Never Make It is an award-winning, Top Theater Podcast with actor and singer Patrick Oliver Jones and is a production of WINMI Media. Background music is by John Bartmann and Blue Dot Sessions and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
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Last week you heard from theater director Des McAnuff as he shared his experiences with three of his biggest shows, Tommy, Jersey Boys, and Big River. We discussed his approach to each of these unique musicals. Well, now Des is back to talk his musicianship and his composition efforts as well as share the lessons and insecurities he’s discovered in the director’s chair by answering the Final Five Questions in this bonus episode of Why I’ll Never Make It.
To listen to bonus content like Auditions Stories and get early access to these full conversations ad-free, become a subscriber by going to whyillnevermakeit.com and click Subscribe.
Podcast theme music created by host and producer Patrick Oliver Jones.
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The Who's Tommy is back on Broadway for its first revival, 30 years after the original production. And directing this revival is the original director from that first Broadway run, Des McAnuff. While he is known for his work in musicals, he is also quite adept in the works of Shakespeare and other classical works, having been Artistic Director of Canada‘s Stratford Festival.
And we will touch on some of his other projects, but today’s conversation will mostly focus on three of his standout shows: Tommy and this season’s revival of it, the Best Musical smash hit Jersey Boys, and his Broadway debut and first Tony award for Big River. We talk about his penchant for doing musicals that feature pop music scores, and why some people look down on “jukebox musicals.”
(03:14) The Dodgers theatrical group and his directing in Canada
(08:53) Story #1 - Tommy
(25:43) Story #2 - Jersey Boys
(36:18) Story #3 - Big River
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Subscribe to get early and ad-free access to the full conversation with each guest, which includes the auditions stories that are only available to subscribers.

You can also donate to WINMI and help further podcast production with a one-time or ongoing contribution.

If you'd like to support WINMI but have limited funds to do so, then contact me directly for reduced-price or even free access to the bonus content.


Follow WINMI: Website | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube

Why I’ll Never Make It is an award-winning, Top Theater Podcast with actor and singer Patrick Oliver Jones and is a production of WINMI Media. Background music is by John Bartmann and Blue Dot Sessions and is used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the previous episode, you heard theater producer and historian Jack Viertel share stories of how his talents and interests weren’t in acting, his interactions with playwrights like Lanford Wilson, and the process of adapting a novel into a musical. Now he’s back to talk about his new book Broadway Melody as well as share more lessons learned by answering the Final Five Questions in this bonus episode of Why I’ll Never Make It.
To listen to bonus content like Auditions Stories and get early access to these full conversations ad-free, become a subscriber by going to whyillnevermakeit.com and click Subscribe.
Podcast theme music created by host and producer Patrick Oliver Jones.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jack Viertel has the kind of knowledge I wish I had about Broadway history, having studied the various journeys of great shows for his book The Secret Life of the American Musical, but he’s also worked with playwrights like August Wilson and Tony Kushner. He’s even conceived the long running Smokey Joe's Café and the critically acclaimed After Midnight and served as dramaturg as well for Hairspray and Dear Evan Hansen. And through his many colleagues over the years he’s learned the fine art of collaboration. 

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If you'd like to support WINMI but have limited funds to do so, then contact me directly for reduced-price or even free access to the bonus content.

 
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Why I’ll Never Make It is an award-winning, Top Theater Podcast with actor and singer Patrick Oliver Jones and is a production of WINMI Media. Background music is by John Bartmann and Blue Dot Sessions is used under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices