ALAN SEALES: Hey, everybody.
I'm Alan Seales with the
Talks at Google program.
Thank you for coming out on this
wonderful move and movie day.
Can't beat live theater.
This is wonderful.
So without further ado, winner
of the Tony triple crown
for best musical, best
score, and best book,
"Avenue Q" is part flesh, part
felt, and packed with heart.
Please welcome the
cast of "Avenue Q."
ROD: Ah.
An afternoon alone
with my favorite book,
"Broadway Musicals
of the 1940s."
No roommate to bother me.
How could it get any
better than this?
NICKY: Oh.
Hi, Rod.
ROD: Hi, Nicky.
NICKY: Hey, Rod.
You'll never guess what
happened to me on the subway
this morning.
This guy was smiling at
me and talking to me.
ROD: Mm, that's
very interesting.
NICKY: Mm-hm.
He was being real friendly.
And, you know, I think
he was coming onto me.
I think he might have
thought I was gay.
Ha.
ROD: So why are you telling me?
Why should I care?
I don't care.
What'd you have for lunch today?
NICKY: Oh, Rod, there's no
need to get all defensive.
ROD: I'm not getting defensive.
What do I care about
some gay guy you met, hm?
I am trying to read.
NICKY: I didn't mean
anything by it, Rod.
I just think it's something we
should be able to talk about.
ROD: Well, I do not want to
talk about it, OK, Nicky?
This conversation is over.
NICKY: Yeah, but Rod--
ROD: Over!
[MUSIC_-_"IF_YOU_WERE_GAY"]
ROD: Nicky, please.
I am trying to read.
What?
[MUSIC_-_"IF_YOU_WERE_GAY"]
ROD: I am not listening.
La la la la.
[MUSIC_-_"IF_YOU_WERE_GAY"]
NICKY: Ow.
OK, bye, everyone.
I have to go this way.
ROD: I'll be back.
VERONICA KUEHN: Hi, everybody.
I'm Veronica Kuehn and
I play Kate Monster.
And this next song
is about Kate,
who has become a kindergarten
teaching assistant.
She's about to teach her
very first class by herself.
She would like to talk
about the internet,
and Trekkie Monster
has some other ideas.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
KATE MONSTER: Finally, I
get to teach a whole lesson
all by myself.
And I'm going to teach something
modern, something relevant.
The internet.
[MUSIC - "THE
INTERNET IS FOR PORN"]
KATE MONSTER: Trekkie Monster.
TREKKIE MONSTER: Uh, what?
KATE MONSTER: Get over here.
TREKKIE MONSTER: Yeah, yeah.
KATE MONSTER: You
are ruining my song.
TREKKIE MONSTER: Oh, me sorry.
Me know mean to.
KATE MONSTER: Well,
if you wouldn't mind
please being quiet for a
minute so I can finish?
TREKKIE MONSTER: Okey dokey.
KATE MONSTER: Good.
[MUSIC - "THE
INTERNET IS FOR PORN"]
KATE MONSTER: That is gross.
You're a pervert.
TREKKIE MONSTER: Sticks
and stones, Kate Monster.
KATE MONSTER: No, really.
You're a pervert.
Normal people don't sit
at home and look at porn
on the internet.
What?
TREKKIE MONSTER:
You have no idea.
Ready, normal people?
OTHERS: Ready.
[MUSIC - "THE
INTERNET IS FOR PORN"]
KATE MONSTER: Wait on a second.
Now, I happen to know for
a fact that you, Rod, check
your portfolio and
trade stocks online.
ROD: That's correct.
KATE MONSTER: And Brian, you
buy things on amazon.com.
BRIAN: Sure.
KATE MONSTER: And Gary, you
keep selling your possessions
on eBay.
GARY: Yes, I do.
KATE MONSTER: And
Princeton, you sent me
that sweet online birthday card.
PRINCETON: True.
TREKKIE MONSTER: Ah, but Kate,
what you think he do after?
Hm?
KATE MONSTER: Ew.
[MUSIC - "THE
INTERNET IS FOR PORN"]
SALA IWAMATSU: In
this part of the show,
Kate Monster, who has just
broken up with her boyfriend,
asks my character,
Christmas Eve,
who is a Japanese
therapist, for love advice.
KATE MONSTER: Why can't
people get along and love
each other, Christmas Eve?
CHRISTMAS EVE: You think
getting along same as loving?
Sometimes love right where
you hating most, Kate Monster.
KATE MONSTER: Huh?
[MUSIC - "THE MORE
YOU RUV SOMEONE"]
ALAN SEALES: Kate Monster.
KATE MONSTER: Hi.
ALAN SEALES: Can I speak
with you for a second?
KATE MONSTER: Sure.
ALAN SEALES: OK.
KATE MONSTER: Should
I come over there?
ALAN SEALES: Yes please.
They can set up
our chairs for us.
So in this show, if
you guys have not seen,
there is a seductress
who comes and steals
your man at one point?
KATE MONSTER: She does.
ALAN SEALES: How do you feel
about Lucy coming and taking
your man?
KATE MONSTER:
Well, she's a slut.
Did you know that?
That her full name
is "Lucy the Slut?"
ALAN SEALES: I did not, no.
KATE MONSTER: That's her
full name, Lucy the Slut.
And that's how I
feel about that.
ALAN SEALES: OK, so-- thank you.
The love scene that you have
with Princeton on stage--
KATE MONSTER: Oh, yes.
The first time you had to have
sex with Princeton on stage,
were you nervous?
KATE MONSTER: Well, I
was a little nervous.
But we were drinking a lot, so
that actually made it better.
We had some Long
Island iced teas.
We did.
ALAN SEALES: Lucy was not
there for that, right?
KATE MONSTER: No, she wasn't.
We saw her perform earlier,
and then we had some drinks.
And I took Princeton
home with me.
ALAN SEALES: OK.
Outside of the show,
are your friends
with all the other monsters?
Oh, yes.
Yes, all the monsters.
Trekkie, but also there's
Rod and Nicky and Princeton,
and everybody.
But we are.
We are all friends.
We live on Avenue Q.
ALAN SEALES: Well, very nice.
Well, thank you.
KATE MONSTER: Thank you.
Nice to meet everyone.
ALAN SEALES: Rod, can I
speak with you for a second?
ROD: Absolutely.
ALAN SEALES: So you and
Ricky, the other gentleman
in the show, you were
among the first couples
to be married outside
City Hall with the passage
of the same-sex marriage laws
in New York state, correct?
ROD: That's correct.
ALAN SEALES: So what this
experience like for you?
ROD: Well, groundbreaking,
to say the least.
As one of the first gay couples
in New York City to be married,
we were also the first
couple to be married too.
So that felt like we were
really groundbreaking for that
as well.
ALAN SEALES: So do you
think now that be openly gay
helps others come out and
deal with their own sexuality?
ROD: Absolutely.
And I hope that other
puppets come out too.
You know, it's very hard in
the puppet world to come out.
ALAN SEALES: OK,
thank you very much.
Trekkie, can I speak with you?
TREKKIE MONSTER: Careful.
ALAN SEALES: Oh, careful.
Careful.
Trekkie, do you
ever have moments
where you feel like you
are beside yourself?
TREKKIE MONSTER: Yes.
Sometimes back stage, it feels
like there's five or six of me.
ALAN SEALES: And you happen
to pop out at the same time.
Do you ever have
freak out moments
where you look to your
left or your right
and one of your hands
just doesn't work?
TREKKIE MONSTER: What-- the--
nope-- this one or this one.
No, my hands do exactly
what me want them to do.
ALAN SEALES: Very good.
And so you are a very good
investor-- a businessman,
correct?
TREKKIE MONSTER: Oh, yes.
ALAN SEALES: And what is
your primary investment?
TREKKIE MONSTER: Porn.
ALAN SEALES: Good, thank you.
All right, thank you.
All right, everybody.
Please excuse the puppets.
They have to be someone else.
And now, human-skin people, feel
free to come up and join me.
Human skin.
Can you guys go down the
line and just introduce
yourself and what
characters you play?
DARREN BLUESTONE: Sure.
I'm Darren Bluestone, and
I play Princeton and Rod.
DANIELLE THOMAS:
I'm Danielle Thomas,
and I play Gary Coleman.
Yes, that Gary Coleman.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Nicholas
Kohn, and I play Brian.
SALA IWAMATSU: My
name is Sala Iwamatsu,
and I play Christmas Eve.
VERONICA KUEHN: Veronica Kuehn.
I play Kate Mosnter
and Lucy the Slut.
JASON JACOBY: I'm Jason Jacoby.
I play Nicky, Trekkie Monster,
and a couple other characters
that are not here today.
JENNIFER BARNHART:
I'm Jennifer Barnhart.
I'm sort of the
puppet utility girl.
I right hand pretty
much everybody.
But I also play a school
teacher, Kate Monster's boss,
and her name is
Mrs. Thistletwat.
Thank you.
JED RESNICK: I'm Jed Resnick
and I am the ensemble,
and I understudy all
the boys in the show.
And I have two mics.
ALAN SEALES: So congratulations
on reaching 10 years.
The show hit 10 years
back in July, correct?
Yes.
So what's the run on the
shos-- six years on Broadway
and now four years off Broadway.
What's the difference between--
what makes on versus off?
DANIELLE THOMAS: Well,
there's absolutely
no difference in the show.
It's--
SALA IWAMATSU: Same set.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Same set.
Jenn Barnhart, original Broadway
cast member, is here again.
And the three of us closed
it on Broadway, reopened it
off Broadway, and
we're still here.
So it's the same
cast, same puppets.
NICHOLAS KOHN: The
real difference
is this the seat numbers.
Difference between Broadway
and off Broadway, 500 seats
and above is Broadway.
499 and below is off Broadway.
SALA IWAMATSU: We have 498.
NICHOLAS KOHN: We do.
And every night, we think
about plugging two more seats
from there.
But yeah, that's pretty
much the main difference.
ALAN SEALES: So in the
very beginning, back
in the initial
days, it was going
through-- the show goes through
workshops and picks up steam.
Like, what-- I guess Jenn is
the only original cast member.
Do you remember that
far back, 10 years ago,
like when the show
picked up steam?
And when did you
really feel like this
was going to be something?
JENNIFER BARNHART: When
the reviews first came out.
I mean-- well, I
had, first of all,
seen the show in a
reading in the basement
at the York Theater, even two
years before I was in the show,
and thought, this is brilliant.
I think one of the things
that makes the show so strong
is that it took so
long to develop.
It was about 2 and 1/2
years in development
before we did the
original off-Broadway run.
But when I was doing it, I
thought, this is hilarious.
This is brilliant.
I hope people get it.
And audiences loved it.
And New York
theater-going audiences,
specifically, adored it.
And it became the thing to see.
So the tourists didn't know who
we were, but New York theater
people were going, oh my god,
have you seen "Avenue Q?"
You have to see it.
It's brilliant.
It's brilliant.
And we got a love
letter from Ben Brantley
in the "New York Times."
And that was when
we sort of thought,
hey, I think we
got something here.
And shortly thereafter,
we announced
we were moving
uptown to Broadway.
So it was pretty great.
ALAN SEALES: So what changed
between the workshops,
the initial rehearsals
and opening?
JENNIFER BARNHART: Believe it or
not, not a whole heck of a lot.
Some of the strongest
songs in the show
were the first written.
"Gay" was written very
early on. "Racist"
was written very early on.
You know.
Having said that, I mean,
once we got it to that stage,
the original opening night
gift when we transferred uptown
to Broadway from the book
writer was a collection
of all of the scenes and
material and song snippets
that had been cut from the
show, and that was 126 pages.
So once we got it to that place,
then we were off and running.
But yeah, now that I say
that, I go, yeah, actually,
we did have a lot of changes.
It just is a blur.
Because when you're
in previews, you're
rehearsing during the day and
then doing the show at night.
And then you go in and
say, OK, that didn't work.
We've got a whole bunch
of pages for you to learn.
So they'd throw
new material at us
and then we'd do it in
the show that night,
and then the same process
over and over again, so.
ALAN SEALES: OK, so you human
skin actors-- Nick, Danielle,
Sala-- what was it
like getting used
to interacting with
the puppets directly?
You look at them on
stage, right-- not
the actors holding them.
DANIELLE THOMAS:
Well, the funny thing
is, now it's actually
the complete opposite.
If you ever look
at a person, you're
like, that's weird
to look at a person.
You're used to looking
at the puppets.
And Kate is my favorite.
Gary and Kate,
we're really close.
I think she kind of likes me.
She hasn't had a
black man yet, but I'm
going to change that, really.
What?
Yeah, I mean at first you're
like, uh-- person, puppet?
But then after a while,
because the puppet--
we have amazing,
amazing puppeteers.
They go through a
lot of work to learn
how to make these
puppets come to life.
And they are.
They're alive and they're
real, and so you can't help
but feel for these
inanimate objects.
So you play to the puppets.
And the people, eh.
NICHOLAS KOHN: I
remember initially it
was a little strange
being in rehearsals
and talking to a puppet
and having-- I mean,
the puppets are so gorgeous,
and they have such expression.
It's not that hard
for that long.
But it was a little
bit like, oh, my.
This is a thing
that's in my face.
And it's really,
like, got big guys.
And they're gorgeous, but it
is a different transition,
I think, talking.
SALA IWAMATSU: No, I
thought the opposite.
I thought they
were-- the puppets
were the best actors
I've ever worked with.
Sorry.
It's almost like
looking at a puppy.
They look at you with
these eyes and there's just
unconditional love.
There's not judgment.
So when I joined the company,
I came into the company
and other people were
like, oh, let's see
if this girl can do it,
whereas the puppets were like,
oh-- you know, so supportive.
I have some problems,
but, you know.
NICHOLAS KOHN: No
judgment, right?
SALA IWAMATSU: No judgment.
ALAN SEALES: So
for the puppeteers,
what was it like for you guys?
Because you're looking
at the live actors,
but everybody is playing
back to what's in your hands.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Yeah.
Yeah, that was a
big change for me
at first, because I've
never done any puppetry
before doing "Avenue Q."
Most of us didn't.
And then through the
audition process,
you learn how to puppeteer.
And so I went to school
for musical theater,
and generally looking
at someone in the eyes.
And so all of a sudden, you're
looking at them in the eyes
and they're looking
at your right hand.
And it's disorienting at first,
but then you kind of just
get it, and it-- because
you can feel the energy.
The puppet and the person
become one entire entity.
And then you can feed
off of their energy.
It doesn't matter if they're
exactly looking in your pupils.
You can still feel for them.
VERONICA KUEHN: Yeah.
I will say, it's really
strange if there's ever
a moment where we by
accidentally bump into-- there
will be human contact all
of a sudden by accident.
Like, someone bumped me and
I was like, oh-- so strange.
But yeah.
ALAN SEALES: Do you think
it's weird for the audience
to be watching the
puppets versus you,
or do you find that the audience
watches one versus the other?
DANIELLE THOMAS: I can
answer that question
as a person who saw the show.
I didn't want to see "Avenue Q."
Well before I was in it, I had
some friends coming in town.
They wanted to see-- I'm
like, any Broadway show.
"Avenue Q," the show
with the puppets?
Come on.
We're in New York,
we'll see any show.
And we went to see
"Avenue Q" and I
laughed from the first word
on, from "BA in English"
to all the way through.
And at first, you're like,
wait, what's going on?
You look at the puppets, you
kind of look at the people.
And it's amazing,
especially when the puppet
is right beside
the person's face.
And you see the same expression
on the person and the puppet.
And by "Gay," I
think, for me-- I
don't even remember
when it switched, but I
started looking at the puppet.
Maybe every now and again,
you would look at the person,
but they really do
become one thing.
So in the beginning,
you're like, I don't know.
But early on in the
show, it just all melts
and it's amazing.
JENNIFER BARNHART: Rick
Lyon, the original designer
and original
Nicky/Trekkie, the puppets,
had a great metaphor for it.
He said, watching the
first five minutes
of "Avenue Q" is very
much like watching
a foreign film with subtitles.
Because for the
first five minutes,
you're very aware of doing this.
And then after a
while, it just becomes
part of the storytelling
and you don't notice it, so.
DANIELLE THOMAS: That's perfect.
DARREN BLUESTONE: I like that.
ALAN SEALES: So why do you
think the show works so well--
this is the first
puppeteering show
that I've seen, or
shows with puppets,
where the puppeteers are in
complete, full view, and part
of the show.
Why does that work here?
NICHOLAS KOHN: Well, Jenn
might actually have more--
JENNIFER BARNHART: Yeah.
The first time I started
doing the show as a puppeteer,
I remembered asking the
puppeteers on the first day
of rehearsal, by the way,
how are we doing this?
Are we doing this,
or are we doing this?
Because as a puppeteer-- because
I have a puppetry background as
well as an acting background--
I'm used to the puppeteer
having to be somewhat
neutral, and not being seen.
And they said, no, no, no.
We want this, because we want
it to be, you know, sort of open
to interpretation.
Your face is the
subtle expression
of what's happening
with the puppet.
But since I'm second-handing
somebody, I thought,
well, I can't be upstaging
them and doing crazy stuff
with my face, because the
person doing the voice is there,
and they're acting,
and they're doing that.
So I'm just going
to do my thing.
So I was just trying to be
as neutral as I could be.
And when we were still off
Broadway, one of the audience
members who was a friend of
our stage manager came up to me
and said, are you having fun?
And I said, I'm a great time.
Why?
And they said, because
I was so distracted
by looking at your face.
You didn't seem like
you were emotionally
connecting with
what was happening.
I was like, oh.
OK.
I guess I have to up my face
game and become part of it.
So it was definitely
a transition
from that puppetry world.
But it's so liberating,
because I also
puppeteer on Sesame
Street, and we end up
using TV monitors
down on the ground,
and we're used to
puppeteering like this.
Actually, we're
usually on the floor.
And you've got to tilt your head
sideways to get your head out
of the shot, and you're
looking at the monitor.
And this is generally
how we puppeteer.
So being able to do
it from here and not
having to worry about getting
me out of the shot-- oh,
it was heaven.
It was wonderful.
But then I had to
learn how to coordinate
what was happening with
my feet with my hands.
And that was a whole
other challenge.
Lip syncing in one
rhythm and dancing
in another, that's a lot.
ALAN SEALES: So what's
the weirdest thing
that any of you with
the puppets have
had to learn to do
with the puppets?
What was the most challenging?
DARREN BLUESTONE: Uh, Sex Yeah.
Because-- I mean, that was the
most fun for me to figure out.
VERONICA KUEHN: It's
really-- I mean,
it's arm choreography,
essentially.
DARREN BLUESTONE: But
there's so much choreography.
NICHOLAS KOHN: There's
a part in the show where
they're having sex.
He's not having
sex with a puppet.
VERONICA KUEHN: Puppet
sex, we should clarify.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Oh, yeah.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Very
important distinction.
ALAN SEALES: I think we
should clarify that right now.
DARREN BLUESTONE: I thought that
was understood in the question,
but apparently not.
ALAN SEALES: Some people
may have not seen it yet.
SALA IWAMATSU: At one point--
when I first joined the show,
I was in the ensemble as well.
And I had to puppeteer
Trekkie Monster's silhouette
in a window.
And he is-- can I say it?
OK.
He's masturbating.
And I had to practice and
practice and practice.
They were like,
it's not believable.
And I was like, I don't
know how to do this.
I was like, it's so hard.
I mean, it is hard.
But that was my weird moment.
ALAN SEALES: Only practice
bating until you master it.
DANIELLE THOMAS: I will say, as
a person acting with a puppet,
the weirdest thing is getting
the hair out of their eyes
and they don't even notice.
Anybody else?
They don't notice that
hair is in their eyes.
ALAN SEALES: Oh, you brush
the hair out of their eyes?
DANIELLE THOMAS: I'm like,
you don't feel that in your--
VERONICA KUEHN: I'm
constantly doing that to Kate.
I mean, the way that Kate's
hair is, it's always getting--
DANIELLE THOMAS: Well,
it's usually Trekkie.
I help him out.
JENNIFER BARNHART: I
actually have a question
for Jason, because as far
as tag-team partnering--
now, had you puppeteered
prior to the show?
JASON JACOBY: No.
JENNIFER BARNHART: So how
was that process for you?
JASON JACOBY: That's been a very
interesting process, actually.
Doing two-- I guess
I don't need this.
I did two regional productions
before joining the company
here.
So that was like my
training to puppeteer.
And the first
production I did was
directed by Rick Lyon,
who originated these roles
and is the puppet designer.
So that was like my real
training as a puppeteer.
And since then, and
now that you're here,
I guess I've done the show--
including swings and whatnot--
I've done the show with nine
different second handers.
And it's a real-- it's
so much fun, really.
It's kind of exhilarating
having new people,
because everyone-- even
though it's just a hand,
there's so much more
than just a hand.
ALAN SEALES: Is
everybody different?
The second-hand
people are different?
JASON JACOBY: Oh, yeah.
I mean, everything we do,
as you saw in the numbers--
there's a lot of it that's
very set and choreographed.
But people bring--
people are different,
and people bring different
energies to the work.
And the way that Jenn and I
do a sort of gesture like this
is different than how me
and others would do it.
And it's kind of exhilarating
to work with different people
and have that different energy.
And to do the same
material-- and that
may look exactly the same,
I guess, from an audience
standpoint-- but in it,
feels very different.
ALAN SEALES: So do the puppets
themselves ever make mistakes?
NICHOLAS KOHN: Occasionally,
an eye will pop off
or something like that.
It happened once in Vegas,
and it was the most disturbing
ever.
The audience is just like
[GASPS] because you really
kind of fall in love with
these puppets as people,
and their characters
are so well written
that, like, all of a
sudden-- oh, this is bad.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Or the rods.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Or the arm.
DARREN BLUESTONE: The rods
will come off sometimes.
DANIELLE THOMAS:
Those are the best.
JENNIFER BARNHART: The Bad Idea
Bear's arm came off one time,
and Christian, who
was puppeteering it,
just sort of flung it away.
And then he had his
bear just rub the stump.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Wow.
ALAN SEALES: I want to switch to
the audition process, I guess.
So most of you-- all of
you except one are new.
So the audition process for
this, how different was it
from the other shows that
you've auditioned for?
VERONICA KUEHN: Who's going?
Am I going?
DARREN BLUESTONE:
Yeah, go ahead.
VERONICA KUEHN: I mean, it
was one of the longer audition
processes I've
ever been through.
I auditioned for the
first time in 2007,
and then I ended up joining
this company in 2011.
So I think I went in a total
of seven different times,
and had done what they call
puppet camp, which is something
that they do-- is if you've
been through a couple
of different callbacks and
the casting office has said,
oh, they'd probably
be good at this,
they put you through sort of
a week-long puppet boot camp
to see if you can pick up
some of the basic skills that
would have to be
really focused on.
So I did that in 2007.
ALAN SEALES: What
are the basic skills?
VERONICA KUEHN: Your eye focus.
Your neutral-- the positions
that your puppet hands
should be resting in when
they're not gesturing.
They always have to
come back to a neutral.
Focus.
DARREN BLUESTONE:
Keeping it straight.
VERONICA KUEHN: The position.
Yeah, the sync.
Oh, there it is.
Jenn taught me how to puppeteer.
And the sync-- the lip
sync that you're working on
with matching the puppet's
mouth to your mouth.
JENNIFER BARNHART: Basically,
focus, gravity, and breath.
VERONICA KUEHN: There it is.
JENNIFER BARNHART: Focus Is
where the puppet's looking.
Gravity has to do with their
posture, where ground is,
and breath also
includes lip sync,
but also [SIGHING
HEAVILY] a sigh
like Rob does so beautifully
at the top of "Gay."
Thank you.
ALAN SEALES: Do
any of you-- like,
did you get any
practice puppets?
Or do you go home and sit
in a mirror with a sock?
DARREN BLUESTONE: You know,
for the actual audition,
they give you two
little ping-pong balls
with little eyes on them.
And then you can
bring those home.
And so I started-- it's like
a little elastic around that.
And then you just
focus on trying
to just move your thumb
instead of your whole-- like,
the top part of your hand,
so that the puppet doesn't
do this weird thing
with its head.
So you practice that.
And then I actually-- when
I first booked the job,
I was a vacation swing.
And they allowed me to take home
one of the old, old Princetons.
And so I was practicing
with an old Princeton
at home for the
months leading up
to going back in
for Princeton Rod
and finally booking that job.
ALAN SEALES: How many different
sets of puppets are there?
You said old Rod--
or old Princeton.
VERONICA KUEHN:
They've been retired.
DARREN BLUESTONE:
It's very tired, yeah.
NICHOLAS KOHN: There's 44
working puppets in the show,
and then there's a
bunch of old puppets
that are used for different
things-- practice, press
events-- rehearsal,
things like that.
ALAN SEALES: So they
get cosmetic face lifts
every now and then?
NICHOLAS KOHN: Yeah,
he comes in-- I'm
sure you know more about that.
ALAN SEALES: New felt?
JENNIFER BARNHART: Actually, no.
I don't know what his schedule
is for refurbishing them,
or what--
VERONICA KUEHN: They
do get refurbished.
NICHOLAS KOHN: He
makes them very well.
Rarely do they need
anything, but--
VERONICA KUEHN:
Well, like Lucy--
Bible Lucy just got
a new wig recently.
JASON JACOBY: The
Trekkie you saw
today is new as of a
couple-- a few months ago.
He's a brand-new Trekkie.
That was an exciting day for us.
VERONICA KUEHN: Their fur is
fluffier-- you know, things--
they get worn a lot
from being in the show,
but every now and then.
JENNIFER BARNHART: But
it's kind of astonishing
that after 10
years, we're really
on only third generation of
these puppets, because they are
made-- and each one of them
takes about 120 man hours.
They're all crafted
by hand, and they
cost thousands and
thousands of dollars.
JED RESNICK: That's the
genius of Rick Lyon.
JENNIFER BARNHART: Yeah.
ALAN SEALES: So
what's on the inside?
JENNIFER BARNHART:
Everybody assumes
that you can make a
puppet for, like, $100.
And it's like no, sorry.
ALAN SEALES: All you need is
a sock and ping-pong balls.
That's pretty cheap, right.
So what's on the inside, though?
You said it's elastic, so
the mouth closes on its own.
Is that neutral?
JASON JACOBY: No, that
was the ping-pong balls.
VERONICA KUEHN: No,
that's just the practice.
ALAN SEALES: Oh,
the ping-pong balls.
DARREN BLUESTONE: That
was the practice thing
that they gave you
for the audition,
was just ping-pong balls
and an elastic band.
ALAN SEALES: So unless
you were there--
DARREN BLUESTONE:
But an actual puppet
is made up of so many
different materials.
JENNIFER BARNHART: Foam and
fleece and rubber gaskets
inside the mouth for the
palate-- for the hard palate.
So there's a hard palate
that's shaped like a "v," then
there's a ring that
your thumb fits in.
And there's occasionally
a little bridge,
sort of like the fret
of a guitar that's
on the top palate, that helps
anchor your hand in there.
And then there's a brain inside.
I mean it's, architecturally--
SALA IWAMATSU: We have three
different types of puppets.
We have some that have rods.
So that they have
arms that come out,
and they have rods like how
Rod is so that you can do this.
Then there's the--
NICHOLAS KOHN: Live hands.
SALA IWAMATSU:
Live-hand puppets.
And then we have boxes at
one point that come to life.
And that's like a trigger
gun, and they do that.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Which you
see in "Lion King," and stuff
like that.
That has a lot of
trigger puppets.
So boxes are the only
trigger puppets, right,
that are in our show?
SALA IWAMATSU: I think so.
ALAN SEALES: You can
see the triggers too.
It's all completely out
there, exposed, yeah.
So during the audition
process, was there
anything-- any mistakes that
you made during the audition
process that you take with
you to your future auditions--
if you're auditioning.
I don't want to get
anyone in trouble.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Well, my
whole experience with "Avenue Q"
started when I first
saw the show, back when
I was a sophomore
in high school.
And I remember putting
this awful video
on YouTube of me
singing "Purpose," which
is the main song that I guess
Princeton sings in the show.
And I put it on YouTube,
and I got information back
on Facebook by Jeff Marx, who's
one of the writers of the show.
And we started
Facebooking, and we
were talking throughout
my high school career.
And then we stopped
talking after a while.
And we just lost touch.
And then randomly,
I got the show.
And I hadn't talked
to him in forever.
And I got the show, and
I Facebooked him again,
and I was like,
just so you know,
I'm, like, the
lead in your show.
I'm going to be in "Avenue Q."
And he was like, what?
That's crazy.
And he came back and saw me
and we had this big reunion.
Because I'd actually
never met him.
We were just Facebooking.
I don't know how
that happened-- how
that has anything
to do with that.
ALAN SEALES: That wasn't
my question at all, but--
DARREN BLUESTONE: But
it was a good story,
I wanted to tell it.
NICHOLAS KOHN: No,
we've actually-- they've
actually queued up
that video, Darren.
We're going to watch it.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Yeah.
ALAN SEALES: Oh, I
wish we had that.
VERONICA KUEHN: High school!
ALAN SEALES: So let's
talk about racism.
DANIELLE THOMAS: I'll help.
Just kidding.
ALAN SEALES: So
obviously the show deals
with racism and sexuality,
and bringing a lot of issues
to the surface and then putting
them right there comically
in people's faces.
I mean, do you think there's
a bigger meaning to the show,
or is it all just for fun?
DANIELLE THOMAS: Definitely.
NICHOLAS KOHN: There's tons
of-- this show, I think,
is one of the rare times
it's-- I could say,
this is a perfect musical.
It's written from top to bottom.
And the life lessons
that you learn in life
are kind of portrayed
on the stage.
And it's stuff that nobody
really talks about sometimes.
And when they come
to the show, I
think-- sometimes people get
a little offended, especially
with "Racist."
And then they laugh despite
themselves, and they're like,
oh, it's OK.
We're OK.
Everyone's a little bit
racist, and it's fine.
And I think that's
the joy of the show.
It does put real
life in front of you.
And then you--
ALAN SEALES: So you
think people walk out
of the show with a
greater awareness
or appreciation for things.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Oh, sure.
ALAN SEALES: Yeah?
Has the show ever gotten
any blowback-- or you
got any blowback from anything?
You remember, I guess,
initially if the songs
were too offensive?
People have gotten up and left.
NICHOLAS KOHN: We had a busload
of people that were from
a church-- came--
SALA IWAMATSU: Yeah, we
had nones in the audience.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Yeah.
And they did not
stay for act two.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Or if we
have children-- I mean,
you never know.
It's always exciting to see
when we're going to lose them,
if we're going to
lose-- ah, there we go.
If we don't lose
them by "Porn," then,
we're going to say, oh, we'll
get them with [INAUDIBLE].
We've had moments where
there'll be kids right, front,
and center.
And we're like, oh,
God, I'm so sorry.
You're going to have so
many questions for your mom
when you go home.
Here it is.
NICHOLAS KOHN:
Like, two-year-olds.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Yeah.
DARREN BLUESTONE: There was
a woman who left, I think,
two weeks ago.
And our sound guy Josh, was
like, when she left half-way
through act one, she
was like, this place
needs to be burned
to the ground.
And walked out.
And he thought it
was hysterical.
He's like, I'll see you there.
ALAN SEALES: So the
death of Gary Coleman--
the real-life
death-- how did you
deal with that within the show?
DANIELLE THOMAS: You
know, it's funny.
I started the show with
the first national tour.
I did the entire tour.
And we would all make
jokes like-- because he
had gotten sick
before he passed.
And we're like, oh my god, Gary.
Hold on, I need a job.
You know-- oh my god.
What will happen?
And then it really happened.
And I was Gary Coleman
the day that he died.
And you would think that I
would be nervous on my job,
but I was just so
nervous and so afraid.
And a lot of the producers
and Jeff Whitty, the writer,
called me.
And he said, well, we've
released a statement,
and we're going to say something
at the end of the show.
And so I was just talking
to him and telling him
about how I felt about the show.
And he was like, OK, I'm
not going to write anything.
You can just say
what you just said.
And I'm like, what?
And Sala was doing the show.
JENNIFER BARNHART:
And it was beautiful.
DANIELLE THOMAS: And we get
to the theater and I'm like,
I'm so nervous.
I'm so scared.
And I'm in the
bathroom crying, trying
to figure out what
I want to say.
And I'm nervous because
as soon as I come out,
I'm going to say, "that's
Gary Coleman-- yes, I am."
And I'm like, are
they going to boo me?
And I was shaking so much.
And I come out on the fire
escape and I say, yes, I am.
And the audience applauds.
And I'm like, it's OK.
It's OK.
And so we just say-- which
is honestly the truth--
Gary's had a really bad deal.
And he never came
to see the show.
We tried to get him
to come see the show.
I understand why he wouldn't,
but I wish that he would have,
because Gary is depicted
in such a great way
on the avenue of "Avenue Q."
He has friends.
He has people who have
become his family.
And he has a lot of advice
to give the younger people.
And so we just
said that-- and we
will continue to honor his
legacy by making people laugh,
and do what he loved
to do every day.
So it was kind of weird,
but it ended up being OK.
And so I did that speech
for the week after he died.
And so he still lives.
And I think it's a good--
NICHOLAS KOHN: He's
also got the most life
experience in the show.
And no one's had it
harder than Gary Coleman.
So he has probably a lot of
the-- save for the therapist--
but he has a lot of good advice
for the young kids coming
to New York, so.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Yeah.
ALAN SEALES: So
Jennifer, you were
in the show in its original
six-year run on Broadway,
correct?
And then you left and
then came back, right?
So what made you come back?
JENNIFER BARNHART: Well, part
of it was-- first of all,
we didn't know until
closing night on Broadway
that we weren't really
closing-- that we were just
moving across the street
to New World stages.
We didn't know that.
So I'd already
booked another job.
Because I was like,
well, this gig's over.
It's been a lovely six years.
I better figure out
what the heck is next.
So I already had a gig.
So I was doing that.
And in the years since, I've
been exploring other horizons.
I've been doing things
just as a human.
I got to do a season down
at Alabama Shakespeare
Festival in their spring
rep doing some Shakespeare
without puppets, which was fun
and challenging and exciting.
And it's nice-- I've
been very fortunate
to be able to come back and
join the company at times
when they're either
between cast members,
or if a cast member books
another job that she can go
leave town to do that
for a little while,
or if somebody needs
a medical cover--
like a medical leave,
that kind of thing.
And so I get to swing back into
the show every now and again.
Actually, every calendar
year since the transfer
I have been there for anywhere
between a couple of weeks
and a couple of months.
And it's just lovely.
It's like coming home again.
DANIELLE THOMAS: What I
will say about "Avenue Q"
is because it's so well
written and there's so much
heart in the show, that all of
us who have ever done it before
feel that.
It bleeds out throughout.
Granted, we do say some
things that are inappropriate
and aren't realized because
it's what we do on stage.
But we also really love
each other and the company
from top to bottom--
crew, stage managers,
producers-- it's a family.
And so we are family.
So you go and you come
back for the holidays.
You go and you come back.
JENNIFER BARNHART: The reunion.
DANIELLE THOMAS: That's
what "Avenue Q" is.
It really is a show with heart.
And the people that are
involved, the company that
are involved, we have heart.
And we are a family,
really, on "Avenue Q."
It's not even a joke.
It's the honest to God truth.
NICHOLAS KOHN: It takes
a certain specific weirdo
to be in this show, but we're
very lovable, happy weirdos.
And we have a good time.
ALAN SEALES: Now,
Jenn, you go around--
you teach regional productions
of the show, right?
You teach them the puppetry?
JENNIFER BARNHART: Yeah, I have
actually started doing that.
I've been going around and
coaching different-- mostly
university
productions, but I got
to direct a
production of the show
for the first time earlier this
year at the Adirondack Theater
Festival up in Glens
Falls, New York which
was a whole other experience,
and challenging and fun.
I love working with
new puppeteers,
and watching them--
first of all,
discover how hard it is,
because everyone that you
see here is at a level where
they make it look so easy
that people just assume
that anybody can do it.
But really, it's like
learning a foreign language.
And when people
do that boot camp
that Veronica was
talking about, by the end
of one week of working for six
hours a day, if they're lucky,
they've learned how
to say, hello, my name
is, where's the bathroom
in this foreign language.
The vocabulary may not be right.
The conjugation
may not be right.
But at least they're
communicating an idea.
So it is like you're
taking an immersion class.
And I love watching puppeteers
first of all discover
that, but then discover their
own potential within it.
And then watch them
translate from,
what is this foreign
object on my arm to being
able to make acting
choices through the puppet.
And watching that
open up things in them
that they wouldn't have been
able to tap, necessarily, just
as a human.
ALAN SEALES: So the regional
productions or the university
productions, do they
make their own puppets?
Or do they license,
or-- how does that work.
JENNIFER BARNHART: There's a
couple of different things.
The production I
directed, I ended up
renting a set from
Rick Lyon, who
has a set that he rents out.
MTI, Musical Theatre
International,
who does the rights
for the show,
they have their own set of
puppets that somebody built.
And so there's
that set available.
And actually, the one that I
just did-- the one that I just
coached out at University of
Utah, the costume designer who
works there-- she's
the costume professor--
she and I worked together in
Alabama at Alabama Shakespeare
Festival, and she
knew what I did.
She said, hey, I'm
actually designing puppets.
So the fall semester of this
past academic year, they
actually put the show on,
but the previous spring
semester, the costume
designers crafts
class and costume classic
made these puppets based
on her designs, and had another
puppeteer friend of mine
and colleague, a woman by the
name of Honey Goodenough-- that
is her name, and I
believe she has it
trademarked because
it's a great name--
but she went out and helped
them learn how to build them.
So there's a bunch of
different ways to do it.
It's mostly-- and there are
other companies out there.
I think Swazzle Puppet Company
out in California rents sets.
I think it's a little dicey
in terms of rights and designs
and all of that.
And I honestly can't
speak to the legality
and logistics and
issues of that.
But I would recommend to anyone
who's considering doing it
that they might want to
start by contacting Rick Lyon
and see if his set of
puppets are available,
because they're the
original designs, so.
ALAN SEALES: Very nice.
JENNIFER BARNHART: And
they're very puppeteerable.
Because you can make
a puppet look good,
but if you haven't worked out
the inner mechanics of it,
it won't move very well.
So anyway, just
a plug for people
who know how to design
and build puppets.
Because it's not easy.
ALAN SEALES: We've got all
sorts of groups and internal
interests, so I'm sure there's--
there's some puppeteers here,
I'm sure.
We've got jugglers clubs
and everything else, so.
Yeah.
ALAN SEALES: Darren,
congratulations.
This is your off
Broadway debut, right?
DARREN BLUESTONE: It is, yes.
Thank you.
ALAN SEALES: So I mean, this
kind of goes back a little bit
to the audition process
we were talking about.
How long did it
take for you to get
used to sharing the
stage, I guess--
or not being just
yourself up there,
of having people not
look at you all the time?
Does that make sense?
DARREN BLUESTONE: Like having
the puppet along with me?
ALAN SEALES: Yeah, yeah.
DARREN BLUESTONE: Yeah,
that was interesting.
But for some reason,
having a puppet next to me
allowed me to get in my
body a little bit more
for some reason.
I don't know, I think--
ALAN SEALES: While being in his.
DARREN BLUESTONE: While
being in his, right.
Because I can look at like this
external piece and visually
dissect it and
whatever, and figure out
which way-- which things
kind of look better,
and how to find
some emotion in it.
But that allows me to connect
that from this external thing
into the rest of my
body for some reason.
Because I'm just a
very lanky person.
I have long arms.
My wingspan is longer
than how tall I am.
And so having, I guess,
this all connected allowed
me to not worry about how
much space I was taking up,
and allow the puppet
to take up the space.
And then that transferred
into the rest of my body.
ALAN SEALES: Cool.
So, OK, Veronica--
Kate Monster and Lucy
the Slut-- how
much fun for you is
it to be able to play
both the innocent ingenue
and the sex-crazed sultress?
VERONICA KUEHN: It's really fun.
I get to use two completely
different facets of my voice.
Both of their voices
are very different.
But it's probably one of
the most challenging parts
of the show for me.
There are several scenes where
I am both voicing Kate and Lucy
in the same scene
talking to each other,
and then Jenn will be either
puppeting Kate or Lucy.
So I will literally have
conversations with myself.
So that can get a
little challenging.
It's a little brain
teaser for yourself.
So if there's ever a
moment where I'm not
completely focused,
I'll notice that I've
started to say the wrong thing.
But yeah.
JENNIFER BARNHART:
Keeps me on my toes.
VERONICA KUEHN: Yeah, me too.
It's really fun, though.
It's nice.
It's nice to be able
to switch it up.
ALAN SEALES: So are you more
like Kate or Lucy in real life?
VERONICA KUEHN: Um,
probably mostly Kate.
She's the heart character.
I think I have a little sass
in me as well, from Lucy,
but generally, I think Kate.
ALAN SEALES: So did you ever
feel slightly silly at first,
having puppets have sex?
VERONICA KUEHN: Oh, yeah.
I still feel a little
wonky sometimes.
I mean, I don't completely, 100%
confident with my puppeteering
ever, and I've been doing
it for 2 and 1/2 years now.
I still am always checking,
where is she looking?
What's going on?
What's happening?
I have to be focused
the entire time.
Otherwise, something
will go wrong.
ALAN SEALES: So
for-- oh, go ahead.
JENNIFER BARNHART: I was
going to say, but to be fair,
I have to too.
I've been doing this
for a long, long time,
and I still am checking
and then going, OK, uh,
am I looking in the right place?
No, I'm not.
Oh, it sank, uh-- so that's
a continuous process.
VERONICA KUEHN: Well,
that's good to know.
ALAN SEALES: So
for the two of you
that do the two-handed
puppets, do you
find it more enjoyable or easier
to have literally somebody
to lean on, or do you prefer
to have just your own puppet?
Or what's the
difference for you?
JASON JACOBY: That's a
really good question.
I mean, being alone with a
puppet gives you more freedom,
certainly, because there's less
that is set and choreographed--
and that you have to do this
move on this line or something.
But there's still freedom
within choreography, obviously.
I don't know if I could
say what I would prefer,
because it's-- it
actually almost feels
there's-- specifically
with Trekkie.
Nicky's a little different.
I think maybe it's just
because if she's not with me,
Nicky's hand gets stuffed
and pinned to his side
so that he looks like
Kate and Princeton,
or whomever that just
has one hand available.
Trekkie, just the nature of
the sack of fur that he is,
doesn't get that.
His arm just hangs limp--
from over-use, I like to say.
But there's actually times--
especially when I first
started the show, we'd
rehearse and rehearse
doing regional productions.
And we'd rehearse
for, like, four weeks,
always with this person with me
doing "The Internet's For Porn"
and whatever.
And then I'd come out into
a scene like Lucy's number
in the cafe and I'm by myself
because the second hander's
doing Kate Monster
while she's doing Lucy.
And so I'm sitting there
on a bench by myself,
and it almost feels half
empty because you're
used to another person
bringing this extra life,
and filling in the
rest of this character.
JED RESNICK: And then
you're kind of just there--
JASON JACOBY:
Solo-- flying solo.
And it almost feels--
at the beginning,
at least-- feels a little weird.
There's a moment
of, oh, I can do
whatever the hell I want now.
I'm not held down
by the other person.
But then it's like, oh,
I miss my other person.
I wish my other person
were here to help me.
JED RESNICK: I will
say, as an understudy,
I've gone on for these
roles hundreds of times
at this point.
But when I was first going
on for Trekkie Monster,
it was really, really nice
to have the second person
next to you to calm your nerves
because you're freaking out
because you haven't done
the role in three months
or whatever, but also to
push you around the stage
to make sure you're
going to the right spot.
So it was always really
comforting to have
a person behind you.
ALAN SEALES: How
much rehearsal goes
into the two-handed puppets?
JENNIFER BARNHART: A lot.
A lot, a lot, alot.
ALAN SEALES: More
than the single?
JENNIFER BARNHART: Well,
I can't say that, per se.
It's just a different
kind of rehearsal.
When I came back into
the show-- and having
done this show for
as long as I have,
you'd think that
it's like, oh, well
you don't really need rehearsal.
You just need to pick up and go.
But because I'd never worked
with Jason before-- and I've
worked with probably
about 20 different people
in that partnership, if I
include vacations and covers
and understudies and
everything-- and everybody's
gestural language is so
different that I need
to-- especially because of what
I do in the show, where I'm
supporting the person
who's doing the voice,
I'm supporting that performance.
So what's nice is
the best partnerships
are when I get to have
a little input too
and we sort of
create it together.
But very often, I just
have to sort of go
with what the other
person's doing.
So when I start with
the new Nicky/Trekkie,
if I haven't had a
chance to watch them,
sometimes I'll say, let me
just step out and watch you.
Or better still, give
me the puppet and let me
see how you would move as
a human doing this scene so
that I can observe
your gestural language
and try to help translate
it into the puppet
and distill it into its
essence of how I can do that,
and match it.
So there's a lot of
that kind of rehearsal.
But as for the individual
puppets, especially when people
are starting to
learn, that's just
the intensity of all
those three basic
principles, and
being in a mirror.
And then you have to get
away from the mirror.
And so it's a heck of a process.
It really is.
ALAN SEALES:
Danielle, why do you
think the creators of the
show chose your character
to be Gary Coleman specifically?
DANIELLE THOMAS: You
don't see the resemblance?
Well, "Avenue Q" is loosely
based on "Sesame Street."
And on "Sesame
Street," sometimes you
have celebrity guests who
come on and help the puppets
teach the children
about life lessons.
So of course on "Avenue Q," the
celebrity would be washed up
and Gary Coleman.
And so it's funny at first, but
eventually, Gary has a point.
And I believe at
first they wanted
to have-- I believe
in the reading it was
a white woman that
played-- who read it,
a friend of one of the creators.
And I think they may
have wanted to have
different kind of
celebrities come in and out.
But Gary Coleman just stuck
because he's pretty awesome,
and an awesome character.
But it's like having a guest
celebrity help teach these life
lessons, but not really
the best celebrity status.
JENNIFER BARNHART: And
that was also-- back
when this was
originally created,
the idea was that it would
be a television show.
So there would be
different guests
that came onto each episode.
But I think part
of the reason, too,
why Gary Coleman specifically
is the show basically
was created-- the
creators said, look.
When you're a kid and you're
watching children's television
and "Sesame Street," you
learn that you're special
and you should dream big and all
of your dreams will come true,
and isn't that wonderful?
And then you go to
college and you graduate,
and you're living back
at home with your parents
and you're temping.
And you're going, well, where's
the "Sesame Street" for me now?
Because I'm sort
of disillusioned
by the earlier "Sesame
Street" that I had watched.
So you're-- it's a little
sadder but wiser kind of idea.
It's about a bit
of lost innocence.
And I think that Gary,
being a child star,
and then growing out
of that into, well,
what happens after that is in
the same track as the people
who grew up watching
Sesame Street
and then are faced
with that reality of,
well, what happens now?
DANIELLE THOMAS: And that's why
he can teach so many lessons
to Princeton and everybody
else, because he's
been there and
back, and then some.
And still looks
at it positively.
Sometimes, you know,
Gary has his moments.
But for the most
part, life lesson.
We have a song called
"Schadenfreude," you know.
Gary was pretty much
living that, you
know-- taking pleasure in
other people's pain, you know?
And we have a purpose.
So that's pretty much it.
ALAN SEALES: If you could do
one of the puppeted characters,
who would you be?
DANIELLE THOMAS: Well,
I love Kate Monster
and I think I'm a little
bit of Lucy on the inside.
So I think if it was a
puppet-- don't, don't.
Don't do it.
So if it were, it
would be Kate and Lucy.
But I must be very honest, my
favorite character in this show
is Christmas Eve.
And it is my dream to be
Christmas Evening in one
of these shows.
(In Caribbean accent) Because
I think that Christmas Eve has
a sister from the
West Indies whose
name is Christmas evening.
And she could come
and teach people
on "Avenue Q" lessons too.
JENNIFER BARNHART:
I smell spin-off.
ALAN SEALES: So I'm going
to ask a few more questions.
If, again, in the audience,
you guys have anything,
line up at the mics here.
So I don't think there's
a single person that
goes on stage with
one puppet, correct?
Everybody plays multiple ones.
I guess this is similar to
a swing, or-- puppety swing
or something--
but how hard is it
to switch between the
puppet characters?
And some of you
in the same scene?
DARREN BLUESTONE: I think when
you are learning it at first,
it's difficult to figure out.
But then once you kind
of get it in your body,
the puppets themselves
feel so different.
Like Rod, the way
that he's built,
he just feels a lot
different than Princeton.
So the voices just
come out differently.
And you just kind of get it.
It's like messing up a
regular line for someone else.
At that point, it would
be like, after doing it
for a year and a
half, you know, you
don't really mess
up a lot of lines.
Unless you're me.
ALAN SEALES: Question.
AUDIENCE: Hi.
Saw the show twice.
It was just completely amazing.
I'm curious about the
evolution of the show.
This is obviously a
very polished show
after all this time, but are
their elements that are still
being dropped or things that
just happen spontaneously
that then become
part of the show?
Could you comment a
little bit about that,
and maybe give us some stories
of things that didn't used to--
SALA IWAMATSU: We have one
line at the end of the show
that we will switch
out depending
on what's going on in world
news or politics and things
like that.
The line used to be,
when it first started,
was George Bush is only for now.
So obviously, we
had to change that.
And we've tried other things.
Now you have to come to the
show to see what we [INAUDIBLE].
DANIELLE THOMAS:
And obviously we
made a few changes
when Gary Coleman died.
So we just switched a
couple of lines, but.
VERONICA KUEHN: Yeah, I think--
NICHOLAS KOHN: And then-- yeah.
VERONICA KUEHN: Sorry.
I was going to say,
generally, most things-- I
mean, there's no major
changes that have been made.
But as new cast
members come in, they
are pretty great about allowing
your own personal choices
as an actor to change and
shape the scene-- different
beats that you would take
that are pretty flexible.
JENNIFER BARNHART:
Generally speaking, though,
once the show is opened,
it's technically locked.
And there-- because in
the preview process,
it's changing all the time.
Once opening night happens,
the show is technically locked.
So for the first four years
that we were on Broadway,
the script was pretty
much exactly the same.
Then after the Las Vegas company
opened and they made changes
to fit that space
and everything,
I think the creative team
just said, hey, you know what?
Now we've had a chance
to revisit this material.
We have some things
we like better.
So we actually
re-teched the show
and incorporated 53 changes
from the Las Vegas show.
We had new lighting, new
orchestrations, new lines--
but that's rare.
And from that standpoint, that
doesn't happen very often.
But within the confines of
the show, as Veronica said,
there is some play.
SALA IWAMATSU: There's
one song called "Mix Tape"
where Princeton makes
a mix tape for Kate.
And it used to be a cassette.
But now it's a decade later,
so-- it probably shouldn't even
be a CD anymore.
VERONICA KUEHN: It should be--
SALA IWAMATSU: It's
a little behind,
but that's the closest
they could get.
NICHOLAS KOHN: And especially
with long-running shows,
there's definitely
going to be-- if you're
in a long-running show, you want
to find new ways to explore,
and find new laughs
and new moments.
I think it's inevitable with
long-running shows that we have
to find some way to keep
it fresh and keep it moving
forward, and--
VERONICA KUEHN: We
will have rehearsals.
There are consistent
understudy rehearsals,
but also, our resident
director, John Tartaglia,
who originated the role
of Princeton and Rod,
will come in to sort
of do a brush-up,
and sort of work
on-- he'll take notes
at the show the night before.
And if there's any
scenes that he's like,
this if falling a little flat.
We're going to have
to work on this,
just tjuz it up a little
bit-- minor, minor changes,
mostly about us and acting
choices and stuff like that.
NICHOLAS KOHN: A lot of
times, it's reminders.
JED RESNICK:
VERONICA KUEHN: Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Just
like, remember,
this is what the scene is about.
VERONICA KUEHN: Right.
Something we talked about a year
ago, let's re-implement that.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Yeah.
JASON JACOBY: We usually
have some freedom when
a new second hander comes in,
or even a second hander that's
been in for a while, if
things start to feel stale,
to think, oh, well,
let's try-- we
could do this little move here.
We could try this little move.
And Johnny's been
very generous with me
about that, especially things
with the double live hands
puppets, because it's all
very set and choreographed.
It's like a game of telephone.
It's passed down from
20 Nicky/Trekkies ago,
and it doesn't necessarily fit
what I'm doing with the role.
So Johnny's been very good
about, go look in the mirror
and go come up with
something else.
And next time I
come see the show,
I'll let you know if it works
or if you have to go look
in the mirror and come up
with something else again.
ALAN SEALES: All right,
so final question.
AUDIENCE: Why did the Vegas
show have such a short run?
Do you guys know?
NICHOLAS KOHN: There
was a couple reasons.
I think it was initially--
we were selling actually
pretty well in Vegas.
It was hard for
them to figure out
how to market our show
in Vegas, specifically
because it was a New York-themed
show and things like that.
And they had some
very creative things.
But it was one of those things
that-- Vegas is very transient
and there's a lot of
people coming in and out.
And most of the shows are
an hour and a half in Vegas.
Ours was two hours.
And so we ended
up shortening it.
And the other
thing is, I believe
Steve Wynn had already
put in play Spamalot
to come into his theater.
And so they had to get that
theater ready for Spamalot.
And so we were there
for about nine months.
I think-- from what I
understand, we sold very well.
And the local people
in Vegas loved us.
And they came to see
it multiple times.
And I think the theater was-- I
think it was like 1,200 seats.
So it was a big
theater, and I'd like
to think our run in Vegas
was pretty successful, even
though we were only there
for about nine months.
I mean, to be honest,
to be an actor
and have a nine-month
job anywhere is amazing.
And then all the perks we
had out there with housing
and-- we were
celebrities in Vegas.
Everywhere we went, we'd have
bottle service everywhere.
And they'd be like, oh,
you're in "Avenue Q."
Let's bring you over here.
We want you to
meet these people.
It was like living the
life of a celebrity.
It was an amazing job.
But it was a lot of fun.
And it brought me into
the "Avenue Q" family,
and I've been with it
almost ever since, so.
Well, again, thank you guys
very much for coming out.
And that's it.
That's a wrap.
NICHOLAS KOHN: Thank you.
DANIELLE THOMAS: Thank you.
VERONICA KUEHN:
Thanks for coming.
