This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Quincy Brown: A small part of me was like, if I have a backup job, it's going to be an archaeologist.

[0:05] Kevin Bianchi: Very sensible.

[0:06] Quincy Brown: Because that's so easy. And that's so, you know.

[0:09] Kevin Bianchi: That shows that you have layers though, Talia.

[0:11] Talia Suskauer: Thank you. I love to dig deep.

[0:19] Quincy Brown: My name's Quincy.

[0:20] Kevin Bianchi: My name's Kevin.

[0:21] Talia Suskauer: And this is Sentimental Men.

[0:23] Quincy Brown: But keep your thumb away from that skip button.

[0:26] Kevin Bianchi: Because we're here to talk.

[0:27] Quincy Brown: And maybe scream.

[0:28] Kevin Bianchi: About our favorite women in musical theater.

[0:35] Quincy Brown: So exciting. This feels like it's been in the works for a very long time.

[0:39] Kevin Bianchi: Talia has kind of been in the Sent Men universe from kind of the beginning.

[0:44] Quincy Brown: Well, yeah, because I mean, she was, she's Lindsay's counterpart.

[0:48] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, I don't even necessarily remember how we entered each other's spheres.

[0:52] Quincy Brown: But I do feel like we have been chummy with Talia from the start of this podcast.

[0:58] Kevin Bianchi: And I'm so excited that we finally are having her on for an episode proper.

[1:02] Quincy Brown: Episode proper. And in a really exciting time, nonetheless.

[1:06] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, really huge moment for someone so young to be making their tour de force Broadway return in this role.

[1:11] Quincy Brown: Yeah, what a triumphant return to the great white way.

[1:15] Kevin Bianchi: I'm so excited to see her because the tour bootlegs have been good to listen to.

[1:19] Quincy Brown: Bitch, yes, I agree.

[1:27] Kevin Bianchi: I can't wait. And I'm excited to see her and Britney as a pair.

[1:33] Quincy Brown: Yeah, this is a really cool and interesting time to talk to Talia and kind of do an exit interview of sorts from her tour run but also talk about this transition period she's in before she starts to Broadway.

[1:45] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah. Yeah.

[1:47] Quincy Brown: Shall we go through Miss Suskauer's resume?

[1:51] Kevin Bianchi: We sure we.

[1:53] Quincy Brown: We sure shall.

[1:54] Kevin Bianchi: We sure shall.

[1:57] Quincy Brown: So Talia Suskauer, I'm going to say like legendary move, made her, let's say her New York debut in the off-Broadway production of Be More Chill in 2018.

[2:10] Kevin Bianchi: And I want to say it was like four months after she graduated college, which I just think is like such an exciting point in like a young actress's life.

[2:22] Quincy Brown: And to like jump right into one of the coolest shows.

[2:27] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, definitely.

[2:28] Quincy Brown: And then the following year, she transferred to Broadway with the show.

[2:33] Kevin Bianchi: So made her Broadway debut understudying Christine, Brooke, Chloe and Jenna.

[2:39] Quincy Brown: That sounds like a lot.

[2:41] Kevin Bianchi: And she also was the assistant dance captain.

[2:44] Quincy Brown: Oh, she's a dancer?

[2:46] Kevin Bianchi: I feel like we don't hear that from our alphabas often.

[2:48] Quincy Brown: Maybe Talia is the dancing alphabet.

[2:51] Kevin Bianchi: That's the title of that.

[2:52] Quincy Brown: Dancing alphabet.

[2:55] Kevin Bianchi: After Be More Chill, she made her wicked debut in her wicked debut in 2019 on the second national tour, straight to principal alphabet, baby.

[3:07] Quincy Brown: Which will let her tell the story. But I'm pretty positive this was like her first ever alphabet audition.

[3:11] Kevin Bianchi: And she booked.

[3:12] Quincy Brown: Again, we don't know if this is true, but has there been a booked off of one audition principal tour straight to principal Broadway pipeline before for an alphabet?

[3:19] Kevin Bianchi: I am not the one to ask.

[3:23] Quincy Brown: Feels like a question I should know the answer to.

[3:25] Kevin Bianchi: So Talia is out on tour. Then the pandemic happens.

[3:30] Quincy Brown: So then we had a brief pause on her alphabet contract.

[3:34] Kevin Bianchi: She reopens the second national tour.

[3:36] Quincy Brown: And now in the year of 2022, she is transferring to the Broadway company principal alphabet.

[3:44] Kevin Bianchi: This is I mean, she's got a pretty legendary alphabet journey so far.

[3:49] Quincy Brown: So I'm pretty pumped to hear about it.

[3:52] Kevin Bianchi: And you know what I kind of feel? I don't know why I feel this way, but it does.

[3:57] Quincy Brown: It's feeling like Talia might be a Jackie Burns type where she's popping in for contracts every once in a while over the years and just being phenomenal.

[4:09] Kevin Bianchi: Like it feels like that could happen, which I would love.

[4:11] Quincy Brown: An Elfie 911.

[4:13] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, an Elfie 911 in evergreen Elfie, if you will.

[4:16] Quincy Brown: How many different ways have we phrased this?

[4:19] Kevin Bianchi: Do we want to do a Stuck on SJB?

[4:21] Quincy Brown: I feel like it's been so long since we've done one of these.

[4:24] Kevin Bianchi: I know it has been.

[4:28] Quincy Brown: Okay, so I have a Stuck on SJB today.

[4:31] Kevin Bianchi: Listeners, full disclosure, I may have spoken about this before, but I've come across a longer, more complete version of the video than I had ever seen before.

[4:42] Quincy Brown: And so that's what I'm going to talk about today.

[4:44] Kevin Bianchi: What we're going to talk about today is Stephanie J Block and Andrew Rannells rehearsing Move On for the New York Pops concert.

[4:52] Quincy Brown: Oh, is this that video where she also sings Don't Rain on My Parade?

[4:55] Kevin Bianchi: I am familiar with that video, which is like a spliced together kind of sizzle, sizzle reel of their rehearsal.

[5:04] Quincy Brown: But today when I was browsing, I was scrolling, scrolling, scrolling, trying to get past like all the usual suspects.

[5:11] Kevin Bianchi: And I found a recording of the full rehearsal, the full song.

[5:16] Quincy Brown: And it's from Call Me Adam, which I don't know if you remember, but Call Me Adam was one of the OG theater vloggers.

[5:23] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, I can picture the title screen, right?

[5:28] Quincy Brown: Yeah. But yeah, so not only do I love this video, but also big thanks to Call Me Adam, one of the OG sentimental men for paving the way for us.

[5:36] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[5:37] Quincy Brown: But so I'm glad that I have access to this full video now, because that role, first of all, I would love to hear her, see her, experience her in that role.

[5:50] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, her and Sebastian could do that show together.

[5:53] Quincy Brown: Yeah.

[5:53] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, wait, they sang that, right?

[5:55] Quincy Brown: They like to switch gender roles and sing it at things.

[5:59] Kevin Bianchi: Hearing SJB sing the dot line of the song start to finish, it really hits like every part of her voice, which is just fun to listen to.

[6:09] Quincy Brown: Because the song kind of falls around her break, and she navigates it really, really well.

[6:15] Kevin Bianchi: There's like lots of opportunities for like her rich, rich, rich, rich low notes.

[6:20] Quincy Brown: But we also get some of her pretty soprano.

[6:22] Kevin Bianchi: And I think what's kind of interesting is like because it's in like a concert setting, like for the pops, that's kind of a scenario where like the score has to lead the way.

[6:33] Quincy Brown: Like you're, you know, that's a really a moment to like be a score alpha buff, for lack of a better word.

[6:39] Kevin Bianchi: To be a score alpha buff.

[6:41] Quincy Brown: When someone sings score in general now, they're being a score alpha buff.

[6:50] Kevin Bianchi: That was funny.

[6:51] Quincy Brown: Anyway, so while respecting the score, she finds all of these places to phrase the music in a way that makes it feel like a choice that she's making without altering the melody at all.

[7:05] Kevin Bianchi: First of all, I just love the pairing of her and Andrew Rannells.

[7:08] Quincy Brown: I like to think of them as close girlfriends who are so excited to sing together at the pops.

[7:16] Kevin Bianchi: No, because yeah, because like, what a fun little treat to get to sing Sunday in the park with you, GBM.

[7:26] Quincy Brown: With you, Judy!

[7:27] Kevin Bianchi: Like, come on!

[7:29] Quincy Brown: And their two voices, they have both have such beautiful resonance in their voice that when they get to that big, um, move on, move on, it's like a wall of sound.

[7:41] Kevin Bianchi: It's so nice.

[7:43] Quincy Brown: One of my favorite Sondheim lyrics is anything you do, let it come from you.

[7:48] Kevin Bianchi: Like that last, and her delivery of it is so gentle and beautiful and lovely.

[7:57] Quincy Brown: And it just hit right where I needed it to today.

[8:02] Kevin Bianchi: You know, it's like a nice hug on this rainy afternoon.

[8:06] Quincy Brown: Did you see, I think it was either this week or last, there was some Instagram story business happening about a Pal Joey workshop?

[8:13] Kevin Bianchi: Pal Joey with her as Vera?

[8:16] Quincy Brown: Which one?

[8:16] Kevin Bianchi: I'm like, that had to, like, have been planned in some sort to allow them to post about it or like, do we not?

[8:23] Quincy Brown: You would think they would be like, guys, don't post about this if they wanted to keep it hush hush.

[8:26] Kevin Bianchi: That to me felt like a little bit of like a soft launch announcement.

[8:29] Quincy Brown: Maybe, but honestly, thrilling.

[8:33] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[8:34] Quincy Brown: I mean, that's delicious casting.

[8:36] Kevin Bianchi: I just love knowing that SJB is back in New York City working on some projects.

[8:40] Quincy Brown: She's in a room.

[8:42] Kevin Bianchi: Quincy, do you have anything else that you would like to say to me?

[8:46] Quincy Brown: Oh, I know what I can ask you. Have you listened to the six live recordings?

[8:51] Kevin Bianchi: Here's the journey I went on. I was trying to get to work early and I normally have like a 20 minute subway commute. So I left my apartment at nine. I start at ten typically. Left my apartment at nine being like, well, I'm going to get there so early. It'll be nice. I can get set up. I didn't end up getting into the office until 10 a.m. for my 10 a.m. meeting. I was stuck underground on the queue. It was wild. And as I was like stuck underground in between stops, Taylor Swift released her version of this love from 1989, Taylor's version and the six cast album drop. So I listened to both. But six, I only listened to I Don't Need Your Love, Heart of Stone and No Way.

[9:30] Quincy Brown: That's your big three.

[9:31] Kevin Bianchi: I think that's my big three. What's your six big three?

[9:33] Quincy Brown: I think the same three as you. I would say No Way, Heart of Stone and All You Want to Do.

[9:38] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, but you said I Don't Need Your Love.

[9:40] Quincy Brown: I love in Don't Lose Your Head when at the end when she sings.

[9:46] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, you haven't listened yet.

[9:47] Quincy Brown: I'm sorry. I mean, yeah, the vocal choices on the live are really something else.

[9:51] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[9:52] Quincy Brown: Abby sounds so good.

[9:56] Kevin Bianchi: Like porcelain.

[9:57] Quincy Brown: Like it's so good.

[10:01] Kevin Bianchi: Abby sounds like porcelain. Put that on the marquee.

[10:03] Quincy Brown: I'm sorry. One second. Six Broadway.

[10:07] Kevin Bianchi: Okay, good talk.

[10:10] Quincy Brown: I thought we were just kind of shooting the show.

[10:15] Kevin Bianchi: Let's get into it with Talia Suskauer.

[10:17] Quincy Brown: Good talk. I'll see you in there.

[10:26] Kevin Bianchi: Talia Suskauer is here for the first time.

[10:29] Quincy Brown: Yes.

[10:29] Kevin Bianchi: First episode with Talia.

[10:31] Quincy Brown: I'm so happy.

[10:31] Kevin Bianchi: But I feel like you've been a part of the Sent Men family from the beginning.

[10:35] Talia Suskauer: Yeah.

[10:35] Quincy Brown: Well, I've been a true fan.

[10:38] Kevin Bianchi: Because you did, I think like a Two Truths and a Lie for us like a while back, right?

[10:42] Talia Suskauer: I did.

[10:42] Kevin Bianchi: And then we did like during the pandemois, we did a little like live.

[10:47] Talia Suskauer: Pandemois.

[10:47] Kevin Bianchi: It's a little live thing, right? Didn't we do that? Am I imagining this?

[10:49] Talia Suskauer: No.

[10:50] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[10:50] Talia Suskauer: It was like early on in the Sent Men journey.

[10:53] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[10:54] Talia Suskauer: I was trying to think about like what we even talked about, but I don't remember.

[10:57] Kevin Bianchi: Blacked out for the whole thing. Don't know.

[11:00] Talia Suskauer: That was fun.

[11:01] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah. So like you've been with us from the beginning. This is the first time we're doing a real episode with you. And I'm so excited.

[11:05] Talia Suskauer: Me too.

[11:07] Kevin Bianchi: And it comes on the heels of a very exciting announcement, Ms. Suskauer.

[11:12] Talia Suskauer: Yes.

[11:14] Kevin Bianchi: What is the announcement?

[11:16] Talia Suskauer: I don't know.

[11:16] Kevin Bianchi: We're going to Broadway!

[11:18] Talia Suskauer: Yeah. It's pretty wild. I honestly don't even believe it's happening, really.

[11:22] Kevin Bianchi: And for the sake of people who will be listening later, you are in rehearsals right now.

[11:27] Talia Suskauer: I am. I'm opening on the 24th. I started rehearsals on Tuesday.

[11:31] Kevin Bianchi: So I get a short little truncated two week rehearsal period.

[11:35] Quincy Brown: And do you feel like you need, because you like just finished your tour run. Are you feeling like I really need these Broadway rehearsals?

[11:42] Talia Suskauer: I mean, there was a couple of things in my brain that I needed. First of all, the show is like slight. I mean, it's the same exact show, but it's just different enough at the Gershwin that it can be very confusing. So really, you have to kind of treat it like two different shows because they, in essence, are. This one was built for the Gershwin stage. And our version on tour was adapted to fit different touring houses.

[12:09] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, yeah.

[12:10] Talia Suskauer: So same story. The lines don't change. The music doesn't change. But the backstage traffic is the real kicker with the Gershwin.

[12:18] Kevin Bianchi: Sure.

[12:19] Quincy Brown: Yeah. Okay, actually, wait, before we get into all of that, let's do like the standard Elphaba interview. So let's start with the question. How did Wicked come into your life?

[12:28] Talia Suskauer: Wicked, I remember the exact moment it came into my life. So I was in this little after school musical theater class, clearly in 2003 or something, you know, very, very early on.

[12:38] Kevin Bianchi: As you do.

[12:39] Talia Suskauer: Yes, as you do. And this girl walks in. She has the Wicked vocal arrangements, which, you know, we all have. We've all owned this at one point. We know how it feels in our hands. We know we know what this is.

[12:51] Kevin Bianchi: So she walks in and she goes, I will be singing Popular.

[12:55] Talia Suskauer: And my first kind of introduction into the Wicked world was Popular. And I was like, this is so good. And then I wanted to sing Popular.

[13:04] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, so she was a Glinda girl from the beginning.

[13:05] Talia Suskauer: Well, I was like, Popular, it's such a good song. And then I, you know, started listening to obviously the rest of the soundtrack. And I was like, wait, hold on. This is great.

[13:13] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, it's all good.

[13:15] Talia Suskauer: Ditch Glinda. It's just truly there's no skip songs. It's great.

[13:20] Kevin Bianchi: I mean, I mean, we'll say for right now, there are no skip songs. It's all great. It's currently Alphabon Broadway.

[13:26] Talia Suskauer: Yeah.

[13:26] Kevin Bianchi: And so my mom took my sister and I on a girl's trip to see the show in 2005.

[13:33] Talia Suskauer: Oh, early.

[13:33] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah. I saw Shoshana Bean and Megan Hilty.

[13:36] Talia Suskauer: Iconic, iconic little pair.

[13:38] Kevin Bianchi: From that point on, it was like I it was at Wicked all the time. Truly.

[13:42] Talia Suskauer: And did you always want to be a performer? Like, was that the dream from little girl age?

[13:45] Talia Suskauer: Yes, absolutely.

[13:46] Kevin Bianchi: At what point did you go from just like loving Wicked so much to being like, no, but also I'm going to play Alphabon. Like, when was that moment?

[13:50] Talia Suskauer: I'm I think it was sometime in high school where I was, you know, started to be validated by my like teachers and parents and friends like, oh, you know, you're really good at this. You know, I decided I was going to go to college for it. And you're kind of nothing without your dreams and your goals. And that was one that I had set for myself from that young age. I was like, if I do one thing, if I do one thing in my life, I will play this part. And I think I like like we all had a little angsty high school Twitter. I think I tweeted it out. It's not private, but I.

[14:55] Talia Suskauer: Wicked is an institution. People go in for Wicked like five to twelve times potentially before even hearing anything. I first got my audition appointment right as Be More Chill was closing. And so I was like, all right, need another job. But in my brain, I was like, this is truly going to be the first of twelve. This is like, leave a good impression on them. That's it. That's my only goal is to have fun singing this music that I love and leave a good first impression. And if I can walk away from this five-minute chunk doing that, then I have won. That's amazing. And I set absolutely zero pressure on myself. So I did not expect that after my appointment and callback that it would happen for me. It was certainly a pleasant surprise, but I mean, it was—

[15:45] Quincy Brown: And was that the audition process for tour? It was one appointment and a callback?

[15:48] Talia Suskauer: So I got the appointment. I was actually doing a reading of something at the time, and you're kind of stuck during the day when you're doing a reading because you've committed for twenty-nine hours to do this reading. And so I got the appointment and it was like, tomorrow, come in, Elphaba and Wicked, immediate replacement for tour. So it was like to leave in like two weeks to join the company.

[16:07] Quincy Brown: So you went in knowing that it was for full-time Elphaba?

[16:11] Talia Suskauer: Yes. But still in my brain, you're like, oh, even if I don't get this one, they could keep me in mind for standby in the future or understudy in the future. There's a binder. There's a file. There's absolutely a file. And so that was truly the only goal was to leave a good first impression. So I went in, I did my one, my first initial, and I showed up to the waiting room at Telsey, and I was the only girl there, like not in a long black dress. And I was like, I fucked up.

[16:39] Quincy Brown: What did you wear?

[16:41] Talia Suskauer: I wore jeans and a black t-shirt. I didn't like, which is a very Elphaba kind of like in hindsight thing to do. She shows up and she's like, oh, well, I'm out of place. But who cares? Because that's it. That's how I feel comfortable. So I kind of always dress like, I never dress really in character. I always kind of dress like with a little hint of it so I can feel comfortable and not like a robot in the room. So I showed up and I just did that call. And then—

[17:09] Quincy Brown: Did you do the packet at that point or was it from your book?

[17:12] Talia Suskauer: So no, not from the book. It was the packet. I did Defying Gravity and The Wizard Knife, just the ends of the songs, which is a fun—

[17:19] Quincy Brown: What's in your book? What's your go-to song?

[17:22] Talia Suskauer: In my book? I haven't looked in my book. It's been truly several years.

[17:27] Quincy Brown: Because she's bugged.

[17:28] Talia Suskauer: Quincy, sorry, I've been working.

[17:30] Quincy Brown: Well, I mean, pandemic included. Who looked in their book during the pandemic? But I've been on the road since 2019. What is my go-to song? It's not musical theater. It's a Janis Joplin song, actually.

[17:39] Quincy Brown: Why is that always the Elphaba move to not do a theater song?

[17:46] Talia Suskauer: It's like, I mean, again, that's very Elphaba. It's Cry Baby by Janis Joplin. It's like my go-to stand and park and bark and wail for sixteen bars and then leave. Goodbye, you know?

[17:58] Quincy Brown: Yes, okay. So you do the packet.

[18:00] Talia Suskauer: Do the packet and then I did, I think, one scene. I think it was the Lion Cub scene.

[18:03] Quincy Brown: Yeah.

[18:04] Talia Suskauer: And then that was it. And then I left and I felt really good. I didn't think I bugged it because whoever does, you know, out of those things. And I asked my agent for feedback, and she didn't get back to me immediately. And we closed Be More Chill. I was off doing something else in Massachusetts. And then I got a call and was like, okay, your feedback is that you're going in for a final callback tomorrow. So get back to New York as soon as you can. And so I'm like, like racing back to New York, truly getting on the first train the next day, trying to get back from Massachusetts. And then like, I had the very last slot of the day at Telsey. The lights were off at Telsey, I remember, except for this one room.

[18:41] Quincy Brown: I love that.

[18:42] Talia Suskauer: And I walked in and I had like a forty-five minute appointment. And then that was it. Still, at the end of it, I was like, no, whatever. It was fun. But who's gonna get Elphaba, you know?

[18:53] Quincy Brown: Right. But what was your confidence level as a performer at this point? Because I think your voice is like insanely solid.

[19:00] Talia Suskauer: Oh, thank you. I mean, here is a little anecdote that will tell you about my confidence level. So I get the call. I leave. I have no time to prepare. Ideally, in my brain at the time, I would have wanted like two weeks of vocal lessons in the city, like doing all this stuff and then going. I had zero time for that. I had to go back to the city, pack up my life in like two days and then get on a plane to California where the tour was. So I get there and I meet with the music director and we have our first rehearsal. And before we start the rehearsal, I said to him, listen, I just want to tell you, I think they've made a mistake. I was like, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know if I can. I don't know if I can do this.

Like I wanted this. I don't know. He goes, honey, Wicked doesn't make any sense. And I said, OK. And then sent through all the material. And he was like, see, you've got it. You're fine. And so I think still you always have kind of a sense of even to this day of imposter syndrome because it's a huge monumental task. So at that point, I was I was definitely kind of quaking in my boots a little bit. And they only at that time, they're like four weeks to learn Elphaba. And I'm like, that's not enough. I need like ten months to learn Elphaba.

[20:16] Quincy Brown: You don't. You don't.

[20:20] Talia Suskauer: So by the fourth week, I was ready to get on the stage. I asked actually asked Marianne Torres, who I was replacing like goddess. I was like, what's the secret? Like, what's the key? And she goes, you just have to do it. And that's like not an answer that you want to hear because it's like I want like a little secret that's going to help me. Right. There's no secret. It's just you have to just do it. And it's true. You just have to get your reps in and then your confidence starts to build.

[20:37] Quincy Brown: Yeah. Having been a fan of the show for such a long time and also someone who was like actively dreaming of playing this part for a long time. Did you like go in with kind of like, this is my Elphaba or specific things that you're like, oh, this person used to do this. And I think I would want to do that in my performance.

[20:53] Talia Suskauer: I'm kind of, I think mainly I just wanted to like be able to produce something on the stage. So I don't think I can't I think in the beginning, I didn't really have any expectations. What was cool is that you kind of go in and you learn what's on the page. And I love that because the page is so good.

[21:08] Quincy Brown: And are you going into that first rehearsal? This is interesting, like learning the role completely new. Are you going in kind of off book already?

[21:13] Talia Suskauer: Like I studied the script, the script kind of but like, we all have like Adina's voice in our head from that soundtrack. Like we have her rhythms, we have her intonations, we have her tone in our brain, you know. So I think that going in, and we have to keep in mind, I think they recorded the soundtrack before they even started in New York. Right? I think that's is that true?

[21:38] Quincy Brown: Yeah.

[21:44] Talia Suskauer: So because if you if you notice, like a lot of things are different. When you see the show, like Dancing Through Life, telling the sentimental men something new. That would be cool. I really hope I'm not wrong about this. I think someone told me this. Well, fact check, please. Fact check. But what's cool is that like, things are different. Like you listen to Dancing Through Life, for example, and then you listen to it in the show. It's so slow on the album. So slow. It is. And it is so just has so much more, no pun intended, life to it. When you watch it. And also, that whole thing that Adina does in As Long As You Remind Me, you know, like, that's different. That was because she was, I think, just warming up. And she just kept it on there. Because obviously, she's girly. So it sounds so good.

[22:34] Quincy Brown: Yeah, heard that somewhere.

[22:38] Talia Suskauer: What was it? No, but I'm sure that you just dropped that knowledge. Well, okay, I'm a wicked super fan. So anyway, um, yeah, so I think I was just going in just kind of just wanting to just do it. You know what I mean? I just I didn't have anything that I necessarily like, wanted to put in there. And what's cool is that you sing from what's on the page, and then they give you a little bit of freedom as you move through. They just want to make sure you have everyone starts kind of singing at that baseline. And then they're like, Hey, if you actually want to take this option, you can. I am not so adventurous when it comes to that stuff. I really like things to be planned. So if something new just just come into my performance, it's it's been planned.

And it's been asked, like I've asked, you know, the music team like it's like, I'm gonna do it and get a slap on the wrist later. No, no, because then like, God forbid, it's bad. It's distracting. It takes away from like, what you're saying. And it's just, you know, it's, there's not it's not worth it to me.

[23:27] Quincy Brown: Integrity of the piece.

[23:28] Talia Suskauer: Absolutely.

[23:30] Quincy Brown: Okay, so going into the role on tour, which kind of like take yourself back to the beginning of your contract. What were things that as you were doing it, having grown up being a fan of the show, you were like, Oh, I was not expecting it to be this difficult or even like this experience in the role.

[23:47] Talia Suskauer: I don't think I was expecting the scene work to be harder than the singing.

[23:51] Quincy Brown: Elaborate. Yeah, say more.

[23:53] Talia Suskauer: Elphaba is always kind of like at one hundred. She's really always at on her guard. And so right out of the gate in your first scene, you are yelling. And you are aggressive. And then you have to bring it back down seeing the wizard knife. So there's a lot of vocal manipulation that has to happen in order for you to like, kind of like, raise and lower your soft palate, make sure your larynx is low enough for you to start the song like singing again after screaming. There's a lot of things that you have like a lot of pacing of the show that you have to do to make sure that you can get through it. Because we're trained to sing. We're not often trained to really like speak and yell. Yeah, you know, helpfully. So that takes some getting used to.

[24:34] Quincy Brown: And would you say that Elphaba is typically how you like to sing?

[24:36] Talia Suskauer: It's where I love to live there. I mean, it's either there or like super like rocky, folky type sound. But this is very like, musical theater high belt, but actually most of Elphaba lives in the mid range like B's and C's. It sounds high because it's so dramatic, like the end of Wizard and I I think is a C. Yeah, which is so mid range. But I mean, I actually the higher stuff is so much easier for me. And I think I have to say I think most women would agree most women that play Elphaba might agree with me might agree with me that like that is like easier to do than like, you know, at the end of the song.

[25:17] Quincy Brown: So that stuff is hard to navigate. But those places where you can kind of pop up and open up for me are easier.

[25:22] Talia Suskauer: That's interesting. Yeah.

[25:27] Quincy Brown: We talk a lot about how like, going back to what you said about like having a Dina's voice in your head is like her voice is so unduplicatable that it's like, dozens of women have just been tasked with the marathon of like keeping up for a show that was keyed and orchestrated and arranged around her.

[25:39] Talia Suskauer: Yes, it's wild. It's absolutely wild. But what's so cool is that on days where I'm like, this is so hard. I know if I'm going to get through it, you just think of how many women have done it before you and you're like, they got through it, you know, on their hardest day, which is so I can get through it in Little Rock, Arkansas today. You know what I mean? Like, I got it.

[26:04] Quincy Brown: So when you first started, did you feel like you had a good grip on it? Or did it take a little bit to settle in?

[26:07] Talia Suskauer: Oh, it definitely takes a bit at least to even feel like you have it under you for I think Elphaba in the beginning feels like a train that is just taken off. And you're just trying to like hang on to the caboose like from behind. And then it takes a couple months to be like, Oh, I'm driving this train now. So yeah, I think that with anything, it just takes some time to feel like you have a mastery of it. And again, I don't feel like necessarily I am a master of it. But I feel like I can get through it every night and feel like a person on the other side of it.

[26:45] Quincy Brown: Well, and my perception of you and the way that you talk about the role is that it's not maybe as difficult for Talia as it is for other women who have played the role.

[26:53] Talia Suskauer: I don't know. I think that different things are different for me. Like I feel like body, I'm really tired. Oftentimes. I also will not show up to the show if I can't sing it that day. I won't show up because you have a standby and an understudy that can give one hundred percent. So I don't I don't even let myself run into trouble that way. And if you don't let yourself run into trouble that way, you're not going to which feels like a good boundary to draw.

[27:20] Quincy Brown: Yeah, it's not worth it. You know what I mean? First of all, don't hurt yourself. You have you want to have a career afterwards, because it is a hard thing. And it's a hard speak. And you're speaking and singing for three hours. And that's including when you're not on stage, you know, in the way that you have to deal with talk with with people backstage to make sure you're feeling safe and what you need, whatever. But I think that I underestimated the toll it would take on my body. It's you know, I wear knee pads, the whole show, you're constantly going up and down and running and, and falling and throwing your body into such an emotional state. So in that way, it is really, really hard. But yeah, if you don't let yourself run into vocal trouble, then it won't be difficult for you. You know, like, you take off shows before it can get bad for you, you know, negatively impact your—

[28:12] Quincy Brown: Yeah, so in that way, I feel like I'm proud of myself and that I don't it's not so precious to me if if I call out of a show because I'm just about to get tired rather than calling out when I'm like, like the brink of like vocals, it's a vocal failure. It's also not fair to the audience, like they should feel really confident in the person that they're seeing. And like, you should be able to listen to someone and be like, I'm not worried about that.

[28:36] Quincy Brown: You know, that's interesting, because it feels like you the way you talk about this role and the way you approach this role feels very mature and seasoned. And it's interesting to think that you're still so fresh and young in your career, not that like,

[28:51] Talia Suskauer: No, yeah. Anything to poo-poo, but it's like, you're kind of just beginning in this professional career of yours. And for you to have this kind of insight and foresight of the role is very admirable, I think. Well, I think, oh, thank you. I think I've spoken to a lot of women who have played this role and learned a lot from so many of them. And just I decided, if you decide in your brain that like you, you are in charge of the experience you're about to have, rather than letting it rule you, I think that it's going to be what it is for you. You make the experience rather than let the experience make you, you know, so. Yeah. I'm trying. I mean, we'll see. We'll talk again in like a couple months. You know, but...

[29:30] Quincy Brown: Wait, so how far into your tour contract did you feel fully settled and like, I got this?

[29:36] Talia Suskauer: So I started in September of 2019. I feel like, honestly, maybe around February of 2020. And again, I don't think the audience could tell I wasn't settled. Yeah. I think that was fine. But the way I felt in February was like, yeah, come see me do the show. I love this job. I'm having a great time. And I feel like I've hit my stride.

[29:57] Kevin Bianchi: Did that stride maintain when you came back after the shutdown? Or did you feel like you were starting at zero again?

[30:04] Talia Suskauer: I don't think I started at zero. But I think that I was really nervous because for the first couple months of the pandemic, I was like singing every day and like trying to keep it up. Just in case it comes back next week.

[30:15] Quincy Brown: Right, exactly. Because that's what we all thought initially. And I think that once we all realized that, okay, it's going to be a few more months. Oh, wait, it's going to be a year. Oh, wait, it's going to be a year and a half. I kind of let it go. Because for my mental health, I was like, this is not good for me, because I don't know when this is coming back. And if it doesn't come back, I have to prepare myself for that.

[30:32] Kevin Bianchi: Was there a part of you that was like, maybe I'm just gonna do a different job?

[30:35] Talia Suskauer: Yeah, I had to come to terms with that. I think we all kind of did.

[30:40] Quincy Brown: Yeah.

[30:40] Talia Suskauer: And so for a while, I didn't want to hear Wicked. I didn't want to talk about it in my house. It really just upset me because I would have been devastated if I didn't have any closure with this. But thank goodness that that's not the case. But when it became clear that we were going to come back, I started my voice lessons up again and started getting on the treadmill again and singing the songs and doing all of it and using my household broom as a broom and going through the stuff. And I think coming back to it, what was cool is that we were kind of at all on the same page, like level playing field, like every actor, ensemble, crew member, management, we were all doing it together and starting over together.

So it didn't take as long for me to hit my stride as I did the first time. I felt like I knew how to place things and I knew kind of the roadmap of the show. But I think with Elphaba, stamina is so important. And it just takes doing it and doing it and doing it for you to get back into it. So probably by a couple months in, I felt really good this time.

[31:39] Quincy Brown: I don't know if Lindsay told you that Julia Murney is the one who told us that you were taking over on Broadway.

[31:45] Talia Suskauer: What? No, that's crazy.

[31:48] Quincy Brown: We were gossiping with her about who was taking over and we said someone that we had heard and she was like, oh, that's interesting because I heard it was the tour girl that's taking over. Wouldn't that be funny if it was like before I had even heard anything and she just, you know what I mean? Which I wouldn't be surprised about because she's Julia Murney.

[32:04] Talia Suskauer: Julia Murney is BCC'd on every Wicked email.

[32:07] Quincy Brown: As she should be, as she should be. So that's hilarious. I didn't know that.

[32:11] Kevin Bianchi: She gets the house report.

[32:12] Quincy Brown: So how did the ask come to you? And what was the reaction? What was the thought process?

[32:17] Talia Suskauer: So I had, you know, heard some maybe mutterings around it, like in the fall, just, you know, it's a possibility. So keep up, keep it up, you know?

[32:27] Kevin Bianchi: And had you known that people were like coming in to see you?

[32:30] Talia Suskauer: I mean, well, I had worked with the original team to remount the show. Oh, you know, we were together for 10 days and like, it was a total gift. And truly, if the buck had stopped there, like, that would have been totally fine because it was so special to work with Joe Mantello and the entire original creative team who hadn't necessarily been all in the same room together for years and years. And he would, you know, he came in, he changed some things that he didn't like. And it was just like, he put the show up on us again. And so it was an amazing experience. And very, very validating to hear months later that everyone had a good experience with me. And again, if it had stopped there, great, like I would have been so humbled and grateful for that I am still to this day.

But so I heard some mutterings in the fall. Again, I don't think anything's real until it's real. And so I wasn't, you know, I wasn't writing on that dream. I was just kind of doing my thing. I'm sure it was in your head.

[33:27] Quincy Brown: Of course, you know, you want to do a good job. And so then we were in California. And I had found out that I was I mean, I knew my contract was ending on March 20. Regardless, I was done, I was leaving, we were moving on. But then it starts to become real to you, you know, you're leaving. And so I had to kind of come to terms with that. And we got to Costa Mesa, California. And I got a call early in the morning, because it was, you know, not early East Coast time. And it was my agent. And she goes, Okay, I'm looping in your manager. And I'm like, Oh, this is something. And so I was in my true pajamas, the call, like woke me up, I like ran outside, because I was like, something's happening. I don't know what it is. But I have like a little feeling. Then they called me and they were like, we just got your Broadway offer. And I was like, and I fell on the ground and started crying. And it was just it was an amazing day.

[34:20] Kevin Bianchi: Oh, my God. Well, okay. So yeah, we've heard from the women who have done multiple contracts about like, where mentally they reach a point where they're like, I need to leave and like, not come back to this show. Yeah. Was that a thought in your brain at all? Or was it just like, we're obviously doing Broadway?

[34:35] Talia Suskauer: I think that with anything that you do, once you're getting towards the end, your body and mind are like, let's be done, you know. So I think my body was at the end of tour, I knew it was coming to an end. And tour had been such a long, drawn out chapter, because you know, I was cast in August 2019. And it's 2022. And so much has happened. And it's just felt like this on again, off again relationship. And it was truly the most incredible experience the family I made out there. I mean, there's nothing like being going on tour. It's just your family. And we were are literally trauma bonded from what we all went through. Which is which is kind of sad and cool, all at the same time. I think I was like, it's time to close this chapter.

If I continue with Wicked. They say once a munchkin, always a munchkin. And it's really true. You don't you don't ever really leave Wicked. Yeah, you know, it's kind of a thing that people come back to time and time again, because it is such a special experience. So I was like, if my time is ending for now, that's okay. And I will be doing this again in 40 years.

[35:45] Quincy Brown: And you'll be on Broadway.

[35:51] Talia Suskauer: Hey, I think we need someone who has to start the Elphaba de Morrible pipeline. Like I know, we're coming, it has to be coming. We're overdue for it. Do I want to play Morrible in 20 years? You bet. So yes, maybe not. Four years. It feels like a cushy role for the former Elphaba to just filter. Are you kidding me? Like strutting on stage and just like looking fierce. But I mean, I think by the time I was leaving tour, I was like, it's time to go to something else, just like at the end of any, any chapter. But hearing that I was, it was cool to be able to kind of fully live in the end of tour. Knowing that I was moving on, I feel really lucky. Because I was able to be like, I'm buttoning up this experience in such a positive way. And then I'm gonna rest up. And then we're gonna move on to a different chapter of this.

[36:41] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, because it's New York kind of home base for you.

[36:45] Talia Suskauer: Yeah, yeah. I mean, I lived here before tour. And then I gave up my apartment that I was in before tour during the pandemic. And then so I moved to Florida with my family. And then, you know, now live, like right around the corner from the Gershwin, which is really cool.

[36:59] Quincy Brown: So are you in the Lindsay apartments?

[37:04] Talia Suskauer: I'm not. Oh, my goodness. That'd be cool, though. Just like the Elphaba dorm. Can you even imagine? I honestly think that would be an amazing idea. So I think that's a good TV show. I have this like reality TV show in mind where it's just like all these former Elphaba's in a house and like I'm the Andy Cohen, Kevin and I can be the Andy Cohen.

[37:18] Kevin Bianchi: Wait, that has to happen. I think that's great.

[37:25] Talia Suskauer: Or just like an Elphaba roundtable.

[37:31] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, that'd be good. With a lot of wine.

[37:36] Talia Suskauer: Yeah. Yeah. But like, I do think there is something to like being back at your home base and being able to do the show and not traveling.

[37:42] Quincy Brown: Well, that's it. I mean, I think that I get this question a lot and I don't know the answer quite yet, but I can kind of guess the answer. I mean, people ask what's harder, like tour or Broadway. And I think they're hard for different reasons. On tour, you don't have the same dresser wherever you go. Your team is changing, you know, when you play Elphaba. And you're also, you know, moving from climate to climate. You know, I opened in Las Vegas and went right to New Orleans. So from dry to the literal, you know, swamp. So as a singer, that can be really, really tough. And then the theaters that you're playing some, you know, have mold and some are super pristine and new and they have different filtration systems and the air feels different and the houses are different sizes.

You have to adjust vocally like that's the whole tour game. And then with Broadway, you get to come home every night, which is amazing. You have your whole team of people that are the same. There's a level of consistency. You have your grocery stores and your chiropractor and your doctors. They're all there. And your family and friends. They can come see you in one place and, you know, everything's more accessible in a place that you know. But Wicked on Broadway, I mean, you're on a raked stage. There's a lot of running. There's an incredible amount of going up and down stairs. So, you know, they're kind of both equally hard in different ways.

[39:01] Kevin Bianchi: We were talking to Lindsay about life and career post Wicked and she kind of was like, I mean, like, what do you do after Wicked? There is that kind of pressure of following it up. But then also it's like you're just a working actress. So move on to your next job. Can you speak to that a little bit? Because I think it's interesting that you're doing Elphaba so fresh in your career.

[39:21] Talia Suskauer: I feel very lucky because I feel like people look at the women that have played Elphaba and they're like, it speaks for itself in terms of reputation and the skill set that you need to be able to play this role. So I think that I feel very fortunate because playing it this early, people will see that I've done it. And hopefully, you know, after I leave here, I'll be like, oh, great. You know, we know that she can do all of this stuff. Let's call her in for this or see her for this. This is her baseline. Yeah. And we can only hope that it's successful and that people hear about that. And I think I've watched it happen with the other women. I mean, Lindsay's a prime example. She's, you know, so wonderful. She's an amazing person. She's an absolutely fantastic Elphaba. And look what she's about to do, you know, and like right away. So it gives me a lot of hope.

[40:19] Quincy Brown: Yeah. We talked with her, as you know, as you know, like a week ago. And she was saying what a like unique relationship the two of you have as Elphabas because you both went through reopening together. And now you're replacing her trailing her and she's about to go out not on your tour, but on a tour.

[40:39] Talia Suskauer: Yes, she is my sister for life. I, you know, when you first, I mean, I hope other Elphabas do this. But when I found out I was already on tour playing the role I had been for several months when she was cast, I reached out to her when I found out I was like, Hey, you know, do you need anything? I'm here for you, the Green Girl Sisterhood, blah, blah, blah. And we had started, you know, kind of chatting then and then.

[41:02] Quincy Brown: Yeah, because you fully formed a friendship because you both were Elphaba, right?

[41:07] Talia Suskauer: Oh yeah, absolutely. I think there's a baseline of like, girl, you're my built in sister, I'm here for you. Hannah Corn noted the same thing for me. When I started, she was like, I'm here for you. I've got your back. And like, it really means something to just go to someone who has this shared experience that probably 0.01% of people have. And it's, it's kind of different when you're venting to like a friend who hasn't done it than a friend who has done it who completely understands the specific experience you have. So I reached out to Lindsay, we started chatting, pandemic happens, shows are kaput, they're done. And we are just each other's like, how are you feeling? What are you doing? What have you heard from your company?

You know, what's going on? So our friendship started that way. And when I tell you that we talked almost every day for a year and a half, that's what we did. And, and then reopening. I mean, she came to see us in Dallas, she flew out of her way to Dallas, her and Jenny, which is amazing, came to see the show in Dallas.

[42:07] Quincy Brown: Oh my god, that Mount Rushmore picture.

[42:12] Talia Suskauer: And then we, you know, I saw her when I came to New York, I didn't get to see the show. Because I couldn't, but because I was there on a Monday, I think they didn't have Monday show. I got it on a Sunday, didn't saw her, gave her a big hug. We went out to eat. She's the best. And then, you know, getting to tell her that, like, I would be taking over for her was really cool. Because it's weird to take over for somebody that you don't know. It's just a weird thing. I've done both, you know, so it's like weird coming in and like being like, I have to trail you. And I don't want to invade your space. But I also have to learn the show, you know, but it's a thing you have to do. And you can't. And it's up to the person who is leaving the show to be like, Hey, I've got you, I'm going to show you the ropes and do this thing good about it.

And sometimes you don't get like a nice person, unfortunately, but you hope to be the person to do that. And I hope I was that for Alyssa coming in on tour. I tried to like give her every tip and trick and hopefully it wasn't too much. But she's fantastic. And then with Lindsay, she has just been, I mean, it's like I get to first of all, hang out with one of my best.

[43:17] Talia Suskauer: At the theater every day. So that's a gift. Yeah. How has rehearsal been? It's been a lot. It's been crazy. It's amazing. But getting to pop by her room every night and be like, "Hey, girl, how you doing?" Like check in. It's been amazing. Like getting to see her and like getting to see her, by the way, like get green and get degreened. And like, I've been after rehearsal coming to her dressing room and while she's, you know, post-show and she's taking all off and we come and we have a conversation and we're just chilling there together. And it's so amazing. And I'm so sad it's only for one more week and then she leaves me.

[43:50] Quincy Brown: So the famous question, Defying Gravity, No Good Deed, The Wizard and I, which Elphaba would you categorize yourself as? What order was that?

[44:00] Talia Suskauer: Well, let it slide. Let it slide. Oh, this is hard. I mean, I feel like every night I'm a Defying Gravity Elphaba. That's just my favorite song to do. It's just the most incredible moment for the audience to watch. And like, I will never, it's a core memory watching Defying Gravity for the first time. And you're like Elphaba's flying over you and you're like, you know, it's breathtaking. And to get, I literally can see people's faces in the audience as I'm going up and it is so cool. And so even if I'm not feeling my best, getting to do that and watch people have that like emotional, visceral, cathartic reaction is, that's what it is. That's it. It's catharsis and watching them have that. It's just, I mean, there's nothing like it.

There's nothing like it. But then, you know, on nights where you're really in your heels and, you know, you need more than just Defying Gravity to like really get it out, to just rip No Good Deed and just get it all out there is cathartic for me as the actor. So I mean, what's the easiest and hardest for you to sing?

[45:07] Talia Suskauer: Wizard Night is the hardest, as I'm sure is a popular answer. It's just right out of the gate. And it's also the song where I kind of like can get my nerves out a little bit. So like, I have to just like, settle. Defying Gravity, I feel like is probably the easiest. Yeah, just as you get to park and bark, baby, you get to just stand there and sing it.

[45:31] Quincy Brown: True. Yeah, I guess. Yeah, you don't really think about that. There's so much happening around you, but you really are very still in that moment.

[45:35] Talia Suskauer: Yes, it's the hardest park and bark ever because you just kind of have to like be in a certain like position to sing and like make it look good. But you're I'm still standing there and not moving. If I moved, I would die. And just having your feet so close together. I love me asking this so far into the Sentimental Men journey. But does having your feet so close together affect your ability to belt or no?

[45:58] Talia Suskauer: I mean, it's not ideal. Yeah, that's because, you know, for me, I really like to feel rooted into the ground and grounded. And that doesn't really happen when your feet are there. You kind of can be pushed when your feet are together. And like, you don't feel so stable. But you have no choice. You have to adapt. You can't be like, can you please make it wider? Just stand apart. Doesn't work. So you kind of have to adapt to it. But it's fine when you get used to it. I keep worrying about those girls in Hamburg who have to do it harnessed. I cannot believe that is happening with the harness.

[46:38] Quincy Brown: We said bring it to New World Stages. Yeah, transfer it off Broadway Wicked. I can't imagine singing in a harness, but they sound fierce. So okay, Talia. So we have a new segment that we introduced this season, where we take listener questions. And we thought you'd be good to like do this one together.

[46:54] Talia Suskauer: Yay!

[46:56] Quincy Brown: Dear Starlingess, Kevzie and Quincycle, it is your Sentimental Men standby slash cover, the Eden to y'all's collective Adena, James Kennedy here with a question for you. If your life were like Groundhog Day, and you were living the same day in perpetuity over and over again for the rest of your life, and you could only see one cast of Wicked every single day for the rest of your life, who would be in that cast? It can be a dream cast. It doesn't necessarily have to be actors who have done the show before, or actors who have done the show together. But it's one cast that you would see for the rest of your life every single day. I cannot wait to hear your answers.

[47:45] Quincy Brown: Talia, it's looking like you already have an answer.

[47:48] Talia Suskauer: Yeah, obviously.

[47:50] Quincy Brown: Oh my god.

[47:51] Talia Suskauer: Yeah. It's so funny because I just watched one bootleg in college over and over and over again. And it would be this cast. It would be Stephanie J. Block and Annalee Ashford.

[48:03] Quincy Brown: I know the bootleg well.

[48:05] Talia Suskauer: And that's it. The acting and comedy chops of both of them combined, like just like take away their voices.

[48:11] Quincy Brown: That's a funny cast.

[48:12] Talia Suskauer: Yeah, it's funny. And but also—

[48:14] Quincy Brown: That's also an acting cast.

[48:16] Talia Suskauer: They are actors first, even though they're both singers, you know, like, which the singing is like a bonus. But though, like, that's like Elphaba and Glinda for me.

[48:25] Quincy Brown: That's true. That's like an acting first pair that can sing the material very well as well.

[48:30] Talia Suskauer: Yes.

[48:31] Kevin Bianchi: That was a really good answer. My answer is Shoshana Bean, because I feel like she is not the type to like set her show. So I feel like if I'm going to keep watching it over and over again, I'm going to get a different performance from her as time goes on.

[48:47] Talia Suskauer: It's very logical.

[48:48] Kevin Bianchi: It's just variety. And for my Glinda, I'm having a real struggle with this. And I'm going to choose the one that I'm going to choose, because I think Kevin might choose my alternate.

[48:58] Talia Suskauer: I'm not going to, but I have a very specific answer for this question.

[49:04] Kevin Bianchi: OK, for the Glinda, I'm going to choose Katie Rose Clark. And I feel like Katie Rose Clark is always the Glinda I choose for these types of questions. But that's the Glinda I want to watch forever.

[49:13] Talia Suskauer: I'm going to take advantage of the asterisk and I'm going to go outside of the canon. And I'm going to give myself the permission to use a time machine too, just because it's Groundhog's Day. There's no reality here. So I'm going to choose Betty Buckley and Madeleine Kahn. That's just my dream cast forever, always.

[49:34] Kevin Bianchi: You just...

[49:35] Talia Suskauer: That's too much of a curveball.

[49:36] Kevin Bianchi: That was OK.

[49:40] Talia Suskauer: That wasn't the prompt.

[49:42] Kevin Bianchi: It was.

[49:43] Talia Suskauer: You just blew my mind with Madeleine Kahn.

[49:45] Kevin Bianchi: You said one cast, it could be anybody.

[49:47] Talia Suskauer: Wow. I feel like my answer is like so obvious.

[49:51] Kevin Bianchi: I know.

[49:52] Talia Suskauer: Wow, I'm dead. That was fun. I'm glad we did this.

[49:55] Quincy Brown: Me too. Yeah, good question, James.

[49:58] Talia Suskauer: Oh my god, Talia, thank you for joining us on Sentimental Men. It feels so right to finally have you here.

[50:04] Talia Suskauer: I'm so happy. I'm going to Hawaii on Thursday, but I will see you on Broadway when I get back.

[50:09] Quincy Brown: Yay, oh my god, have fun.

[50:10] Talia Suskauer: I'm going home for a wedding.

[50:11] Quincy Brown: Oh, I mean, not a bad place. You're not going to like...

[50:15] Talia Suskauer: I don't want to say a state in case someone will get mad at me, but like...

[50:24] Kevin Bianchi: Talia, it feels so right that we have finally spoken to Talia Suskauer. Sorry, I know I just threw you into this conclusion segment.

[50:32] Quincy Brown: I was ready.

[50:34] Kevin Bianchi: I'm here. I'm an open scene partner. I'm just like very happy that we talked to her. I feel like it's been in the works for a long time. I feel like she's been in the Sentiment universe. I'm glad that we could finally bring her in.

[50:45] Quincy Brown: Yeah, and she's always been game to like play with us before. So I feel like she brought that into the interview room today.

[50:54] Kevin Bianchi: And it was just like she showed up. She knew the shtick. She got the energy right. Which I will say like every guest we've had has been very... We've been lucky in that every guest we've had so far has understood our shtick, which is nice. But I do think that there's like an alternate universe where like you and me are Tor and Broadway, Elphaba, and Lindsay and Talia are the podcasters.

[51:20] Quincy Brown: Have a podcast called Sentimental Ladies. Who was on Tor and who was on Broadway first?

[51:25] Kevin Bianchi: I think I was on Broadway first because...

[51:28] Quincy Brown: Oh, because...

[51:29] Kevin Bianchi: No, go ahead, Kevin. Just because Broadway is a little bit more of a depressed wicked. And I feel like Tor is like a younger, peppier wicked.

[51:38] Quincy Brown: That's fair. And I feel like Tor would let me do the wicked that I would want to do. Although famously, I would be a score Elphaba if I was. Just because riffing is not in my wheelhouse.

[51:45] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, yeah, sure. I feel like you'd be a riffy Elphaba.

[51:52] Quincy Brown: No, score, baby.

[51:53] Kevin Bianchi: No, you wouldn't be... You'd be an option Elphaba.

[51:56] Quincy Brown: I'd be an option.

[51:57] Kevin Bianchi: You'd be option.

[51:58] Quincy Brown: I'd be an option Elphaba for sure. So now as you get ready to go out on tour with Mean Girls, I'm cozying up at the Gershwin.

[52:05] Kevin Bianchi: You'd be a good Janice.

[52:08] Quincy Brown: Thanks, Quincy. All right. So anyway, I loved when Talia was talking about working with the creative team, the original creative team. That was really cool. Because I don't think that clicked for me that they also reset the tour. I feel like the narrative that we Sent Men have been driving home is that the original creatives came back and got the show back on its feet for Broadway. We have been excluding the tour in this narrative. And I apologize for that. But how interesting then that that gave Talia the opportunity to have a two week long audition for Broadway.

[52:47] Kevin Bianchi: Well, that's the thing where I'm like, oh wow, so she got to form those personal relationships with the team. And that had to have been beneficial for her just in life. But there's also a really cool experience that I'm sure not a lot of tour Elphabas can say they've had. That's like the ultimate pinch me. Honestly. Because it's like you already get your dream, right? Like you book Elphaba. That's the dream. And then something catastrophic and completely unpredictable happens. And then you get to be Elphaba in the room with those people in a way that like you've never would have even thought you had the option. You get to like collaborate with those people to build something, which has got to be so cool.

[53:37] Talia Suskauer: That's nuts. Like, right, you got to like build Elphaba from scratch with the original creatives. Super special experience. That's so cool.

[53:45] Kevin Bianchi: Something that kept coming to me during this interview, which has nothing to do with Talia. We started this podcast like during the depths of the pandemic. And it's crazy to actually like look at us now and be like, wow, life continued on.

[54:00] Quincy Brown: Yeah. I remember there's one episode early on where the Music Man marquee had just gone up. And we were like, I don't know. It's like, is Broadway ever even going to come back? Like it seems kind of weird to put up a new billboard. And like now it's like...

[54:15] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, Broadway's here.

[54:17] Quincy Brown: I always think it's so interesting and curious how as a working actress, you view yourself playing Elphaba in like the grand scheme of your career, if that makes sense, where it's like, if you think about like normal people working a job or whatever, and it's like, you know, you're going to get this one job. That's going to like be a great thing to have on your resume. It's going to make you so attractive to any future jobs you apply to. To me Elphaba would be that. And it was interesting to hear her kind of talk about the role of Elphaba in that way, where she's like very aware that like, this is a good job to have under your belt, especially being as young as she is, and how it could potentially open other doors for her. It's like going to like an Ivy League college, because people know that there is an extremely high standard to get into that club.

[55:04] Kevin Bianchi: Oh my God. Speaking of extremely high standards, when she said Wicked doesn't make any mistakes. I was like, so true.

[55:10] Quincy Brown: I, yeah, yeah, yeah. No, that's true. Quincy, you kind of brought this up like directly with her, but it's crazy to me like how seasoned Talia comes off. Like she has such like a healthy, realistic, grounded understanding of her situation. It feels like to me that she is mentally with Elphaba and the character and the role that this role has played in her life. She is mentally at where you would be at post your first Broadway contract as Elphaba. Like it feels like where she is now, finishing tour going into Broadway, she maybe shouldn't be as together and like oversight of it all as she currently is. She's so zoomed out about this role.

[56:02] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah.

[56:03] Quincy Brown: I hope that as she navigates her Broadway contract, that she maintains that.

[56:07] Kevin Bianchi: Yeah, I'm actually super interested to talk to her after this Broadway contract to see if it was everything she thought it would be and was like manageable or if like things still surprised her.

[56:19] Quincy Brown: Talia, thank you so much for coming on the podcast. I can't wait to see you as Elphaba on Broadway at the Gershwin Theater. If you liked this episode, please, all seriousness, please do drop us a good rating, a good comment, a good review, subscribe, tell your friends. We also have a Green Circle subscription. And all that jazz.

[56:44] Kevin Bianchi: Bye.

[56:45] Quincy Brown: Bye.

[56:48] Quincy Brown: You've been listening to Sentimental Men. This episode was produced and edited by your hosts, Quincy Brown and Kevin Bianchi. You can reach us at sentimentalmenpod at gmail.com or on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok at sentmenpod. You can support the pod by leaving us a rating or review or by subscribing. Subscribers get early access to our regular episodes, monthly bonus episodes, and get added to the Sent Men Green Circle. Which is literally our close friends on Instagram. Thanks to Julia DiMarzo for our thrillifying artwork. And thanks to you for tuning in. Till next time, I'm Quincy.

[57:27] Kevin Bianchi: And I'm Kevin. It's really the moment to be a score.

[57:35] Quincy Brown: Anyway, sorry, continue.