When news broke earlier this week about actor\/comedian\/singer Wayne Brady stepping into the role of Aaron Burr in the Chicago cast of \u201cHamilton,\u201d the reaction was joyous for most theater fans, and perhaps a tad confusing for others.
Take note: Brady is more than ideally cast in this incredible role in this marvelous musical.
Wayne Brady stars on \u201cWhose Line Is It Anyway?\u201d | Photo \u00a9 2015 Danny Feld\/The CW
He may be best-known for his television improv work on \u201cWhose Line Is It Anyway?,\u201d or guest appearances on \u201cHow I Met Your Mother\u201d or his role as Uncle Louis on \u201cEverybody Hates Chris.\u201d Or for his hosting duties on the daytime game show revamp of \u201cLet\u2019s Make a Deal\u201d (which is in its 8th season), or for his sold-out comedy world tour \u201cMakin\u2019 S\u2013t Up.\u201d But more importantly \u2014 listen up, stage fans \u2014 Brady has been performing in the theater for decades, including productions of \u201cRent,\u201d \u201cA Chorus Line,\u201d and most recently his critically acclaimed turns on Broadway as Lola in \u201cKinky Boots\u201d and Billy Flynn in \u201cChicago.\u201d
And though he says he and \u201cHamilton\u201d creator\/star Lin-Manuel Miranda have been friends for years, the Aaron Burr role came about through the usual process.
\u201cI auditioned,\u201d Brady said, after a daylong \u201cHamilton\u201d rehearsal Tuesday (his final dress rehearsal is Jan. 13; he takes over the role officially on Jan. 17). \u201cMy audition was just as good if not better than anyone else who auditioned. This was not nepotism. The truth is, if I sucked, I wouldn\u2019t be getting this role. Why would [the producers] damage the role [or jeopardize] the show? \u2026 There\u2019s no big name above the marquee saying, hey \u2018Come see Wayne Brady in Hamilton!\u2019 This is one show that will fly if it is Jimmy from Timbuktu in the role \u2014 as long as Jimmy is talented enough to do it. I had to kick ass to make the point as to why they should hire me.\u201d
Brady revealed the road to Burr was a long one, though things ultimately \u2014 and quickly \u2014 unfolded late last year.
I\u2019ve wanted to do [this role] a year ago in New York,\u201d Brady said. \u201cLin and I hang in the same theater circles, along with [\u201cHamilton\u201d] director Tommy Kail. And I told them I wanted so badly to try out for this role. So we had been in talks for a year for the New York production. I auditioned for Lin and Tommy. Everybody has to audition. They know what I do [theatrically]. And I said, \u2018I want this badly enough \u2014 I\u2019ll show you I can do this stuff.\u2019 So you humble yourself and you do your best. But it ended up not working out for me because of my shooting schedule for \u201cLet\u2019s Make a Deal.\u201d Luckily, this Chicago situation happened and I got a call on the 15th of December and I was out here rehearsing on Dec. 19. I learned the show in less than two weeks, but I\u2019m a fast learner. .. I\u2019ve done theater my whole life. I was always a swing [cast members who learn many of the key roles of a particular show and can step into a role at a moment\u2019s notice]. I\u2019ve always been a quick study and getting many roles under your belt in a short amount of time.\u201d
This is really happening! I\u2019m so glad to be in a business where I can still feel like a kid on Xmas everyday! pic.twitter.com\/O6wkz8dpiw
\u2014 Wayne Brady (@waynebrady) January 10, 2017
Brady also headed to \u201cHamilton\u201d fresh from his lead role as Charley Kringas in the Los Angeles production of Stephen Sondheim\u2019s \u201cMerrily We Roll Along\u201d this past November.
\u201cSondheim was super difficult because I was never connected to it,\u201d Brady said. \u201cLin\u2019s music is easier for me because I\u2019m a hip-hop fan. I am a singer and a writer and an amateur MC. Lin\u2019s music is poetry. That cat is so smart!\u201d
The role of Burr is one of the show\u2019s most potent, and features almost as much stage time as that of Hamilton (played here by Miguel Cervantes).
\u201cThe most daunting aspect of the role? You want it to be absolutely perfect because the show is so dense verbally,\u201d Brady said, \u201cespecially for Hamilton, and secondly for Burr. There\u2019s so many places where, Lord forbid \u2014 you do NOT want to go up on a line! Because there will be someone who will go,\u201dDid that dude just make something up in freestyle?\u201d
\u201cI\u2019ve done musicals like \u2018Rent\u2019 and \u2018Chorus Line\u2019 where you really have to be a theater nerd to know the score. And you have a few theater nerds who sit in the front row and sing along. But this is a show where people who\u2019ve never even seen the show know EVERY word of EVERY character from the [cast recording]. My daughter [13-year-old Maile Masako Brady] has seen the show six times and she knows every word of every character. She could do a one-woman version of it. People are definitely gonna be coming to the show saying \u2018Don\u2019t you screw up my song!\u201d
\u201cI saw the show a whole bunch, as well, and I knew a lot of the songs,\u201d Brady continued. \u201cThere were songs that I really liked and listened to a lot, but other songs, maybe cuz they were the girls\u2019 songs, that I didn\u2019t listen to much. So my daughter was my study buddy. She really helped me. Believe me, she [was brutally honest] and said things like, \u2018Dad that\u2019s completely wrong\u2019 or \u2018Dad, that\u2019s the wrong word!.’\u201d
Brady said he\u2019s been going back and forth between Chicago and L. A. to shoot the fifth season of \u201cWhose Line?,\u201d and he\u2019s truly enjoying many aspects of Chicago.
\u201cThe food!,\u201d Brady said, with a chuckle. \u201cI love the food here. I never realized that Chicago is such a foodie town. And the theater community! This is the city I was going to move to [out of college at the University of Miami] if I didn\u2019t go to New York or L. A. I wanted to work at Goodman or Steppenwolf or Second City. I just happened to take a left.\u201d<\/p>\n

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