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[0:00] Lea Lachey: This is Lea Lachey. And I'm Drew Lachey. And you're listening to Behind the Awards.

[0:05] Drew Lachey: So we were in the neighborhood. We looked up, saw the marquee, and realized we'd totally forgotten about the Tony Awards. Or as we call it at my house, Passover.

[0:22] Lea Lachey: We thought, gee, you know, maybe we could lend a hand, and here we are. We were in such a rush, I didn't get to see what we were presenting. Oh, right. Me neither. What's that? Oh. Huh.

[0:33] Drew Lachey: What? Best actor and actress in a musical.

[0:39] Lea Lachey: What? Best actor and actress in a musical. Holy crap, this isn't gonna be pretty. No, Nathan.

[0:48] Drew Lachey: Being in the theater is not about winning awards.

[0:53] Lea Lachey: I'll say. Or being nominated. It's about being part of the community and the work. You really believe that?

[1:00] Drew Lachey: Yes. Yes, I do. Want a drink? Maybe later.

[1:12] Isla: Hello, and welcome to Behind the Awards. I'm Isla. I am here with Bruce. Hey, Bruce.

[1:18] Bruce Gotlieb: Hello, Isla. How are you doing?

[1:24] Isla: I'm good. So that was Bebe Neuwirth and Nathan Lane when they were doing The Addams Family. That was when they were doing The Addams Family in 2010.

[1:29] Bruce Gotlieb: Not nominated.

[1:30] Isla: Not nominated. Yeah. Well, you can't always be nominated.

[1:35] Bruce Gotlieb: You can't always be nominated, but you know, their banter was prize enough for the viewers watching the Tonys that year.

[1:40] Isla: Oh my gosh, they're both great, and they both have Tony Awards. They're both fine. They're doing just fine.

[1:45] Bruce Gotlieb: All right, so here's my question for you. Let's start with Bebe. What's your favorite Bebe Neuwirth role in anything? TV, movies, stage?

[1:52] Isla: I guess, you know, I just think of Chicago when I think of her. Just her dancing is, you know, she's a great actress, obviously, but her dancing is just so expressive, and that's the first thing that comes to mind.

[2:12] Bruce Gotlieb: Okay, fair enough. Well, I guess Lilith, you know, I mean, that wasn't the first time I ever heard of her because I knew she had won the Tony for Sweet Charity, but I hadn't seen her in anything before that. And, you know, for me as a kid, it was a thrill to know that a Broadway actor was coming on the show and, you know, a geeky theater kid, so I got excited about that. So I don't know, you feel like you sort of know a secret about someone, right, that the rest of the world doesn't know?

[2:40] Isla: Yeah, that's one of my favorite things also, even now when I see somebody guest starring, and if it's a more mainstream show and it's a Broadway performer, you know, it's still a little niche.

[2:53] Bruce Gotlieb: Right. And then I sit there and I'm like, oh, are they going to sing? Are they going to sing?

[2:56] Isla: I know, that's what I love so much about Elsbeth and the Gilded Age, you know, it's filled with Broadway performers, but okay.

[3:07] Bruce Gotlieb: Maybe they should do a Gilded Age musical.

[3:09] Isla: Oh, they're probably already writing it.

[3:13] Bruce Gotlieb: All right, now Nathan Lane.

[3:13] Isla: Nathan Lane probably, for me, is the birdcage.

[3:21] Bruce Gotlieb: Okay. That's probably the one that sticks in my mind most or comes to my mind the quickest.

[3:27] Isla: So for me, it's Angels in America. He was so great in that, but I have to say that more than anything, he's just such a great speaker.

[3:34] Bruce Gotlieb: I was at an award show that he got an honorary award, and his speech was such a highlight. It was perfect. I don't know if he wrote it himself. He probably did. But it sort of, it was like a little play in itself. You know, it took you on a whole journey, and it was hilarious and touching, and it's really, really, really special. He's one of the best speakers I've ever heard in my life, and he's so funny.

[4:03] Isla: That's awesome. I love that. Yes, absolutely. So, you know, he's in every time you turn around, he's in something. So it's always fun. When he murders in the building, it's just, oh, I love that.

[4:17] Bruce Gotlieb: I know, and we're both watching, well, we both watched the first season of Mid-Century Modern.

[4:24] Isla: Yes, yes. That came in with Nathan Lee Graham.

[4:29] Bruce Gotlieb: Matt Bomer.

[4:29] Isla: Matt Bomer, and Linda Lavin was in it.

[4:32] Bruce Gotlieb: Oh, yes. Pamela Adlon. So do you think that show's coming back? Do they announce, or we don't know yet?

[4:37] Isla: It was fun. You know, sometimes I search and search for something to watch, and I'm always glad when something's a series and there's a bunch of episodes, because then I know I can just relax for a while and watch. I don't have to look for something else after. You know, with movies, once it's over, you know, if you're still in front of the TV, because I have the TV on in the background a lot. So if I'm doing some writing, you know, I just have the TV on, and so I want something on that I can listen to. So I'm not going to watch like an action movie, because I can't really watch-watch. So I need something I can keep an ear on.

[5:11] Bruce Gotlieb: It has not been renewed for a second season yet.

[5:22] Isla: Oh, no. I hope it will. There has been no information suggesting that one is in development as of this article.

[5:29] Bruce Gotlieb: All right. Well, we'll just wait and see, I guess.

[5:32] Isla: We will. I mean, listen, if it did end, there's nothing left untold.

[5:38] Bruce Gotlieb: No, no.

[5:38] Isla: Like a cliffhanger.

[5:40] Bruce Gotlieb: That's right. You know. It's not like Dallas, who killed JR.

[5:45] Isla: Right. It didn't hinge on Linda Lavin being in it, but without her, it won't be exactly what it was.

[5:51] Bruce Gotlieb: She was so good.

[5:52] Isla: She was great in it. Yeah.

[5:55] Bruce Gotlieb: The scenes, my favorite scenes were her and Nathan Lee Graham.

[5:59] Isla: Amazing. I wonder if she'll get any Emmy consideration for it.

[6:03] Bruce Gotlieb: That would be nice.

[6:04] Isla: That would be nice. I thought she was great in it. I mean, it just was, it almost seemed like she wasn't even acting. Like, she was just, let's just let her be you.

[6:12] Bruce Gotlieb: I know. Yeah. And the episode where, you know, her character dies was handled so well. Really, you couldn't do it any better.

[6:22] Isla: Yeah. I mean, they had to make a decision. Like, what do we do?

[6:25] Bruce Gotlieb: Right.

[6:26] Isla: In the middle of filming, you got to figure that out.

[6:28] Bruce Gotlieb: Right. And it's Linda Lavin. We all know what happened. So you have to deal with it.

[6:32] Isla: Exactly. I mean, she's Alice. Forever Alice.

[6:36] Bruce Gotlieb: Forever.

[6:37] Isla: So which Alice do you like better? Alice, the waitress from Alice or Alice, the housekeeper from the Brady Bunch?

[6:44] Bruce Gotlieb: I never watched Alice, the TV show.

[6:47] Isla: Okay.

[6:48] Bruce Gotlieb: So I would have to say Alice from the Brady Bunch, just because that, I grew up watching that.

[6:53] Isla: Oh, I like...

[6:53] Bruce Gotlieb: I mean, in reruns, of course, but...

[6:55] Isla: Of course. Yeah. I like Alice, the waitress, you know, soaking her feet in the footbath in the opening credits and, you know, all of that. I like all of that.

[7:04] Bruce Gotlieb: I knew you did, because I know you have a disdain. Is that the right word for Alice, the housekeeper?

[7:10] Isla: I think, well, first of all, I love the Brady Bunch so much. But yes, I find Alice annoying. I'm in the rare group of people that I may be the only one, but yes, I find her very annoying.

[7:22] Bruce Gotlieb: All right, well...

[7:24] Isla: I always like how the Bradys say she's like family, but not really family.

[7:29] Bruce Gotlieb: I mean, she's practically raising those children.

[7:32] Isla: I know. Because the Bradys aren't really doing it.

[7:33] Bruce Gotlieb: Well, Carol was there. She just never did anything.

[7:36] Isla: I know. And Mike had an office at home.

[7:40] Bruce Gotlieb: He could work from home.

[7:42] Isla: He was a remote worker before remote working was even a thing.

[7:45] Bruce Gotlieb: That's right. But six kids, that's a lot.

[7:47] Isla: Maybe I'd hand off to someone, too, if I had six.

[7:50] Bruce Gotlieb: But at least the house.

[7:52] Isla: That's right. Yeah, Carol could have been living it up. I don't know what she was doing.

[7:56] Bruce Gotlieb: She was in the kitchen with Alice, just not doing anything.

[7:59] Isla: Right. That would make me crazy. If I were Alice, I'd be a little sour.

[8:02] Bruce Gotlieb: Yeah, like either go out or help. Do something.

[8:05] Isla: Right.

[8:06] Bruce Gotlieb: All right, well, listen, we have... This is a big conversation, but we have another conversation we need to get to. We have Lea and Drew Lachey coming on, and I can't wait to talk to them.

[8:12] Isla: About a month ago, we were lucky enough to debut their single Cheap Seats, and I'm so happy to now have a full conversation with them. So let's bring them out.

[8:25] Drew Lachey: Yeah, we gave you a little appetizer of what Labelless is.

[8:31] Lea Lachey: This is a deep dive. This is a full course dinner.

[8:35] Drew Lachey: So that's right. So here we are. We are so excited to welcome such a great couple, Lea and Drew Lachey, to our podcast.

[8:46] Lea Lachey: Welcome, you guys.

[8:47] Drew Lachey: Thank you.

[8:47] Lea Lachey: Thank you so much for joining us.

[8:51] Drew Lachey: Of course.

[8:51] Isla: Well, as you both know, I had the pleasure of going to your show Labelless and was just really blown away. I went with not a bad attitude, but cynical, I have to tell you. I see a lot of stuff, and sometimes it's not so good.

[9:11] Lea Lachey: I don't go in knowing much about the shows, or as little as I can, because I like a real surprise.

[9:17] Isla: So it was such a wonderful surprise once it started. It was so good. Every single cast member is not only good, but excellent, really.

[9:27] Drew Lachey: So tell us, how did Labelless come about?

[9:30] Lea Lachey: So we moved back from LA, well, 14 years ago now, and we're in Cincinnati, Ohio. We started running a musical theater program at the Performing Arts School, where we actually are alumni.

[9:44] Drew Lachey: Never did we set out to build a musical. It was just a simple theater exercise on empathy.

[9:51] Lea Lachey: We had the students write down how they were not feeling seen. From that, the show was born, but with multiple stages, obviously.

[10:02] Drew Lachey: It really was just created because I felt like it was therapeutic to get some things out that I was feeling, and with the permission of that class.

[10:11] Lea Lachey: Now it just turned into this big dream that we have, where audiences are connecting with it. They're feeling part of this community.

[10:19] Drew Lachey: We like to say that Labelless is a movement, not just a show, which hopefully you saw a little bit of that.

[10:27] Lea Lachey: I love the idea of people maybe leaving that space and that performance, opening their hearts up a little bit more, right?

[10:35] Drew Lachey: I mean, I love choreographing and directing, and any sort of entertainment that we put our hands on, I love to do. That's what I'm passionate about.

[10:44] Lea Lachey: But this is something really special to us.

[10:49] Drew Lachey: Super special. Because obviously you're forming it, and like you said, it's your baby. It's not something that you're being given.

[10:55] Lea Lachey: Oh, here, go perform this eight count or sing this song. It's something that has your fiber in it.

[11:02] Drew Lachey: I guess what's the goal or the plan now that you guys did the New York City run? Do you go back, tweak it, and then put it up on its feet again?

[11:09] Lea Lachey: Yeah.

[11:15] Drew Lachey: Of course. Rinse, repeat.

[11:19] Lea Lachey: Yeah, I think for us, the biggest thing was just seeing how a New York audience will react to it.

[11:24] Drew Lachey: I mean, we've had it in different cities. We've had it around the country multiple times in Cincinnati, and it's always gotten a great reception.

[11:32] Lea Lachey: New York audiences can be a little different.

[11:35] Drew Lachey: We're tough.

[11:36] Lea Lachey: Yes, that's a great way of putting it. And you see a lot of theater, and a lot of theater from different stages, from its infancy to full-fledged revivals of shows that have been around for 70 years.

[11:50] Drew Lachey: So for us, getting it in New York and seeing what the New York reaction would be, getting some of the tastemakers there to get their ideas and opinions, that was our first step.

[12:01] Lea Lachey: And now that we have that feedback, and we're happy to say that it was, like yours, very, very good feedback for the most part, we are exploring options of taking it back to New York for a longer run, or even taking it across the pond to London and doing a West End run of it.

[12:20] Drew Lachey: So I think for us right now, we are kind of taking a step back, just to look at it as a whole, see areas where we can improve it, areas where the cast can connect even more, or areas where the music can be tightened up, or some of the transitions can be smoothed out, just some of those little tiny tweaks that happen throughout the run of a show, and then we'll put it back up on its feet, hopefully another time this year.

[12:45] Isla: I want to talk about the format of the show. It's very modern, but it reminded me very much of the show Working.

[12:51] Drew Lachey: Do you guys know that show?

[12:53] Lea Lachey: I haven't seen it, but I've heard about it, yes.

[12:58] Drew Lachey: Yeah, so it's just people's stories. And in Working, it's about their jobs, but this, it's a different theme, obviously, but it's, you know, people have a monologue and a song, and the monologues are exactly the right length.

[13:13] Isla: I had just seen something where it was monologues, and they were so long, and I just, there were eight of them in the show, and I just couldn't wait for it to be over.

[13:21] Lea Lachey: But this, they're not short, but they're not long either. They're perfect, and then many of them lead into songs, and it's just, it's so beautifully done.

[13:31] Drew Lachey: They're very specific to the cast members.

[13:33] Lea Lachey: So does that change as the cast members change?

[13:36] Drew Lachey: It does.

[13:36] Lea Lachey: It does a little bit, right?

[13:38] Drew Lachey: So we are pretty locked into, I guess for right now, we are locked into those sections that are discussing bullying and sexism, racism, mental health, right?

[13:48] Lea Lachey: But as a cast member comes in, we really want them to be connected to the monologue.

[13:53] Drew Lachey: So a lot of times, I do the writing.

[13:57] Lea Lachey: He tweaks it by two or three sentences.

[14:00] Drew Lachey: I can say Marissa, her monologue was a complete overhaul this time.

[14:05] Lea Lachey: Yeah.

[14:06] Drew Lachey: But I think that's what keeps it fresh and unique, keeps the cast members engaged, keeps us super passionate about it. It's a lot of work, but at the same time, I think it's a new way of looking at theater.

[14:19] Lea Lachey: And I think for, you know, to be honest, when we first started, it was, what do we need to do here?

[14:25] Drew Lachey: Do we need an intermission?

[14:26] Lea Lachey: No, we don't need an intermission. 90 minutes, strong, great.

[14:29] Drew Lachey: And then you just start checking things off.

[14:31] Lea Lachey: And then I think before you know it, you're like.

[14:33] Drew Lachey: This is working and it may be different, but I love that. I love doing something that's a little outside of the box and is still getting the response that it's getting. Yeah, I think for me just kind of the monologues, the fact that you can say that these are their true stories and that's fact, you know, for me gives a lot more weight to what they're saying. You know, it's not, oh you're doing Paul's monologue from A Chorus Line and it's a very powerful, beautifully written monologue, but it's not that actor's story. These are these performers' stories. I mean they, we can, so if Kiwi came to me tomorrow and said I want to rewrite the class as a monologue, all right, cool, let's do it. Like what do you want to change?

What's going to make it more powerful, more impactful, and more authentic to that performer, even though I hate that word. You know, that is what gives it a lot of its strength and the flexibility that we have to do that. Like you said, it's not, we're not giving, being handed something. This is a living, breathing, malleable, formable entity that can continue to grow and change as society changes.

[15:38] Lea Lachey: Yeah, one of the things I think too in speaking with people that have had all different lengths of experience, whether it be on stage and TV, being able to be part of the origination of not only a character, but a piece, you know, having that collaborative stake in it, I think also makes it richer for the performer. So then that of course is going to carry over to the audience, because it does, it feels, it feels more authentic, I guess that's really the word, but.

[16:07] Drew Lachey: No, it's a great word because it sums up our show very well. It's just, I feel like it's overused, so I don't like using it, but I feel like everybody says, oh, it's so authentic and organic. I'm like, oh my goodness, what are we, gardening? No, I think, yeah, I think you're right on, right on the nose with that. I mean, the performers that are in the show, not only are they connected to their stories because it's happened to them and it's still continuing to happen to them in a lot of the cases, but it's also that they have seen the reaction from the audiences. They've seen the connection that they're making with the audiences, the people that aren't feeling valued or seeing themselves. And they're now seeing themselves represented on stage and finding strength and comfort in that.

That is a very, very powerful kind of connection to have. And I think that our cast is extremely brave to put themselves out there and to be able to tell their story and to be that vulnerable. But I feel like they are getting, they're getting that strength and that connection from the audience that just like, all right, our work, I don't care if there's a million people in the audience or 10 people in the audience, I'm going to touch somebody's heart out there tonight. And that is, it's not just, oh, I'm touching them with my voice. It's, I am touching their heart. And I think that is, it's a lot more, it's a lot more powerful that way. And the world needs it. And like you said, people see themselves and there's really a lot of power in that feeling of, I'm not alone because some people's feelings, you can feel really isolated and you could feel that, you know, most people aren't going through, yes, their situation's unique, but you're not living in a vacuum. There's somebody else that's experienced something similar. So at least now you feel like, even if it's one other person, there's somebody else in the fight with you.

[17:48] Lea Lachey: Yes. And I, there's a, you know, there's, so we do have a section that kind of deals with, more section, a monologue that deals with mental health. And then we actually have two songs that follow that one. You know, one is from the perspective of the person who is, who is suffering, who is going through, you know, this, this hardship, this hard time. And then there's another song that's from the perspective of the people around them that are, that are trying to be supportive, that don't necessarily know what to do, that don't know how to be there, but are just willing to be there and, and hold their hand through it and, and let them know that they aren't alone. And I feel like that kind of summarizes what the audience goes through as well, because not only are some of the topics or monologues going to connect you personally, but more of them are going to connect to people you know and love.

And, and being able to kind of know that you can be there for that person, regardless of the situation, regardless of, you know, what differences we have in life, but you can be there as, as an ally, as a friend, as a support system, I think is, is, you know, just another layer of why the show connects so well. It's also a very important time politically to have this show when people's rights are being rolled back. What do you mean? What are you talking about? You know, so to put a face and a real person with an issue is very, very important. And it seems like, I don't know what your plans are, but it seems like you could easily take pieces of the show and put them out on social media and connect to people that way and be very, very helpful.

[19:17] Drew Lachey: Yes. I, you know, we, we do say that we try to keep politics and religion out of the show for necessary reasons, but at the same time, I'll be the first person that says the world needs this. And it's about lifting other humans up and listening to them. And I think that, I mean, I have to share this, but some of these audience members, when they were leaving the New York show were shaking, you know, and needed, needed a hug. And I'm thinking, you know, what would be, I mean, it's just a beautiful thing when someone comes up to you and says, that moved me so much. And it's what I needed right now today in my life. And I think, I don't know, it's, it's, I am speechless a lot when people come up to us like that.

And I, I, you know, I don't, I don't take that for granted. I'm never speechless. I can talk nonstop for days and days. I am speechless. I, I just, I just think what a, what a gift, right? That to, to even be a part of it, a small, you know, a part of the cast. And we, I have to share this too. When we did a show in Bloomington, Illinois, small, small town, these people in the audience needed it so badly that they were jumping up out of their seats. And then the reaction of the cast afterwards, I, you know, I came around the corner, they were all over stage left and they were sobbing and they said, we have never experienced anything like this. So it goes, it goes both ways, you know?

[20:54] Lea Lachey: Yeah. It's incredible. Anyway.

[20:54] Drew Lachey: It is. It also has to fire you guys up too, as the creators to be like, okay, it validates what you're doing.

[21:04] Lea Lachey: Absolutely. And how important is that, that, you know, like, okay, they're responding, but you know, there's something to be said for an audience that's responsive and then an audience that is, you know, really just giving it back.

[21:14] Drew Lachey: Yes. Even tenfold.

[21:14] Lea Lachey: Yeah. And I think that that's the best gauge that we can have for as, you know, the creators as to what needs to change, what, what can we, what can we fine tune? And it's a very, very fine line between overproducing it, over directing it, over showing it up for lack of a better term, even that's not a term, you know, and how much of it do we just leave alone? How much do we just leave to be raw and, and, you know, let that, let that kind of wound just sit there and be exposed and let people kind of take away from it what they need to take away from it. And I think that's, that's a lot of what we've been, you know, going back and forth with like, oh, does there need to be more of a through line storyline that we should write?

No. Why? I mean, it works. It works now. It connects to people. Do we need to put more up tempos in? No. Why? I mean, it's got great peaks and valleys. I mean, the audience reacts to it. You know, so we kind of everything, every decision we make and we contemplate, we go to what the audience reaction has been to it over these past seven years. And because it's been seven years, we have the power of comparison, you know, when we mentioned the cast members names, their names, or when we don't, they then, once you mentioned their names, oh, that's Micah, Diana, Abby, Samara, they become human beings. They become very real as opposed to these kind of performers, performers that are just up on stage, you know?

And yes, they are all professional performers, but we don't reference them being performers in the show. We don't put bios in the program because then it becomes performative. It becomes they are there just performing on stage. And while they are, we don't want to hit people over the head with that. This is a show. We want people to come away with it hearing true stories. So, and remember when I said I can just talk for days? This is a perfect example.

[23:03] Lea Lachey: I think it's just the right amount. Great. But I have a feeling Leah knows when to jump in and, you know, cut you off. She's been kicking me right now.

[23:20] Wendy McLendon-Covey: Hi, this is Wendy McLendon-Covey and Behind the Awards will be right back.

[23:24] Lea Lachey: So, Labelless is really the perfect title for the show because it doesn't fit into any box, which is what I like so much about it. It's sort of, to me anyway, a hybrid between a musical and a concert in the best possible way.

[23:37] Drew Lachey: I love hearing that because that was, that's pretty much the goal. I think that, you know, just like Drew said before, keeping a typical book musical, I don't feel like would work if we're talking about removing the labels, right? We're talking about thinking outside of the box and it does need to be different. One of the exciting things that we did this time in the theater row space was really try to look at the staging and the choreography as well and how that could possibly be knocked off center a little bit, a little bit more deconstructed, not so perfectly symmetrical. So, I think everything going back to that name needs to be different and unique and I think at first when you start off doing something like this, you know, you hear the things and you're like, well, we're not like this and we're not like that. We're not supposed to be like them, right? We're supposed to be our own thing.

[24:30] Lea Lachey: Yeah.

[24:30] Drew Lachey: And you don't miss it at all. I mean, that's exactly what you want. You want a new experience, you know, we've seen everything else.

[24:35] Lea Lachey: Right, right. I think there is something to be said for your, you know, your traditional book show, you know, but I also think the thing that is exciting people now, I think we saw it a lot last season with just different storytelling, you know, The Outsiders is a traditional book, but the choreography is a little different than you're used to. The music is a little different than you're used to. And this season even more so too with using technology, using just different things to evolve how we tell stories. And I think that's how the art form that we all love continues to sustain.

[25:10] Drew Lachey: Yeah. I think, you know, theater goers have evolved just as theaters evolved. You know, they have different expectations for when they come to the theater because they're comparing this live theater to every movie, every streaming platform, everything that's on their phone. You know, they have access to everything. So what we as creators have to do is give them something different. We have to give them a different type of experience. And what we feel like with Labeless is that is that connection that it's a human connection that, you know, I think people didn't realize how much they needed until COVID happened and then we didn't have it. And then it was like this craving for it. And then I feel like now people are aware like, oh, this is my love language, like connecting with another human being, like being able to feel with them, cry with them, laugh with them.

That is something that I really want. And I feel like as we continue to evolve, you know, there's always going to be a place for revivals and known brands and bringing things like that. But I feel like people are now they're starting to be like, no, I want something new. I want something new. So even if it is a different take on Sunset Boulevard or it is the Outsiders, which every, you know, our freshman son, you know, read it, you know, every person knows the story, but this is a little different way. I feel like that is what as creators we need to not be scared of, but lean into. And I feel like that is terrifying. It's terrifying because every producer is like, no, we have to know what's known.

We have to be able so we can have an ROI and we have to be able to go to our investors. And, you know, that's that that game. But nobody wants the same regurgitated stuff. They want something that is new. So, yeah, that's my way of saying we're different. We're different. And we're happy to keep going. But what's what's good about this is that the theatergoer can certainly go and, you know, have their expectations met and then exceeded. But so can the concertgoer or someone who's not familiar with theater. It's a great introduction to what theater can be.

[27:01] Lea Lachey: Yeah. Yeah. I was going to say we get a lot of people that say, you know, we are not the typical theatergoers that come to label us because there is that concert element. And I think that that is exciting and keeps it fresh and new. And I think we need to get more people involved right in live theater. I feel like it's come on where we're a whole society out there that needs to get in there and and appreciate it and connect with it.

[27:27] Drew Lachey: Yeah, I think so. For our, you know, little peek behind the curtain, we've always, you know, it's been is it a musical? No, it's not. So what is it? How do we describe it? You know, we've gone through multiple it's the two of us over a glass of wine, but they're marketing meetings, you know, trying to figure out how is this? How do we describe what it is? And the best way we've come up with is is that it's a theatrical experience. It is not a musical. It is not a concert is not like it's not a dance concert, but there's a ton of beautiful dance that is not just all singing because there's the storytelling and all. So the theatrical experience is kind of what we've come up with. That is the best defines it, the best description that we that, you know, are.

[28:07] Lea Lachey: Yeah, because it's all of those things and none of those things.

[28:12] Drew Lachey: Yeah. At the same time.

[28:12] Lea Lachey: Yeah, exactly. But, you know, what's so special about the show is that a live performance is really one of the only few ways that we as a society come together anymore, because everybody, you know, you can watch TV shows at your own pace. And, you know, we have very few shared experiences. So to be in the room with the people who are performing this in real time is is not to be taken lightly.

[28:33] Drew Lachey: Agreed.

[28:33] Lea Lachey: Yeah. The only the only kind of thing I have to compare it to is, you know, we went to all color purple when when Cynthia was in it and that moment when she is singing the final song and you literally look around the audience, if you can, if you can take your eyes off. Yeah. You look around the audience in the entire audience is just filled with emotion. Half of them are sobbing, including myself. You know, it is just this this shared.

[29:06] Lea Lachey: Drew and I have always wanted to create something that allows for individuality where you can kind of break off and do your own thing or you can, I mean, jump off the stage and run through the audience, whatever is, you know, striking your heart that night.

[30:06] Drew Lachey: I know people that would love you.

[30:36] Drew Lachey: Yes, it's important. Some of the cast aren't those people, but I'm like, does it help tell the story? I don't think so. What do you want from me? I don't think it tells the story. You know, that was kind of a little Rodney Dangerfield mixed with something I don't know who that was. But for me, those elements of individuality and freedom that we have in a concert setting we are able to implement into the Label-less, but the ensemble feel that I got from specifically doing Rent, and the connection that I had with like Jeremy and Crystal and Merle and all the people that I did it with. I've stopped after that same feeling for every show I've done since then. And so when we created this one, we wanted to create a show that has that sense of community, that vibe, that true ensemble where no, the show can't happen without any one of these people. So that's a really long way of saying a little bit of country, a little bit of rock and roll, a little bit of everything.

[31:45] Lea Lachey: Yeah, I think it's, it's, and it works, it works because people have an skewed expectation, possibly when they see Drew Lachey as part of the creative team and they're like, oh, so this is going to be a boy band concert or this is going to be ballroom dancing or whatever it is that they put me with, but then they come in and there's a different, there's an element of that, but it's not, that's not what this is.

[34:07] Bruce Gotlieb: So, Drew, do you want to reveal to Lea how many times you saw Rent?

[34:12] Drew Lachey: Well, I will. I saw it many times. I would know because that makes it sound like I saw his like that one show or some version. I mean, it runs, it runs, as long as Rent, you got to see multiple versions of it.

[34:27] Bruce Gotlieb: Yeah, I saw, I saw just a few.

[34:30] Drew Lachey: Just a couple, just a couple. Um, all right, Lea, let's get down to it. Okay, I love the choreography in the show, you know that because I know I love that I'm telling you, I love it is. Oh my god, it is thrilling to watch what you've done here.

[34:46] Lea Lachey: Thank you. I mean, choreography is my passion. It started as a, you know, a little girl. I was talking about this the other day where I just would take out my parents' albums and sit on the floor, right, and go through all the songs and create these shows in our living room. My parents, I'm sure, were very annoyed, but I just, I have always been in love with that, and going to performing arts high school, I was able to tap into that. So this process for me has been exhilarating. To be able to work on something like this and again for seven years, right, you get to see what works and what doesn't work, what the audience is going to connect to. This was my favorite phase though. I just, I feel like we're in the sweet spot of where we know what songs are working. And again, going back to like knocking it off of center was a true challenge, but a challenge that I accepted and really wanted to lean into.

[35:44] Lea Lachey: I have an incredible team of people that assist me and I don't know, it was really great to kind of go, you know, I don't want to try some new things. There were some like, I don't know, tip of the hat to Fosse in one moment up on the scaffolding. I have always been very proud of choreographing with multiple styles. And I think what's great about the show is that because the songs are so different and unique and you've got, you know, like Drew was saying, those typical pop songs, "Born This Way" by Lady Gaga, first of all, that is huge, like that we got the rights to that. I mean, that was a big night when we, when she signed off on that one. So it's, you know, I'm able to create a concert element there, but at the same time, I'm able to, you know, self-worth where it's the three girls on stage and all about body image.

It's definitely more lyrical and contemporary and I could talk about this all day. I just, it's, I love it. I love it. You can even see from the dancers like who's a ballerina. Yes, you know, yes, who specializes in what. I mean, it's so specific and so well done. It's just, thank you. Thank you. I can't go on enough about how exciting the choreography.

[36:59] Drew Lachey: And beautiful. Thank you. The other thing that I love about it too is that we've really leaned into what I call the pedestrian movement, so that they're connected and it looks, I think like how people would walk down a street, and then before you know it, here I go, I'm gonna move the breath move, and then they go into something a little bit more technical.

[37:14] Lea Lachey: So thank you. Thank you. Do you, do you see that if you were to have to change a cast member, if some, you know, somebody had to leave or whatever the case might be then. Do you find that the piece then would take on like, okay, well let's sit down and now we're going to evolve this because you might not have the same capabilities or just, it might not feed the piece the same?

[37:41] Lea Lachey: Absolutely. It happens quite often. I will, first of all, I have to say I'll be devastated if this cast, you know, doesn't, doesn't all return, but we get it, right? People have to take different jobs and they move on. I think that's why the show always sits in a, in a, in a good place choreography-wise is because I'm not so set on it has to be this every single time. Similar to the monologues, it kind of, there's an ebb and a flow to it, and we do design and cater that way because it's putting my best foot forward and their best foot forward as well. So it works.

[38:17] Drew Lachey: Yeah, and half the cast in this, you know, Theater Row run was new to the project.

[38:25] Lea Lachey: Oh, really? Wow.

[38:27] Drew Lachey: So it's, it's a testament to, you know, how the runs, the rehearsals and how, you know, much respect they have for her and her choreography. And I think, you know, it really just kind of also epitomizes how invested they are in the project that they are like, all right, I'm all in. Let's do this. Let's, let's make this, let's make this fantastic. She also finds people that appeal to her as a performer and as an audience member, not just as a choreographer, because she has always been a very emotional dancer when she dances. Like the storytelling and the performance from her, it's, it's kind of a, I don't want to say it's a lost art, but it's, it's not.

[39:19] Lea Lachey: I would say that.

[39:20] Drew Lachey: Okay, she can say. The emotion connected to the dance isn't always as high of the focus as it may be, it used to be. Yeah. And so she finds performers and dancers or people that might not be as strong of dancers, but are amazing at emoting and telling that story through their body. And then she's able to adapt it to what they do well. So, yeah, I mean, she's, I'll say this. She's fantastic. I'm glad that people are finally recognizing how fantastic she is. But, yeah, it's, yeah, it's awesome. It's beautiful.

[40:06] Lea Lachey: Thank you. Thank you. No, you're super talented. But also, you know, I totally agree with you, Drew. I think the best dancers are also great actors, even if they never speak a word, but it has to be there. It has to be in their soul as it comes across. Yes. Yeah. And you have this one dancer in the show. I mean, everyone is excellent, but this one, Kendall, she is so incredible. Her face, just every movement is so sharp and she's so connected to everything she does. And she's very featured in one of the numbers. And it's just, I mean, one of the most exciting things I've seen all season.

[40:40] Drew Lachey: I love when you came up and said that in the lobby because, well, first of all, she assisted me quite a bit on the building of the show. She was the dance captain as well. So she knows her stuff and she will give a note and she is very direct and deliberate with it, which is great. But, yeah, she is just, she's a beautiful person inside and out. And I think that that shows on stage. And I do. I think that dancers are storytellers. Like you said, they don't have to be reciting a monologue or singing a big solo. And the fact that she made that impact on you is incredible. And she's been with the show since 2018.

[41:17] Lea Lachey: Oh, that's so...

[41:18] Drew Lachey: She has seen every version of it. She is part of the family, you know, in that piece that you saw that she was featured in, that duet used to be a duet between her and her sister who is in a wheelchair. So her sister is now married with a newborn baby. People go on with their lives. So she couldn't be a part of this time. So that was a new connection between her and Marissa and, you know, kind of defining what that story was between the two of them. Because between two sisters, it's very, very different, built in and natural, but kind of developing the story and the backstory and the connection between her and Marissa was a fun challenge that we haven't ever had because it had always been her sister up to that point. So, yeah, all those little wrinkles that change how the show goes and the storytelling of it, that's what makes it exciting.

[41:53] Drew Lachey: There's another really excellent dancer in the show and her last name is Lachey.

[41:58] Lea Lachey: Yeah, your daughter is in the show.

[42:03] Drew Lachey: And she, right, it's there's no nepotism because she's as good as everybody else. She's so good. I didn't know she was your daughter and I was looking at her saying this is a really solid dancer. She's great.

[42:15] Lea Lachey: She is incredible. And thank you for saying that because she is so deserving of her spot. It really took part of our creative team a few years ago to say, guys, she needs to be in the show. And Drew and I were like, you know, like, I mean, because you're hesitant a little bit. Also, it's family.

[42:35] Drew Lachey: Right. Yeah. She's incredible. We're super, super proud of her.

[42:40] Lea Lachey: No, you would never know that she had any kind of special privilege because she's just one of the cast members. And the cast seems very bonded too. You can tell.

[42:49] Drew Lachey: They are so incredibly close. When we finished on Sunday, it was, you know, very tearful. And we gave a toast on stage. And I'm going to share this with you guys because this was such an emotional thing that we kind of created in the rehearsal process. The last day here, we rehearsed in Cincinnati in our studio. And I had just watched this documentary on Jonathan Larson about breaking bread with people. Right. And so, yeah, we did these long tables in the middle of the studio floor surrounded by the set. And I just thought, oh, what beautiful energy, right? To take with us everywhere we go. And so on that last day, we did the same thing. We ate. We did a toast. And we said, you know, we're never going to remember or we're never going to forget this moment in time. Because, again, I think we're in just.

[44:39] Drew Lachey: So if we're not connecting and accepting of each other on stage, then the audience isn't going to feel like, oh, it didn't work. You know, they can't get along. But you have different people from different walks of life, different shapes, sizes, colors, classes, different everything. And they love each other. And they just see each other for the human being that they are. And that is the beauty of Label-less. And that is why, you know, like going back to what Lea said in the beginning, this is a movement. You know, it's not just a show that people leave singing the songs to. It's hopefully people are leaving just with their mind a little bit more open, how they see other people, but also how they see themselves and how they view, you know, how they go through life.

Yeah. And it's a show that's so perfectly tailored to doing at colleges and high schools. And because it's really about it, everyone can relate to it, no matter what age, but it's a lot about coming of age and young people. So, you know, I hope that people will find it and perform it everywhere, because it really is so important and can be so universal, too. Yeah, that's that is actually part of the part of the dream. And we have, in fact, gone into schools around the country. We've had school programs come and see the show. I think it's for everyone. Like you said, I think it's important to I mean, we've had five and six year olds come in and they relate. Unfortunately, right. It's so sad to say this.

Yeah. The bullying section, they immediately are like that. You know, that happens to me. World domination is the goal. But then I do think that it's perfect. But I think that it could be such a beautiful thing, right, to be able to have the show be in different schools and have different theater directors in charge of what would that look like? I mean, I think I think that's a that's a really cool thing. I mean, just kind of coming at it from, you know, the business side of it, if you go and you want to get the rights for Annie Get Your Gun, you know, you have all right, you have this number of, you know, female presenting characters, this number of male presenting characters and an ensemble of this many and blah, blah, blah. It's very, very formulaic and kind of hard.

[46:59] Lea Lachey: Spelled out for our show. And expensive. Yes. Yes. Yeah. Label-less isn't like that. These stories could go between any gender, any color, any anything, and they can be tailored to that person. The key. Well, that's the thing, Drew, right? Can't I could see like Label-less becoming a brand where people can do their a Label-less workshop and, you know, theater directors and teachers can do with their own students and create their own monologues and, you know, to fit into the Label-less format. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, that's part of part of the, you know, you talk about licensing it and they're like, oh, but this is somebody else's story. Yeah. But we can we can help build out tools to give them their, you know, kind of the roadmap of how to build their own monologue and tell their own story.

I think one thing that we've always been fairly adamant about is that for anybody that does the show, they need to do the show in its entirety. Yes. So we are adamant about that. I'm like, you cannot write, take out sections just to kind of make it fit. I don't think I need to say which section. Yeah. Yeah. But yeah, it's perfect for students to perform and, you know, also perfect for parents who have to go and see the same shows over and over. This is great. They get to see something brand new and fresh. Brand new.

[48:22] Drew Lachey: I think also another reason why why it's so appealing to people and is because the music it's it's not just one style of music. There's multiple genres. You know, you have some, you know, you got songs by Sam Cooke and James Brown and Lady Gaga, like you mentioned, but the majority of the show is original music. But the songs feel like they are cohesive, like they go together. And that's not like, oh, and here is, you know, here's the Sondheim number mixed in. Right. John, we're mixing with a right. It's like they feel like there is a cohesive unit, which, you know, I never really thought about until some somebody pointed it out to us, like they all feel like they fit together. Yeah. You know, for us, it was always just like, do they tell the story?

Right. But as a whole, when you're listening to the album, they just they just they click, they support each other. Yeah. And they also kind of feel like they're of the same time, even though the song's written in very different areas. Yes, absolutely.

[49:21] Lea Lachey: Yeah. I mean, that was kind of part of the process is, you know, when you're you know, it used to be all jukebox. It used to be full full covers. And then you get to the point where you're like, oh, that song isn't really telling the story that I want it to tell. Well, how is there a song? No. All right. Let's write one. Well, you know, and then you just make it you form it to exactly the story that you want to tell the song that's in the bullying section right now is is a new one that Drew wrote with with Paul, his partner called Cheap Seats. And it was mean by Taylor Swift, which, you know, we have the have the rights to. But we felt like for our show, we wanted to kind of dive into a specific storyline. And he was great. It was great. But this is so much better and says exactly kind of backs up what Diana says in that monologue. I didn't even realize that it was a new song. I thought it was something that had been on the radio.

[50:13] Drew Lachey: Yeah, great. That was an original and the theater run was its world premiere. So yeah, you're one of the first ever.

[50:25] Lea Lachey: I am very honored. Having the original songs, it probably makes your jobs easier, too, because if for some reason the rights change and someone says, I don't want you to use this song anymore. Now you're not like scrambling to figure out, well, what am I putting in? What what's going to serve the purpose? And when you're writing your own, you get to dictate that.

[50:44] Drew Lachey: Yeah. And I think that was a big part of the writing process was like, all right, who is who's going to sing this? Who's our soloist going to be? All right. I know exactly what their range is. I know where their sweet spot is. I know when when they're they felt and when they, you know, I know I knew those elements when I went in to write them and I knew exactly the story I wanted to tell, which, you know, was was for me the most freeing way of writing. It's like, all right, this is where I start. I'm starting at point A and I want to get to to Z by the end of it. And then the roadmap in between makes it, you know, it's a lot more clear, you know, so but we're very fortunate that our creative team, you know, you know, whether it's, you know, the people that that hopefully on the choreography side or whether it's our other songwriters or, you know, Jamie Jones from All-4-One wrote the song that that kind of falls in at the end of that racism monologue. Paul and I, you know, we were I don't know, we wrote a bunch of them. Then our finale is written by another great friend of ours, Aaron Space. And I actually had written the finale.

[51:44] Lea Lachey: Oh, this is a good story.

[51:45] Drew Lachey: So the finale song used to be Rachel Platten's Fight Song, like in 2018. It was Fight Song. It was, you know, it was right. It was Yeah, it was great. Yeah. And then we're like, all right, we need to we need to come up with another another song here. You know, so Paul and I wrote this song called Together We Go. And it was very like, had had a good, you know, together we go off to change the world, you know, fighting for a better day tomorrow. And then we were, you know, we were confident that was going to be the finale. And it was it was great. And then Aaron said, Hey, guys, I, I wrote this song. I don't know if you don't like it, but just give it a little listen. And we and we honestly, it was like a couple days, we kept saying like, Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, we're gonna listen to we're gonna listen to we're gonna listen to it. And then we listened to it, I think in the car. And we looked at each other. And I was like, Oh, I was like, son of a bitch there with your song. I gotta I gotta cut my own song out of the show.

[52:39] Lea Lachey: Oh, good.

[52:40] Drew Lachey: Yeah, and it's to the point now where it's like, still every every time I hear it, like it builds, it builds in that bridge, and it gets to that that key change. And in Diana, who sings it now, like, kills this little bit mighty. Yeah, I Yeah, yes. And I get goosebumps, I tear up, you know, it's like, is just such a powerful song and powerful message up the whole show. In the cast, just the way they connect to each other at that moment. You know, for me, that is that is one of my favorite moments. Like I start the show, waiting for that moment to happen. You know, and it's just it never lets me down.

[53:10] Lea Lachey: You see some evolution of some like shows, either ones that have made it or even haven't that have gone the direction of helping get the word out by recording either an EP or a full album. Is there any thought about maybe doing something like that?

[53:33] Drew Lachey: We already did it. It's already done.

[53:39] Lea Lachey: Okay. So how can people hear it? Because I think that they will love it.

[53:44] Drew Lachey: Yeah. So um, so we are actually in the process of recording Cheap Seats, which is, you know, which just got just premiered and re-recording the finale because it's now in a different key and with a different singer than the recording was in the past. So we are producing those right now. And if you want to hear our EPs, and there's four of them out there for the whole song selection. It is Label-less at Spotify, and Apple Music, and Pandora, if anybody uses Pandora. I do but people make fun of me for it.

[54:19] Lea Lachey: Anywhere you stream your music, it's on all those places.

[54:21] Drew Lachey: Yeah. Well, I mean, just from the two of you, you know, you're such genuine, lovely people. It's you. It's because of you that you've created, you know, this, this project of love, and acceptance. And I, you know, I can't congratulate you enough. It's really wonderful.

[54:40] Lea Lachey: Thank you so much.

[54:41] Drew Lachey: Yeah. And it's her.

[54:42] Lea Lachey: Yeah, it's her. It's both of us.

[54:45] Drew Lachey: You're so sweet. When I met him, I met him two minutes before I met you. And first of all, he was talking to a fan for the longest time. He was so sweet. He answered every question she had. It was so nice to her. It was the nicest thing to see. You could tell that it meant so much to her.

[55:03] Lea Lachey: He's my mother.

[55:04] Drew Lachey: No way, his mother at all. But then he gave you all the credit for everything.

[55:12] Lea Lachey: Oh, my gosh.

[55:13] Drew Lachey: Yeah, he's just, I could tell he's a good guy.

[55:18] Lea Lachey: He is a good guy.

[55:25] Drew Lachey: But I but also humble because Drew, obviously, you know, your talent comes shining through this project. And you know, yes, it's just incredible.

[55:29] Drew Lachey: No, it's, it is 100% a team effort. And I will say that, like, you know, the show just ended, and we will continue to push it forward. Right? We we talk about it at nauseam. Sometimes he's like, can we maybe not start working on the show before 9am?

[55:49] Lea Lachey: Absolutely, absolutely.

[55:51] Drew Lachey: Someday that'll happen.

[55:53] Lea Lachey: It's not gonna happen this week. Um, yeah, so it's I wouldn't, this is gonna sound cheesy, but I wouldn't want to do it with anyone else because we understand how the other person works.

[56:04] Drew Lachey: And it wouldn't work as well if it wasn't the two of you.

[56:07] Lea Lachey: Oh, thank you.

[56:07] Drew Lachey: No, you guys have that you have, you know, obviously, there's a code that you guys are synced with one another. And you know, when one person's thinking or feeling or whatever, even on the unspoken or, you know, just by a look. So yeah, I think that's important.

[56:21] Lea Lachey: And your talents line up too well, that's, that's what I think.

[56:25] Drew Lachey: I feel like the Yes, I feel like we have a mutual respect for each other in our areas of expertise. And I also feel like our, our, the way we view projects, you know, lines up to Lea's very much a, she is a big dream, big idea, you know, shoot for the moon, like this is this is what we're going for. And this is what we're going to do. And I am very much a, you know, you know, detail, like a steps person, like, all right, well, before we girl, you aren't you aren't running, you are flying. Before we even run, we gotta we gotta crawl and then walk and then run. And, and so like, the way we she just, she just wants to get to the world. Yes. And she will get there. I mean, clearly, we can say, but I feel like the fact that she, like, I would never come up with some of the ideas.

Because they're, they're so they're so grand. And so beautiful. I'd be like, Oh, that's not that's not attainable. We got to get to here first. But because she has that idea of that, that the long goal, the long, the long play, I'm able to be like, Alright, so let's focus on like these things to get to this step, which is needed to right?

[57:39] Lea Lachey: Yeah, because the big needs that to happen. Absolutely.

[57:45] Drew Lachey: So I feel like we complement each other in that way, too.

[57:51] Lea Lachey: Yeah. I hope you'll take us on our on your journey with Label-less through every phase of it and whatever else you have coming up. We would love that.

[57:57] Drew Lachey: Thank you.

[57:58] Lea Lachey: Yeah, once you're here, you're family.

[58:04] Drew Lachey: Oh, yeah. Absolutely. So we will see everyone next time on Behind the Awards.

[58:09] Lea Lachey: Thank you guys.

[58:10] Drew Lachey: Thank you.

[58:11] Lea Lachey: Thanks, guys.