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[0:03] Drew Gasparini: Hey guys, Drew Gasparini here from Now We're Talking with me, Drew Gasparini.

[0:08] Drew Gasparini: I'm just letting you know that you can now support our podcast by becoming a patron of our show on Patreon.

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[1:06] Drew Gasparini: Spread the word and join us on Patreon.com slash NWT Podcast.

[1:12] Drew Gasparini: And now, for what you're all waiting for, the fucking show.

[1:18] Drew Gasparini: Hi there, it's everyone's favorite four foot sub, Drew Gasparini here with another amazing episode of Now We're Talking, the podcast that should be applied to the infected area twice daily.

[1:29] Drew Gasparini: Leapin' Lizards, I'm excited for today's episode because we're getting a twofer.

[1:34] Drew Gasparini: Two for the price of one.

[1:35] Drew Gasparini: Both of our guests are Tony nominees, known for their roles on stage.

[1:39] Drew Gasparini: She has starred in shows such as Wicked, Tootsie, Spring Awakening, and she is making her return to our podcast today.

[1:46] Drew Gasparini: Our second guest has recently collaborated with Nick Blaemire on a new concept album called Edge of the World.

[1:52] Drew Gasparini: He's about to be seen in Assassins, and both of our guests today starred in Spongebob Squarepants the Musical.

[1:58] Drew Gasparini: Turn it up because now we're talking with Ethan Slater and Lilli Cooper.

[2:03] Drew Gasparini: Like, can we just get this shit over with so we can all get back to our fucking lives, please?

[2:08] Drew Gasparini: Can we just get this fucking done?

[2:11] Drew Gasparini: Let's do it.

[2:12] Drew Gasparini: Let's do it.

[2:13] Drew Gasparini: Alright, uh, we're here with Lilli Cooper and Ethan Slater.

[2:17] Drew Gasparini: Uh, Ethan, you have an album that just came out that you co-wrote with Mr. Nick Blaemire.

[2:21] Drew Gasparini: I also heard a little something about Assassins, or did that already happen?

[2:27] Ethan Slater: Yeah, that's coming up.

[2:28] Ethan Slater: That's up.

[2:28] Ethan Slater: That's coming up.

[2:29] Drew Gasparini: And Lilli, you obviously have something going on in your life.

[2:33] Drew Gasparini: She is all the way pregnant.

[2:36] Drew Gasparini: This is not a halfway giant job.

[2:39] Drew Gasparini: This is as pregnant as someone gets.

[2:41] Drew Gasparini: Now, talking about what you guys have going on, my first question is, Ethan, what is the most attractive part about me, Drew Gasparini?

[2:50] Ethan Slater: Oh, such a good that is a really great question. I actually noticed it the second I got in. Um, you've got this, like, you've got the wonderful reverse hair going. You've got the beard.

[2:58] Ethan Slater: The woolly willy. Remember that game where you have a magnet and you can move his hair down to down to here?

[3:06] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[3:06] Ethan Slater: It's like, is my face upside down or is it right side up? I don't know. You'll never know. It's kind of my secret. It's my allure, it's my appeal.

[3:13] Drew Gasparini: Lilli, for you, same question.

[3:16] Drew Gasparini: And this is a nail biter, I know. So please, everyone's waiting.

[3:19] Lilli Cooper: I mean, just the fact that you keep a house plant alive behind you. I'm really impressed by that.

[3:24] Lilli Cooper: So I want to say that's the most attractive one.

[3:27] Drew Gasparini: I love that you said see, I have a nurturing soul too.

[3:30] Drew Gasparini: There you go.

[3:30] Drew Gasparini: Just like you do in your situation.

[3:32] Drew Gasparini: I'm quite nurturing as well.

[3:34] Drew Gasparini: I have a fucking jungle in this house.

[3:36] Drew Gasparini: Uh, I moved in a few months ago, and just behind this door, there are drippy, hangy plants all over the place, and I love it.

[3:44] Drew Gasparini: I feel like Tarzan at all times. It's a wonderful environment to be in.

[3:49] Drew Gasparini: Uh no, I actually.

[3:52] Drew Gasparini: Well, I don't think there's a lot of pollen and things like that.

[3:56] Drew Gasparini: But I do I also have uh 76 cats in the other room as well.

[4:00] Drew Gasparini: So that might be wrong for your allergies.

[4:02] Drew Gasparini: Uh we have so much to talk about, you guys.

[4:05] Drew Gasparini: We have some silly questions to ask.

[4:06] Drew Gasparini: Welcome back, first of all, Lilli, because you were here for season one.

[4:10] Lilli Cooper: You were like, I was. I was one of the first guests, wasn't I?

[4:13] Lilli Cooper: Right before I think you got knocked up.

[4:15] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, probably.

[4:16] Lilli Cooper: I probably left. I probably it probably got me real horny, and then I left.

[4:21] Lilli Cooper: And then I just I was like, hey, Hobby, what do you think? Should we just should we do it?

[4:26] Drew Gasparini: You know, hearing that episode, I think that that seems right. Wouldn't it be amazing if we went back and clocked and like all the women who had done my podcast got pregnant right after they were on the podcast?

[4:37] Drew Gasparini: Because for some reason the timbre of my very pingy theater announcer voice just gets them going.

[4:43] Drew Gasparini: Gets you all juiced up and ready for the loving.

[4:45] Drew Gasparini: Um, how are you feeling, Lilli? Let's start there.

[4:47] Lilli Cooper: I'm feeling really good. I'm feeling very hot and sweaty uh constantly, all the time, even sitting directly in front of an air conditioner.

[4:55] Lilli Cooper: But other than that, I'm actually feeling pretty good.

[4:58] Lilli Cooper: I just did a concert. I just did my first solo show at 54 Below, literally eight and a half months pregnant.

[5:05] Lilli Cooper: So I gotta pat myself on the back for that, because honestly, I look at pictures and I'm like, holy shit.

[5:10] Lilli Cooper: You know, something like how did she do that? That kid is gonna come out and then one day he's gonna see these, or she is gonna see these pictures, or they, them, or whatever it's gonna be, and it's gonna see these pictures, and they're gonna be like, wow, my mom is so fucking badass, because look at her all the way, once again, all the way pregnant.

[5:29] Lilli Cooper: Up on that stage, given the show of her life.

[5:32] Drew Gasparini: I heard it went really well. I saw some of these pictures. You looked amazing, by the way. And I'm sure it was just like a riotous event.

[5:39] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, it went really well. And yes, absolutely. That's pretty much the sole reason I did it was so my kid looks back and thinks, God, she is cool.

[5:47] Drew Gasparini: That's uh yeah, that's the reason you did it, exactly.

[5:50] Drew Gasparini: Exactly.

[5:51] Drew Gasparini: Um, okay, now immediately I wanna hop into something.

[5:54] Drew Gasparini: Lilli and I talked about this briefly, but Ethan, I'm glad you're here for this.

[5:58] Drew Gasparini: I wanna reinstate the beef I have with Jonathan Groff.

[6:03] Drew Gasparini: I Ethan, Ethan, be on my side with this.

[6:08] Ethan Slater: I'm on my side.

[6:09] Ethan Slater: I'm 100% on your side. I know nothing about this, but can we just get this guy out of the fucking Nobody wants him?

[6:10] Drew Gasparini: Nobody wants him.

[6:17] Drew Gasparini: He's not talented, he's horrible to look at, and he's not kind.

[6:22] Drew Gasparini: Let's just get rid of Jonathan Groff.

[6:25] Ethan Slater: Can we all agree to that?

[6:26] Drew Gasparini: As in murder?

[6:28] Ethan Slater: I didn't say that.

[6:29] Drew Gasparini: I didn't say that.

[6:30] Drew Gasparini: It is important, it is very important that we say that you did not say that.

[6:33] Ethan Slater: Yes, it's on record that I never said murder.

[6:36] Ethan Slater: I just said get rid of.

[6:38] Drew Gasparini: God, I really want him to do this podcast. I can't even tell you.

[6:42] Ethan Slater: Uh Ethan, can I tell you an observation I have about you?

[6:45] Ethan Slater: Uh yeah.

[6:47] Drew Gasparini: There's something about your Disney eyelashes that make you seem so approachable and uh cuddly and adorable, but at the same time, I've seen your arms, and I feel like you could throw a dishwasher full of cement at another human.

[7:06] Ethan Slater: I feel like the eyelash thing is I am blown away that you picked up on it. It is a point of pride for me. I have tricolored eyelashes.

[7:14] Ethan Slater: I have three colored eyelashes.

[7:14] Drew Gasparini: What are three colors?

[7:18] Ethan Slater: Yeah. I've got like uh like brown, red, and like a little white.

[7:22] Drew Gasparini: Oh wow, those are really three different colors.

[7:24] Drew Gasparini: I thought you were gonna be like a little brown, a little light brown, a little off brown.

[7:30] Ethan Slater: I feel like the red is a little is closer to Auburn, you know?

[7:33] Drew Gasparini: Are you a redhead?

[7:34] Ethan Slater: But I am I am a I'm a redhead. I was as a child, I was bright red until I was about twenty.

[7:42] Ethan Slater: Um, and I shaved my head and it never came back the same way.

[7:45] Drew Gasparini: Like well, into adulthood, you were like shock red, like Conan O'Brien red.

[7:52] Ethan Slater: So he I feel like he's more of like a strawberry blonde kind of vibe, you know what I'm saying?

[7:55] Drew Gasparini: I this was this was bright red, but it was always tilting that like that deep hue.

[8:01] Drew Gasparini: Amazing.

[8:02] Drew Gasparini: You know what I'm saying? I'm really enjoying this conversation because I have to say I don't know what my child is going to look like, but there is a likelihood that he will be a ginger.

[8:12] Lilli Cooper: And please.

[8:13] Lilli Cooper: I hope.

[8:14] Lilli Cooper: I hope you know, I'm just like weighing my options here.

[8:17] Drew Gasparini: Strawberry blonde.

[8:18] Drew Gasparini: Is it gonna go deep red?

[8:20] Drew Gasparini: Is it gonna go curly?

[8:21] Drew Gasparini: Who knows?

[8:21] Lilli Cooper: I love this.

[8:22] Lilli Cooper: And it's because of your hubs.

[8:24] Lilli Cooper: Your man is like, isn't he a ginger?

[8:26] Drew Gasparini: No.

[8:26] Lilli Cooper: He's you know, he's one of those, he's one of those, like we were talking before about those like half heads where half-he he only has he only has half a head.

[8:26] Lilli Cooper: He only has half a head, and half of his head is fully ginger, like bright, bright, fiery orange, and then the top of his head is more brat just brown, just regular brown.

[8:44] Lilli Cooper: But I mean, a good portion of his body is is very gingery.

[8:49] Drew Gasparini: Speaking of his body, this yeah, another guy that could you too, Lily.

[8:54] Drew Gasparini: Y'all work out.

[8:55] Drew Gasparini: What do you guys do?

[8:58] Lilli Cooper: Yo, we do legs, bro.

[8:59] Lilli Cooper: We do buys and tries.

[9:01] Lilli Cooper: We do lats, man.

[9:04] Lilli Cooper: You know, it's all about the rhomboids these days.

[9:07] Drew Gasparini: You know, I remember being I remember being in a car. I think we were on our way to an airport together, and you were talking about working out, and you said something like, I never do cardio, and it blew my mind.

[9:18] Lilli Cooper: Is that true?

[9:20] Lilli Cooper: I only run if I'm running away from zombies.

[9:22] Drew Gasparini: Okay.

[9:23] Drew Gasparini: And how often has that happened?

[9:25] Lilli Cooper: Rarely.

[9:26] Lilli Cooper: Rarely, but it has happened.

[9:28] Ethan Slater: I uh I run I run a lot.

[9:33] Ethan Slater: In the last year and a half, I've started running a lot.

[9:35] Drew Gasparini: Really?

[9:36] Drew Gasparini: Okay, so you're running a lot.

[9:37] Drew Gasparini: Lilli will refuse to run unless zombies are are walking toward her.

[9:41] Lilli Cooper: I just started jump roping.

[9:43] Drew Gasparini: Have either of you done this?

[9:46] Ethan Slater: No.

[9:46] Ethan Slater: Oh, I did.

[9:47] Ethan Slater: I did.

[9:47] Ethan Slater: I was actually I did a I had a crossfit phase for like two years in my life.

[9:53] Lilli Cooper: How dare you?

[9:53] Lilli Cooper: How dare you?

[9:56] Ethan Slater: I hate it too.

[9:57] Ethan Slater: I hate it too.

[9:58] Ethan Slater: But it's it's over now, so we can talk about it at least, and we can be honest with one another.

[10:02] Drew Gasparini: I'm glad you're bringing it to the table this way.

[10:04] Ethan Slater: Exactly.

[10:05] Ethan Slater: So they do a lot of jump ropes in the CrossFit world.

[10:08] Ethan Slater: So I was I did it once, once upon a time.

[10:11] Ethan Slater: I I did a lot of jumping rope in when I was in high school.

[10:14] Ethan Slater: Double Dutch, that kind of stuff.

[10:16] Drew Gasparini: Not the cool choreographed uh jumping rope, which is like pretty sick looking.

[10:21] Ethan Slater: I did the one where you're just like doing it and you're like, I want this to be over.

[10:25] Lilli Cooper: Yes, yes.

[10:26] Lilli Cooper: That's all I keep shouting at the top of my lungs while I'm doing it.

[10:30] Lilli Cooper: I want this to be over.

[10:31] Ethan Slater: And I got we have these um my girlfriend and I just got these weighted jump ropes.

[10:37] Ethan Slater: And you know what? No results.

[10:38] Ethan Slater: I've done it twice, and I look exactly the same.

[10:42] Drew Gasparini: Well, that's so weird, because I do feel like the thing they say about jump roping is that you just you do it twice. And then immediate results.

[10:47] Ethan Slater: Exactly.

[10:49] Drew Gasparini: That's kind of what Amazon crossed.

[10:51] Ethan Slater: It's why I did I did CrossFit twice.

[10:53] Ethan Slater: You did and but now look at you.

[10:55] Drew Gasparini: See, and now you can throw a dishwasher full of cabinets.

[11:06] Ethan Slater: I cannot.

[11:08] Ethan Slater: How dare!

[11:09] Drew Gasparini: Can I make a can I make a guess?

[11:11] Ethan Slater: Yes.

[11:14] Drew Gasparini: Honestly, I don't want if you really don't want to tell.

[11:16] Lilli Cooper: I'm probably I'm not gonna tell you.

[11:18] Lilli Cooper: It is a boy.

[11:19] Lilli Cooper: We have a kind of a secret name.

[11:20] Lilli Cooper: It's not we haven't really told anybody except for our parents and our close family.

[11:25] Drew Gasparini: Okay.

[11:25] Drew Gasparini: So uh yeah, we haven't told anyone yet.

[11:27] Drew Gasparini: But please guess away.

[11:29] Drew Gasparini: My guess.

[11:30] Drew Gasparini: Char Groot.

[11:31] Lilli Cooper: Wow.

[11:32] Lilli Cooper: Is it Chargroof?

[11:34] Drew Gasparini: Beautiful guess.

[11:35] Drew Gasparini: How did you guess?

[11:37] Drew Gasparini: Okay, I'm gonna go further and get the middle name.

[11:39] Drew Gasparini: Chargrouth Michael.

[11:42] Lilli Cooper: Very appropriate.

[11:44] Lilli Cooper: And that's his name.

[11:46] Drew Gasparini: And that's his name.

[11:46] Drew Gasparini: What's the etymology of Targruth?

[11:49] Lilli Cooper: This is from Sweden.

[11:53] Lilli Cooper: The Isle of Sweden.

[11:55] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[11:56] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[11:56] Drew Gasparini: Um last time Lilli was on this podcast, we literally talked about everything from the Tony Nom, Tootsie, doing Wicked, Spring Awakening, of course.

[12:05] Drew Gasparini: We even talked about how you sang on my record, we aren't kids anymore.

[12:09] Drew Gasparini: Ethan, you've never sung on my record, but you have sung for me in concert.

[12:14] Drew Gasparini: But the one thing Lilli and I didn't discuss was SpongeBob.

[12:20] Drew Gasparini: We didn't.

[12:21] Drew Gasparini: Isn't that nuts?

[12:22] Drew Gasparini: And I clocked that right after you left. I was like, I didn't ask her anything about SpongeBob. So would you guys humor me and can we talk about it? It is totally my fault. But I'm glad look, I was blessed with a second chance to talk to you. Uh I want to talk about this musical because, first of all, do you think it gets exactly the amount of cred it deserves, or is it completely underappreciated? Because I think it is wildly underappreciated because what I saw on that stage was like the most explosive imaginative thing ever. And it is to this day one of my top five favorite Broadway experiences.

[13:01] Lilli Cooper: Really?

[13:02] Drew Gasparini: So a hundred percent. I'm not even kidding. What was it like putting it together? Because it just looks like you're playing Whose Line Is It Anyway, and you're taking props out of a trunk and saying this works. You know what I mean? Like the set looked that way. The way you were obviously doing the voices and you found so much of these cartoons and brought them to life. But what was it like kind of being in the room with Tina and how much freedom did she give you guys to kind of create?

[13:30] Ethan Slater: I mean, that's a great way to describe it. And freedom is the perfect word to use because it felt like such an open, free, safe space to just come and do the weirdest shit. And the biggest takeaway that I had, I think, from the rehearsal process and from developing that show was leaving fear at the door. Leaving fear of messing up or making a bad choice, because there was no such thing as bad choices. In fact, most of the bad choices were the things that ended up in the show. Those are the best choices.

[14:07] Lilli Cooper: That's great.

[14:09] Ethan Slater: Yeah, it was like it did feel like we were like pulling different stuffed animals out of a box for like the first three weeks. And then there was just a day when Tina would be like, okay, we're now it's over. Yeah. Okay, we now we have to make it into a thing. Uh which was like a pretty good, like a really good balance, I would say like a really good learning experience. Nice to be reminded, oh, by the way, this is gonna be on a Broadway stage. We have to eventually do this thing.

[14:37] Drew Gasparini: Right. It's like, okay, now we have about like 4,237 ideas. Let's turn it into like, you know, a two and a half hour show instead of what it would be if we just kept them all, which is I don't know, infinitely long. I think I will say though, like the thing that makes it feel like it was it is appreciated, yeah, is that so many people like tell us the same thing that you just said, which is really heartwarming that like everyone who saw it got it. Um and we had like just like the best fans, we still have the best fans of that show, and so like in that way it was just like it felt like everyone got it, and that was a really cool thing to be doing this thing sort of like behind closed doors, making this super weird show.

[15:22] Lilli Cooper: Yeah.

[15:22] Ethan Slater: Um, and then when people saw it being like, Oh, I get what you were going for, felt really awesome. It would be great if it had been able to reach more people.

[15:31] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, I think that there was like kind of a surprise element to it all where people would come and see the show, and like Ethan said, would say, not only did I get it, but it surpassed all of my expectations of what this show would be. And that's a really cool. Does that make you wonder like what the hell were your expectations before coming to the show? Like, what did people think the SpongeBob musical was gonna look like? You know?

[15:56] Ethan Slater: People will tell you exactly what they thought it would be. At the stage door, like 90% of people at the stage door would say, like, oh my god, I was dragged here. I thought this was going to be trash. I thought I was gonna have to gouge my eyes out. But I actually I'm coming back. I'm gonna come back. I love I had fight. Like that. They're like so amazed and surprised they had a good time.

[16:20] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[16:21] Ethan Slater: Just shocked. So here's a question about just playing iconic cartoons. Cause like they're Spongebob's like The Simpsons now. It's like so, so internationally famous and known. And when you're playing Spongebob Squarepants or Sandy Cheeks, that's a squirrel's name, right? Sandy Cheeks, right?

[16:36] Lilli Cooper: Hell yeah, I got it.

[16:38] Ethan Slater: I still got it up here, baby. Um when you're taking on iconic characters, how much of the isms from the animated world do you put into like I saw like Ethan? When you walked, you kind of had the sway of the like SpongeBob's walk. You incorporated that. But then again, I'm asking, you know, this goes with that freedom. How much liberty do you get? Was Nickelodeon kind of in the room? Were they, or was it like you guys had a closed set policy and you could really, really monkey around?

[17:10] Lilli Cooper: I mean, you probably know a little bit about taking a beloved story and trying to like, you know, bring it to life in a way.

[17:16] Ethan Slater: Did you mean this 800-pound gorilla on my back called Karate Kid?

[17:20] Lilli Cooper: Because that is exactly to what I am referencing.

[17:23] Ethan Slater: Yes, it's scary. It's scary, it's really scary. I will say, like, I uh I don't know what you're going through, but though I would like to hear about it. Um, but like Nickelodeon was shockingly gracious. Um they weren't really there that much. I mean, we had this, our executive producer from Nickelodeon, Susan Vargo, was like around, but like they really handed the reins to us and to Tina, and um there were definitely moments over the course of the seven-year development process where they you know butted their heads and were like, Okay, but can you do like a little bit more like this? And they almost always sort of rescinded that and were like, actually do your thing. Um for the most part.

[18:02] Lilli Cooper: Awesome.

[18:03] Ethan Slater: So that was really cool. My favorite story is when is your story of coming in and auditioning, and you were like, I can't do the voice, so I'm just like not gonna do the voice, and then Tina being like, Yeah, cool, cool, cool. Uh, but like maybe try to do the voice next time.

[18:16] Lilli Cooper: Maybe try it.

[18:17] Ethan Slater: It's like pretty important. And then but you you did it. I mean, like that laugh, you had the laugh down like crazy.

[18:25] Lilli Cooper: Oh, thank you.

[18:26] Ethan Slater: You still do people do people shout at you and be like, give us the SpongeBob? Do you get any of that?

[18:31] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, but usually it's more quiet. It's like, oh hey, could you give could you give us the Spongebob? Um because like, you know, they want the SpongeBob, but they're also polite, polite, nice people.

[18:43] Ethan Slater: Yeah, of course.

[18:44] Lilli Cooper: Of course, too much, of course. Can you please do that thing for uh when you got that Tony nomination, Ethan? Was that surprising to you?

[18:52] Ethan Slater: I mean, mostly because the sentence you have to say is I'm nominated for playing Spongebob Squarepants. Yes, yeah, yeah. And like that's like just a surreal thing. I feel like there was this um big like piece of my mind, piece of my brain that uh protected me throughout the year, which was like, okay, this is SpongeBob, this is SpongeBob on Broadway. I know that this is creatively led and and really has a lot of artistic integrity, and I know the way that we made this thing and that it's valuable, but I understand why people will think it's to quote one um awesome teenager, uh a commercial cash grab. Um, like I can understand why people would think that, even though that's not what it is, you know?

[19:36] Lilli Cooper: Right.

[19:37] Ethan Slater: And so throughout the year I was a little like, okay, well, I'm gonna totally get panned um by every reviewer, and I'm not gonna be nominated for any awards because and I understand it, and so like that's fine. I'm doing this for the other end of it. Of course, like that frame of mind is like really hard to cling on to when you're doing a Broadway show, and all of a sudden you're like, oh, but maybe when you get nominated for every award possible, yeah.

[20:01] Lilli Cooper: Right, and and then you get this like flip where it was like then everyone's like, You're gonna win every award. And I'm saying, like, no, I'm literally not. I promise you I'm not. But then deep inside, a little bit of me is like, maybe I could.

[20:16] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[20:16] Ethan Slater: And so, like, it was like this weird, it's this weird mind game that um you start telling people like Lily, you have to refer to me as Tony nominee, Ethan Slater, you get a huge head about yourself.

[20:26] Lilli Cooper: Oh, yeah, no, okay. Well, that's not a huge head, that's just due respect.

[20:29] Ethan Slater: Yeah, yeah, yeah. You called Paul McCartney Sir Paul, after all.

[20:35] Lilli Cooper: Right, exactly.

[20:38] Ethan Slater: But it is like this. I don't know, I don't know if you feel this, Lily, but it like certainly felt to me like um like a game that I thought I could be in control of but wasn't. Like it was I I sort of felt like, you know, my the way that I was approaching it mentally felt like something that I was I was um on the home screen of Mortal Kombat and I was like pressing all the buttons thinking that I was kicking and punching, but then I would stop pressing the buttons and they would keep kicking and punching, and I was like, oh no, wait, I'm not doing that.

[21:04] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, yeah.

[21:06] Ethan Slater: Yeah, because there's so much that's just out of your control. Well, we well, you were on the podcast last time. We talked about your Tony nomination, and how much, like, I don't know if we're really talked about that in specific, but did you was there a moment of you that's like, oh my god, I'm gonna win this thing? Like, was there like a moment like enough people had told you that you were like, I think I'm gonna get sure and very ready to win this thing.

[21:30] Lilli Cooper: Literally, I you might think I'm lying, but literally never not once.

[21:34] Ethan Slater: Never not once, did I think? Oh my god, guys. It just speaks to my ego that I can clock how quickly my brain would change into bow to me as I approach the stage while they announce somebody else's name. You start standing up and you're like exactly. You start buttoning your t your suit. Um I now don't get me wrong, I did practice an acceptance speech.

[21:58] Lilli Cooper: So you practiced.

[22:00] Ethan Slater: It's not you didn't just write it, you like gotten a mirror. In my head, I like thought of who I would think, right? So, like, I guess in that scenario, yes, there was like an inkling of like maybe I'll win, but it was more of a of a god forbid, what if I win and I have nothing to say kind of fear.

[22:19] Lilli Cooper: Yeah.

[22:20] Ethan Slater: Um, as opposed to I genuinely believe that I'm going to win. It's so it sounds so cliche, but I swear I did not think I was gonna get nominated. And so being nominated was insane and so cool. And I really recommend for anybody who is nominated to try to look at it that way because it becomes way more enjoyable. The process is way more enjoyable from the beginning. It's a very stressful month when that, you know, from being nominated to the Tony's. And if you just kind of look at it as this like gracious, grateful thing, and you're like, holy shit, this is the fucking coolest thing that's ever happened to me in the world. Then it's actually really fun and enjoyable.

[23:01] Lilli Cooper: When you guys, when you guys uh inevitably get nominated again for the several things you're gonna be doing in the future, is it gonna be like old hat, or is that excitement gonna be there, you think?

[23:13] Ethan Slater: I I just cannot imagine it ever being old hat. I mean, the thing the thing that's so yeah, that month is really crazy and stressful, but it's also so fun because you're going to all of these events with people that you admire just so much and have have admired from afar because Broadway is this really cool place where you have like all different walks of actors and creatives and directors and writers, like there's so many different um angles from which people approach Broadway.

[23:43] Lilli Cooper: Yeah.

[23:44] Ethan Slater: So, you know, I don't know, like getting to sit at a table with Tony Shaloub. Um there's no part of me in that moment, and I think it's hard to have a part of you that's that's being like that's competition. It's like, no, no, that's that's Tony Shaloub. Like that's so cool. And so it is like this super fun. And um, I think that like maybe on the 10th go round, Lily, you might start to feel yeah.

[24:10] Lilli Cooper: I'm gonna say like 10 or 11 moms in. I'm probably gonna be like, all right, guys, can I just have one now? Just like I mean, honestly, it wasn't that kind of Kelly O'Hara when she finally won. She was like, Thank you, finally, Jesus Christ. And then she walked off the stage.

[24:27] Ethan Slater: I believe that's what I'm saying. Word for word, that was her attention. Thank you. Finally, Jesus Christ. You can quote me on that. Uh, well, look at me talking to a couple of Tony nominees, and I'm a I'm a nobody. Who am I? I'm a hack. What am I doing?

[24:46] Drew Gasparini: Let's talk a little bit about before we get into what I like to call stupid questions with Drew.

[24:53] Ethan Slater: I would love to talk about Edge of the World. Can we discuss it? This is the new concept album, and I love a concept album. That feels like a throwback to like the 60s and 70s, like Tommy before it was Tommy, was like a concept album. You know what I mean? That's like an old rock and roll thing to do. And you and our beloved Nick Blaemire, who cannot be on this call with us today.

[25:17] Lilli Cooper: Boo.

[25:18] Ethan Slater: He has something against bald men. He told me personally. I don't he hates bald men. I know he's free right now, too. He's been texting me this whole time. He's completely free. He's actually pretty bored.

[25:34] Drew Gasparini: Well, then uh let's only talk about your contributions to the album, and Nick can go fuck himself. Um, let's talk about Edge of the World. You got amazing talent, including the lovely Miss Lilli Cooper here, and uh a little nobody named Norbert Leo Butts, who hasn't done anything.

[25:50] Ethan Slater: Who's that?

[25:51] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, he's just honest to God, I'm not making this up. My father looks so much like him, it's crazy.

[25:58] Ethan Slater: Yeah, I can actually sort of I can sort of see it. He's you know what he had, he's that very round head. He's got he's like a clock. He's a little Cogsworth uh headed, is what I would say. And my father and him share that. So uh, first of all, can we talk about how how in the world, and this might be a dumb question, but it I really want to know. How did you convince, if it needed convincing, uh, because you and Lilli and Nick all did SpongeBob and knew each other on stage, and you would assume you're all pals and friends. How did you get Norbert Leo Butts to do this?

[26:31] Ethan Slater: You know what? That I think that's the that's the thing about this that feels um so crazy. It's like it did feel like a really hard ask. I was like, I speaking of like meeting cool people during the Tony's season. Um I met Norbert like twice in that experience. And you know, we um were in the same dressing room at Radio City during the Tony, and I like I remember like being like so freaked out by the fact that I was getting to share a dressing room with like one of my absolute idols, this this performer who I've been uh What's the role? What's the role that that got you hooked on Norbert? Ethan, you first you tell me, then Lilli, I want to know yours.

[27:15] Ethan Slater: I mean, it's the last five years.

[27:17] Lilli Cooper: Of course, of course.

[27:18] Ethan Slater: I mean, uh it was like that that was a show that I listened to. I listened to that record and I was like, oh, to nauseum. I I couldn't stop listening to that record. Yeah, and I did my senior year in high school, we like did a senior project where we put on that show, and my friend directed it, and I music directed it, and we were both in it, and it was just like this awesome experience, and it taught me so much about you know making theater and so yeah, I mean I think that Jason Robert Brown's great wealth all comes from senior showcases or senior projects doing this show. I truly think his entire bank account is funded from high school and college.

[28:02] Drew Gasparini: Right. This is the Penn State University Lake House. The house that Kurt Deutsch bought. Um let's uh Lilli, what's the what's the Norbert Leo Butts uh role that got you hooked on Norbert?

[28:14] Lilli Cooper: Fiero, hands down. No, I'm kidding. Yeah. Um, but that's like he's actually Fiero. But la it's last five years 100%. I mean, I I don't know any musical theater teen in the early aughts who didn't know every word to that. Oh my god. Every word. You know? I was like, am I a shiksa? I'm a shitsa. Am I the shit? And I was like, am I the kind of Jewish person who puts like Schmuel into a song of mine? Yes. My middle name is Shlomo. And so I was aware. You know, anyway. I mean, as a sort of thing.

[28:52] Drew Gasparini: Is your middle name really Shlomo?

[28:54] Lilli Cooper: It is in Hebrew.

[28:56] Drew Gasparini: Oh my god. What is it's what in English?

[28:59] Lilli Cooper: In English it's Sam Samuel, but they're they're actually not the same name. It's a weird sort of familial thing.

[29:05] Drew Gasparini: Where interesting. Shlomo is so fun. That's a great one.

[29:08] Ethan Slater: Yeah, before we changed my name to our name to Slater, it was Slutznick. So I would have been Slut. Shlomo Slutznick.

[29:14] Drew Gasparini: Oh, that's a lot of things. I'm glad I didn't know that in college, Ethan.

[29:18] Ethan Slater: Oh nobody knew it in college.

[29:20] Drew Gasparini: Well now these are what these are the names Lilli's gonna take and name her kids.

[29:24] Lilli Cooper: Exactly. This is good Shlomo Shlomo, Shlomo Cooper. The least Jewish kid possible, but he's gonna be named Shlomo Slutzkowitz.

[29:34] Ethan Slater: Oh yeah. Absolutely. Um yeah, I mean, like Norbert, we uh we were writing the I we were writing this show, and when I would sing the role of Henry, just like playing through, you know, working through songs, I would do my best Norbert impression. You know, like um, as embarrassed as I am to for him to hear that. Um, um I thought I would just like you know, try to sing like Norbert because I was like, this is sort of what the vibe of this character is.

[30:01] Drew Gasparini: What does that sound like, Ethan? What is a Norbert impression?

[30:04] Ethan Slater: You know, actually, my my voice, uh I am not gonna do it actually. I can't I can't I can't I was about to, I really can't do it.

[30:15] Drew Gasparini: You're like about to do it, and you were like, Do I owe this to you?

[30:18] Ethan Slater: I think I like sort of felt like I owed it to you for having brought it up, but you know what? I owe you nothing.

[30:23] Drew Gasparini: Um it's true. You owe me nothing. Um it's amazing that he is singing on this. Lilli, it's amazing that you're a part of this as well. Lilli's an easy ask. I said, Lilli, do this album, would you? And she goes, Okay, when do you need me?

[30:38] Lilli Cooper: I say yes to a lot of shit, you know what I mean?

[30:41] Drew Gasparini: Well, and listen, when it comes to my stuff, it really is shit. So thank you. Uh you're well. When you what what was the song you heard that you're like, this is it? Or were you just like pumped to be a part of it because your boys were writing this?

[30:53] Lilli Cooper: Oh, that that 100%. I mean that's it, right? It's fun to collaborate with friends. Yeah, I don't but I also don't have to, I don't even have to hear anything to know that what Ethan and Nick are working on is gonna be really bomb city. So I was I was gung-ho from the beginning. Also, you called me and he was like, Yeah, so like uh Norbert Leo Butts is gonna be in it. And I was like, uh, okay.

[31:19] Drew Gasparini: Sure. You're like, we didn't you didn't let us finish. It's not an album, it's a sex tape. And you're like, even further, sign me up. I'm all the way.

[31:30] Drew Gasparini: Answer stays the same. Uh, how does it feel now that it's out in the world? First of all, Ethan, I don't know you as a writer very well. And I've been a longtime Nick Blaemire fan in terms of his his music writing. And and like, do you guys remember his song Head Turner?

[31:48] Ethan Slater: Yeah.

[31:49] Drew Gasparini: That song has come up so many times in the last few weeks. Oh, forgive me for bringing it up one more time. But that was like the bop of the century when that came out. I was all about that. That gave me tingles. Like that was like no. I got pregnant after hearing that song ago. Yeah, I did. Uh just a little science for you kids playing at home. Uh, what was it like to collaborate in this way? Uh, Ethan as a writer and Lilli. Have you have you collaborated with them as writers before?

[32:17] Lilli Cooper: No, I no, I haven't like singing their stuff.

[32:20] Drew Gasparini: Oh, well, I mean, I we did a concert of some of this music, which was like very different versions of this music.

[32:28] Lilli Cooper: True, yeah. What was that? Two almost three years ago now.

[32:32] Ethan Slater: Yeah.

[32:32] Lilli Cooper: Um, so I was familiar with a lot of it. Uh so yeah, I had sung some of it before, and I loved it. And it was a really it was a collaborative um, you know, environment because it was a lot of like figuring out harmonies together and figuring out what we should sing, the three of us. And that was a really awesome process, just in, you know, a music studio together, kind of figuring out what sounds good.

[32:57] Drew Gasparini: I'm picturing merrily we roll along right now. I'm really seeing the There was a documentary about the three of us.

[33:03] Lilli Cooper: About you guys, yeah.

[33:04] Drew Gasparini: Of course. That's right. And Ethan, what about you when it comes to writing and and putting two heads together and creating something? What was that experience like?

[33:10] Ethan Slater: Yeah, it was a great experience. Uh this show started. I started writing this show years ago, and I was working on it, and I had met, you know, obviously when I met Nick, it was as an actor, but I'd already been a big fan of his writing. I'd seen Glory Days in DC when it was at signature.

[33:29] Drew Gasparini: Oh, wow.

[33:30] Ethan Slater: Old school. Yeah, I know. Way back. Like I went with my high school friends. Wow. I can't remember if it was a school group or we just went separately, but either way, it was like pretty perfect, you know, the perfect setup. So I was like a fan of Nick's um writing, and so I was just like, hey, could you like give me your thoughts on this show? And he read what I had and listened to the songs and was like, hey, I I feel like I could really help you craft this into what I think you want it to be. And so we started working on it from there, which is an awesome place to be collaborating from.

[34:03] Drew Gasparini: Like just, you know, um, well, it's cool. You had a jumping off point basically, and then, you know, his and he's he had so much experience too in in doing this exact thing. But now that it's it's out there living as a concept album, again, I love this term. Is there a next step for it where it's gonna be a full-fledged, put it on its feet, uh, let's cast this and let's get a show?

[34:26] Ethan Slater: I mean, yes. I that's that is the plan, that's the hope. And we are announcing the theater now, Ethan, tell them where they can see the show.

[34:33] Ethan Slater: It's gonna be at the Broadhurst in 2028. Kick it off the lions and scope. It's this is the show that does it.

[34:42] Drew Gasparini: Oh my god. That would be amazing. It is a it's a three-person show.

[34:51] Ethan Slater: No, I mean, that is the plan. Like the I think one of the things that is exciting about a concept album, and what's exciting about about Edge of the World as a concept album is is the reason that we did it this way is we were working on the show, and we were like, what happens if we just take away all of the book? Let's just like cut all the book and go song to song and see if we're telling the story in this sort of essential way, and we were, and we were really excited by this version of the story, the song to song version. And that sort of incited the conversations about making this concept album. But there's more to the story, it's a really visual story as well. There are like sort of beats missing, like plot heavy beats that are missing from this concept album because it's a concept album, and we're telling the story, we're telling the emotional arc in the story, and I and I think that I'm really proud of the way that we did that. Um, and like I think we're at the core of this thing, but there is a version that blends the visuals and the the sort of theatrical storytelling with this music. So yes, there's more.

[35:54] Drew Gasparini: That's I love hearing that. Yes, there's more. That should be the name of somebody's biography by God. Uh, yes, there's more. It is called Edge of the World. It's available now. You can hear this on anywhere you stream music, I'm assuming. There's not one who's just left it off for no reason. They look at it, musical theater, get this the fuck out of here, and then they throw it out the window. Or somebody really doesn't like Norbert Leo Butts. I hear Jeff Bezos is not a big fan of Norbert.

[36:16] Ethan Slater: So you guys are probably not on Amazon Music, but everywhere else you can find it. Uh and you've got like just like if you got Lilli on board, it's gonna fucking slap.

[36:27] Drew Gasparini: Let's pretend she's not here. Ethan. Is there a better fucking storytelling pop voice in musical theater right now? Answer that question.

[36:36] Ethan Slater: Honestly, no. Honestly, I mean, everything everything that Lilli does is is amazing because I think she's able to find sort of like truth and grounding in some of the most outlandish moments.

[36:48] Ethan Slater: Yeah, and I think that that, like, obviously in SpongeBob, that served really well. In Tootsie, that served really well. But I think what was really fun and exciting is I I've sort of I've seen Lilli work on dramatic things that I was not a part of. So I haven't gotten to see that process.

[37:05] Ethan Slater: But working on Edge of the World where she's just sort of tapping into a character that feels like it needs nuance and feels like it needs both levity and seriousness and like, you know, pathos and empathy, and it's just like a really beautiful thing to see her work.

[37:22] Ethan Slater: So I love listening to everything that Lilli does.

[37:25] Ethan Slater: She's the gosh darn best.

[37:27] Ethan Slater: She's the Lilli, you can come in now.

[37:29] Lilli Cooper: Well, I was just I was I was busy, I was just filing for unemployment.

[37:32] Lilli Cooper: I'm back now.

[37:36] Ethan Slater: Oh my gosh.

[37:38] Ethan Slater: We also went to college together, so I have been...

[37:38] Lilli Cooper: Is that true?

[37:43] Ethan Slater: Yes.

[37:43] Lilli Cooper: Oh, you guys are old homies.

[37:45] Drew Gasparini: You guys have known each other for a good... I love.

[37:47] Drew Gasparini: Oh, that just made this more adorable.

[37:49] Ethan Slater: There is like a there is a song somewhere that I cannot find, but I have tried that is really, really terrible that I wrote that Lilli was gracious enough to sing on.

[37:59] Lilli Cooper: Where is it?

[38:00] Ethan Slater: I need to see it.

[38:01] Lilli Cooper: I need to hear it.

[38:01] Ethan Slater: No, I'll find it.

[38:02] Ethan Slater: I'll find it.

[38:03] Ethan Slater: It's somewhere.

[38:04] Ethan Slater: It's probably just like a Broadway Podcast Network, and we can play it at the end of this episode for the love of God.

[38:09] Lilli Cooper: You're not gonna give me the normer impression.

[38:11] Drew Gasparini: I want the I want this song.

[38:13] Lilli Cooper: You owe me nothing.

[38:14] Drew Gasparini: That's a good job.

[38:15] Lilli Cooper: You owe me nothing.

[38:16] Lilli Cooper: Again, I will say it.

[38:17] Drew Gasparini: Uh all right.

[38:18] Drew Gasparini: So I'm glad we got to plug this album before I let you both go, because I'm taking up so much of your time.

[38:24] Drew Gasparini: I want to play a little game called Stupid Questions with Drew.

[38:27] Drew Gasparini: Are you guys ready to play?

[38:28] Lilli Cooper: So ready.

[38:29] Ethan Slater: Born ready.

[38:31] Drew Gasparini: Here we go.

[38:31] Drew Gasparini: Stupid questions.

[38:32] Drew Gasparini: This is an easy one.

[38:33] Drew Gasparini: Let's start with a real a lob.

[38:35] Drew Gasparini: A real soft lob.

[38:37] Drew Gasparini: Let's start with you, Lilli, and then Ethan will go to you.

[38:39] Drew Gasparini: Lilli, I may have asked you this question in the past, to be honest, but let's start here.

[38:43] Drew Gasparini: What is your favorite breakfast cereal and why?

[38:49] Lilli Cooper: Okay.

[38:50] Lilli Cooper: So I gotta do that.

[38:52] Lilli Cooper: And if you say grape nuts, you get kicked off this podcast immediately.

[38:56] Lilli Cooper: Um I have a 40-year-old personal trainer husband who loves frosted flakes.

[39:03] Lilli Cooper: And he has gotten me back into frosted flakes so hard that it's like a new bedtime treat.

[39:14] Lilli Cooper: I eat frosted flakes for dessert.

[39:16] Lilli Cooper: And I love that.

[39:19] Drew Gasparini: I also love that you act like you have a 40-year-old trainer in the house and you keep frosted flakes in the house.

[39:24] Lilli Cooper: Oh, he buys my brain.

[39:26] Lilli Cooper: Yeah.

[39:26] Lilli Cooper: I'm like, there's like an age, like once you're in your 30s a little bit, you kind of give up cereal for whatever reason.

[39:32] Drew Gasparini: Like, you know.

[39:34] Lilli Cooper: Not the case.

[39:35] Drew Gasparini: So frosted flakes is your jam right now.

[39:37] Lilli Cooper: Frosted flakes is my jam.

[39:38] Lilli Cooper: But you know what also I do, which is a little bit psychotic.

[39:41] Lilli Cooper: Sometimes I put like berries in it to make me feel a little healthier.

[39:45] Drew Gasparini: Oh, that's good.

[39:46] Ethan Slater: Add sugar.

[39:46] Drew Gasparini: 100%.

[39:49] Lilli Cooper: You're practically losing weight once you put those berries in it.

[39:51] Drew Gasparini: It's just more calories.

[39:53] Drew Gasparini: Do you have to put a banana in?

[39:54] Lilli Cooper: You gotta do the where you cut the you pre slice the banana and then you cut it in with your.

[39:58] Lilli Cooper: Oh, yeah, of course.

[39:59] Lilli Cooper: Well, I gotta practice for my kid, you know.

[40:01] Drew Gasparini: So I'm gonna do it.

[40:02] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, oh god, that's like the cutest thing I just thought of.

[40:05] Drew Gasparini: Ethan, what is your favorite breakfast cereal?

[40:08] Ethan Slater: That would have to be cinnamon toast crunch.

[40:10] Ethan Slater: That's very affectionately referred to as CTC in our household.

[40:15] Drew Gasparini: Okay, okay.

[40:16] Ethan Slater: Yeah.

[40:17] Ethan Slater: If I had to give a why, I would say because it is hands down the best flavor of any breakfast cereal.

[40:22] Ethan Slater: It is so good.

[40:23] Ethan Slater: Do you want to know what I used to do when I lived in Santa Barbara?

[40:26] Ethan Slater: Santa Barbara, I think, drinks 1% of the nation's alcohol.

[40:29] Ethan Slater: And I was also doing a bit of weed smoking back in the day.

[40:32] Ethan Slater: But I would take one of those big metal, like you know when you go to packs and they make you a salad?

[40:37] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[40:40] Ethan Slater: I would take one of those big metal bowls and I would crush up an entire bag of Oreos and then put cinnamon toast crunch on top of that and then pour milk in it, and then now I have diabetes.

[40:50] Lilli Cooper: So did you like...

[40:50] Ethan Slater: I don't actually have diabetes?

[40:56] Drew Gasparini: Uh let's that's a topic to make fun of, right?

[40:59] Drew Gasparini: Good going, Drew.

[41:00] Ethan Slater: Um That is a true thing I did.

[41:03] Ethan Slater: I would just like bong hit after bong hit and then fill like a gallon tub of cereal.

[41:08] Drew Gasparini: It's impressive that you're not morbidly obese.

[41:11] Ethan Slater: Like I'm actually impressed.

[41:13] Ethan Slater: But again, it was I gave up cereal at some point in my life.

[41:18] Ethan Slater: I miss it to this day.

[41:19] Ethan Slater: That's why I wanted to talk about it.

[41:20] Drew Gasparini: Next couple stupid questions for you both.

[41:23] Drew Gasparini: Let's start with Ethan this time.

[41:25] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[41:26] Drew Gasparini: Ethan, what is a holiday we could just fucking do without?

[41:26] Ethan Slater: Columbus Day?

[41:36] Ethan Slater: Yeah, fucking get rid of Columbus Day.

[41:37] Ethan Slater: That's a great one.

[41:38] Ethan Slater: That's a great one.

[41:39] Ethan Slater: Because what are we celebrating?

[41:39] Ethan Slater: A horrible man, basically.

[41:41] Ethan Slater: Yeah, a genocidal asshole, you know.

[41:45] Lilli Cooper: I'm gonna second that and go with Thanksgiving.

[41:48] Ethan Slater: Okay.

[41:49] Lilli Cooper: Sorry, guys.

[41:50] Lilli Cooper: I got it on Thanksgiving.

[41:51] Lilli Cooper: Everybody loves you can everybody loves to eat a fucking turkey, but I don't give a shit about Thanksgiving.

[41:57] Lilli Cooper: I it's stressful for children of divorce.

[42:01] Ethan Slater: So let's just eliminate it.

[42:03] Ethan Slater: It also doesn't it also kind of celebrate a bunch of people who murdered a bunch of Native Americans.

[42:08] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, raped and pillaged.

[42:09] Ethan Slater: Yeah, so let's get rid of those two.

[42:11] Ethan Slater: And also, can we just someone tell me what flag day is, and I'll be happier.

[42:16] Lilli Cooper: It's the day of flags.

[42:17] Drew Gasparini: Alright, that's a map.

[42:18] Drew Gasparini: Ethan.

[42:18] Drew Gasparini: Alright.

[42:19] Drew Gasparini: So good answers.

[42:20] Drew Gasparini: I accept both those answers.

[42:21] Drew Gasparini: And now that I know what flag day is all about, I'm gonna buy a flag day hat.

[42:24] Drew Gasparini: I'm gonna celebrate fully.

[42:26] Ethan Slater: Actually, I would do a little more research just in case.

[42:29] Drew Gasparini: Good.

[42:29] Drew Gasparini: I'll Wikipedia this after the interview.

[42:31] Drew Gasparini: Last stupid question, and this might be a little deep, but it can also be silly.

[42:36] Drew Gasparini: What is the biggest lie you've ever told?

[42:42] Lilli Cooper: I think I have a good one.

[42:45] Lilli Cooper: Mine was definitely that I lost my virginity way earlier than I lost my virginity.

[42:50] Drew Gasparini: You told people you lost your virginity to what to like fit in?

[42:53] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, to be cool.

[42:55] Drew Gasparini: Who are you talking to?

[42:56] Lilli Cooper: A bunch of 30 year olds?

[43:00] Drew Gasparini: Was this during Spring Awakening?

[43:03] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, Mag like you're like, you know, you're like, I'm at a Broadway show, I'm so fucking cool.

[43:08] Lilli Cooper: I'm such a grown-up.

[43:09] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, I have sex.

[43:11] Drew Gasparini: Are you kidding?

[43:12] Lilli Cooper: Of course I had sex.

[43:13] Drew Gasparini: Without telling us how old you were when the V was lost, how many years did you lie about?

[43:21] Lilli Cooper: Oh, like solidly like three years.

[43:23] Drew Gasparini: Alright!

[43:25] Drew Gasparini: That's a great lie.

[43:26] Drew Gasparini: That's a good lie.

[43:27] Drew Gasparini: Uh Ethan, how about you?

[43:30] Ethan Slater: Biggest lie you ever told.

[43:31] Ethan Slater: Wow, I mean mine is is like a very formative lie for me.

[43:36] Ethan Slater: It's a lie that I have recalled many times, which is that I told many, many people that and this is so silly because I was like eight years old that I was being recruited by uh intelligence agencies.

[43:50] Ethan Slater: Uh, that I was like being recruited by the CIA, and that I was actually, if you notice, there's this one guy who kept on following me.

[43:57] Lilli Cooper: What?

[43:58] Ethan Slater: I yeah, I know.

[43:58] Ethan Slater: It's like the thing is that it's like somewhere between imagination and lie, right?

[44:02] Ethan Slater: You could say, like, oh, that's so cool.

[44:04] Ethan Slater: Like, what a what an active imagination that kept going for about two and a half years.

[44:08] Ethan Slater: Yeah.

[44:08] Ethan Slater: Um, so now you're in my circle of trust, right?

[44:13] Ethan Slater: Like, we are really close now, right?

[44:14] Ethan Slater: Like we have shared uh a bunch of different colored pencils, and I want to let you know that I am actually being recruited by the CIA to do, you know, intelligence work for them.

[44:27] Lilli Cooper: Oh my god, how did you know what the CIA was at the age where you're using colored pencils?

[44:33] Ethan Slater: Surely I didn't.

[44:34] Ethan Slater: Uh but also if that were the case, you'd totally get kicked out.

[44:38] Ethan Slater: You're not supposed to tell anyone.

[44:40] Ethan Slater: I was a fucking black.

[44:43] Drew Gasparini: And that's why it became a lie, even though it started as 100% the truth.

[44:47] Ethan Slater: Wow, wouldn't that be crazy if it was the truth and the government heard that you were telling people, and then they gave you like some shot in the neck and took you to some facility for a number of years, and then you woke up as Spongebob on Broadway?

[44:58] Lilli Cooper: Wow.

[44:58] Ethan Slater: That would be so wild if I couldn't remember about 15 years of my life.

[45:01] Drew Gasparini: That would be amazing.

[45:03] Ethan Slater: I can remember those 15 years.

[45:05] Drew Gasparini: Uh, or can you?

[45:06] Ethan Slater: Okay, we believe you, Ethan.

[45:08] Drew Gasparini: Okay.

[45:08] Drew Gasparini: Thank you.

[45:09] Drew Gasparini: Stop pounding the same home, Ethan.

[45:10] Drew Gasparini: Um, I did notice that my mic sort of blew out there.

[45:12] Drew Gasparini: So you'll have to.

[45:13] Drew Gasparini: That's okay.

[45:14] Drew Gasparini: We'll get the sound.

[45:15] Drew Gasparini: Sound guy, can you make sure to edit that piece?

[45:18] Ethan Slater: Uh he says yes.

[45:20] Drew Gasparini: My lie was the same as Lilli's.

[45:22] Drew Gasparini: I've been telling people Lilli lost her virginity at 12 for years and years and years.

[45:27] Drew Gasparini: Uh my actual lie, my real lie is I told my parents I graduated from college, but I actually dropped out after five weeks.

[45:38] Lilli Cooper: What?

[45:38] Drew Gasparini: Wait, wait, wait.

[45:39] Drew Gasparini: So so after five weeks, your freshman year, and then you pretended like you were going to college for the next three and a half years?

[45:46] Drew Gasparini: So I would do like one off classes at the college because I got a scholarship to this school, which is true.

[45:46] Drew Gasparini: I got a scholarship to the school as a musicians institute in Los Angeles, and I went for it was probably more than five weeks, but I did not finish the first semester, and I talked to all my teachers about it, and I said, I'm not getting what I want here, but I didn't have the balls to tell my parents.

[46:05] Drew Gasparini: And my brother even came to the school on like what would have been my graduation day, where I chalked it up to my parents as it's so casual, it's like not even worth the visit.

[46:15] Drew Gasparini: And like my brother who lived in Long Beach at the time came and took a picture of me with like whatever rolled up piece of paper they hand you on stage.

[46:23] Drew Gasparini: And I literally walked across the stage, and the guy with the microphone was like, What's your name?

[46:26] Drew Gasparini: I'm like, Drew Gasparini goes, Drew Gasparini.

[46:29] Drew Gasparini: And I walked across the stage, I walked across the stage and I just snagged a piece of paper, and my brother took a picture of me holding it.

[46:35] Drew Gasparini: And then I did an interview, like when I was writing on Smash, I did an interview where I talked about dropping out of college, and it was like seven years after the fact, and that's how my parents...

[46:35] Lilli Cooper: How did they react?

[46:47] Drew Gasparini: My dad didn't really, and my mom was like there was a circle of trust that was broken so hard that I'm real we're everything's great and we're great, but that was a it was such a big lie.

[46:58] Drew Gasparini: And it was mostly because I I couldn't br I just couldn't break my parents' heart this way because that was such an important thing for them was to get the college degree.

[47:07] Drew Gasparini: But now look at me.

[47:08] Drew Gasparini: I'm doing all right.

[47:10] Ethan Slater: Uh I mean it is it is good that they learned about it cloaked in the sort of compliment sandwich of being interviewed about a good job.

[47:17] Lilli Cooper: You know what I mean?

[47:18] Drew Gasparini: Sure, you're right.

[47:20] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[47:20] Drew Gasparini: That's a good point.

[47:21] Drew Gasparini: That's a nice, a positive way to look at it.

[47:23] Drew Gasparini: Anyway, I like that you've interviewed on a real weird note.

[47:26] Drew Gasparini: Madison and the peanut butter like a dog.

[47:28] Lilli Cooper: Yeah, you're giving your dogs.

[47:32] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[47:32] Drew Gasparini: Um, before I let you both go, I just want to say congrats on Edge of the World.

[47:38] Drew Gasparini: That is massive.

[47:39] Drew Gasparini: Everyone go check out the concept album.

[47:41] Drew Gasparini: You can hear Ethan and Lilli and Norbert Leo Butts just crushing it to death on this album.

[47:46] Drew Gasparini: Lilli, congratulations uh on what is gonna be a gigantic new chapter in your life.

[47:53] Drew Gasparini: And I mean, like it's like five minutes until those things are about to pop out, those things.

[47:56] Lilli Cooper: Is it twins?

[47:57] Drew Gasparini: Those things.

[47:58] Drew Gasparini: No, I think it's just I mean, I think it's just one.

[48:01] Lilli Cooper: I really hope it's just one.

[48:02] Drew Gasparini: God, me too.

[48:03] Drew Gasparini: For the for your the sake of your budget.

[48:05] Drew Gasparini: I've talked to production, they don't have the budget for two.

[48:07] Drew Gasparini: So uh gosh, I I wish you the best with Motherhood, and I can't wait to see all the pictures of this beautiful child you're about to uh give to the world.

[48:16] Drew Gasparini: Ethan, congrats on everything uh with the album and Assassins is gonna be so so cool.

[48:22] Drew Gasparini: I think that's one of my favorite musicals of all time, so I'm so excited for you.

[48:27] Drew Gasparini: And I just love you both.

[48:28] Drew Gasparini: These two Tony nominees right in front of me.

[48:31] Drew Gasparini: Thanks so much for being on the podcast, you guys.

[48:33] Lilli Cooper: Thanks for having us.

[48:34] Ethan Slater: Thanks for having us.

[48:38] Drew Gasparini: Hey, thanks for listening, you sexy buttheads.

[48:41] Drew Gasparini: Now we're talking as a proud member of the Broadway Podcast Network.

[48:45] Drew Gasparini: You can find out more about me, Drew Gasparini, and this podcast at BPN.fm slash now we're talking.

[48:52] Drew Gasparini: You can also find us on Instagram at NWT Podcast or on Twitter at NWT underscore pod.

[48:59] Drew Gasparini: A big special thanks to Ethan Slater and Lilli Cooper for coming by and chatting with my hairy ass.

[49:04] Drew Gasparini: Make sure to subscribe and rate this podcast wherever you stream your wonderful podcast.

[49:09] Drew Gasparini: And if you feel like supporting, be sure to check out our Patreon at Patreon.com slash NWT Podcast.

[49:16] Drew Gasparini: And also make sure to keep tuning in for more amazing guests every week.

[49:20] Drew Gasparini: We'll catch you next time.