This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:02] Drew Gasparini: Hello, hello, hello.

[0:04] Drew Gasparini: It's Drew Gasparini here from Now We're Talking with me, Drew Gasparini, and I'm just here to let you know that you can now support us by becoming a patron of our show on Patreon.

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[0:36] Drew Gasparini: This particular podcast is a one-man operation through and through.

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[0:40] Drew Gasparini: It's me, motherfucker!

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[1:00] Drew Gasparini: Thanks for supporting.

[1:01] Drew Gasparini: Keep supporting.

[1:02] Drew Gasparini: And now for the moment you've been waiting for the show.

[1:08] Drew Gasparini: Hi there.

[1:09] Drew Gasparini: It's everyone's favorite pinup girl Drew Gasparini here with another episode of Now We're Talking, the podcast whose only flaw is being too good looking.

[1:18] Drew Gasparini: I had a blast talking and laughing with today's guest, and I know that you will too.

[1:22] Drew Gasparini: She is an Olivier award-winning actress, known for her work on stage and screen.

[1:27] Drew Gasparini: She's been seen on the West End in her award-winning portrayal of Inez in Zorro the Musical.

[1:32] Drew Gasparini: Then she made her way to Broadway, where she starred as Mrs. Wormwood in Matilda, and Mona Kent in Dames at Sea.

[1:38] Drew Gasparini: She's also done a ton of off-Broadway amazingness and on-screen amazingness.

[1:43] Drew Gasparini: And you know what? She's just about done it all.

[1:46] Drew Gasparini: And you know who it is.

[1:47] Drew Gasparini: For the love of God, listen up and get ready for some fun.

[1:50] Drew Gasparini: Because now we're talking with Lesli Margherita.

[1:53] Drew Gasparini: Hey, we're here with Lesli Margherita, and I am like really excited to talk to you today. What's up, Lesli?

[1:58] Lesli Margherita: Hi, I'm so excited to talk to you.

[2:03] Drew Gasparini: Well, you should be. I'm a very exciting human person.

[2:05] Lesli Margherita: Your life is so much more exciting than mine is.

[2:08] Drew Gasparini: I really strongly disagree.

[2:11] Lesli Margherita: Um, do you think because I know that you have this potential? Do you think I have this potential to be a sex symbol in the world of musical theater?

[2:22] Lesli Margherita: Absolutely.

[2:22] Drew Gasparini: Absolutely.

[2:23] Lesli Margherita: You really do?

[2:24] Drew Gasparini: You're not just saying that to like make me feel better because you're on the podcast.

[2:27] Lesli Margherita: And um no, uh no, I'm a very honest.

[2:30] Lesli Margherita: I would never actors don't buy.

[2:33] Drew Gasparini: That's yeah, exactly.

[2:34] Lesli Margherita: Actors don't buy it.

[2:35] Drew Gasparini: No, I can see like merch, calendars, all that.

[2:39] Lesli Margherita: I love it.

[2:40] Lesli Margherita: That's when I have when my ego is insane and I have like more money than I know what to do with, every year I will hire a photographer, and I'm gonna release a calendar.

[2:48] Lesli Margherita: And I'm gonna see if it sells.

[2:50] Lesli Margherita: And if it does, none of it goes to charity.

[2:52] Lesli Margherita: This is for my own pocket.

[2:54] Lesli Margherita: I want everyone to know right out of the gate.

[2:56] Lesli Margherita: It's gonna be the thing.

[2:57] Lesli Margherita: Everyone's gonna be like, Did you get the new Gasparini?

[2:59] Drew Gasparini: The new Gasparini.

[3:03] Lesli Margherita: Yeah, a lot of hair.

[3:04] Drew Gasparini: A lot of hair.

[3:06] Lesli Margherita: That's what people will say.

[3:08] Lesli Margherita: Um, you were one of those people, like before I actually like officially met you in person, which we've only met uh one or two a couple times.

[3:15] Lesli Margherita: Um, but I feel like like even just through your personality on Twitter or on stage, I'm like, that is someone I think I'm gonna click with and vibe with pretty hard.

[3:26] Lesli Margherita: Um, totally.

[3:27] Lesli Margherita: I felt the same way about you.

[3:28] Lesli Margherita: And we have, you know, we have so many mutual friends, and I was like, oh, okay.

[3:31] Lesli Margherita: This is that's why I feel like well, you put up, you put up with Alex Brightman in that show.

[3:36] Drew Gasparini: Put up with him, for sure.

[3:37] Lesli Margherita: You put up with him.

[3:37] Lesli Margherita: And anybody who can put up with Alex, I'm like, well, then they can take a good dose of Gasparini.

[3:42] Drew Gasparini: Um, are you in New York right now?

[3:44] Lesli Margherita: No, I'm in LA.

[3:46] Drew Gasparini: Do you live in both places or have you relocated?

[3:49] Lesli Margherita: No, I live in both places.

[3:51] Lesli Margherita: So I always lived in Los Angeles.

[3:55] Lesli Margherita: Okay.

[3:55] Lesli Margherita: And then I was in London for a couple years.

[3:57] Lesli Margherita: But then when I got Matilda, that was the first time I moved to New York.

[4:01] Drew Gasparini: Is that true?

[4:02] Lesli Margherita: Eight years ago, yeah.

[4:04] Drew Gasparini: That's mind blowing too, because you just seem like you fit right in.

[4:07] Lesli Margherita: I you know what? Like everybody always said go to New York, and I wanted to.

[4:11] Lesli Margherita: I tried, I tried to get jobs, nobody would hire me.

[4:14] Lesli Margherita: And then I so when I got that, I moved, but my husband always stays here in LA.

[4:21] Lesli Margherita: His job is here.

[4:22] Lesli Margherita: He's he's a muggle.

[4:23] Lesli Margherita: He's like a like thankful.

[4:25] Drew Gasparini: What does he do?

[4:26] Lesli Margherita: He um produces shows for Motor Trend.

[4:29] Lesli Margherita: He does like guy shows.

[4:31] Drew Gasparini: Oh my god.

[4:32] Drew Gasparini: You know, I love when people refer to them as guy shows because I literally don't even know of their existence until someone says there are shows about trucks inside.

[4:42] Lesli Margherita: Sure, yeah.

[4:42] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[4:43] Lesli Margherita: So he doesn't have to be.

[4:44] Lesli Margherita: So he's a he's a guy's guy.

[4:45] Lesli Margherita: He's one of those man's man kind of thing.

[4:47] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[4:47] Drew Gasparini: All right, that's cool.

[4:48] Lesli Margherita: So he's always here.

[4:49] Lesli Margherita: So I moved to New York for Matilda and went back and forth.

[4:54] Lesli Margherita: Um, and then was it it was only supposed to be a year and it turned into eight.

[5:00] Drew Gasparini: Wow.

[5:01] Drew Gasparini: Or seven.

[5:01] Lesli Margherita: So did you just fall but is it because you fell in love, or is it just opportunity after opportunity kept coming up?

[5:07] Lesli Margherita: But kind of luckily, opportunity.

[5:10] Lesli Margherita: Luckily, I really thought I'd be there a year and people would be like, Great.

[5:15] Lesli Margherita: And that was it.

[5:16] Lesli Margherita: And luckily, opportunity.

[5:18] Lesli Margherita: Um, and so I would just go back and forth, really.

[5:21] Lesli Margherita: And then when COVID happened.

[5:25] Lesli Margherita: Yes.

[5:26] Lesli Margherita: I was like, I'm going home.

[5:29] Lesli Margherita: Um and I you know, I went I I was in New York for a couple months, and then the my husband came and got me, and then it stuff got really bad here too, so I was actually following me.

[5:40] Lesli Margherita: But I'm in LA now.

[5:42] Lesli Margherita: Um I've been back a lot to New York.

[5:45] Lesli Margherita: Uh but yeah, it's this is the first time my husband and I have actually like been in the same place for this long time.

[5:51] Drew Gasparini: I hear that's that helps a marriage sometimes.

[5:53] Lesli Margherita: I don't know if I'm great.

[5:57] Lesli Margherita: Because we actually miss each other.

[5:59] Lesli Margherita: And so this time I'm like, all right, maybe now it's getting time to time to go again and it just does make the heart grow fonder or something like that.

[6:12] Drew Gasparini: I've heard something like that.

[6:13] Lesli Margherita: But I I love LA as well, so I'm I'm happy being here for a bit.

[6:16] Drew Gasparini: LA's a good when it's not on fire, it's an all right place to be.

[6:21] Drew Gasparini: I'm from the Bay Area in California, so it's the same thing.

[6:24] Drew Gasparini: It's like I love West Coast, I love East Coast.

[6:27] Drew Gasparini: One was, you know, flooded with pandemic while the other was on fire.

[6:31] Drew Gasparini: It's just like it's you kind of both coasts are never great at the same time.

[6:37] Lesli Margherita: Wait, have we have we not talked about this?

[6:39] Lesli Margherita: Because I'm from the Bay Area.

[6:40] Drew Gasparini: Where in the Bay Area are you from?

[6:42] Lesli Margherita: I'm from Fremont.

[6:43] Lesli Margherita: My entire family is still in Fremont.

[6:45] Drew Gasparini: No shit.

[6:45] Lesli Margherita: No way.

[6:46] Drew Gasparini: I'm from Marin County.

[6:49] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[6:50] Lesli Margherita: I mean, come on.

[6:51] Lesli Margherita: If you're rich and white, you know the area.

[6:51] Lesli Margherita: You know the area.

[6:57] Drew Gasparini: Shut up.

[6:57] Lesli Margherita: Yeah, my whole whole family.

[6:59] Lesli Margherita: That's why I never moved to the East Coast.

[7:01] Lesli Margherita: Like, I my husband.

[7:02] Lesli Margherita: Well, because it's so it's just it is amazing out there.

[7:04] Lesli Margherita: I really do love Northern California.

[7:06] Lesli Margherita: I love Southern California too.

[7:07] Lesli Margherita: And like there there's elements about it I like.

[7:09] Lesli Margherita: I say it with such disdain, but like my sister's out there right now and she's having a great time.

[7:13] Lesli Margherita: I lived in Hollywood for three years.

[7:16] Drew Gasparini: Oh that's probably why though I lived in Hollywood I got mugged twice in three years.

[7:22] Drew Gasparini: Hollywood is so much worse than New York City.

[7:24] Drew Gasparini: I don't know where people think that it is but it really is.

[7:27] Lesli Margherita: And I like my first apartment there it was here's a a small story about my first place in in Hollywood my first apartment was on Coanga and like another street called Yucca I think it was called or Yuka I lived on Yucca and Ivar shut up Lesli What is happening?

[7:46] Lesli Margherita: We've been neighbors our whole lives I mean come on okay yes so yes I know the area well this apartment looked like Swiss cheese.

[7:57] Lesli Margherita: There were so many bullet holes in it I'm not even joking at all.

[8:02] Lesli Margherita: And we had to get uh the three months of living there and the apartment gets condemned and we had to we had to get out and find a new place and I was actually homeless for a few weeks in Los Angeles because I I was literally just kicked out and had nowhere to go I was living in my Ford escort.

[8:18] Lesli Margherita: This is all true and uh when I so I was like away for the holidays or something and when I came back there was such a moisture problem in my my unit that when I pushed down on the mattress water would water would seep up like a fucking sponge horrifying horrifying started from the bottom now you're here gross now we're here baby that's right but I was also in this really scrappy like artist mindset of like I can do it, I can make this work.

[8:49] Lesli Margherita: You know that's very Hollywood.

[8:51] Lesli Margherita: Like every I mean I lived in I lived I've lived everywhere in LA, but Hollywood, I was there when I was like young, and and I was going to be in like an actor, and that's very much the the vibe.

[9:02] Drew Gasparini: So uh oh yeah.

[9:04] Lesli Margherita: Well, you ended up really doing that when you went on to the West End, and you uh you won what is called, I believe I'm pronouncing it right, Ollie Oli VA.

[9:16] Drew Gasparini: What is it?

[9:16] Lesli Margherita: What's the award the award you won?

[9:18] Lesli Margherita: It has a little prestige to it, if I'm not mistaken.

[9:21] Lesli Margherita: Oh the Olivier, but of course the Olivier.

[9:25] Drew Gasparini: So you won the Olivier Award out there.

[9:27] Lesli Margherita: And did you think like now that I have this award, am I gonna be in London forever and I'm gonna be booked on the West End forever?

[9:34] Lesli Margherita: Did you feel like that's how opportunities kind of rolled out out there?

[9:37] Lesli Margherita: No, I um first of all, it was shocking that I A was nominated, and then two won because at that time not Americans didn't really win.

[9:49] Lesli Margherita: Um so everyone was like, it's not gonna happen, not gonna happen.

[9:52] Lesli Margherita: So I'm still bitter about the revolution.

[9:54] Drew Gasparini: Is that what very, very bitter?

[9:56] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[9:57] Lesli Margherita: Um, and I was like shocked.

[9:59] Lesli Margherita: I was nominated awards over there, like the that's their Tony award.

[10:03] Lesli Margherita: And right it the the importance of awards over there is not the same as it is in New York.

[10:09] Lesli Margherita: Like, there's no campaigning or parties or it's just like that's what you do.

[10:15] Lesli Margherita: And so uh it was shocking that I won.

[10:19] Lesli Margherita: And when I won, I was like, finally, I'm gonna get a Broadway show.

[10:24] Lesli Margherita: Finally, finally.

[10:25] Lesli Margherita: Yes.

[10:25] Lesli Margherita: And like New York producers had come and seen it was Zorro the musical, which sounds crappy, but again, one of those shows that people were like, Zorro, they're musical, but it was amazing.

[10:35] Drew Gasparini: Yes.

[10:36] Lesli Margherita: Um and I thought, like, oh my god, I'm finally gonna get a Broadway show.

[10:42] Lesli Margherita: And like two weeks after I won the Olivier, I was up for two Broadway shows, and I was like, this is it.

[10:49] Lesli Margherita: I'm getting, I'm I'm finally gonna make my debut.

[10:52] Lesli Margherita: And it didn't happen.

[10:53] Lesli Margherita: Um it was devastating, and I and and the New York thing just didn't happen.

[10:59] Drew Gasparini: Um what were those two shows, by the way?

[11:02] Lesli Margherita: You know what? I I I don't like to say because then the people that got the show I hate when people are like, oh my god, I was the next choice for blah blah blah, because it negates the other people that were up for it or the people that got it.

[11:18] Drew Gasparini: And let's just get into it.

[11:20] Lesli Margherita: Well, I'm so curious.

[11:22] Lesli Margherita: You know what? They were both replacements for shows.

[11:24] Lesli Margherita: Um starts with a W and end with an Ichid.

[11:29] Drew Gasparini: No, oh gosh, no, I could never sing that.

[11:32] Lesli Margherita: No, obviously the other the other guess I had was Lion King as move off.

[11:36] Drew Gasparini: Absolutely.

[11:36] Drew Gasparini: Well, that's closer, yes, absolutely.

[11:38] Lesli Margherita: No, uh, and and neither one worked out, and I was pretty devastated.

[11:45] Lesli Margherita: And and you're like, I have this British Tony Award, and no one cares here because it's totally different thing.

[11:52] Lesli Margherita: And so I did think I was like, well, do I stay in London?

[11:56] Lesli Margherita: Eventually I I came home to LA, and you know, it took another year before Matilda came around, and the only reason that came around was because the Matilda people had seen me in Zorro in London.

[12:12] Drew Gasparini: Right.

[12:13] Lesli Margherita: But I was living in LA, I flew myself out a bunch of times for Matilda.

[12:17] Lesli Margherita: Wow.

[12:18] Lesli Margherita: And and auditioned in LA once for Tim Minchin, and that's how that happened.

[12:24] Lesli Margherita: But it was just because those were the Brits.

[12:25] Lesli Margherita: They were the ones that gave me the chance.

[12:27] Drew Gasparini: So see, I mean, you owe it all to the Brits, baby.

[12:30] Lesli Margherita: That's what it is though.

[12:31] Lesli Margherita: I do.

[12:32] Lesli Margherita: But you just don't know.

[12:33] Lesli Margherita: You know it's the path that I thought I was gonna be on was it just blown up and and it just is what it is.

[12:42] Lesli Margherita: So yeah.

[12:43] Lesli Margherita: I mean but you can't dictate what the path is gonna be.

[12:46] Lesli Margherita: You really can. This is a great lesson right here of just kind of go with where the opportunities are and look at the opportunities they create for you. Because then when you finally get a show like Matilda that had to have changed your life in every single possible way.

[13:00] Lesli Margherita: Not only did it change my life but I actually now looking back on it I'm because it took me so long to get to Broadway and I had wanted it so long I appreciated it I think more than most. Totally had it happened when I was 21 totally it would not have been the same. Like I'm very I take it very seriously I want to do all my shows I want to like it just meant a lot to me and still means a lot to me.

[13:28] Lesli Margherita: So I think I think us you know being older and and stuff happening to me like I I ended up on TV very early and I thought that was so easy and I took that for granted but something like a big like a Broadway thing I I was very happy that it it ended up the way that it did.

[13:47] Drew Gasparini: Yeah like totally backwards but but good backwards and forwards all at the same time I would say I think that really worked out perfectly for you. And you were just you were an absolute uh dynamo in that show. Do you mind if I if I quickly read a review, not of Matilda?

[14:04] Drew Gasparini: This is a review that is actually on your Wikipedia page of your performance, uh, your performance in Zorro. Do you mind if I read this to you?

[14:13] Lesli Margherita: Uh, sure.

[14:14] Drew Gasparini: This is a uh from The Guardian uh by Michael Billington, who wrote the most flamboyant display of personality comes from Lesli Margherita, who, as is it Inez? Is that the character?

[14:27] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[14:28] Drew Gasparini: As Inez flashes her eyes and other parts of her anatomy with the gayest abandon.

[14:37] Lesli Margherita: Well, funny story, in my cadre show, I tell how I break down how I won the Olivier. It's very fake and very funny. But I but one of the steps is um our choreographer was uh a very famous Spanish flamenco dancer, and he told me that I needed to um that the secret to my character was Banty's show them, which ended up he meant panties show them while I was moving my skirt. So that review means I did my job, and yes, and I clearly did. So, yeah.

[15:13] Drew Gasparini: Well, kudos. I just I was just doing, you know, like the centimeter wide amount of research I do before these interviews, and I I just glance at a Wikipedia page and I see what I can pick up. But I I really loved that review. It just made me like buckle over laughing.

[15:28] Lesli Margherita: That is amazing. Leslie, when you lived in New York, did you ever have any wonderful overheard in New York moments? Because I found one, uh, not found one, I had one uh quite recently, about two weeks ago, while I was in the city for auditions for the karate kid, and on my walk back to the subway, I overheard something strange, but I didn't clock it as strange until much after the fact.

[15:50] Lesli Margherita: And this is what I heard. I wrote it down so I didn't forget it. Seriously, dude, I think your penis looks great. Stop freaking out about it. That is that is one of the best overheard New Yorks I've ever had.

[16:05] Drew Gasparini: Do you have you know what? I have so many, and I I usually put them on my Twitter.

[16:12] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[16:13] Drew Gasparini: And I can't like I there are so many. Well, everybody referenced Lesli's Twitter at Queen Lesli. I usually find them in because they're amazing. Yeah. New York's crazy.

[16:28] Lesli Margherita: What was the one I just I was thinking? Well, I mean, the theater ones are great. Like I remember walking out of Matilda once, and I would walk past Le Miz to walk home.

[16:38] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[16:39] Lesli Margherita: And I remember some man was like, that Jean McGean was great. Song fell off.

[16:39] Drew Gasparini: Jean McGean.

[16:48] Lesli Margherita: Jean McGean. Wow. The absolute white trash version of Le Miz is Jean McGean. I'm forever gonna say that.

[17:00] Drew Gasparini: That is tremendous. Jean McGean. That little that hard E vowel just sucks all the life out of that song. I'm Jean McGean.

[17:17] Lesli Margherita: Oh man, I would have fun with that. That was a good one. Uh speaking of coming out the stage door in Matilda, because you really I mean like Matilda was such a big craze when it was here on Broadway, and I know that you felt that it was really palpable even for people who weren't in the show. Um what was it? I also have a great backstage story of Matilda that I'm gonna share with you.

[17:37] Lesli Margherita: But uh what is one of the craziest, not even craziest, best or craziest, just a significant stage door moment with one of your absolute insane fans?

[17:49] Lesli Margherita: Um you know what I it was it's very important for me to do the stage door every night. Unless I unless I can't unless I'm running to the 50 full below or something. You know like um but it was really important to me. I think that again that was one of those things where I had waited so long that I would this was going to be part of it. So I staged our every night when I can um I had some I I mean I have um like I had amazing people at the stage drawer but my favorites were like kids that asked me to like uh be part of their prom ask like their you know like stuff like that. I loved and thought was so cute.

[18:27] Lesli Margherita: I love that. Yeah it was like super cute. I mean I there's weird ones like once I got ears of corn from someone and no explanation.

[18:38] Drew Gasparini: Wow in a bag and I was like just do with these what you will yeah absolutely no explanation that's the best part is I was like corn.

[18:45] Lesli Margherita: Just corn ears of corn thank you're core core on the copy you know the thing is like the the odd ones are always people that I don't know if they're nervous or whatever but people who I think people feel like they can say anything to me because I won't be offended. And so it's always like backhanded compliments or you look so much thinner here than you did online.

[19:08] Drew Gasparini: Oh man your tweet the other day had me rolling it was something like you had to sing off key on purpose and then somebody recognized that it was you.

[19:17] Lesli Margherita: Yeah, this always the shit always happens to me. This was a couple days ago. I'm shooting a TV show out here, and my character was singing a song, and they were they wanted her to be just like totally bad, awful. So she busts out, and it's horrifying. And literally, between takes, one of the background artists, the extras was like, Queen Lesli.

[19:35] Drew Gasparini: Of course, my God.

[19:36] Lesli Margherita: Oh, yes, my fans, someone recognized me. The gifts. Like, yes, it's say moi, it's me. And they were like, I didn't, I could like wasn't sure it was you because you know, because I'm used to seeing in New York, but as soon as I heard you sing, I knew.

[19:51] Drew Gasparini: And where you're singing on purpose back.

[19:54] Lesli Margherita: Right. I was like, thank you. Yes, thank you very much. I love that so much. Uh, wait, Lesli, I want to tell you this story of when I went backstage at Matilda, and I was in a meeting with Disney, okay? And there was a matinee of Matilda going on, and I get a text while I'm in this meeting at Disney.

[20:14] Drew Gasparini: And this is like, what properties do you want to bring in? We have so much interest in like doing something with you. And I get a text from Alex Brightman. He goes, Hey, it's intermission at Matilda. Dave Matthews is in the audience, and he's gonna come backstage and meet us after the show. You should get here, because he knows my idol of idols is Dave Matthews. Like the reason I picked up a guitar, the reason I started writing songs, Dave Matthews.

[20:42] Drew Gasparini: And I'm in the middle of this, my agents killed me after this. But I was like, I'm so sorry, I have to go. And I left it right in the middle of this potentially career changing meeting. And I ran to the stage door of Matilda because I didn't want to lose the opportunity to meet Dave Matthews. And I got a picture with him, and he was like, Oh, and Alex was like, he's a big fan of yours. Like, Dave, how are you? Oh my god, and he goes, Yeah, and these are my kids. I'm like, Yeah, Stella and Grace, nice to meet you two girls. Anyway, uh, like I knew his kids' names. I was like absolutely nuts when I talked to him.

[21:13] Lesli Margherita: No, but I love that. And that's way more important than business meeting. You know what? It hasn't happened since, so that maybe was my one time to meet my hero and it lived up to all the expectations.

[21:26] Drew Gasparini: What are you doing? Come on, please.

[21:27] Lesli Margherita: No, absolutely not. Here we are, we're writing Karate Kid, and we were just talking before I push record about how uh the you know, the hate, the love is all there. There's so much support from your friends and people within the industry, they they want to see Broadway do well, so they want the show to do well, and it is exciting when it's a big property.

[21:45] Lesli Margherita: But like in a show like Matilda or even Zorro, when it is based off of a beloved thing that people just kind of don't want you to touch it, they want you to leave it like it is.

[21:56] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, uh, and they also have this other idea that adaptations are practically zero work and zero creativity.

[22:04] Lesli Margherita: Yeah. What is that? And can you say something that will just have those people shut up?

[22:10] Lesli Margherita: Well, listen, I again often go to my social media because I am all uh often involved in shows that are brand new or adaptations. Um, and you know, like flamingo kid, I did and um emoji land was a huge one. I did it a sh an off-Broadway show called Emoji Land, and as soon as people heard emoji land, it you know what it is, it's the angry people on message boards that that shit on it for everybody.

[22:39] Lesli Margherita: And they automatically have this opinion of why why do you have to have a show like emoji land? Or in the case of something like Karate Kid or like Tootsie or Beloved, like I'm a massive Karate Kid fan. And oh yeah, this is exciting. It was like Rocky. I loved Rocky, and I was so excited to see it. I loved the show. These people, for some reason, need something to shit on.

[23:01] Drew Gasparini: Yeah.

[23:02] Lesli Margherita: And it is so detrimental to our industry that stunts creativity. It's also why I hate bootlegs. I think they stunt creativity. They don't allow people to create their own thing. But before something has come out, before a note has been heard, if you come and see the show and it's not your thing, sure, you can have an opinion. I'm not gonna read it, but you can have your opinion. But before you even see anything or hear anything, you've already condemned it. It is so anti what I feel like our community is, which is open and rad and it's such a bummer.

[23:41] Drew Gasparini: It's rad.

[23:42] Lesli Margherita: It is, it's rad. That word is coming back with a vengeance. It is rad. And like the other thing that kills me is a show can't have a proper preview period because there are some buttheads that go to the first preview so that they can be the first person to shit on it. And I just it has nothing to do with the show. It has everything to do with them feeling important or them feeling like their single is heard.

[24:06] Lesli Margherita: That's what it is. And you know what I love about this is they'll shit on just the idea being mentioned, or like, oh Matilda, Matilda, another thing based off of a real doll thing, another book, another adaptation of this. And then what happens to those people when they actually go and love the show? I love it. Do they succumb to the capitalist monsters in charge of Broadway? You know, like they they can't pick a battle, they just need to shit on something.

[24:32] Drew Gasparini: And especially now, I mean, like, look, there are things, obviously, like Rocky. Tootsie is one of my favorite movies of all time. And I remember when they announced it, I was like, okay, I'm I'm gonna stay open. And I loved it so much for what it was, because it wasn't the movie that I loved. It was a totally different entity.

[24:48] Lesli Margherita: Right. Yes. It should be an extension of what you love.

[24:52] Drew Gasparini: Right. Um, I I just it makes me so so angry, and it really just doesn't allow things to breathe. It doesn't allow because there's already a stigma on.

[25:07] Lesli Margherita: No, exactly. But don't be don't say you're a theater fan, and then the first thing you do is shit on new theater that's happening.

[25:31] Lesli Margherita: But her fingers are going so crazy. She is so Italian. It makes me so angry. Wow. So and I look, I admit I'm a uh such a theater geek. Like, I still buy the t-shirts of the shows that I go to and I love everything.

[25:51] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, that is what you should be. And if it's not your thing, that's fine. You don't need to write about it.

[25:57] Lesli Margherita: Yes anonymously. We have stupid reviewers. I don't read reviews anymore because they sent me into a tailspin. Oh my god. Because I realize that people's opinions then will ruin my experience.

[26:14] Drew Gasparini: But something that is as rad as like a karate kid or like any of these beloved properties. Shut up! Wait till it comes out, go see it, go pay and see it. Don't watch a green frickin' bootleg of it on the Instagram. Be there and experience it. And then ready. Then you can have an opinion.

[26:38] Lesli Margherita: But damn right. You know what your next project should be? And I just hope the gods of show business are hearing me right now. But I think you would crush it as one of those daytime TV judges. You know what I'm talking about? Just court TV, some sort of like you just like get to pick the verdict and you get to real, just lay into the guy who's guilty. I just want to see you do that. Go a full Italian.

[27:02] Drew Gasparini: I would love that. I wanna we I want to take just a few more minutes of your time, if you don't mind, Lesli. Don't are you a drinker at all? Do you drink?

[27:19] Lesli Margherita: Am I? Yes. Wouldn't you love to have a martini with me?

[27:23] Drew Gasparini: I'd really love a martini with you. I would, I would. Not now because it's 11:30 a.m. here.

[27:28] Lesli Margherita: Oh yeah, okay. Okay, so yes, when I'm when I'm in town, yes. A bellini.

[27:35] Drew Gasparini: A bellini. Uh yeah, I just think you and I would have a good time at a bar.

[27:40] Lesli Margherita: I agree. All right. This is what we call stupid questions. I do this on every episode. And I just I feel like these types of questions are where you really get to learn about somebody's personality. So are you ready, Lesli Margherita, for stupid questions?

[27:56] Lesli Margherita: Yes, yes.

[27:57] Drew Gasparini: Would you rather not be able to bend your arms or not be able to bend your legs?

[28:04] Lesli Margherita: Ooh, uh are uh arm. I would rather not be able to. I want the use of my arms, so I'd rather not be able to bend my legs.

[28:12] Drew Gasparini: So you would just kind of be walking around like Frankenstein.

[28:15] Lesli Margherita: Yes. But I would make it cute.

[28:18] Drew Gasparini: Yes. I like the idea of expressive of somebody.

[28:22] Lesli Margherita: You would be very upper upper body expressive. I like the idea of being completely stiff upper body and then like a river dancer. I think it'd be really funny.

[28:30] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, that you would totally be like flatly Lord of the Dance.

[28:36] Lesli Margherita: Yes, I would be Lord Lord of the Dance, Michael Flatley. Um okay, gun to your head, Lesli Margherita. NSYNC or Backstreet Boys, which group's tour bus has to explode?

[28:48] Lesli Margherita: Backstreet Boys. I'm I'm an NSYNC die hard.

[28:52] Drew Gasparini: Are you?

[28:53] Lesli Margherita: Oh, a diehard. And I actually did a movie with JC from NSYNC and could not speak to him for like the first week.

[28:59] Drew Gasparini: Are you serious? What movie was this?

[29:03] Lesli Margherita: Uh you can see it on Netflix now. It's called Opening Night.

[29:06] Drew Gasparini: Oh my god. It's me and Topher Grace and Tay Diggs, and it's about a Broadway show.

[29:07] Lesli Margherita: Topher Grace.

[29:14] Drew Gasparini: Topher Grace like produced it.

[29:15] Lesli Margherita: Yeah. It's on Netflix now. You can see it.

[29:18] Drew Gasparini: Oh my god, I love this. I have to check out.

[29:20] Lesli Margherita: Rob Wriggles in it. There's like a huge is amazing.

[29:23] Drew Gasparini: Yeah. Okay, I am a humongous Rob Regal fan.

[29:27] Lesli Margherita: Oh, then you'll enjoy this movie. Opening night on Netflix.

[29:30] Drew Gasparini: Wow. Opening night. I'm glad that you got an extra plug.

[29:33] Lesli Margherita: An extra plug. It's about a putting up a Broadway musical. And the star of this musical was JC from InSync, and I literally was like, was he playing himself?

[29:46] Drew Gasparini: Yes. It's very funny.

[29:47] Lesli Margherita: My God. It's actually really, really funny.

[29:49] Drew Gasparini: Yeah. So he was kind of the joke of like the butt of the joke, but he's like went with it.

[29:54] Lesli Margherita: I love that. Mad respect for JC. And you know what? You're right about NSYNC. I think it just all in all, when it came song to song, they had better songs. And I look, I love the Backstreet Boys, but I'm I'm absolutely an NSync girl.

[30:07] Drew Gasparini: Yeah. I think there's more drama in the Backstreet Boys, too. They there's like rehab going on.

[30:11] Lesli Margherita: I feel like they all had.

[30:15] Drew Gasparini: Yeah, I'm not sure about that. Backstreet Men doesn't have a song. I'm a big boy band fan.

[30:19] Lesli Margherita: Like you like New Kids on the Blocks kind of thing?

[30:22] Drew Gasparini: I've worked with Joey McIntyre many, many times.

[30:25] Lesli Margherita: Why?

[30:26] Drew Gasparini: I we always do we are always put together in workshops of new shows.

[30:31] Lesli Margherita: Amazing.

[30:32] Drew Gasparini: Always. We're like always husband and wife. We're always playing like the Italian and Irish and like the angry people.

[30:37] Lesli Margherita: Oh my god. I used to have a doll of Joey, and I again like until I knew him, like when I was a kid, I had a Joey McIntyre doll.

[30:47] Drew Gasparini: So before I knew him, I still was like, Oh, yeah, oh wait, I'm working with Joey McIntyre. Like I love, I love, I love, love.

[30:54] Lesli Margherita: That is ridiculous. You know who the one person I worked with ever that I could two there's two people. I couldn't talk to them until like the last day it was possible to talk to them. And one was Michael C. Hall. He did uh uh he was in the Skittles commercial that I did for the Super Many years ago, or not many years ago, 2009 or 19. Uh and Mark Summers, who I was Double Dare from Doubledare, I was like, and now we're like best friends, and like we text every day.

[31:25] Drew Gasparini: You guys do that yet. I was like amazed when I met him, but like I used to pretend to be this guy when I was a kid, you know, like hardcore. So like the the ooey gooeys inside were all there for sure. I didn't have a doll of him. That's kind of weird.

[31:39] Lesli Margherita: Well, I mean, I was like 10. Okay, whatever. You're 30. Anyway. Um where else, Lesli?

[31:50] Drew Gasparini: Next stupid question. Where else on the body would be a good place for the genitals to go, besides the uh crotch region?

[31:59] Lesli Margherita: Ooh. Well, I mean, I guess it was. I feel like it's okay. I just feel like we could have done better, maybe. Like it should all be on the back.

[32:08] Drew Gasparini: Yeah. Yeah, maybe. I guess it doesn't get as much protection.

[32:11] Lesli Margherita: I was thinking maybe under the arm.

[32:14] Drew Gasparini: That'd just be so convenient.

[32:19] Lesli Margherita: No, just annoying.

[32:21] Drew Gasparini: You think so?

[32:22] Lesli Margherita: Close to the face.

[32:24] Drew Gasparini: I or is it just close enough to the face? I'm gonna go with all in the back.

[32:33] Lesli Margherita: All in the back. That would like imagine, imagine scientists discovering the evolution of humans and the skeleton fossil they find with like a big dick hanging off of some man's back, looking like a freaky stegosaurus.

[32:51] Drew Gasparini: That is really crazy. Uh I like that. On the back, that's a really good. That's that's funny to me.

[32:58] Lesli Margherita: That's what aliens look like in my mind. Um, last stupid question, if you don't mind, Lesli.

[33:04] Lesli Margherita: Not at all.

[33:05] Drew Gasparini: I asked this to, I don't know if you know Raymond J. Lee.

[33:09] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[33:09] Drew Gasparini: I love Ray. And I had him on the podcast yesterday. Uh speaking of Ray, it was in another adaptation that was literally probably my favorite show ever, Groundhog Day. We talked all about that. Groundhog Day, one of the greatest. I mean, Tim Minchin really does not fuck up. He is so good. I saw Groundhog Day like five or six times because I loved it so much. I was in love with it.

[33:32] Lesli Margherita: Yeah.

[33:32] Drew Gasparini: No, it was easily maybe that year my favorite musical that year by a lot.

[33:36] Lesli Margherita: Yep, yep, yeah.

[33:37] Drew Gasparini: Um, okay, so I asked him this question, and I just loved I just loved imagining it. That's why I think I'm gonna ask everybody this question henceforth. Would you rather have no eyelids or would you rather have no lips?

[33:53] Lesli Margherita: Eyelids.

[33:55] Drew Gasparini: I'd rather have no eyelids. Now, he said that too, and I just gotta like point out the I'll be devil's advocate here. What happens to your eyes if you can't close them? How first of all, like I guess you could put a mask on to sleep, but like hydration-wise, and also this is really where it came down to uh in the conversation yesterday with Ray. Imagine, and I I'm sure it's been since yesterday since you've done this, but imagine a couch makeout session, okay? And you're making out. Would you rather uh open your eyes to see these wide open eyeballs staring right back at you because the person has no eyelids? Or would you rather just kind of rough and tumble it with some no lips, but when you open your eyes to see them making out with you, their eyes are closed delicately and romantically.

[34:45] Lesli Margherita: Well, no, because is it just like a gaping mouth hole with it? I mean, it's it's I mean, you can still open and close your mouth, you just wouldn't have, you know, lips.

[34:54] Drew Gasparini: I have quite thin lips to begin with, so I feel like I'm already inches away from just having no lips. I mean, I don't know. I mean the note lips is weird. I uh I'm still going with eyelids because I feel like we would evolve to where something would like you get like a screen like something you can I don't know glasses you could put on I wish people could see what you were trying to mime God some yucky film that just like covers your eyes so gross.

[35:41] Lesli Margherita: I mean there really is no right answer. It's kind of an awful situation no matter what, really.

[35:46] Drew Gasparini: Correct. Um that is the end of stupid questions, Lesli Margherita. And you know what I gotta say, I'm so thrilled you're out there working in LA because the world just needs more content where you are involved with it. I know that uh, you know, for this time around, it we we couldn't get you into the karate kid, but I really strongly hope that there is a day that that can happen. And if not, I really hope you and I get to work together soon because I think you're so kick-assed.

[36:17] Lesli Margherita: We have to, and I'm I'll be like your groupie at Karate Kid, because I really do like both my husband and I are massive fans. We're massive fans of the of the the reboot the show, and like now we're gonna be fans of the musical.

[36:29] Drew Gasparini: Tickets on me.

[36:30] Lesli Margherita: Oh no, I tickets on me. Absolutely. I'm I'm a I'm a I I always try and pay. I always oh wow, see, so that's where you and I are completely opposite.

[36:41] Drew Gasparini: I know it's I try I try because I know how hard it is, but no, I can't wait. I like it's gonna be it's gonna be amazing. Can't wait for that.

[36:51] Lesli Margherita: And this is why, ladies and gentlemen, she is Queen Lesli, and it's all because like the way you talk about this industry and the way you show love and support towards people in this industry. It is just so what we need, and it's palpable and it's wonderful. And I hope you had fun talking to me today. This is so sad and goofy, and I'm glad you came and did this.

[37:12] Drew Gasparini: Me too. I know. We'll definitely make it happen when I'm in New York. We'll get a martini.

[37:19] Lesli Margherita: I'm looking forward to it. Thank you so much, Lesli Margherita.

[37:24] Drew Gasparini: That's our show, ladies and gentlemen. Thanks so much for listening. Now we're talking as a proud member of the Broadway Podcast Network. You can find out more about me and this podcast at BPN.fm slash now we're talking. We're also on Instagram at NWT Podcast or Twitter at NWT underscore pod. A special thanks to Lesli Margherita for being a kick-ass guest and making us laugh. Make sure to subscribe and rate this podcast on Apple Podcasts or wherever you stream your podcast. And feel free to support us on Patreon. Just go to patreon.com slash NWT Podcast and you can support us starting today. Keep tuning in for more amazing guests every single week. We'll catch you next Monday. Take care, everybody.