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[0:29] Jayke Workman: What's up, everybody? My name is Jayke Workman, and this is Oh My Pod U Guys, a musical theater and pop culture podcast. You guys, I finally feel like I'm back in my voice. I was having some weird seasonal allergy thing happen, and I sounded all gargly and annoying, but I'm back. I'm here. I'm pingy. You're welcome. You're welcome for that. Um, hi. Welcome back to the pod, you guys. I'm having so much fun lately doing the pod, and I don't even really care if it's like, you know, the next call her daddy. I just love that I have people who like to listen to this and like to meet my guests and learn something from them. So shout out to you. Shout out to you, listener. I love you. You, right? Yes, I'm talking to you.

I see you. I don't, but I know that you're there. Love ya. You guys, I did it. I saw Gypsy on Broadway. My darling angel, Miss Marissa Medina, happened to win the lottery. So we got lottery tickets to see Audra Gypsy, and you guys, it was wonderful. I, you know, I go into things a little skeptical sometimes. I was worried about Audra. I know, blasphemy, whatever. She's Audra McDonald. She can do no wrong. She was fabulous. She was wonderful. The show is beautiful. I got to go backstage after and say hello to my pals in the show, Miss Lily and Miss Leslie, and who else? Aaliyah James. And it was so wonderful to see all of them. They all shine so, so bright in this show. Leslie Margarita as fucking Tessie Tura is just a tour de force, a comedy force.

And Lily Thomas, I mean, of course, she's literally bumping it with the trumpet. And Audra was fabulous. Joy Woods was stunning. I was floored by the young, like, Baby June and Baby Louise. They were adorable and whacking their face. I was like, you better work, you nine-year-old diva. But all in all, what an amazing time. And my incredible friend, Mr. Andy Einhorn, who is the conductor and music supervisor for the show, he was conducting that night. And we actually did a production of Gypsy, me, Marissa, and Andy all did a production of Gypsy, and he was our music director. So that felt very full circle and amazing to get to see him conduct it on Broadway. So it was just a wonderful experience. And I highly recommend seeing the newly renovated Majestic Theatre and Gypsy, starring Audra McDonald. And you guys, without further ado, please get ready for Miss Emily Bergl.

[3:40] Jayke Workman: Oh, my pod, you guys. I am so excited to welcome my next guest to the show. She is an actor of the stage and screen known for roles that span the very broad spectrum of comedy to drama and beyond. She's currently working on the new Broadway production of Just in Time, the Bobby Darin musical. Please welcome Miss Emily Bergl.

[4:01] Emily Bergl: Hi, hello.

[4:02] Jayke Workman: Emily, thank you so, so much for coming on the pod.

[4:06] Emily Bergl: My pleasure.

[4:07] Jayke Workman: I'm really so stoked to speak to you. I have followed your career for a long, long time, but I also feel like I have a silly personal connection to you, even though we've never met.

[4:19] Emily Bergl: Oh, it's not silly. I know what you're going to say.

[4:22] Jayke Workman: Oh my God. What is it? Tell me, tell me.

[4:25] Emily Bergl: Wait, are we going to talk about Cullen?

[4:27] Jayke Workman: Yes.

[4:29] Emily Bergl: Okay, diving right in. We have to talk about sweet, dear baby angel Cullen Kurth, who is the music assistant on your production of Bobby Darin. I'm obsessed with Cullen. Since the first day of the workshop, I've been obsessed with Cullen, culminating in the fact that I got us matching sweaters to wear during rehearsal.

[4:47] Jayke Workman: Oh my God. That is the cutest thing I've ever heard.

[4:51] Emily Bergl: But they weren't quite matching. They were just complimentary. So by my costume fitting the other day, I found us these leopard print shawls with fur trim, but I wasn't totally sure if that was Cullen's vibe. And that's one of my big regrets of the show so far, is that I did not get us matching leopard print shawls with fur trim for tech, because it's really freezing in there.

[5:15] Jayke Workman: Yes, and you know they would have. I feel like if you had given them a brown paper bag and been like, we're matching, they would have been like, absolutely, yes, I'm wearing this.

[5:26] Emily Bergl: But yes, I adore Cullen. We have been friends now for probably five years or so. And so I have had the immense pleasure of getting to have a peek behind the curtain and follow your process with this show, because I got to see a run through in the studio at Pearl a long, long time ago. And then I had the pleasure of coming to one of the big presentations in the basement at the church. And so seeing it grow and grow, and then finally hearing about the tech rehearsal and the behind the scenes stuff is just so thrilling. And I'd love to know even just your path to this show. Did you know before the first workshop that this was going to be something that would come across your desk?

[6:12] Emily Bergl: Okay, my path to this musical, it really just came across my desk. I think I did the second workshop of it ever. And I've been wanting to work with Alex for a long time, and we've done a couple of workshops together. And the casting director, Jim Carnahan, cast me in my very first Broadway show in 1998.

[6:36] Jayke Workman: Wow.

[6:37] Emily Bergl: But I mean, it's funny how you work. I can talk to you in depth more about my journey to doing what is actually my first professional musical. But I just got an email and I said, hell yeah, and I showed up.

[6:54] Jayke Workman: Love that. I feel like that is sort of the energy that we have just grown to embrace as actors. I'm like, you know what? I just, I like the idea of this opportunity. I will show up and see what happens. I mean, I would do anything to work with Jonathan and with Alex and with a lot of people on the project. And, you know, when I first, and Warren Light, who's the co-writer of the book, had such, put this, just structured this really beautiful story about a family.

[7:30] Emily Bergl: Yes. You know, like most new projects, I thought, huh, I wonder what this is going to be. Because it can't have totally found its voice from the get.

[7:43] Jayke Workman: Totally.

[7:45] Emily Bergl: And I think that it has. So it's always a leap of faith because you're never sure where something's quite going to end up and where you're going to end up in it.

[7:57] Jayke Workman: Totally, totally. Even just, you know, without giving anything away about the show, having seen multiple iterations of it and sort of clocking the like, oh, okay, yes, this is different. We've tinkered here and we've added there and cut things here. So that is really cool. But also just to see it from an outside perspective as someone who shamefully, you know, wasn't as familiar as I could have been with the work of Bobby Darin and who he actually was as a person. It is really thrilling to see a piece of art come to life that, you know, could run the risk of being fairly simple and fairly, you know, flippant in its energy. But this show is really quite in-depth and beautiful. And the relationships that we see unfold over the course of two hours are far more complex than what meets the eye, which is so thrilling because on top of it, then you get these relatable songs that you have known all your life.

You just may not have even known the name of who sang them, or at least that's how I felt. So it's really, really exciting. And I cannot wait to see it done at Circle in the Square because I feel like that configuration is just going to be so, so perfect for Jonathan, but for all of you, you know, in the storytelling.

[9:16] Emily Bergl: One of our carpenters just said that this is the most complicated set he's ever seen go into Circle in 25 years. And that includes the pool in Metamorphosis.

[9:24] Jayke Workman: Wow. Yeah.

[9:30] Emily Bergl: That's insane. I just wanted to say too that I think sometimes not having a knowledge of Bobby Darin can be really exciting too. The last Broadway show I did was Goodnight Oscar, which was about Oscar Levant. And Oscar Levant is even pre-Bobby Darin. And a lot of people had the experience that they didn't know anything about him and they really enjoyed learning all about him in the context of the play. So I think it can be great if you are a fan of Bobby Darin, but I think it could be really exciting when you really don't know anything about Bobby Darin because there's a lot of surprises, one of which I, of course, I'm not going to give away. I can just say I'm involved in it.

[10:19] Jayke Workman: Yes.

[10:20] Emily Bergl: But I think that this show can be a really exciting discovery if you're going in with little to no knowledge of Bobby Darin.

[10:29] Jayke Workman: Yeah. And I'm so excited about that. And I'm so glad that you brought up Goodnight Oscar because it was truly one of the most amazing plays I have had the pleasure of seeing on Broadway.

[10:40] Emily Bergl: Wait, wait a second. You said in your podcast with Michelle that you hadn't been to the Belasco since Hedwig.

[10:50] Jayke Workman: Oh my gosh.

[10:51] Emily Bergl: Okay, so I was wrong.

[10:53] Jayke Workman: All right, just checking.

[10:56] Emily Bergl: Yes! Emily Bergl caught in full audio on the pod.

[11:03] Jayke Workman: I'm absolutely caught red-handed.

[11:06] Emily Bergl: Oh my God. Yes, I had the absolute dream pleasure of seeing Goodnight Oscar. And it was really amazing. And also, you can't see them all. I never get mad at people for not seeing every single show.

[11:18] Jayke Workman: Oh, no, no, no. I certainly can't. Of course.

[11:21] Emily Bergl: But I also am just honestly horrible with remembering which show is in which theater.

[11:25] Jayke Workman: Oh, me too. I can't remember the theaters I've worked at.

[11:28] Emily Bergl: Yeah, exactly. So that, of course, tracks that I was like, yeah, I've never even set foot in that theater.

[11:35] Jayke Workman: Yeah, so would you talk about maybe the difference between your role of Nina in Just In Time and working on something like June Levant in Goodnight Oscar? I mean, I feel like even just the idea of approaching a play with music versus something that is a more quintessential jukebox-style musical, do you find that there is a difference in the way that you would approach the work or work with directors and, like, music directors to help you figure that out?

[12:11] Emily Bergl: That's an interesting question. I would say that my approach as an actor toward singing or speaking is the same in the truth-telling. I think there's a similarity in what I brought to both characters in that June Levant was the caretaker of Oscar Levant, her husband.

[12:41] Jayke Workman: Yeah.

[12:42] Emily Bergl: And Nina Cassotto, Bobby Darin's sister, was a big caretaker of Bobby. And I think it's easy to oversimplify women as caretakers. And I think in both cases I was lucky enough to work with writers who wanted to develop hand-in-hand with me a more in-depth and nuanced portrait of these women who are in the role of caretakers.

[13:21] Jayke Workman: Interesting. So figuring out the sort of difference, even just in the idea of a caretaker who is someone who is related to them versus more of like the marital, what that expectation of a woman is just different. And that's so thrilling. But it's also you have not just done work on stage. And I'd love to know too,

[13:54] Jayke Workman: This is sort of a broad sweeping question, but I've spoken to many people who work not only on stage, but in TV film. And I am just so fascinated by the difference in the work and what it means to work on a character and develop it for the stage versus what I've come to know about a process for TV and for some film where you have like basically little, little rehearsal, and then you're just put in front of the camera. And that's where the development happens is like in real time, as far as I can tell. But I'd love to know your perspective on that. Is that, does that sort of align with your experience?

[14:34] Emily Bergl: It does definitely. I would say that the character development you do in the theater is done with the company and with the director. And on TV and film, a lot of it's done just in your imagination in your head. And it's not really workshopped live with the people. In the theater, you do all you make all those decisions together and you develop together before the finished product. So the character is kind of locked and you make amazing new discoveries within the run, but they're still within certain parameters. I think we've all worked with people who wanted to go off the reservation during a run. And, you know, we work within certain safe places of what we've created. Yeah. In terms of television, I mean, you can find out things about your character that you had no idea.

So you can't lay them in. I remember when I worked on the show, Desperate Housewives, like I had no, they didn't tell me that I was this character played by Harriet Harris, that I was her daughter and that I was sent to marry this man by her in a revenge plot. Like I literally had no idea of my backstory until it came later. Which by the way, I was absolutely watching the Desperate Housewives at probably age 11, which was far too inappropriate for me, but I was obsessed with it.

[16:08] Jayke Workman: That's so interesting. So do you feel like, are there ever times when that does you a disservice as the actor? Because you, you, you know, think retrospectively, oh my gosh, I would have done this, that, and the other thing completely differently if I had known that, like, how do you, how do you start? I guess that's part of why I'm so fascinated by it is because when you, when you get to do a play or a musical and you have the full arc in 90 minutes to two hours, you know, I'm going to start here and I'm going to end here. But with TV, you never even know if this season or this episode is going to make it like, or, or if, you know, by, by next season, this, this storyline that I may be making up in my head for my character is going to be cut completely for time. Like, how do you, how do you map that out as an actor? That's just so interesting to me.

[17:05] Emily Bergl: You know, I think that working on TV and film is actually helpful because it, you have to give up the illusion of control. And yes, you can control your performance more in a play. No one can edit you. No one, like you said, no one can cut out a storyline. Yeah. But we, I think it just proves that you don't need to know everything. And I think.

[17:35] Jayke Workman: Is that a personal attack, Emily Bergl?

[17:36] Emily Bergl: Yes. Yes. This is a lesson for you. Yeah. No, I mean, I completely get it. It's, it's difficult to give that up, but I also feel that the more that I act, well, I don't think that this is a shortcut to preparation. Some of the best acting I think comes out of the subconscious. And I think a lot of time, the time the characters are not consciously aware of why they're making the choices they're making sure. And that it becomes our job then to layer that in. I like to, yeah.

[18:07] Jayke Workman: Yeah. I mean, like I really like to every, I think every actor has their bad reality television that they like to watch. And, um, I really like to watch hoarders love because, okay, we have this in common.

[18:40] Emily Bergl: Oh, absolutely. Well, I mean, people will walk, I mean, there's memes of this. People will walk into a garbage trash pile to the rafters room. Yes. And say, can you just feel the feng shui in here? Or this is where I love to cook and bake. Right. And oftentimes then when we're working on the character, we're like, wait, wait a second, what they're saying makes no sense. And I think I like to watch these kinds of bad reality shows, not really housewives, but more about real people because it makes me realize that there is no limit to the level of denial that people are capable of.

[19:30] Jayke Workman: Oh, absolutely. And even you, you watch a reality show that then has like the talking heads or like they, they cut to the interview portions and you're like, what these people are saying and describing is the exact opposite of their actual behavior in these moments that they are talking about.

[19:45] Emily Bergl: Yeah. So that is so interesting from like a psychological perspective of like, yeah, maybe this is, uh, just the way that we should approach realism is like, yeah. Uh, sometimes I don't always know why I'm doing what I'm doing. I mean, the backstory can be really helpful, but I can fall into it. I think during rehearsal, I started kind of, at one point Alex was like, we're just talking about this, Emily. I started, I, I, I'm very defense. I can be, my Achilles heel is, I think I can be defensive about my characters. Even when I play like murdering villains, I know where they're coming from. Yes, of course. And I don't actually think that they're bad people. I just can't.

[20:25] Jayke Workman: Yeah.

[20:26] Emily Bergl: And I remember kind of defending my point of view as my character on my backstory and realizing, Oh, we can actually have completely different ideas about this and it's okay. I think sometimes being fallen to a trap of thinking I need to make a, B and C work in my head for this entire character's life and that can inform it, but it's not always necessary or it doesn't even have to align with, with what comes later.

[20:58] Jayke Workman: Sure. That's so, so true. That's such a great point. So switching gears a little bit, because while I do have so many questions about your other, uh, credits and shows and projects that you've worked on, I would love to know about your background as an actor, both, um, in the educational sense and also in your, your upbringing, because, uh, I know that you were born in the UK and then came to the States, but, um, I'd love to know like past that, what, what sort of informed you as a child and, um, like a growing adult, uh, in the world of the arts.

[21:36] Emily Bergl: I was always putting on plays and musicals in my living room and my parents were really supportive creatively. I remember them buying me dry ice because I wanted to put a play on about a witch. Oh my God. Yeah. They got me dry ice from Baskin Robbins ice cream. Oh my God. Come on design. Yeah, they, they were, they were assisting me with the design and my grandmother made me these beautiful costumes. I had a belly dancing outfit and like a fairy outfit. Wow. So I feel like it was just something I was always doing naturally. And it's funny, I found this program. I, I, I did a recital in my neighborhood where I even taught some children how to play piano and did like this whole talent show. And I found the program recently and it was like designed by Emily Burgle, produced by Emily Burgle, refreshments by Emily Burgle.

Yes. Well, you got to get the credit where the credits do. Yes. Yes. Oh my gosh. That's fantastic. So you had a full, the, the, um, hands underneath you, like pushing you up and supporting you in that way.

[22:50] Emily Bergl: Yeah. My family's really supportive. I don't think anyone thought that I would, including myself ever thought that I would do that as a profession. And it was a little bit scary for them when I announced it, um, right after high school. Um, and they wanted me to be able to make money, um, otherwise, which I understand. Um, but yeah, I, I, I decided at the end of high school, I actually had an English teacher. I was failing her class because I decided that I wasn't going to do any more work because I was a senior and I had to go in. Yeah. And, um, I was, I was told then that I could no longer be the lead in the musical. If I was failing any classes, we were doing Camelot. Um, and one of our alums, actually, Chris Hoke is a Broadway veteran and he is writing, um, uh, the, the book to, um, the Lost Boys, which is coming in next year.

Fantastic. So it's pretty cool that someone that I went to high school with, we were actually cast as, um, um, Gwenevere and Arthur together. Oh my gosh. Yeah. Look at you now. Fun fact. So I remember begging my high school English teacher, please, will you pass me? And she was this real hard ass. And she said, and finally she agreed to pass me, but then she said, Emily, what are you doing? Why are you doing all these plays? And I said, well, I love it. And she said, well, is that what you want to do? Be an actor. And I said, I don't know. And she said, well, I always remember this. She said, if that's what you want to do, that's okay. And it was this huge light bulb went off in my mind because it's always what I wanted to do. But I had no one in my family or really in my circle who did that. Yeah. So no one had ever given me permission. And from then on, like that, that was it. Like I never looked back.

[24:40] Jayke Workman: Wow. That is so amazing. Was it, was it the type of thing too, in your high school experience that was, was it cool to do theater? Um, ish, I would say it was kind of not super cool, but it wasn't uncool. I just know that for so many people there it's so formative of, you know, their own perception of themselves and what they are putting out into the world from a young age. And some people have amazing experiences where they're like, oh, if you were the lead in the musical, you were the coolest kid in school. And then, you know, others are like, people could not care less if you were in the school show.

[25:10] Emily Bergl: Wait, you know, now that I think about it, we had this variety show that was really big. And, um, I did like a sultry number at the piano and one of the hockey players asked me out. So I guess it was, yes. Oh, come on. Yeah. She said, now that I think about it. So then when you did decide, or you did sort of have that light bulb moment of this could be something more than just what I enjoy doing for fun. Uh, did you approach like collegiate programs? Did you know about auditioning for schools? How did that come to be? Did you go to school for theater?

[26:01] Emily Bergl: I didn't plan on it, but I did end up getting a theater major. My grand plan was that I really wanted to go to a liberal arts college and get a broad-based education. And I wanted to get my English major. Cause I've known that I've going to be an English major since birth. Um, and my plan was that, cause I, I really wanted to be, um, educated in, um, lots of different areas, um, before I went on to my specific training. And I went to this tiny liberal arts college in the middle of Iowa called Grinnell. And I did end up getting a theater double major while I was there. And I ended up going to the O'Neill for a semester. Oh, yes. And then my plan was I would take a year. I was very realistic and pragmatic.

I thought I'll take a year off. I'll move to New York and see what's happening there, audition, get to know the scene. Then I'll audition for grad school. And I really didn't think that I was going to get work for several years. Cause I just heard from a lot of actors about how hard it was. Um, so I got my liberal arts degree and I got a lot of time on stage at Grinnell. The nice thing about going to a, they did have a theater department, but they weren't there to train professionals. And the nice thing about that was that from the time I was a first year, I got leads in plays. So I got a lot of time on stage, which I don't think, you know, there's more of a seniority is my impression at other schools. Um, and then while, but why, while I was at the O'Neill, there was a director visiting who needed someone who could play 15.

[27:48] Emily Bergl: Show and he let me come to the audition and I got it. So I actually ended up getting my equity card while I was still in college.

[27:55] Jayke Workman: Pierce.

[27:56] Emily Bergl: Yeah. Yeah. Which a lot of people actually advised me not to do. Yes, that is a very common, but I thought, you know, I'm going to go for it. And then I moved to New York and I ended up getting work and I ended, I never ended up going to grad school, which I would have liked to have had that opportunity, but I guess I learned on the job.

[28:18] Jayke Workman: Yeah. I mean, that is so, so common, that experience of like, well, why would I go back and, you know, invest the money and the time if I'm doing what I am setting out to study anyway, in real time.

[28:33] Emily Bergl: So when you first landed, wait, can I ask you what your education was?

[28:39] Jayke Workman: Yes. Yeah. I have a BFA in musical theater from the Hart school, which is part of the university of Hartford in Connecticut.

[28:46] Emily Bergl: So I actually, similarly to your experience, really got lucky in that. I wasn't just, it was, I guess, technically considered like a conservatory program, but since we were on the campus of a broader university, my sort of like social experience and also my academic experience were much more broad, I think than some are allowed to have in a conservatory program. And so like all of my, what's it like, you know, not extracurriculars, but like all the general credits that you have to get. I was taking classes alongside nursing students and philosophy majors and, you know, architectural students. So in that way, I felt like even though I was still just taking those general classes, the people's voices and the people raising their hands in the classes were also informing, you know, what I was taking in, um, on like a broader scope.

So I really did enjoy my time at school. And it was extremely rigorous in terms of the actual, just like class load of ballet at eight o'clock in the morning, honey. And you're like, Oh boy, here we go. From ballet to math class and then back to Shakespeare. So that was crazy, but you never know when it's going to come in handy. Actually on this show, I had a minor in German in college and then we happened to have this period in the show where we do a, um, a little bit of the original Mac the Knife from Three Penny.

[30:11] Jayke Workman: Oh yeah.

[30:21] Emily Bergl: And it German. And then they said, Oh, well, who knows? We don't know how to pronounce this. And I said, Oh, I speak German. And then I ended up doing that. That's one of my numbers in the show now. Yes. German consultant credited in the bio.

[30:37] Jayke Workman: That's amazing. So when you first, uh, sort of landed on Broadway, not just working, you know, in, in the world of like New York theater, but specifically, um, with Wilderness, was there, uh, a point where you looked around and you were like, uh, how did I end up here? Or like, Oh boy, this is, this is the big time.

[31:01] Emily Bergl: I don't think I've ever been excited, more excited for getting a job than I was to get that understudy job in all Wilderness. I mean, it was, I was just so thrilled and that there's actually a great lesson to be learned here because, um, I remember going in, um, I got pre-screened by Daniel Sweet. This, it was actually my first audition, I think that I had after I moved.

[31:26] Jayke Workman: Oh my God. That's insane.

[31:28] Emily Bergl: Yeah. I really did have some insane luck. Um, and this is by the way, after I met with a bunch of New York agents and none of them wanted to represent me. Um, and I remember going in and the director of dance, uh, I went in for Daniel Sweet and then he brought me in for Dan Sullivan and Dan Sullivan, he has kind of like a Tolstoy vibe.

[31:52] Jayke Workman: Yeah.

[31:54] Emily Bergl: He, you know, I say he's one of the most brilliant directors I've worked with and I would kill to work with him again, but he can like his presence, like is not the sunniest looming. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. Looming. That's a, that's a great adjective. And, um, he, I, I walked out of that room thinking, well, I'll never work for Dan Sullivan. And that's where I learned that you must never interpret what they thought of your audition because you're just going to project your own shit on it. And so many people do that. Oh, they love me. Oh, they hated me. Oh, they, you know, you don't know. You never know.

[32:36] Jayke Workman: Yeah. I was so thrilled to get that understudy job. To get that understudy job. I was so thrilled to be working at Lincoln center. And then we got to eat in the Metropolitan Opera cafeteria for lunch. It was everyone's there and their costumes. And I, um, I understudied four parts. They actually, I had to, I had to leave the show early cause I got cast in the movie Carrie too. And they actually hired two girls to replace me.

[33:11] Emily Bergl: Fierce.

[33:12] Jayke Workman: Um, but it was such a great learning experience and I learned so much from working with my fellow understudies and they were just Sam Trammell, Deborah Monk, who I later did Cat on a Hot Tin Roof with. Just observing these vets was fantastic. I loved doing that job so much and I'm crazy O'Neillian. I've actually read every single play and even fragment of a play that O'Neill has ever written.

[33:45] Emily Bergl: Oh my God. Incredible.

[33:48] Jayke Workman: So this was like, you were ready to chomp into that show.

[33:54] Emily Bergl: I really was. I never went on either. I don't know if any of the understudies went on, it was limited run and also the hanging out backstage. Honestly, for plays, half of it for me is the backstage hang.

[34:05] Jayke Workman: Oh, totally.

[34:06] Emily Bergl: Totally. That's what really is better than TV and film because everyone wants to go. Like I've made great friends on TV and film, but a lot of the time people just want to go into their like little boxes and eat lunch by themselves.

[34:18] Jayke Workman: Which is so weird to me.

[34:19] Emily Bergl: But yeah, I mean, I know it's so weird to me too. I'm like, wait a second. Half the reason I'm here is just to hang out with everybody.

[34:26] Jayke Workman: Yes, exactly.

[34:28] Emily Bergl: So do you also find that, um, in the, in, in thinking of, you know, watching the, the greats, you know, work and you are alongside them, have there ever, I mean, you've worked truly with some of the biggest names, not just in theater, but in TV and in movies. And, um, has there ever been a time or, or maybe did there come a point where, uh, the sort of novelty of seeing someone that you've revered, uh, like in the same room wore off or, or do you still have moments of like, Oh my gosh, that's Steven Spielberg. What the hell?

[35:07] Emily Bergl: I think that's an interesting question. Um, well, first of all, sometimes you'll meet someone you have revered and they're different than you thought they would be. Certainly. Yes. That has not been my experience. I would say that's only like 5% of my experience. Um, so you realize that everybody's human. Definitely. Even the people that you revere. Yes. Um, I say the whole thing never wears off for me. I mean, we were just in tech, uh, the other day and I was wearing a bowler and a cane and a tuxedo leotard. And I just remember turning, turning to people and saying that it's incredible what we do for a living. It's incredible that I'm here. It's just still gives me chills to be any part of it.

But yes, it's really exciting though when you become a peer with some of the people, um, that you work with. Like when I worked with William H. Macy on Shameless, like I remember he just turned to me one day and he said, Bergel, what I like about you is we both really love to find cheap bits.

[35:25] Jayke Workman: And you're like, whatever do you mean William H. Macy? I'm not doing a cheap bit at all.

[35:31] Emily Bergl: Oh, I, I, I, I, no bit is too cheap.

[35:35] Jayke Workman: Title of episode.

[35:36] Emily Bergl: Yeah. Yeah. No bit is too cheap. That's amazing. I mean, I do when I, uh, I've spoken about it on the pod, but, um, I do sometimes have that feeling because you also know that, you know, this is a job. We all got this job and we all have to put in the work. So, um, this is a job. We all got this job and we all have to put in the work. So we're going to just set aside, you know, whatever we may be like thinking and feeling, um, so that we can put the show on. But I, when I made my Broadway debut and I, in Chicago, right?

[37:08] Jayke Workman: Yes. Yes.

[37:09] Emily Bergl: And my first mama Morton was Lilius White.

[37:13] Jayke Workman: Oh my God.

[37:15] Emily Bergl: And Billy Flynn was Tom Hewitt and he came out and gave me a kiss on the hand. And winked in my eyes. And I was like, what is happening? Dr. Frankenfurter just fucking kissed my hand. And Lilius White is over there belting her face off. And I was like, Oh, okay. Keep it cool. Keep it cool. And then of course cut to, I'd worked there for five weeks and I was like gushing to them. I'm like, you guys know how insane this is for me, right? Like, and they're just like, Oh, whatever. What are we doing for dinner?

[37:46] Jayke Workman: Yep.

[37:47] Emily Bergl: Just so silly for them. But I love, I love hearing that there is that level of, um, you know, the little kid in you that like loved it is still there and still gets to feel that way. When you put on those, the sequins and the tux and the jacket and everything.

[38:04] Jayke Workman: And you're, you're like, I'm a Broadway mom.

[38:07] Emily Bergl: Well, this is a little different for me too, because I did musicals growing up. I, I was a pianist. I was a harpist. Um, music was a huge part of my life, but then I ended up doing TV and film and straight plays for a long time. And then when I finally said, Hey, I'd like to do musical. I was a known quantity and nobody knew that I sang. Right. Um, so I ended up doing a cabaret act really just with the intention of saying, well, if people don't know that I sing, then I guess I'm just kind of have to show them that I sing. And then that became the musical that I did for a while. And I toured it and I ended up doing like the Carlisle and the Oaken Room. And, um, so I ended up doing my own musical, but I really had no idea what I was doing.

And when you say about working with the greats, you realize, um, that everybody is still learning. I remember working with, um, the actor Richard Easton and he, at Lincoln Center and a production of The Rivals. And he is just, I mean, he, you know, I really wish before he died that I'd, I'd interviewed him about all the knowledge that he had about working on stage. But I remember he got a really basic note about blocking, like a very basic note. And I remember thinking to myself, Oh, if I had gotten that note, I would have said to myself, Oh, great. Burgel, like blocking 101. You haven't, you haven't even mastered the basics yet, but the basics are things that everybody has to keep coming back to.

[40:49] Jayke Workman: Totally.

[40:49] Emily Bergl: And I think we put people up on a pedestal thinking that they know everything, but everyone is just figuring everything out as they go along. And you do have to fake it while you make it. It was really hard for me not to come in to Just In Time, kind of apologizing and saying like, well, I've never done a musical and I'm professionally, I've done a lot of musicals. And I realized I just had to turn that part of my brain off and say, no, you just have to act like you know what you're doing.

[41:08] Jayke Workman: Well, that's that Alex Timbers magic too.

[41:12] Emily Bergl: It's true. Alex is it's wonderful working with Alex because he's so collaborative that you can bring ideas to the table. And he's all, but he's so collaborative, but at the same time, he in a really nice way holds boundaries. I don't know. I don't know the way he does it because no, maybe this is really good at picking people. Cause I just don't feel that anyone kind of railroads or goes too far. You know, some people like you give them an inch and they'll take a mile.

[41:15] Jayke Workman: Totally. I mean, cause everyone else is.

[41:18] Emily Bergl: Yeah. And now you have a solo song on Broadway.

[41:25] Jayke Workman: It is so crazy.

[41:28] Emily Bergl: Musicals are magical though. They are Broadway magic in the way that plays can't be because we were doing one of my songs the other day and during rehearsal, Alex said, well, maybe we'll just have a microphone come out of the ceiling. And I was like, what? So then lo and behold, during tech, a microphone just appears magically from the air. And then I'm wearing a coat and I have to take the coat off. And the question is, well, where do I put the coat? Cause I don't really want to sing with the coat. We can't get the coat off stage. And I said, well, can't the coat fly away in the air too? And then they just did it. They just fucking.

[41:43] Emily Bergl: Alex, he'll start off every day saying, "Hey, everyone. You know, if everyone has any input or questions, and now we're going to be doing this scene, is that okay?" He asks our permission to do anything. And I thought, wow. And yet he has control. It's such a great lesson on how to be a leader.

[42:11] Jayke Workman: Yeah, that's fantastic. So apart from, you know, Alex, and then also, like, thinking of like, O'Neal, or like people that you have been so, so inspired by and, and have, well, not worked with, but you know what I mean? Are there other people who you look to as sources of inspiration, as an actor, as a writer, as a performer, like, musicianship wise, like, are there is there like a one singular other person who you think of is like your top tier?

[42:36] Emily Bergl: Okay, I'm gonna have to answer this question first with someone who's, who is not an actor. Love that. And also, also in honor of his recent passing. So I have been a really insane Jimmy Carter fan, President Jimmy Carter, since I was 15 years old. I'm actually looking right now at my Jimmy Carter shrine, which I, I had boxed away. But because I was told that after a while, like, you can't really have a shrine to Jimmy Carter in your apartment anymore. So after he passed away, I put it back up. Love. And so he's a huge inspiration for me, because he's also a poet. I find that just his moral compass, what he did for this country, the way he transformed the presidency into a charitable position and a position of leadership worldwide. I also did get to build houses with him with Habitat for Humanity.

[43:50] Jayke Workman: Oh my goodness, that's amazing.

[43:52] Emily Bergl: And during his, during tech, I've actually been reading one of his books called The Virtues of Aging. Because I, I've always personally always looked forward to aging as a, as a woman. And I feel like I'm gonna reach my peak when I'm a true old lady, when I'm playing the crazy old lady parts. That's what I'm gunning for. Like, that's why I actually feel I've always been a character actor, even when I was an ingenue. And he just speaks so eloquently about aging, and it really inspires me.

[44:23] Jayke Workman: Oh my gosh, I cannot wait to read that.

[44:25] Emily Bergl: But you really, you probably want somebody, but who would I look up to, in terms of theater? I mean, Cherry Jones. I saw her, actually, I saw her on my 21st birthday in the roundabout, in Night of the Iguana.

[44:45] Jayke Workman: Work.

[44:48] Emily Bergl: And it just, with Gary Sinise, and she absolutely blew my mind. And I decided that night, I'm moving to New York.

[45:00] Jayke Workman: Oh my God, wow.

[45:02] Emily Bergl: And then I actually made my Broadway debut in that same theater.

[45:06] Jayke Workman: Oh my God.

[45:07] Emily Bergl: In the, in the line of winter.

[45:08] Jayke Workman: Do you know her?

[45:10] Emily Bergl: Yes. I, I, I used to accost her when I would ever see her and tell her that story. And then we were both on this show called American Crime.

[45:22] Jayke Workman: Yes.

[45:23] Emily Bergl: And I was playing a judge. And Cherry was playing another part. And I saw, we, we crossed over each other on set. And I said, "Cherry, I am so excited. I'm playing a judge. I feel like this is a train that I'm going to be able to ride for like the next 35 years." And Cherry just turned to me and she said, "Well, welcome to the judge club, Burgle." And I mean, I was just, I, a chill went through me. You know, when it's one of those, those greats that are literally welcome you. It was, I mean, and it's just iconic, all the things that I've seen her in, The Heiress. And I mean, and also the amazing work that she does on TV and film.

[46:09] Jayke Workman: It's a really great lesson too, because I'm sorry, I keep on talking about lessons.

[46:14] Emily Bergl: No, I love it.

[46:14] Jayke Workman: But I'm always trying to learn them myself. And I, and I know that a lot of people listen to podcasts, you know, who are, are starting out. And I think a terrible thing that people tell theater actors is that they're going to be too big on camera. You have to worry about being too big. I mean, look at Cherry Jones on camera.

[46:38] Emily Bergl: Yes.

[46:38] Jayke Workman: Look at all the theater greats that are on camera. They're fantastic. They bring the same sense of life. I mean, if anything, I think we need to worry about more of the people going the other way, if you know what I mean.

[46:49] Emily Bergl: Absolutely.

[46:50] Jayke Workman: Not being able to fill the space.

[46:51] Emily Bergl: Yes.

[46:52] Jayke Workman: I won't name names.

[46:53] Emily Bergl: Yeah. 100%. Ah, that's so amazing though, that you've gotten to cross paths with her on multiple occasions. Cause I do know that feeling of, of looking up to someone for so long and then you're just there and there they are. And now we're coworkers. That's so wild.

[47:11] Jayke Workman: Well, Emily, but thank you so, so much for being on the pod. Before I let you go, I have a series of musical theater slash lifestyle rapid fire questions for you. Are you ready?

[47:26] Emily Bergl: I don't know if I'm ready because I was just telling, um, one of my co-stars, Lance Roberts, I was just asking him, like, I need to watch more musicals. Cause I feel like I'm not as educated about musicals as everybody else in the musical theater. So this might expose some gaps in my knowledge and I'm just going to be okay with that.

[47:43] Jayke Workman: Well, for you, it's, it's less musical and more just theatrical. It's not, uh, trivia. It's, these are, these are questions just for you.

[47:51] Emily Bergl: Thank God.

[47:52] Jayke Workman: Yes. Uh, you, you can answer this one. I'm sure. Sondheim or Andrew Lloyd Webber.

[48:02] Emily Bergl: This is hard because I listened to my cassette of Phantom every day.

[48:09] Jayke Workman: Absolutely.

[48:10] Emily Bergl: And then I, I actually only saw it a few years ago and I was blown away by how brilliant it was.

[48:17] Jayke Workman: It's pretty fucking fabulous.

[48:19] Emily Bergl: Look, I'm going to have to go Andrew Lloyd Webber.

[48:23] Jayke Workman: Love.

[48:23] Emily Bergl: I said it. Somewhere Colin Kurth's head is exploding. I love Sondheim. Don't get me wrong.

[48:32] Jayke Workman: Um, sweatpants or jeans.

[48:35] Emily Bergl: I'm going to go with my, um, sweatpants that are printed hyper-realistically to look like jeans.

[48:41] Jayke Workman: Yes. Juggings. Uh, do you have a favorite musical?

[48:48] Emily Bergl: What is my favorite musical? Ooh, that's a good one. It's so hard to choose. Do people really have their favorite musicals? I mean, every, you know, actors and, and of the like, they're like, I could give you the top three. I could give you the top 10. I have favorites for different reasons.

[49:09] Jayke Workman: Give me your favorites first.

[49:11] Emily Bergl: My favorite is A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim because I think the score is delicious and it's also entirely about sex and it's so tongue in cheek. And I think it's hilarious.

[49:22] Jayke Workman: I thought with Elaine Stritch.

[49:24] Emily Bergl: Oh my God. Okay. So my best friend Kat was Frederica with, with Elaine. So she was the granddaughter. Just have great stories.

[49:33] Jayke Workman: Oh, absolutely. And Elaine, you know, Kat was like, Jake, you gotta, you gotta keep it cool. Cause Elaine for me is like my end all be all. I love Elaine. She's everything. So yeah, seeing her do that. And I, I remember I was standing outside of a rehearsal room for that show, waiting for Kat, just like on a break at, uh, at MTC. And, um, Elaine came out of the room and I said, "Oh, like Miss Stritch. I just want to introduce myself. I'm a huge fan of yours." You know, went on this little tangent and then she, she grabbed my hand and she said, "hello." And that was it. And I was like, yeah, that's all I wanted. That, that was the interaction I needed with Elaine.

[50:15] Jayke Workman: Well, what about a favorite play?

[50:18] Emily Bergl: Have to go with Long Day's Journey.

[50:21] Jayke Workman: Oh, fabulous.

[50:23] Emily Bergl: It gets me every time.

[50:25] Jayke Workman: Okay. Favorite musical. No, I'm going to pick one. I'm going to pick one and I think I'm going to have to go with My Fair Lady.

[50:35] Emily Bergl: Oh, fabulous. What a lovely one. Did you see the revival?

[50:39] Jayke Workman: I did. I absolutely loved it.

[50:41] Emily Bergl: It's stunning. Oh my gosh. And Miss Christine Cornish-Smith jumped from that revival to Chicago and now she's in Bobby Darin with you.

[50:50] Jayke Workman: Really?

[50:51] Emily Bergl: Yes.

[50:52] Jayke Workman: I didn't know that.

[50:53] Emily Bergl: Mm hmm.

[50:54] Jayke Workman: Oh my gosh. I'm going to have to like definitely pick her brain for that.

[50:58] Emily Bergl: She's the best. Are you a morning person or a night owl?

[51:02] Jayke Workman: Night owl.

[51:04] Emily Bergl: But now I have to be both because I have a daughter, so I actually have to bring her to school every morning. So now I'm both.

[51:13] Jayke Workman: Coffee or tea?

[51:15] Emily Bergl: I'm British, so I'm going to have to say tea.

[51:17] Jayke Workman: Love that. What is the hardest show that you have ever done?

[51:21] Emily Bergl: Um, the first movie I ever did, The Rage, Carrie 2, because this was before CGI fire. So I was getting literal fire shot at me.

[51:30] Jayke Workman: Whoa, that's crazy.

[51:33] Emily Bergl: Yeah.

[51:34] Jayke Workman: Um, have you ever missed an entrance?

[51:37] Emily Bergl: Oh, wait. Have you ever had someone who's never missed an entrance?

[51:42] Jayke Workman: Uh, that's actually a good question. I think most people are like, I'm sure I have, but I couldn't possibly think of the time.

[51:50] Emily Bergl: Liars.

[51:51] Jayke Workman: Liars. All of them. I know.

[51:53] Emily Bergl: I really, I would love to know, is there someone who's never missed an entrance?

[51:57] Jayke Workman: Yeah.

[51:59] Emily Bergl: I have never, I, um, I have ADHD, so I have never not been there ready to make an entrance.

[52:09] Jayke Workman: Ah, yes.

[52:10] Emily Bergl: But I have spaced out and been late because my mind has gone elsewhere.

[52:17] Jayke Workman: You suddenly realize that there's silence happening on stage and you're like, oh, oh, oh, I'm supposed to open this door now.

[52:24] Emily Bergl: Yeah. There's been, I can think of two times, so I can only think of two times. Um, one was in Good Night, Oscar, and one was in a play, um, at the vineyard that I did with Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

[52:36] Jayke Workman: Love.

[52:37] Emily Bergl: And I just was, I just spaced out for like six seconds. Of course, now that, now Jesse tells the story, it's been exaggerated that I was like five minutes late and you hear me running in my heels. None of that is true. But Jesse improvises the chorus because he's brilliant.

[52:55] Jayke Workman: Of course.

[52:57] Emily Bergl: I love how I can't, I just can't ever do short answers. They're like one word questions and I answer in paragraphs. I'm sorry.

[53:04] Jayke Workman: No, no, no. It never is. I don't know why I even joke with myself that it could be deemed rapid fire. It never is. Uh, do you have a favorite costume that you've ever worn?

[53:18] Emily Bergl: Um, when I did, uh, The Rivals where I've always wanted to wear a huge dress. Yes. Because I was doing things, um, in the 18th century, but then they were setting them in other time periods and I finally got to wear my 18th century enormous dress and it was, it was every, and then I also got, um, like this three foot rabbit for a muff to put my hands into.

[53:48] Jayke Workman: Of course. I mean, just a sensible.

[53:51] Emily Bergl: Uh, well, my last question for you is a question I ask every guest, which is what is one thing that you would tell baby Emily?

[54:01] Emily Bergl: Oh, wow. I would tell her that, um, you know, you think beating yourself up is something that you have to do and that makes you better, but it actually just gets in the way.

[54:22] Jayke Workman: I love that. So, so succinct, so beautifully put. I love it.

[54:27] Emily Bergl: Oh my, I, I just want to say I've really enjoyed talking with you today.

[54:32] Jayke Workman: Oh my gosh. Thank you. Would you care to tell the listeners where they can find you on, on socials? Can they find you somewhere to keep up?

[54:41] Emily Bergl: Okay. Speaking of my to-do list, this, I mean, I just went off Instagram for so long, but I guess I have to come back on. I'm going to do it. I'm going to post something about the show today. Good. Yes. I just needed time away from it, but I think like it's now I'm doing a show. It's time. It's time to go back. It's time to go back.

[55:02] Jayke Workman: Love. Well, Emily, thank you so, so much. You are just such a dream. This was so much fun. And I cannot wait to meet you in person.

[55:08] Emily Bergl: Me too.

[55:13] Jayke Workman: You guys, that's it for another episode of Oh My Pod, you guys. Don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe anywhere you listen to the pod. And you can follow the show on Instagram for all of the updates at Oh My Pod, you guys. Thank you so, so much for listening. Talk soon. Bye.