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[0:00] Robert Bannon: Are you ready? It's The Roundtable with me, Robert Bannon.

[0:09] Robert Bannon: Well, everybody, welcome to The Roundtable. You're here on Broadway World, over here on the Broadway Podcast Network, iHeart, and Spotify. Our next guest is somebody who is no stranger to Broadway. He's actually in a Broadway dressing room right now. It's a very... It is a fancy dressing room. That's some Hamilton money. That's Hamilton money dressing room, Donald Webber.

[0:25] Robert Bannon: You know what I'm saying? I'm not trying to say it's not. You know what I'm saying? It's really nice. My friend, Maggie McDowell, she turned this place out because when I came in here, it was... I mean, it was fine. You can kind of see it's very small, but I didn't want any of the traditional... You sit with the lights and with the mirror dressing room. I wanted it to feel like, you know, grown. I want it to feel sexy. I want it to feel a little bit like home because we're here so much, you know.

[1:00] Robert Bannon: It is grown and it is a grown and sexy Donald Webber rent Aaron Burr dressing room. Well, what I wanted to say about you is that your journey in this business and the shows you've done in this particular show and the shows you've done across your career, from Our Town to the television work that you've done doing The Wiz and etc. and all of the big... That's not my world, Donald Webber, but I love it. Your career has grown touring this country now being on Broadway. And now you deserve to have that dressing room because that's you better stake your spot. That's your home. That's it. You're there.

[1:37] Donald Webber Jr.: Thank you for saying that. I really appreciate that. I mean, I feel like that, you know, it's like, you know, we all work hard and we hope that we can land in these places where you feel appreciated and definitely places where you feel like you can, you know, appreciate yourself, you know, splurge a little bit on yourself and remind yourself that you deserve it. You know, you deserve to treat yourself. Well, he has two shows. We're filming this on a Wednesday. He's talking to us in between two incredible shows.

[2:03] Donald Webber Jr.: Yes, yes. We had one. It was great. And we're going to have another great one tonight. And if you know, if you've seen Hamilton, you know that he is as Aaron Burr is in running around that little moving circle, jumping up and down those stairs, causing a lot of problems, singing his face off. He's going to sing Dear Theodosia. He's going to sing wait for it. He's going to sing room for it happens. I used to be in shape. I couldn't get through half a room where it happens anymore. The way you do it on stage every night. You need to get up and see the Donald Webber show and see what he's going to do on that stage.

[2:37] Donald Webber Jr.: Yeah, yeah. Come on, y'all. Come on. Not that they needed my help to sell a ticket, but apparently go, go, go. Right. So, yeah, you know, it's really. I was going to say it's really special to be a part of something that's been here for so long. Right. You know, Hamilton celebrating 10 years on Broadway. I mean, you know, like there's so many people who have seen this show. There's so many people over the course of 10 years and some for me because I saw it at the public and I just was like, oh, man, I was floored by it. And that's when it became a dream for me. That's when it was like, that's the role I'd love to play. And along the way, I got a chance to play Lafayette Hamilton a thousand times.

I even played Lawrence Phillip. You haven't lived till you've seen a six-foot tall bearded... I had a beard at the time. Bald nine-year-old on stage. But I mean, but like it's been in for 10 years. So people come who have seen it 50 times and there's still people who have not seen it before. And so that like mesh of I don't know, neurons in the audience is like really special every night. Like there's not a single performance that is the same. You know, they're all new. They're all fresh. So, yes, it's a blessing. It's dope.

[3:53] Robert Bannon: You know, if I can take your time for four seconds, when I think of Hamilton, I remember I wasn't doing the show. I was in acting. I just had finished acting school a second time after I had found a different career and went back to acting school. I took my money from Christmas and I bought one ticket for December 26. And then the following year I saved all my money. I bought my ticket. I saw the original cast. And then the following year I started working out in New York and I had a trainer and a lot of the Hamilton cast was going to the same trainer. And then one day I was leaving the gym with Javier Munoz and I was leaving the gym. It was the second. It was Brian Terrell Clark. So Brian was leaving and Javier was leaving and they said, oh, we're going to the show and a car picked them up.

And I realized I said, oh, damn, I don't make enough money to go to this gym. I'm here. I'm here with when the car is picking you up and taking you to the... Good night. The show has lived and created so many incredible moments and stars like you. And I was going to say to you, you've played so many parts. And when I think about you playing all these different parts, I think you had to learn how to sing a lot of different parts and to sing a lot of different parts.

[5:01] Donald Webber Jr.: You had to be trained to sing a lot of different parts. We're talking about a film here today called Just Sing, which you're a SoCal Vocal alumni. What did you learn going to school there and being a part of this?

[5:11] Donald Webber Jr.: So much, so much. So when I was there, we had our kind of moniker was we are a singing group that no, no, I'm sorry. At the time, it was like it was like, oh, this is going to be fun. This is a drinking group that sings was like that's what they said in quotes. And, you know, and I wasn't much of a drinker in college at all anyway. But it was just like, oh, dope. These people seem fun and like I love to sing. So like it would be great to do that. And, you know, once you're in the group, you start to realize, oh, whoa, there are some like the talent in the group is crazy. The ears in the group, you start to just like understand different things about music that, you know, I grew up singing in the church.

And so like for me, a lot of singing, even when you're singing in the choir, it's not necessarily it wasn't it was never necessarily about blending. It wasn't about that. It was more about like, you know, like at church, it's like we're going to sing out. We're going to sing loud, you know, and there was always blend, but it wasn't like we're going to focus on that. And that was one of the things that the Vocals taught me. It was like, oh, it's cool to be a great singer. But how great would it be to put all these great singers together and make them sound like one thing, one person, you know, that was something that was really I mean, we strived so hard to do that. There was one song called All the Things You Are.

I there when we so there's a big competition, the ICCA is right. It's the International Collegiate Competition of acapella. And it's the final is here in New York City every year. And we I was a part of the group that made the finals for the first time for the SoCal Vocals. And I like to think we did three numbers. We did Feeling Good, Michael Bublé. We did All the Things You Are. And we did Somebody to Love. I like to think we won that competition with our second number, the least familiar of those three, All the Things You Are, because we took this jazz standard. And instead of sounding like a bunch of great voices, we were able to pare it down and really sound like one thing, you know. And that was so valuable to me because, you know, before it was like, I can come out, I can show off and I can be me and like, you know, and everybody can sing the house down and we'd be good.

And it was like, no, no, no, no, no. What if we all are just one? We're all one. Yeah, that was that was. I mean, like, it helps so much in my life. Even it was like, it's not just about you when you walk in here and show like Hamilton. It's like there's so many different pieces and so many parts. And like, it's so much better when we're like this versus when we're just a bunch of different things, you know? Yes, you have your moment. But when you all for you to do what you do, but when you all come together, especially at the end of the show or the epic opening of the show, all those pieces form one big, giant collaborative piece. You talk about this documentary, the documentary, everybody is showing this journey to this competition that that Donald is talking about.

And I just want while we're talking, April 23rd is a special one night in theaters. You can be able to see this show. They'll also be available in other places. Click the link, go to the website, find out all the information so you can see this other generation of people taking people like Scott Hoying, people like Donald Webber, people like these incredible singers. We have Ross Golan here who wrote every hit song ever on pop radio. They took all of these people came from there. And now that continues and the generations continue. Did you have a good where did you grow up?

[9:58] Donald Webber Jr.: So I grew up in Los Angeles. I grew up in Inglewood, California. So right down the street from USC, which is where the SoCal Vocals were formed, founded and where they are. And I didn't even know really what like acapella groups were. And, you know, like I said, I sang in church, but like I didn't realize that there was a an acapella group in college. I was like, OK, I happen to be like walking by one day and I heard like this sound and I was like, what is that? And I walk over there and I was like, is there no how are they doing that? There's no drums. How is there a person, you know, and I knew what beatboxing was, but this sounded more like a like somebody sitting at a drum set. And I was like, that's crazy.

And then like, you know, it wasn't just like soprano alto tenor. It was like they were making the sounds of the instruments. You know what I'm saying? And I was like, I need that. I need to be a part of that. And I was I was so lucky and very happy because the vocals, you can only get in. It has to be unanimous, a unanimous decision in order to get it. It's very intense. Yes. And a lot of people audition. Nowadays, a lot of people have heard about the SoCal Vocals and they go to SC and they know they're like, oh, I'm going to be in the vocals. You know what I mean? All right. I'm going to audition for it. It's like a big deal now. But back then it was like, oh, this might be something fun to do. And those who came before in the SoCal Vocals, it wasn't just fun for them. Like, you know what I mean? Like these were some mastermind people.

[10:35] Robert Bannon: Musicians and artists who, you know, once you were in the group like me, I was like, oh, this is deeper than just a fun thing we can do. You know, Bryce Reines, who is incredible, and he's done a bunch of Broadway shows too. I mean, like Becky Milosik, who wrote a Broadway show. I mean, we're talking about a huge spectrum of talent, and we were all together. We were all together. It's incredible. I want people to check this out, and it's incredible, your story and your journey. I love church singing. My husband is a pastor's kid, and that's a whole other world because today you're an actor, tomorrow you're a soprano. You might be a tenor in the middle of the song and a soprano at the beginning.

You better just be ready. That's how it is. You know what I love about Just Sing too, since we're on Just Sing, because it's like, I mean, when I went to go see it, I saw it at a premiere here in New York City, and I just thought to myself, oh, first of all, it brought back all the memories of what it felt like to be alone, but then when you are with this group, it's like suddenly, it's like, I'm no longer alone. You know, there's so many incredible stories, and you can imagine when there's 20 people together, you know, it's not just, you know, oh, we're going to get together, and we're going to sing in a rehearsal, then we're going to go in a competition. No, we live together. We like, we see each other all the time.

We become each other's best friends, and then because of that, we become involved in each other's lives. We become involved with each other's families, and so like, when there's loss, or when there is like, you know, something that you just feel like, oh my gosh, I'm alone. The vocals are there, you know. It's really special, and the film really captures that completely, you know, without giving anything away. I was like, shocked, you know. I can't believe that, you know, they had cameras there, because it's like, yo, I mean like, so many things that were so deeply personal to me and my journey with the vocals. You know, the fact that they were, they actually have cameras there for these vocals of this generation, and that they'll be able to live with that, and show the world.

Like, you know, it's more than just a singing group. We're not just a singing group in college. We're not just a, as we were, a drinking group that sings. We're a family. We are, and somehow, some way, through music, we were destined to be together, and we were destined to like, go on this journey together. Oh, and I love it. It makes me want to go back to college. I didn't have that. But, you know, what I love about it is that people can be inspired, and watch it, and start something in their neck of the woods, their school, their college, and they can be inspired. They can be on Broadway. What I love about your story is, at some point, you went to school to be an actor, I mean, theater, I was at that, where you're talking, and you moved to New York, and then you hit Broadway, and then Broadway has not stopped picking you up, and hiring you, and adding you, and throwing you up on stage.

When you think about your journey from Motown, because what I think of it, it's like TV has an arc. I'm a guest star. I'm an under five. I'm a guest star. I have an arc. Broadway kind of does, too. You could be a swing, an understudy. You could be in the ensemble. You can get a bit, and then you could be Aaron Burr in Hamilton, which is the biggest show to come out of Broadway in decades and decades. When you look back, from Motown to today, the journey you've had, if you're under for Leslie and Pearlie, if you're doing a play, if you're going up twice today in Hamilton, what's it feel like now to have, you're the old guy there now.

[14:21] Donald Webber Jr.: It's so funny you say that, because I'm literally sitting in the room, the first time I was in this room, I came to visit James Snyder, a former Volcow. James Snyder was doing If Then in this theater in the Richard Rogers, and I had wrote him a message, and I said, James, I am in town. I'd love to come, you know, see the show and see you. He goes, are you kidding me? So, you know, after the show was over, we come backstage. In fact, he had like this little portrait Polaroid camera, and he would put us up on the walls, and I was here with a few other Volcows, because we were here for the ICCAs. This was 2008, I think it was. I was not on Broadway then. I hadn't even had a professional gig yet.

I didn't even have an equity card at this time, and my face was literally up somewhere in this room, this room that I'm currently in playing Aaron Burr, and so, like, the journey, you want to talk about the journey. I mean, like, I remember standing on the stage, and on the Richard Rogers stage before I even started rehearsals for Motown, in the Heights was here, and I was standing in the same spot that I would end up taking my nightly bow in once I joined Hamilton, and, you know, stuff like that when we started Motown, but all through all of that, like, it was just like, I felt like, oh, I'm supposed to be here. Nothing ever felt too big, you know, even now, it's like, yeah, sure, yeah, we got two shows today, because we get to do it, because, you know, it's like, nothing feels too big, you know, I had a chance to go and do, you said, Our Town, Our Town with, like, Jim Parsons, Katie Holmes, you know, we became friends, you know, I've become friends with these people who I've watched on television for so long, and people I've just wanted to work with, Tom Hanks, he texts right before this interview started, you know, and not just me, like, we got a group text, you know what I mean?

No, be honest, sir. Seriously. And so, like, it's like, nothing feels too big, everything feels like, I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be. I had to learn that, though. I had to learn that in the struggle of it. When I graduated college, and my theater teacher, who was my high school theater teacher, he said, you should come and interview for this job. I was like, I'm going to New York, I'm going to be a Broadway star tomorrow. He was like, come and interview for this job in my hometown. I was like, all right. I went to interview for the job, and I taught high school for three years. And it was beautiful. It was beautiful, but it was definitely not what I had imagined for myself. And so I had to, like, be like, you know what, I am exactly where I'm supposed to be.

I had to learn that. And so then, three years goes by, and I happened to go into this audition for Jersey Boys. And I didn't even know, I didn't know if there was a role for me. I went in to sing, I sang, I sang, Left Behind from Spring Awakening for Jersey Boys audition. I had no idea. I was just like, I just, I felt like, oh, you know what, I'm just going to go in and get experience auditioning. Next thing I know, I mean, like, this line was all the way around the block, people were lining up for this thing. Next thing I know, I'm being asked to stay. Hey, can you read these sides? Hey, can you read these sides? Great. Okay, we're going to have you come back. And I just was like, oh, oh, I'm just always where my feet are, is exactly where I'm supposed to be.

I ended up booking Jersey Boys on Broadway, which took me from high school, you know, to being on the road in this national tour, which then took me to Motown, which then took me to, you know, Holler If You Hear Me, which then took me to, you know, and it's just like, you just kind of just keep on stepping and being where your feet are. And knowing that's exactly where you're supposed to be. And it's amazing, because this road has led you to your family, to your house and people at your home. You're incredibly talented. Like you're, you know, this journey that you've taken you on has been exactly where it was supposed to be. And it's exact timing that it was supposed to be. And that's a lesson for all of us, no matter what business or career you're in, is that be where your feet are.

[18:33] Robert Bannon: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. I mean, you brought up my wife. I mean, so many things have had to have happened for both of us, Rebecca and I to have even met. So many things in both of our lives, like had to happen, so that we can even meet each other. And now here we are years later with two kids, and like, you know, figuring out how to do that. And it's like, you know, we're just, it's just, it's just being exactly where your feet are.

[19:08] Robert Bannon: Y'all have the cutest, most beautiful fans. Like you talk about the most beautiful couple, everybody. There's just energy just jumps off the screen. So we're going to follow Donald, we're going to follow him on Instagram, we're going to see this film and be inspired by these youngsters and what they do. Then, if you have not seen Hamilton, you know, my husband has never seen, what in the world? Because we're in Detroit. Look, Donald, we're in Detroit. I moved out of New York. I left New York for the cold Detroit for a man. Okay, for love. Great. We come back every month. And I've not taken him to Hamilton, because you know, the moment has not been right. But now I feel he needs to see the Donald Webber version of what you did. We're gonna we're coming. Listen, if your feet fight, if you find your feet in front of this here, Richard Rodgers, okay, I will personally bring you in. I'm, I'm, I'm hitting you up.

[20:00] Donald Webber Jr.: Then we need to take a picture in this room.

[20:02] Robert Bannon: All right, done, because I'm gonna, don't worry. Look, the wonderful people at Falco are running this movie PR, but I want everyone to Shane over at Pressroom NY. I'll listen. Damn it. I've done so many openings. I'm coming to see Hamilton. You let I'm letting him know. I'm letting them know over there, the Hamilton press team. That's incredible. I'm gonna say I got we got Donald here. I'm so excited for you. I'm excited for this journey. I'm excited for what's to come. It's such an honor to meet you and talk to you. Your voice is incredible. Your spirit is incredible. You're a star and you deserve everything that's that's yours and coming to you. It's an honor. I look forward to seeing you up on stages for many, many, many years and screens.

Go see this film. See where it all started for him and so many incredible people. Maybe it'll inspire you to try to be a SoCal Vogue. It's hard, y'all. These people know what they're doing. They know what they're doing. Thank you. Have an amazing show tonight.

[20:49] Donald Webber Jr.: Thank you, Robert. Thank you.