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[0:00] Jessica Fontana: Hi, I'm Jess Fontana. Welcome to The Theatre Podcast with Alan Seales.

[0:10] Alan Seales: Hey, everyone. Welcome back to The Theatre Podcast. I'm your host, Alan Seales. Our guest today, Jessica Fontana, is a fellow podcaster, performer, and a parent. All topics we get into in this all-new episode. Growing up as a dancer, she was exposed to the performing arts early, but it wasn't until later in her younger life that she started singing and ultimately performing in places regionally that exposed her natural talent for the Broadway stage. As you most likely know, in this nutty business, we have very little control in general. And coming out of a pandemic and her very conscious choice to not perform for a while while having her babies, she decided to just, you know, release an all-new album, like you do. So check out the show notes for links for more information on that. And now, as always, find me on the socials. Check my Patreon account for full videos of the episodes. And everyone, please enjoy this episode with Jessica Fontana.

[1:07] Alan Seales: Our guest today, I actually met now four and some years ago through the podcast world, as she is the writer, host, co-creator, and co-executive producer of a podcast called Support for This Podcast, an improvised satirical podcast that leaves me in stitches. But she is no stranger to the stage. She has starred on Broadway in the title role of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Baby, It's You, and Pipe Dream in New York City Center's Encore series. On screen, she's been seen in the hit web series Submissions Only, has starred in the world premiere productions at regional theaters, including the Goodspeed Opera House, Paper Mill Playhouse, Signature Theater, and this little place called Carnegie Hall. Also a songwriter, her solo debut album, Every Day Special, just dropped everywhere you stream your music and probably where you're listening to this podcast now. So go check it out. Jessica Fontana, welcome to The Theatre Podcast.

[1:59] Jessica Fontana: Thank you so much.

[2:02] Alan Seales: You are welcome. How are you doing?

[2:04] Jessica Fontana: I'm good. I'm really good.

[2:04] Alan Seales: It's been a while since we've, since we've like talk talk.

[2:08] Jessica Fontana: I know.

[2:09] Alan Seales: And you were, before this recording, mildly pregnant when we first met. And then now you've got two daughters later. You're okay?

[2:19] Jessica Fontana: A lot of life has been happening and created since we've last spoken.

[2:26] Alan Seales: I mean, was that sort of the plan in general to start the family, like the family plan now, or you're like, COVID shut down our entire industry of me and my husband, and now let's just have babies?

[2:38] Jessica Fontana: So we were, I was pregnant with Grace before, well before COVID. I had Grace in September of 2019. So we had like five and a half months of normal chaos of just having a newborn, you know, normal baby life. And then COVID happened. And we, I mean, listen, obviously, it's a horrible thing. There's no good thing about it. But in terms of the timing of it, with having a baby, it was good for us because she was still so little that like, you know, we left New York in April. We stayed with my parents up in Maine for a few months. Then we lived with Santino's parents in Washington state. So like, and it was just ended up, it was like a lot of grandparent time. And she was so little that we weren't like, you know, it's not like she was in preschool and we were disturbing her routine.

And she was, she didn't know any, you know, she was great as far as she was concerned. It was just like, oh, great. I have so many grandparents around. And so, yeah, so that, and then when we had our second one, when we had Elle, that was, she was born in August of 2022. So by that point, you know, we weren't wearing like a mask in the hospital. So we kind of, you know, but the plan was always, I guess, to answer your question was like, no, I, we were ready to have started a family and COVID just kind of was a part of that. But there was no time change. It, I think what COVID did was kind of put a little kick in our pants to move this out of the city, maybe a little earlier than we would have, but we wanted, we would have done that anyway. But I think it felt a little more like, okay, let's go.

[4:06] Alan Seales: Is that hard? I know a lot of people who, who once they start families, myself included, I, my wife, yeah, I have two, two, two boys now that are seven and nine. And, and I love them. And they're the most frustrating and best things ever all at the same time. But we moved out of our place, our tiny place at Midtown when we were pregnant with number two, because we were like, there's no way we could do two kids in this.

[4:30] Jessica Fontana: Right.

[4:30] Alan Seales: And so I know, I know a lot of actors, especially like there's this conflict about, you want to be close to Midtown because there's this last minute audition, or if you're in a show that you just want to quickly walk to work and then, or walk from home to the audition to work or because while you're in, I mean, love this business while you're in a show, you're still looking for your next job, which is always fun. But I mean, is that, was that a hard decision to kind of say, all right, like, you know, your husband Santino, the two of you, we're just going to say, let's move out of the city. We're going to like, take a step back from the performing for a bit. You know, well, I guess, or was it even a step back? Sorry to interrupt, but I mean, did it have any effect at all like that?

[5:12] Jessica Fontana: Well, here's what I would say. They're two very different questions. Like for me, my point of view was, I, even before, I mean, before I even was, I don't know, in my fantasy of life, it was like, I'm going to work, I'm going to act, I'm going to act, whatever. I'm going to have kids, I'm going to kind of take a knee, like, I don't want to be, in my mind, I wasn't planning on performing and raising young kids at the same time. Like that just wasn't part of, didn't seem like fun to me. I mean, for some people, that's like, they want to do that. But for me, I was like, no, I want to just like, be fully kind of ensconced in mom stuff. And if I was lucky enough to be able to do that, which thankfully I haven't. So that was always, my feeling was like, I want to have these little kids and be with them.

I don't want to try to juggle. Like the idea of going, being, feeling so vulnerable and like, it's just an intense thing having little kids. So the idea of doing all of that and like auditioning, I just was like, no, that's not, I mean, before I had kids, I thought that would, that doesn't sound like fun. And then now having kids like that really would not, I don't think I would be able to like metabolize that.

[6:24] Alan Seales: That's a lot of emotional weight. If you're at a show like The Crucible and you're pouring your heart out every night, and then you come home and you have children who need more emotional support from you.

[6:35] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. And just the like, I mean, listen, everybody, everybody's choices are totally valid and right for them. For me, it's like, it physically hurts me when I, I mean, listen, I do leave my kids sometimes. We like go out for a date or I go run errands. We have a babysitter, but like, it really hurts when they're, when they're that little, you know, when they're crying, like they don't want you to leave. You just feel like, oh. So it wasn't something that I was, I was happy to stay at home basically. And then for Santino in one, once he was 10, he lived in this very, um, in Washington state with it's very, leave it to beaver. Like everyone has their little backyard and playing baseball and then running, riding their bikes in the park.

So I think we both had a vision of what our lives would be as a family. So for him, it wasn't, listen, there are times, I mean, he, when he did, he did, um, I can get it for you wholesale at Classic Stage Company this past fall. And that was his first time doing eight shows a week of something since we'd moved. We're in Connecticut and, you know, it's like a little longer of a commute than you want it to be, but, you know, it just felt like, yeah, but you get to have this life in New York and do this show that you want to do and you get to come home and live in our cute little town and kind of have that. So, yeah. So it's, you know, there's a sacrifice involved, but I think we both, we really liked having Grace in the city when she was a baby.

I mean, bookending around like COVID craziness, but that part of it was fun. But then once we got back from everything and she was 18 months or whatever, she, it was like, we both were on the same page of like, let's, this doesn't feel like what we want it to feel like. Um, so it, it wasn't a hard, deciding the move wasn't hard, but there are definitely moments where I think both of us are like, whoa, this is, it just, even though it's, as time goes on, it's longer and longer, there are moments where it feels kind of like this whirlwind of like, wow, what?

[8:23] Alan Seales: Well, that's just, that's just kids. All of a sudden they just wake up and they're like, I don't need you anymore. I'm just going to do, I'm gonna make my own sandwich.

[8:29] Jessica Fontana: Oh my gosh. This morning, Grace, she had a surprise in her room. We were like, what? And then we went upstairs and she made the bed. Like she made it herself.

[8:39] Alan Seales: My son did that. My younger son did that the last week, literally. It's like, dad, dad, come here. Come here. I got to show you something. Do you like how I made the bed? And it was just a perfectly made bed. I was like, yes, that's the best.

[8:52] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. And you're like, keep doing that. Do that every morning. And it never happened again. It hasn't happened since, but he was really proud of himself in that moment.

[8:57] Alan Seales: Yeah. So where did you, where did you say you grew up?

[9:02] Jessica Fontana: I'm from Philadelphia.

[9:02] Alan Seales: From Philly. Okay.

[9:04] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. And then what, when did you start getting into, uh, performing and, and the get bit by the acting bug?

[9:08] Jessica Fontana: Well, I grew up actually dancing. I was, I was a ballet dancer. And then when I was 12, I randomly, I went with a friend to audition for the Arden theater in Philadelphia was doing their first children's theater production of Charlotte's Web. So I went with a friend who wanted to audition and it's year 12. And you're like, okay, sure. Let's go. So I went to that and I ended up getting, I was, I played Fern in this production of the Arden. And that was my first like theater experience. And then went back to dance. And then the high school I went to had a lot of, um, they're really into music. So I was in choir and chorus and acapella and I did the eighth grade musical. And then it was kind of like, Oh, maybe singing is really fun.

Like I'll sing. And then, you know, all these things it's like, um, did you see Passing Strange? I mean, oh, well, there's this great scene where they're talking about like, isn't it crazy? That's like these humongous decisions you make you're 17. That's when you kind of like make these so many of these big life choices. So anyway, um, I kind of stumbled into musical theater from ballet, um, cause I like to sing and then it was like, Oh, you could sing and act and dance all at the same time. Like, that's fun. So my mom was very helpful with like, okay, if you want to do this, like here are the schools that seems like you should apply to. And here there's a, I went to Carnegie Mellon's, um, pre-college summer program when I was 17.

So that was kind of a great, like, what is this? And then kind of figuring that out. And so anyway, so I went to, I went to the University of Michigan for musical theater, but I hadn't really done a lot of musicals. Like the summer after my freshman year, I worked at the Muny and that's, I did three musicals there. And I realized like I had doubled my musical experience working there because I'd been in three shows in high school. And then I worked at the Muny for, I was like, Oh, I've doubled my repertoire of musicals.

[11:06] Alan Seales: That's really interesting. I mean, you're just like, I just worked at the Muny and then I just worked at the Carnegie Mellon and blah, blah, blah. Like without a lot of experience, like growing up in Philly, you're so fortunate to have all of these amazing regional productions or regional theaters just like basically within a stone's throw away. I mean, like I was lucky when I was in my, until college before, before college, when I was in high school, there was nothing. I was in a tiny town where we went out at night and metaphorically went cow tipping. Like there was just nothing to do.

[11:30] Jessica Fontana: Where are you from?

[11:30] Alan Seales: Wilkesboro, North Carolina.

[11:32] Jessica Fontana: Okay. But I tell people Raleigh because that's where I went to college and it's recognizable. So in Raleigh, when I went to college, there was North Carolina Theater, NCT.

[11:40] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[11:40] Jessica Fontana: So NCT, North Carolina Theater, which by the way, just filed for bankruptcy. So support your local arts places, people. But that was where I got my first professional job with Casey Nicholaw as my director back when, before Casey was Casey, right?

[11:52] Alan Seales: Sure.

[11:52] Jessica Fontana: Very, very, very, very, very old many years ago. And that was like the only thing available. And I was, you know, I was making like a hundred and something a week or whatever as a non-equity local flower person in My Fair Lady. And, you know, third flower cart driver from the left. And I was like, this is it. This is the big time. This is what I'm doing.

[12:04] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[12:04] Jessica Fontana: But it was so hard to get that one ensemble gig to get started and kind of break through. And so this is my long winded story to ask you that because, I guess, because you had so much.

[12:47] Jessica Fontana: No, I definitely think it was like, I mean, it was, listen, this industry is hard no matter what, but that being said, I've always been aware of like, I mean, the Carnegie Mellon thing, I think that was just, you know, I don't even know if I auditioned. I think it was like, you know, you just applied and I thank my mom for being plugged into like, figuring that out, because I don't know, I mean, this was pre, we had the internet, but it was not like now where you're just like, anything I want to do, I'll just dip, tap, tap, tap, here it is. I mean, it all kind of was like, like, I'm picturing like tunnels of water that keep going to the next thing, because it was like going to Carnegie Mellon kind of gave me a survey of like, okay, these are people who really know what's going on, like my roommate, her name is Sabrina Blondman, and she works at Broadway.com. And that summer, she had gone to French Woods, like she knew everything about musicals, like I hadn't, she was like, you don't know what the last five years is, like, you've never heard songs for New World.

And I was like, no. She was like, she was just like aghast. I was like, we did like Gypsy in my high school, like I was Louis, like I was middle, they made up a new part called Middle Louise in my high school production of Gypsy. So like, I learned a lot from that. And then going to Michigan was again, the same thing where then you're kind of just with all these other people who know a lot of things. So then the Muny was like, okay, this week in March, we're all driving to St. Louis, and we all auditioned for the Muny. That's just like what we do. So it was, I wasn't, that was kind of, that part of it was easy, for sure.

[14:29] Alan Seales: Let's say you got your regional credits through peer pressure. That's what it sounds like.

[14:33] Jessica Fontana: Yeah, I'm just trying to keep up with everybody else. Just like, I don't know. I mean, listen, the good thing is, I guess I didn't have like bad habits to break, because I had no habits, because I didn't know what I was doing. Yeah, no, I'm very grateful to, you know, Michigan and all those places and all the people I met to kind of be like, this is what you want to be doing. And this is where you know, just want to Okay, sure, let's go.

[14:56] Alan Seales: Well, rewind a second, then, though, because you were dancing, you were singing. But yeah, I guess, was there any other point before applying to UM, where you were like, well, maybe I will do something else? Or were you just always like, oh, to see where the wind takes me here? I mean, it sounds like you always just wanted to do it.

[15:14] Jessica Fontana: Yeah, yes, it definitely I just, yes, I never seriously considered doing anything else. I loved ballet was my first love. And I loved I loved it. I loved everything about it. I loved the music. I loved moving my body. I loved being on stage and feeling the lights and connecting with an audience like that just felt totally natural. And right. So yeah, and I think when you're a kid, or when you're a teenager, like, you know, you just or at least I just had total confidence because I just didn't. I don't know. I was just like, Yeah, why wouldn't I do all these things? Like, I like doing this, or I'm gonna do this. And thankfully, my parents were supportive. My, my mom was super supportive. And my dad was a college professor.

And he was not. He actually my dad, little Broadway fun. My dad lived in New York, in the 70s. He lived in this brownstone. And Don McKechnie was his neighbor. And he was, who was it? He his friend from high school, this guy, Mickey Karm was in, you can cut all of this, who cares. But just for fun, Broadway trivia. Um, he, his friend from high school is this guy, Mickey Karm, who was in some Broadway show, my dad was around a lot of Broadway actors. And he was not into the idea of me being on Broadway, because he was like, it's a horrible, like, you have no stability. And you're always trying to get the next job. And anyway, at my dad's first wedding, his friend was at the time was dating Madeline Kahn.

So his best man, his, you know, Madeline Kahn was at my dad's first wedding. Anyway, he was, um, but he was not super into the idea of me performing. And then I think once I got into to Michigan, and you know, my mom was like, Well, that's, that's not easy to do. Like, she's got to have some kind of, you know, talent to get it. And he was like, Okay, you know, so he was more supportive after that, and has been since has been incredibly supportive. But yeah, I never considered doing anything else. And I wasn't pressured to do that. So I'm grateful to my parents for that, for that.

[17:11] Alan Seales: That's interesting that especially college professor, somebody who's like, no, that's, that's a concrete job with a regular paycheck. And then, you know, tenure, I mean, it's the most stable job, like you can't get fired.

[17:20] Jessica Fontana: My, I wanted to go to Columbia. And, and then my mother was like, get get a get a degree you can fall back on. And then I ended up I still am using the degree. Computer Science. That's why I went to NC State and yeah, in Raleigh. Yeah. And so that's been like, it's shaped everything. And I wonder, like in another, a parallel universe somewhere where I went to Columbia, or I did performing as a degree, because I never got trained in anything. Yeah. And it was all just what I taught myself or what I absorbed from doing regional theater. So I got this computer science degree and then just traveled around being an actor. And it was really odd and strangely cool. And yeah, I don't know, it just kind of went again, where the wind blew.

[18:05] Alan Seales: Time for a quick commercial break. Hang on a second.

[18:10] Jessica Fontana: Welcome back to the episode. There's definitely no right, there's no one right way to do it. And if you want to do it, then you do it.

[18:16] Alan Seales: Yeah, well, you do it because you have to. And that's, and that's still why, why I guess that's great segue to, to, to your album, right? So Everyday Special, right? I feel, what I was gonna say too, is that I created this podcast and I, I continue to immerse myself in the producing side and learning about the business side, because I want to create, I want to, I want to be involved in a way that is, that is not the struggle of auditioning, because I don't think I'm a good auditioner. But then, so, so for you now, Everyday Special, your new album. So is this kind of like the first thing you've done? You said you purposely took a step away from performing to, to focus on the babies for a little while. And so now is this like, are you sort of peeling the, the, coming out of your cocoon a little bit to come back into performing?

[19:05] Jessica Fontana: You know, I think what's been nice is that I've been able to, I'm not performing, but I do do some occasional concert work, which has been really nice. So that does feel like a nice way to kind of like, oh, you know, remember this other part of myself and do that. So I'm really grateful that I've been able to do that over the last few years. The album, I think a lot of it was coming out of, even before I had kids, it was kind of, have been coming out of, you know, before I had kids, it was kind of having a little bit of a shift of wanting to have more autonomy creatively to say like, okay, I listen, I, I like, I like being in shows, but maybe I kind of want to be more in control of what it is I'm doing and how I'm doing it.

So like doing this, the podcast, Explore For This podcast, that was my friend Ryan Langer and I being like, this is fun. Let's do this. This is fun and interesting and easy. And then I did a one woman show when I was pregnant at The Cutting Room that my friend Gina Ratan directed. That was super fun. And just kind of wanting, I wasn't as enamored with the eight show a week schedule. I mean, yeah. And if the right thing had come along, of course, sure. But I was just feeling more and more like I can't solely be just waiting for the phone to ring or going to this audition or hustling. I just, it wasn't, it wasn't worth it. It just didn't feel like it wasn't giving me the life that I wanted. So anyway, the album, I guess, in a way is a continuation of that is like, how can I be creative?

How can I, how can I be creative in a way that suits my schedule? You know, that's like that I can build around my life so that I'm not completely, you know, when you're auditioning for things, you're basically saying like, okay, I'll jump through any hoop. I'll show up. I'll do this. I'll do that. I'll go to this place, which is fine and fun. But eventually, and for some people, that's what they do forever. And that's great. But for me, I just started to feel like I don't want to do that. I want to be in control of my choices. So anyway, the album is an extension of wanting to still be creative and remember this part of myself, but still get to have the other part of my life that I want. And so we were able to record it.

So we live in Connecticut now. And we're actually downstairs. This is the outside of the we had like a little music studio. I can show you like, yeah, it's about to say this is so it's like inside. Oh, wow, you built an actual studio.

[21:15] Alan Seales: Yeah. So this is like our little recording studio that Santino got like a used vocal booth, whatever from this music school in Brooklyn and got it in a U-Haul. And she put a room inside a room.

[21:22] Jessica Fontana: Yes. How did you get the room inside your house?

[21:35] Jessica Fontana: It was, I mean, he did it. He and he and our friend Jeff, you did it. And we had another, like a carpenter come and help put it all together. But it was a lot. It was just a U-Haul full of walls and things that all had to be put back together. And anyway, we have a recording studio now. And so I was able to record it here. And then Matt Castle and Frank Elgano, who did the arrangements, who produced it, who basically did everything. They came up for a couple weekends and would stay over and we'd record for a weekend and just kind of did it bit by bit. And that's why I was able to do it, because we just did it this new way.

[22:06] Alan Seales: Well, where do you, I guess, decide when and where do you decide on I'm going to start writing and what I'm going to be writing are songs and then the songs I'm going to sing. And here's what I'm going to sing about versus a one woman show or versus a book or versus anything else. Right. Because there's so many ways you could express or I guess get out this need to express yourself.

[22:29] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. And that's what all performers have. Why we're on stage in some form. Yeah. Well, this the album. So there's one original, which is called Everyday Special, which is about my kids and what it feels like being a mom for me. But the other songs are all covers of different there's some theater songs or some standards. There's some pop songs. So that and that that was also I mean, that's a creative process to figuring out what are the new arrangements? What do we want it to sound like? Why picking those songs, what they mean to me and and Matt and Frank were amazing about we would, you know, just talk through all of the different song choices and then finally narrowing in on what they should sound like and why like really figuring out what that what that's about.

And so that was super fun and super it's just really empowering. Like, of course, it's super fun to be an actor and interpret other people's work and be a part of that collaboration. But it's also really fun to be the one in charge to be like, No, I want to do this. And I want to do that. Nobody does because this is what matters to me. It was a cool. It was really exciting.

[23:39] Alan Seales: I'm sensing a theme. You don't you don't like the eight show week because you want to be in control and you're like being in control of your own album. I see what's going on here.

[23:48] Jessica Fontana: Just I'm a I'm a control freak. Yeah, no, listen. I mean, I think I do I like control who doesn't who doesn't know that there's a time and a place, I guess, for for giving control and taking control. And you're right. And I relate. I relate so much. And, you know, as we record this episode today, I've just released my episode three hundred and sixteen. That's incredible.

[24:19] Alan Seales: I want to say I know when I was listening, I was like, oh, my God, you've done so many episodes. For you.

[24:25] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. Well, it's just it's just the thing like it's it's my control. I like I say, I totally relate. And three hundred sixteen episodes where I bring that up is because one of the things I realized about one hundred hundred fifty episodes in, I was like, holy cow, I'm so glad I didn't make it. I put in air quotes on Broadway because this life is hard as hell. It's rewarding if you cross through that glass ceiling, if you're known, if you I mean, some people are are super, super happy being in the chorus or the ensemble. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with this. I don't I don't want to say that that's not like a dream for some people. For me, knowing myself, I I would not be happy remaining in an ensemble my entire career.

And I'm and so this is my way of standing out, of leaving a mark, of leaving a legacy and having a voice heard. Yeah. So so I totally like I'm giving you a hard time about this, but I think like we're very similar in that respect. I listen. I also the other thing I would add is like being married to someone who's done a very, you know, has has had a lot of success like it never ends like all.

[27:05] Jessica Fontana: We were singing Sam Davis's music, who's a brilliant arranger and composer in his own right. I guess Sam and I first met at Michigan. He went to Michigan as well, but he came back when I was there to do the arrangements for, I think it was A Good Boy, the show that Brian Spatolnick wrote. Anyway, we connected then. Then again, in the fall of 2010, we did James and the Giant Peach by Pasek and Paul at Goodspeed, which is really funny because last week I went, Justin invited me to go see the Westport High School production of James and the Giant Peach. So that was a real trip to be like, oh my God, that was a long time ago and taking my daughter to see it. Anyway, Sam and I, this is, I'm so, I didn't realize how chatty I am. I guess I'm really excited to talk to an adult. Please feel free to.

[28:00] Alan Seales: Well, if I find one, I'll bring them in.

[28:04] Jessica Fontana: We were both, why am I getting into all of that? Whatever. We were both singing Sam's music. We met that night. The concert ended and I went, my mom and my sister-in-law were there, so I went to say hi to them. Then I came back and he was like, what are you doing? Why aren't you getting a drink? I was like, oh, I will. I just have to say hi to my family. Anyway, I came back. Oh, hello. Who's this boy? Yeah. Then he was gone. The funny thing is I knew who he was. Damn it, Santino. Well, I knew who he was because he was on Submissions Only. When I had done James and I Peach with Kate Weatherhead, she had mentioned him in the dressing room. I'm like, oh, I can't get his schedule. I was like, Santino, who's that?

Anyway, so I knew who he was because I'd seen him on her show, but we met that night. Anyway, then he says, why aren't you getting a drink? I come back, he's gone. Then he friended me on Facebook that night. I was like, oh, okay. Then I saw it was his birthday. Then I wrote him a message and I was like, how dare you tell me to drink and then leave before I see you again? Then I said, happy birthday, whatever. Then he wrote back and asked me out. He actually said, happy birthday, whatever, too. Yeah, happy birthday, whatever. Yeah, we're done.

[29:07] Alan Seales: What's funny is I actually printed out that first message because Facebook keeps everything. I have that first message. We print it out. We have a gallery wall in our bathroom and we have that little printout of our first text exchange, which then I realized I had a grammatical error, which I'm mortified about. I spelled you're the wrong way. I was like, oh my God, I can't believe you asked me out after that. I don't know if we can air this episode.

[29:28] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[29:29] Alan Seales: Like a you're and you're, those two.

[29:31] Jessica Fontana: Can you believe it? That's my pet peeve.

[29:33] Alan Seales: I know. I was mortified. Anyway, we met that night. We went out a couple of days after that. Then the rest is history.

[29:41] Jessica Fontana: Wow. Yeah, so he was into you. If you're kidding, he went home and looked you up and friended you on the Facebook.

[29:45] Alan Seales: Yeah, so yeah. Dating mid 2011, engaged 2014 and yeah, the rest is history. That's awesome.

[29:54] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[29:55] Alan Seales: I love it. I love showmances that turn into more than that.

[29:59] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. Well, what's funny though is we never worked together. I mean, we crossed over in Cinderella, but we didn't meet. I mean, we were singing in a concert, but we weren't ever. I think it would be really hard for us to actually do a show together now.

[30:11] Alan Seales: Really?

[30:12] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. I mean, we do concerts together all the time, but I don't know. The idea of like, pretending to be someone else with, I don't know, because we didn't meet that way.

[30:19] Alan Seales: I know people do it all the time.

[30:20] Jessica Fontana: Time for a quick commercial break. Hang on a second.

[30:25] Alan Seales: Welcome back to the episode. So we're going to transition over to a little closing game that I've started playing. I don't think you've heard it yet, unless you listened to one of the latest, latest episodes, the 60 second countdown plot in 60 seconds.

[30:39] Jessica Fontana: Okay.

[30:40] Alan Seales: So you're going to give me a number, which will correspond to a list of shows, popular musicals that I've got here. And then in 60 seconds, you have to give me that plot to that musical.

[30:50] Jessica Fontana: What if I don't know it?

[30:51] Alan Seales: Then you better be a good storyteller.

[30:53] Jessica Fontana: Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay. Okay.

[30:55] Alan Seales: Okay. Give me, give me a number one through 10.

[30:59] Jessica Fontana: Four.

[31:00] Alan Seales: All right. The Lion King. Ready? And go.

[31:04] Jessica Fontana: 60 seconds remaining. Okay. This is good because I just watched this with my daughter. Okay. So there's the Lion King kingdom and they're all happy there. And, and, um, the, the dad, uh, they start with the kid and he's like born. 45 seconds remaining.

[31:21] Alan Seales: The dad's born. Yeah. Got it.

[31:23] Jessica Fontana: Okay. Then I'm not Jafar. Um, Scar, Scar is the, it's, it's, it's Macbeth. Basic. I mean, not Macbeth. It's, it's Hamlet. So anyway, no, is it?

[31:34] Alan Seales: 30 seconds remaining.

[31:37] Jessica Fontana: Okay. Sorry. It's, um, so Scar's mad. He wants to be the King. Um, I'm going to be in so much trouble for not remembering. Okay. Then he, then he kills daddy in that, or the coyotes kind of do it. And then coyotes, 15 seconds. Oh my God. Anyway, then he grows up and then he comes back and then he gets the kingdom back with, um, help and which 14 seconds it's second. Oh no. Um, then he gets the kingdom back, but what Shakespeare play is it?

[32:07] Alan Seales: Um, that was the hyenas, not, not coyotes.

[32:11] Jessica Fontana: And it's, it's Hamlet.

[32:14] Alan Seales: Uh, let's see. Lion King.

[32:16] Jessica Fontana: Isn't it Hamlet?

[32:17] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[32:20] Jessica Fontana: Okay. So I was, I, I said Macbeth, but then I said Hamlet. So I got Hamlet in there. Oh my God. Wow. Wow.

[32:26] Alan Seales: That was rough.

[32:27] Jessica Fontana: This is harder than people think.

[32:29] Alan Seales: It is.

[32:30] Jessica Fontana: And as we've established from this entire podcast, I am so just chatty Kathy today. So how could I possibly, um, like, here's your question. Let me take you back 15 years and over here to something.

[32:43] Alan Seales: Would you rather see how many colors of Joseph's coat you could name in 15 seconds or just in general?

[32:52] Jessica Fontana: Would I rather than what we just did?

[32:54] Alan Seales: No, that, that, yeah, the Joseph's coat thing. I was actually, it was a drunken,

[32:58] Jessica Fontana: It was red and yellow and green and orange and other than that.

[33:03] Alan Seales: I don't know. There's some funny ones in there.

[33:05] Jessica Fontana: Well, you got the first three.

[33:06] Alan Seales: Violet and mauve and something.

[33:08] Jessica Fontana: And I love the other green, brown, scarlet, black, ochre, peach, ruby, olive, violet, fawn, lilac, gold, chocolate, mauve, cream, crimson, silver, rose, azure, lemon, russet, gray, purple, white, pink, orange, and blue.

[33:19] Alan Seales: Well, you got orange, orange.

[33:20] Jessica Fontana: I love, I love Joseph.

[33:22] Alan Seales: I love me too.

[33:23] Jessica Fontana: I was one of the brothers in my community theater production years ago.

[33:28] Alan Seales: Ah, Skinny Ellen.

[33:29] Jessica Fontana: Okay. Now my three standard closing questions that I think you're prepared for.

[33:33] Alan Seales: Yes.

[33:34] Jessica Fontana: Number one is just what motivates you?

[33:36] Alan Seales: Um, I mean, isn't that a hard, I mean, I don't know, like what motivates me?

[33:43] Jessica Fontana: I'm excited to be alive.

[33:45] Alan Seales: I don't need it.

[33:45] Jessica Fontana: I don't know. Like I'm excited to start each day. I have my little to-do list and I have lots of fun. I don't know. Life's fun.

[33:52] Alan Seales: Well, that's, I've ever reasoned. Having fun in life.

[33:54] Jessica Fontana: Having fun.

[33:55] Alan Seales: There you go.

[33:56] Jessica Fontana: All right. What advice would you give to your younger self and younger people listening now, starting out down a similar path?

[34:02] Alan Seales: Um, I would say to take all the advice you get from anybody, including me now with a grain of salt.

[34:09] Jessica Fontana: There you go.

[34:11] Alan Seales: And no, that's not bad advice at all.

[34:14] Jessica Fontana: Actually, let it roll.

[34:15] Alan Seales: If you could only see one show for the rest of your life, but you can see it as many times as you want, what would you see?

[34:20] Jessica Fontana: This question has haunted me since I've listened. Um, I really don't like this question.

[34:26] Alan Seales: Nobody does.

[34:27] Jessica Fontana: I think the thing that first came into my mind and I'm just going to, that's what it's going to have to be is, um, Light in the Piazza because I just think, I guess like if I'm going to hear people like Vicki, I would, I'll hear Vicki sing forever and Kelly. And, and it's so beautiful. And, um, I love that score. I love that show.

[34:45] Alan Seales: So I was just talking about this with Matthew Morrison with somebody the other day.

[34:50] Jessica Fontana: Oh, oh, where are you?

[34:51] Alan Seales: Little Matt Morrison.

[34:52] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[34:53] Alan Seales: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[34:54] Jessica Fontana: Back, back before Glee.

[34:55] Alan Seales: I was always so upset. They never had him really sing on Glee.

[35:00] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[35:00] Alan Seales: That's a gigantic missed opportunity there.

[35:02] Jessica Fontana: Right?

[35:03] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[35:04] Jessica Fontana: I'm like, you got this musical theater dude. And then you just like give him background work the whole time singing. I don't know. Anyway, where can we find you on the social medias?

[35:13] Jessica Fontana: Um, I, I am on Instagram and that's it. It's I am Jess Fontana, but I really, um, I'm trying to get all that off of my, I don't have it on my phone anymore.

[35:20] Alan Seales: Good.

[35:28] Jessica Fontana: Good for you. Just trying to stay more present. Um, I look at it on my computer. Like it's a, you know, like it's back in the day. Like we could say AOL.

[35:36] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[35:36] Jessica Fontana: Like AIM. Like, Oh, what do we have? My message is here. Okay. Here's a funny parenting meme and good night.

[35:42] Alan Seales: Do you remember your first screen name?

[35:44] Jessica Fontana: That's such a good question. I think it was Jess Hirsch. I think I wanted to do, cause my main name is Hirschberg. And I remember my mom like helping me set it up. I was like, should I do Hershey kiss? And she was like, no, that would have been so cute. Yeah. I think it was Jess Hirsch, which is what it was for a long time. And then I, once I got married, I changed to Fontana.

[36:03] Alan Seales: So you changed your screen name.

[36:05] Jessica Fontana: I went back to AOL.

[36:06] Alan Seales: Like I went back to AOL. I went back to prodigy and I, uh, I had prodigy back when it cost money to send more than 25 emails a month.

[36:15] Jessica Fontana: Wow.

[36:17] Alan Seales: When we were eight or eight or nine, maybe a year or two older. We got prodigy dial up. Of course, this is pre AOL. We had no local AOL number.

[36:25] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[36:25] Alan Seales: I'm dating myself so hard right now.

[36:28] Jessica Fontana: And kids, this is what the internet used to be like.

[36:30] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[36:31] Jessica Fontana: And you logged in. The only thing I had to do, cause nobody else of my age, I didn't know what a website was. I didn't know what to do on the internet. I just got online and I did Mad Libs. And you were allowed to do, you're allowed to send 25 emails for free. And then it was a quarter per email beyond that every month. That's how few emails were sent in this time period.

[36:59] Alan Seales: Yeah. I mean, who, who would you even send an email to? Like someone in your family?

[37:03] Jessica Fontana: I had nobody to write to.

[37:04] Alan Seales: Yeah.

[37:04] Jessica Fontana: I had a pen pal.

[37:05] Alan Seales: I had an email pen pal.

[37:07] Jessica Fontana: I did too. I had a snail mail pen pal.

[37:10] Alan Seales: Oh, that's, that's even more fun.

[37:11] Jessica Fontana: Cause it was a girl I met at a, at a, at a choral concert.

[37:14] Alan Seales: Aw.

[37:15] Jessica Fontana: Yeah. I was in Wilkesboro and she was down just North of Charlotte. So we were about an hour apart and before, before either of us had cars, we just wrote to each other.

[37:27] Alan Seales: Wow.

[37:28] Jessica Fontana: That's sweet.

[37:29] Alan Seales: I don't even know.

[37:30] Jessica Fontana: Where is she now?

[37:33] Alan Seales: I couldn't tell you.

[37:34] Jessica Fontana: Yeah.

[37:34] Alan Seales: Couldn't tell you. We went to college and lost contact real fast.

[37:37] Jessica Fontana: It's okay. Well, anyway, you can find me and the theater podcast, more of this amazing content on threads, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook. I don't know what I'm doing on any of them. Help me out. Leave a rating and a review. I do have them on my phone by the way, but I don't have notifications on. That's how I stay present.

[37:56] Jessica Fontana: Thanks to jukebox, the ghost for the intro and outro music you're hearing right now. And Jessica Fontana, thank you so much. I've had just such a fun time catching up with you.

[38:07] Jessica Fontana: Thank you.

[38:08] Alan Seales: Thank you so much for having me.

[38:10] Jessica Fontana: Oh, and everybody go stream every day. Special everywhere. You are listening to this podcast.

[38:15] Jessica Fontana: Everywhere. You find your music, make the world a little colorful.