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What was the first Broadway show you ever saw?
My dad took me on a father-son trip to NYC to see Miss Saigon in high school We have to confess, Widdi Bantour is one of our favorite angels. Did you draw inspiration from any other drag queens/celebrities? How did you come up with such a fabulous name? Oooooo I'm glad you love Widdi! (I won't tell the other angels, they'll get jealous. Just kidding I'm SO telling them it's not even funny). On my dressing room station are pictures of all the women Widdi is inspired by: Lucille Ball, "Michelle" in Romy & Michelle's High School Reunion, Twiggy, Marylin Monroe and my friend Heather Lang. I call Heather my drag mother b/c she also came up with the name Widdi Bantour! Do you have a favourite moment in the show? My favorite moment in the show normally happens somewhere in the finale when I'll take a moment, look around and see myself surrounded onstage by castmates with so much JOY on their faces and then experiencing the audience receive that joy and give it back to us 10 fold... It's the best rush ever. Was it difficult to relearn the changes in the show between the Chicago tryout and Broadway previews?It wasn't difficult to re-learn the changes. By the time we got back to NYC we were already a pretty well oiled machine in terms of working with each other and making changes. Do you have any dream roles? My dream roles change on my mood. Recently I've been itching to play Whizzer in Falsettoland. You are working with some of the most talented people in the business; Harvey Fierstein, Jerry Mitchell and of course, Cyndi Lauper. Was it ever daunting working with such iconic people? Of COURSE it was daunting! At first at least. But I knew before the first day of rehearsals that we were going to be taken care of and respected because of all of their stellar reputations. I was right If you were not a performer, do you have any idea what you'd be doing? I've always said if I ever find something that I love equally or more than acting I'll leave and do that... I just haven't found it yet! I'm a green thumb so I've pondered opening a flower shop... or maybe being a concierge. That could be fun Do you have any words of wisdom for aspiring Broadway performers? Hmmm words of wisdom... I know this sounds like a cliche but find a way in your performances, your auditions, your classes to BE YOU. JUST YOU. Crazy/imperfect/funny/sad/quirky/whatever YOU. Be the person you only show your best friends. You're gonna have more success and you're gonna have more FUN doing it. If you need evidence that this works, look at our cast. It's a stage full of people being and owning exactly who they are. The good, the bad and everything in between. 4 short questions: 1. Favorite T.V show(s) Family Guy 2. Favorite movie(s) Midnight in Paris, Drop Dead Gorgeous 3. Favorite musical(s) Light In The Piazza 4. Favorite food(s) Levain Bakery chocolate chip walnut cookie Thanks so much for your time Kyle. To finish, what has been your favourite part of working on Kinky Boots? My favorite part of working on Kinky Boots... I think I would reiterate my answer from my favorite moment in Kinky Boots. The joy. Cast, crew, creative team... it's a joyous bunch of people... in a JOYOUS show, that leaves the audience feeling JOYFULL! Joy Joy joy. That's my answer. To everything |