We’re so pleased to welcome author Jeff Adams to TNA today, on the tour for his newest Dreamspinner publication, Love’s Opening Night. We have a character interview to share with you this morning, as well as a chance to win an e-copy of the book, so be sure to check out the details below.
Welcome, Jeff!
Thank you, Lisa for hosting me so I could talk about my recent release of Love’s Opening Night.
Since Love’s Opening Night is set backstage of a new Broadway musical and the lead character, Jeremy, is excited about being part of an original cast instead of being a replacement, I decided to structure this as if it was an article for Playbill. The website often does Q & A’s with performers so I thought it would be fun to have Jeremy answers those questions. Here’s an inside look at Jeremy from Love’s Opening Night.
Q&A with Jeremy Steele
Jeremy Steele has appeared on Broadway in Wicked (Ensemble, Fiyero, understudy), Newsies (Specs, Citizen of New York), Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Raccoon, Driver, Ensemble) Priscilla Queen of the Desert (Ensemble, Benji understudy), West Side Story (Action), The Little Mermaid (Ensemble). Off-Broadway he’s appeared in Avenue Q (Ensemble, Princeton/Rod understudy), The Fantasticks (Matt).
Full given name: Jeremy Christopher Steele
Where you were born/where you were raised: Tarrytown, N.Y.
Zodiac Sign: Cancer
What your parents did/do for a living: Dad is an accountant and Mom is a chemist. It’s a mystery how they ended up with a son in musical theater.
Something you’re REALLY bad at: Driving a car. I get really tense, which means I go really slow and piss off everyone around me. I think when the Big Bang Theory writers decided what it was like for Sheldon to drive, they had someone like me in mind.
First Broadway show you ever saw: Original Broadway cast of Miss Saigon. I already knew I wanted to be on stage from years of watching the Tonys and being in school musicals, but seeing that story on stage sold me on it even more. I sang “American Dream” for my high school talent showcase that year.
If you could go back in time and catch any Broadway show, what would it be?: A Chorus Line. The story and the dancing are incredible. I’ve seen revivals, but I imagine the original cast was magic.
Current show you have been recommending to friends: Hamilton, of course, Falsettos (see it before its limited run ends!) and Waitress. Off-Broadway gotta give a shout out to Sweet Charity. Sutton Foster is amazing!
Some favorite musicals: Too many too list! Bridges of Madison County, [title of show], Ragtime, Sweeney Todd. I could go on and take up all your space.
Your personal vocal idols, living or dead: Norbert Leo Butz, Steven Pasquale, Freddie Mercury, Audra McDonald
The one performance – attended – that you will never forget: The Signature Theatre revival of Angels in America in 2010. Every aspect of it was breathtaking.
Most played song on your iPod: There’s a tie between Queen’s “The Show Must Go On” and Celine Dion’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now.” What can I say, I like big songs.
Last book you read: Every Day by David Levithan. A friend turned me on to his writing recently and I can’t stop reading his books. Where were these when I was younger?
Must-see TV show: Any superhero show on the CW. Those are too fun. And, This is Us. The writing on that show is beyond anything else happening on TV right now.
Last good movie you saw: La La Land. Simply sublime.
Performer you would drop everything to go see: Audra McDonald. I’d see absolutely anything she does.
Favorite or most memorable onstage role as a child/teenager: I was Birdie in tenth grade and I had so much fun singing “One Last Kiss.”
Favorite pre-/post- show meal: Pre-show I don’t each much, but after I’m filling up on Chicken, broccoli and rice.
Pre-show rituals or warm-ups: Stretching and more stretching. The dancing in Love Crossings is rigorous and I’ve got to be ready for that.
What drew you to Love Crossings and what has been the biggest challenge so far?: I’ve wanted to be in an original cast for a while now and I liked this show’s different takes on love. The challenge, as I mentioned above, is the dancing. The choreography is intricate and there’ve been quite a few obstacles to over come with it—but it’s going to look and sound amazing on stage.
What has been the most fun or fulfilling part of this project?: Creating a character from scratch. My role didn’t exist when the show was in Boston. I’m one of three new actors in the show for Broadway and while it is an unnamed ensemble part, the character does have a small arc that’s been fun to explore.
Worst flubbed line/missed cue/onstage mishap: I’d just finished with the closing company of The Little Mermaid and was lucky enough to go right into West Side Story. I had a week of rehearsals after Mermaid closed and then went into West Side. As I danced on stage the first time, the only lyrics I could remember were from Mermaid. Luckily I had the good sense to keep dancing and not sing out loud. My brain caught up after a verse, but it was a nightmare. Thank God I wasn’t supposed to sing a solo.
Leading lady role you wish you could play: Evita
Career you would want if not a performer: Believe it or not, I got my mom’s love of science so I might’ve followed her path.
Three things you can’t live without: My friends and family, good food and good music to dance to.
Words of wisdom for aspiring performers?: Live your truth so you can play whatever role you take on.
Title: Love’s Opening Night
Author: Jeff Adams
Release Date: December 28, 2016
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Pages: 48
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Blurb: Can an onstage love story lead to a real-life romance?
Jeremy Steele is a veteran Broadway performer. For his latest role, he’s dancing alongside a man he’s fantasized about for years, TV star Ty Beaumont. Jeremy knows better than to get involved with a castmate, but when Ty has trouble learning the complicated choreography, Jeremy offers to lend a hand. When a rehearsal kiss turns into something more, Jeremy can’t help but wonder what a celebrity like Ty could ever see in a Broadway chorus boy like him. Will a relationship with his crush make it past previews, or can it become a long-running hit?
Buy links: Dreamspinner Press || All Romance || Amazon || Barnes & Noble || Kobo
About the Author
Jeff’s written stories since he was in middle school and became a gay romance writer in 2009 when his first short stories were published. Since then he’s written several more shorts and novels, including some in the young adult genre, and he plans to keep writing as long as wonderful readers keeping picking up his books.
Jeff lives in rural Northern California with his husband of twenty years, Will. Some of his favorite things include the musicals Rent and [title of show], the Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins hockey teams, and the reality TV competition So You Think You Can Dance. If forced to pick his favorite book it would be a tie between Michael Chabon’s The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and David Levithan’s Every Day.
Jeff is also the co-host of Jeff & Will’s Big Gay Fiction Podcast.
Website || Facebook || Twitter
Giveaway
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