Backstage at NYC's Shubert Theatre for 'Memphis: The Musical'

What's up, guys? Leslie Robbins here. Young Hollywood is in New York City. We are taking you backstage at the Tony Award-winning show, Memphis. Hey, gentlemen, I saw the show. James, what's he calling?

But because you called me.

How come no one's calling me?

I called me for. Because you butt called me.

I didn't butt call you.

You obviously did.

Hold up. Hold on. Wait, wait, wait, hold on. What you mean butt call? First of all.

You you play in your pocket and you butt dialed me.

My I don't put my phone in my butt. You put your phone in your butt. That's nasty. That's real nasty.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

What are you doing?

Hi. How you doing? What's going on? I want y'all to call me because you guys are hysterical.

Well, as long as you put your phone in your butt. We will call you.

It's in my butt. Done.

Yeah. Second guest: Let's see.

Yeah. Gentlemen, I saw the show and it was such a good time, but I think I'm having a better time hanging out in the dressing room with you three. In me. So, all three of you have been with the show since the beginning.

Yeah. Second guest: Very beginning.

Talk about that.

Wow. Um, man, uh, we we started this, uh, journey in North Shore Musical Theater in Beverly, Massachusetts. We always it it seemed like from the beginning it was always like, "Oh, Broadway bound, Broadway bound." You know. But, you know, now we're actually here. I don't know if I would wanna have it any other way. Second guest: They it tried to.

Yeah. Yes. Uh. It it didn't it it work out well.

I wanna talk about that. That's for the next segment. Fast forward, it's the next segment. Tell me that story.

Well, let me tell you. Second guest: I love that last segment though, that was really good last segment.

Butt dialing, yeah, yeah. Always. Because we don't really wanna talk about the show, do we?

I wanna actually mention to you, I read somewhere that you said you wanted to be People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive without the abs.

Yes. I wanna be the first, uh, heavy-set sexiest man alive on People Magazine, because um, these two brothers represent what Hollywood boys look like. I represent what the average person looks like. Um, the average person who eats, uh, a Big Mac and fries and things like that. So, I feel that um, there's a cute teddy bear sexiness about me that would work on People Magazine. You know, I think it works. I feel I feel that I'm just a a teddy bear inside.

Can the real James Igbegbar, please stand up?

I am sexy as hell as a big man and I deserve as a fat person to be the sexiest man alive on People Magazine. Tweet that, Facebook that, it's gonna happen before the year of 2020. Check it. I'm saying it now here on Young Hollywood. Bam.

You won't be young anymore. Second guest: Shut up.

By the time we finish, by the time we get to that year, everything and here we are on Old Hollywood talking to the sexiest man alive. So about booty juice, I mean, uh, butt dial. That's a whole different section.

Well, speaking of being sexy and like the hottest man around.

Pretty much, yes.

Your wife, little trivia, your wife is a molecular biologist.

Exactly.

And you, my friend, have a BA in biology. So really, when when Memphis closes and if, God forbid, you can't find work in the theater, you would go to biology.

Well, if I couldn't find work in the theater, I would move to film and television first. Yeah. And then if that didn't work, I would probably be dead. Second guest: No!

I always started Derek, I was a as a recording artist, I was one too, so. I would love to make a record. I would absolutely love to. Second guest: Let's get a close up of the hands. Can you see this? I'm telling you right now, I wake up and the hands look like this. It looks like I've been to a nail salon. I haven't. My cuticles are Look at compared, this is a comparison.

The gate keeper. Second guest: That's old Hollywood right there.

That's old Hollywood. Second guest: This is yeah, that's old Hollywood.

Okay, gentlemen, we are now on the stage at the Schubert Theater. I actually feel honored. Can you show me around?

Of course. Here is where our band plays all the amazing music of Memphis. If you look back here, you can kinda see all of the rest of the band. And, uh, once the second act opens, these doors open up and our band comes out and literally rolls out on stage.

Is it a well-oiled machine at this point?

Absolutely well-oiled machine. I mean, this it's like clockwork every single night. It's wonderful.

Any mishaps, ever?

Yes.

Talk about mishaps.

Our show is run on automation and which means the computer runs it. So, our stage manager calls the cues and the computer runs the, you know, but like with all computers, like if your computer at home, something may crash. And when the computer crashes, that's when the set decides to do its own thing. We have a scene where, um, our our wonderful leading lady, Montego Glover as Felicia, this comes out and she's singing a song. Well, the computer glitched and this door did not open. So, this door opened and that one didn't. And when this thing rolled out, this crashed into the door. And but our Our dancers are on it. So, as she's coming forward screaming her head off, the dancer catches her, takes her off stage. Our stage manager gets on us and says, "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a technical difficulty," like they couldn't see it. And, uh, we closed the curtain and then literally within 15 minutes, we took the door off, they got it together. Montego was getting herself together and we went right back on with the same song. Everything, boom. And the audience just lost it. They went crazy. Right here are, uh, two microphones and, uh, a monitor. So, uh, that we have our ensemble sings songs here to basically help us on stage. And the fun part is, uh, we our cast is broken up into, uh, Beale Street and Main Street. And Beale Street is the black cast and Main Street is the white cast. And we have some of the most singingest white folks on Broadway. And they sit back here and they sing their faces off while we're out there. And it's so funny was some of the riffs you hear are not coming from us, because we're dancing our butt off and we are tired. So, some of those great riffs you're hearing from white folks back here. But they don't get any credit, 'cause they're back here. It's a black and white thing in this in this in this theater. It really is. It really is. But we love them and it's been great. It's it's our cast is like a family. Second guest: You love white people though.

We love white people. White people are good. We love black people. Is it hey, see, it it works out. Second guest: people can ever say that on camera ever again.

Right. We should say it again. I love white people. I love black people. See, it works. It works. Second guest: There's a little question. I think it works.

No. I think Second guest: Can we hug it out?

Yeah, I think more TV shows should hug it out. Oh. Everybody should hug. Go ahead. Go ahead. Go ahead. So, it's like here we are on Young Hollywood coming back. Didn't think that we really could. It's the Memphis on Broadway, New York City. You're about to see something that's so pretty. So, when you see the show, you will have to know that you're gonna see a really bad-ass show. So, you can see it if it's even on tour, but if you make it to New York, you're gonna love it even more. So, see all the things that you gotta really understand. Ain't nobody rock it like the Memphis band. So, when you see it, who does it beat? It's Jeb and Or. Derek, and then it's me. Yes, the James Egbar, here we on Broadway. That's the way we do it, Young Hollywood. Hey.