Chicago on Broadway's newest star, Sebastián Yatra, may be primarily known as a singer/songwriter. But he actually was inspired to sing because of musicals. In an exclusive interview with Playbill, he said he wanted to become a singer after doing a school production of High School Musical when he was 12 years old.
At the time, his cousin was auditioning for the school play, and Yatra decided to come along. "I had never sang in my life consciously, but I saw him singing well, and I was like, 'I gotta beat this kid,'" Yatra says with a bit of cheek. "So I started singing, and I was like, 'Oh my voice isn't that bad. I'm gonna try out.'" Yatra got cast as the lead, Troy, and the rest is Latin pop history. See Yatra discuss his theatre roots, and why he wanted to play Billy Flynn in Chicago on Broadway in the video above.
Yatra will play Flynn through December 22. Yatra is a two-time Latin Grammy winner, who Disney fans may know as the singer of the song "Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto. On November 28, Yatra will also perform at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Yatra stars opposite Chicago favorites Bianca Marroquín as Roxie and Kimberly Marable as Velma Kelly. The show also stars NaTasha Yvette Williams as Matron “Mama” Morton, Raymond Bokhour as Amos Hart, and R. Lowe as Mary Sunshine.
The company also includes Tia Altinay, David Bushman, Jeff Gorti, Chelsea James, Jaquez, Mary Claire King, Marty Lawson, Joseph London, Barrett Martin, Sharon Moore, Drew Nellessen, Celina Nightengale, Kristen Faith Oei, Denny Paschall, Jermaine R. Rembert, Mikayla Renfrow, Rachel Schur, Michael Scirrotto and Jayke Workman.
Currently celebrating its 28th year on Broadway, Chicago has also hit many milestones this past year, including 35,000 performances worldwide. Chicago has played in 38 countries including the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, Germany, Japan, Brazil, Sweden, Argentina, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, Italy, Denmark, Holland, Spain, France, South Korea, and more, in over 525 cities, and seen by more than 34 million people worldwide.
With a book by the late Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander, and lyrics by Ebb, Chicago features direction by Walter Bobbie, choreography by the late Ann Reinking, set design by John Lee Beatty, costume design by William Ivey Long, lighting design by Ken Billington, sound design by Scott Lehrer, and casting by Duncan Stewart of ARC Casting.
The current production, produced by Barry and Fran Weissler, won the Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical in 1997 as well as awards for actors Bebe Neuwirth and James Naughton, director Bobbie, lighting designer Billington, and Reinking. The original production was directed and choreographed by the late Fosse.
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