Performer Corey Mach plays the “Larger Than Life” bard Shakespeare in the first North American tour of & Juliet. From now until Dec. 15, the Cadillac Palace Theatre is the home for a comedy full of classic text mixed with modern songs. This musical explores the idea of William Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway writing a sequel to Romeo and Juliet’s morbid tale. In this fractured fairytale, Juliet Capulet, played by the talented Rachel Simone Webb, survives to begin again on her elusive quest for love.
A rainbow of representation reigns over this fantasyland as Juliet discovers Romeo is bisexual and she’s guided along by her non-binary friend May on a journey to Paris. The drama revs up in act two as a past love returns on the scene and Juliet wrestles with important decisions in her new life. Popular songs composed by Max Martin are sprinkled in to emphasize points and puns in the script.
The out-and-proud thespian Mach channels the iconic playwright with a dash of humor and witty aplomb that will charm Windy City audiences. His resume includes Broadway shows such as Merrily We Roll Along, Kinky Boots and Godspell. He has toured with the musicals Wicked, Flashdance and Rent. He created the concert series Broadway Sings, now in its 13th year of production.
He talked about navigating his professional and private life while out on tour for & Juliet following opening night in Chicago.
Windy City Times: Hi, Corey. Have you visited Chicago before this trip?
Corey Mach: This is the fourth time I have performed at the Palace. I did Rent in 2007, Wicked in 2010 and Flashdance in 2013.
WCT: Begin by talking about your history of becoming a performer.
CM: I grew up in Cleveland, Ohio. I started at a very young age with voice, acting classes and piano. By the time I went off to high school, I had done about a hundred shows. It was one after another as one show would end and the next one would begin. I became obsessed and found out in high school that I could pursue this as a living. I studied at a performing arts school and then moved to New York
WCT: How did you create Broadway Sings?
CM: About 14 years ago just a few years after I moved to New York I made my Broadway debut in Godspell. I was an offstage standby which meant that when the leads were sick I would go on. I spent a lot of time sitting around and waiting for that to happen, so I started working on this side project.
We began with Broadway Sings Adele and we had a 14-piece orchestra. Different performers would come in to sing unique arrangements of various songs. It has now morphed from two shows a year to around 12 shows a month.
It still keeps running in New York while I am on tour and there’s a whole staff making it happen. It’s a lot of fun!
WCT: Is there one artist you would still like to see featured?
CM: I’ve become a big Billie Eilish fan this year and that would be interesting.
WCT: Is Broadway Sings good practice for a show such as & Juliet?
CM: Yes, it’s a similar vibe for sure.
WCT: Is this the first time & Juliet has been on tour?
CM: Yes. We opened in September and the show has run on Broadway for two years. Now people can see it across the United States, and that’s fortunate because it’s a show that should be seen in small towns as well as big towns like Chicago.
WCT: Do you hear from fans who have seen & Juliet?
CM: Many people talk to me at the stage door and tell me that they knew nothing about the show and now it’s their new favorite musical. Just to have them leave the show with a smile on their face makes & Juliet an exciting thing to be a part of.
WCT: Aren’t all the songs from the catalog of Swedish songwriter Max Martin?
CM: Yes, Max Martin has been writing songs forever. The first song the audience hears is from 1999, and the most recent one called “One More Try” is an original ballad sung by Romeo and Juliet in act two. The songs span his long career, which is an extraordinary feat for one person. The amount of number-one hits he has now surpasses The Beatles and it’s crazy that many people don’t know his name.
People will come to the show and know every single song. There are a lot of songs in this musical, and it’s jam-packed with hits. People rarely know every song in other jukebox musicals, but people my age know about 90 percent of the songs performed in & Juliet.
WCT: Max recently wrote Ariana Grande’s Eternal Sunshinealbum, so the hits keep coming.
CM: It’s my favorite Ariana album of all time. A huge reason I wanted to do this show was because I love that record.
WCT: Have you seen the Wicked movie yet?
CM: I saw it twice and I loved it so much! It was a special thing to be a part of Wicked and to see it be made in a multimillion-dollar way. The original musical spared no expenses but to see it in a film setting was brilliant in the way it was adapted. It was everything I had hoped for.
WCT: There have been recent issues with the audience singing along at the movie theater for Wicked screenings. People tend to do that similarly with jukebox musicals like & Juliet. How do you feel about people being vocal while watching these shows?
CM: People shouldn’t sing in the theater. I’m going to hear Cynthia Erivo’s voice, not someone sitting next to me.
I’m not a huge fan of people singing out loud when I am onstage. There is no need for audience interaction unless it’s asked for. There are moments in & Juliet where we ask for it and we love it when the audience responds.
WCT: In the show & Juliet there’s a large amount of queer content. Is the writer David West Read possibly gay?
CM: No, he’s with Annie Murphy, who played Alexis in Schitt’s Creek. They both came to the show two weeks ago when we were in Buffalo because they live in Canada. He’s awesome and very down to earth.
WCT: What have you learned about Shakespeare while playing him?
CM: The Shakespeare that exists in this show takes a lot of liberties with the real person, just because there is not a lot that people know about Shakespeare. I read many books about him and most of them started with conjecture. The way to learn about him is through what he wrote. Much of the material I had was found in David’s text and luckily I didn’t have to do a lot of work, because it’s funny on the page no matter who says the words.
WCT: So possibly in Shakespeare’s case he was gay.
CM: We don’t know and it was written about in some of the books I read. There are clues that he may have had a younger guy on the side. Some of the sonnets may have been written about his lover. We may never know though.
WCT: Talk about the nonbinary character of May played by Nick Drake.
CM: The part is written really beautifully. They have their own intricacies and nuances in a subtle way that doesn’t make them a caricature. Audiences need to see that nonbinary people are not a monolith existing in someone’s imagination. This show encapsulates that they are real people.
WCT: How was the Kinky Boots experience?
CM: It was my third Broadway show and the first one where I was onstage the whole time. The first two I was standing by for the lead roles, so I was waiting in the wings.
In Kinky Boots I understudied the role of Charlie Price as well as playing a supporting role. It was the last year of the show that I did it, so they were stunt casting the lead. Pop stars would come in and I would play their best friend or go on when they were out. I met eccentric, beautiful men who played an iconic role and then understudied them.
I closed the show and everyone usually talks about opening nights, but they sometimes forget about closing nights. Closing a long running show is the most electric thing to ever experience. Everyone who has invested their time and money is there to cheer people on. There are standing ovations and entrance applauses. I loved being in Kinky Boots.
WCT: You went to the Tony Awards for Merrily We Roll Along?
CM: Yes, that was my first time being at the Tony Awards. We weren’t even supposed to be there, but everyone banded together to make sure the ensemble would be a part of it. They won and it was the most amazing night. We closed out the show a month later on a high.
WCT: What is your favorite musical?
CM: Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party.
WCT: Did performer Shoshana Bean officiate your wedding?
CM: She didn’t do the vows, but she did sing us down the aisle. When I saw Wicked in 2005, she was on for Elphaba. I was 17 at the time and she eventually grew to be a really good friend. She was a guest at my wedding in Mykonos last year and I asked her a few months prior if she would sing as well. She obliged and it was incredibly surreal. I have been a fan of hers for so long and to have her be a part of a special day in my life was wild.
WCT: How is being a newlywed out on the road?
CM: The last time I toured was 10 years ago with Flashdance. I was not married and did not have a giant dog. I did not have a house then and my business was not what it is now.
It takes a lot of calibrating, trust and FaceTime chats. He comes out to the show often and will keep coming throughout the tour. I was on vacation last week so everything is going really well.
Wherefore art thou tickets? Try broadwayinchicago.com and for further information on Mach’s music project visit broadwaysings.com.