Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang - "The Show Must Go OFF" (w/ Laura Benanti)

Episode Date: September 16, 2026

The unreal Laura Benanti joins Matt + Bowen for a lil' Las Cultch that is performed in exactly the CORRECT key! That means the first ever Maria Von Trapp is in the studio! As well as the first Gypsy Rose Lee, the first Melania Trump, the first Eliza Doolittle and the SECOND Claudia from Nine! The three all come together, forming a trine, to ask... what is the POINT of vacation? What does it mean to be Italian,  not by blood, but by love? What is the backstage etiquette when your friend is in a show that is awful? When is it just too many mugs in the cupboard? Also, the story of Tita Papa, the Italian Santa Claus who sleeps with your wife, how Laura broke her neck committing onstage, and what it was like to experience Sleep No More alongside a terrified Patti LuPone. All this, the impact of the Into The Woods PBS pro-shot, liking musicals but loving Sondheim, hosting the Jimmy Awards, No Hard Feelings, "comedic embarrassment" and realizing that your vagina may but be The Portal To Greatness. You gotta head over to www.nobodycaresisacomedy.com and get tickets to see NOBODY CARES, Laura's new stand up show. She's brilliant in every way. Just like you<3See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Visit bell.ca for more details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. The World Cup is over. But if you caught the soccer bug, and aren't sure what to do now, check out our podcast, Big Kick Energy. I'm Cameron Dicker, the kicker from the Los Angeles Chargers, and I'm here with Timmy Tillman,

current L-A-FC star player. So, we know a little something about kicking balls. Each week we'll tackle things like who's winning the Premier League this year. What do you think is harder? Scoring a penalty kick or scoring a field goal? Join us each week for a quick chat with your soccer-loving bros about the best sport in the world.

Soccer. Just don't tell my coaches I said that. Listen to Big Kick Energy on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Hey, this is Robert Lamb. And this is Joe McCormick, and we're the hosts of the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast. This week on the show, it's Star Trek. So we're going to be talking about the Borg all week long. Are you ready to get some probes put in your flesh?

That's right. Tune in. Resistance is futile. We're going to talk science, the culture of the Borg, various interpretations, and we're going to talk about Star Trek First Contact on Weird House Cinema on Friday. Listen to Stuff to Blow Your Mind on the Eyeheartedly. radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Hey, everybody. It's me, Matt, and my tour is on sale now. This time, it's really Christmas. You can go to www.mattrogersofficial.com. Podcasts are a visual medium. If you're not watching

me right now, I am holding in my hands my vinyl. It's called Have You Heard of Christmas? The answer to that question is coming. At this time, it's really Christmas. I'm playing all over the country and in London and in Canada. That makes it a world tour. Harry Styles, You're on burn notice. I'll see you soon. Look, man. Where? Oh, I see. Wow.

Bowen, look over there. Wow, is that culture? Oh, my goodness. Wow. Las Culturistas. Ding dong! Las Coulteristas calling. Do you know what I realized today?

What? First ever Maria Von Trapp in the studio. Holy shit. Get into it. Get into it. Remember this? Remember this move? Yeah.

Who could forget? Who could forget? forget. What's more iconic? This? Or the spin? Oh, that's really hard. This spin is on the poster, the cover. Yeah. It's really tough. I don't know. This is Bowen's culture. Well, yeah, and this is up until pretty, oh, so Matt and I did years ago do a cultural exchange where I watched Jaws for the first time the same weekend that he watched Sound of Music for the first time. This podcast is a story of two people who have so little in common on face value. Yeah. Oh, but then friendship. Friendship. Friendship.

Brings them together. And through shared, through shared cultural osmosis, does that work as a bunch of words together? Shared cultural osmosis. See? Is it a little redundant? S-E-O.

No, S-E-O. Isn't that a business thing, S-C-O? S-E-O. Got it. This is why. This is what I'm saying. You see? You see?

Okay, this is our first Maryvon Trap. This is our first... Gypsy Rose. Louise. This is our first... Melania. Melania. This is our first...

Oh, Eliza Doolittle. It's our first Claudia. No, it's our second Claudia. Who was our first Claudia? Nicole Kidman herself. Imagine finding out the role that you played on Broadway. They're making a movie. You say, who's doing it?

They say Nicole herself. Fergie. Yeah. Down a third. They're saying Nicole's doing your part down a third. But down a third. But down a third. Okay.

This is exactly what we needed today. I'm sure it was gorgeous. You didn't hear it. You didn't see. Ah! Okay. This is too good. Our guest is doing her fresh off an incredible Edinburgh run.

Yeah. And an amazing run at the Manetta Lane. Oh, you know this lane. We're not calling by the other name. Hey, Drury Lane. You're on burn notice. All lanes. You're on burn.

Penny Lane. Have some disrespect. That's from almost famous. Oh. Sort of a wild left. No, I thought you were referencing Beatles. Penny Lane is in my ear. You can see her at Baltimore Center stage, September 18th through 26th, then Los Angeles, coast to Mesa, Boston, Massachusetts.

And don't you worry if you're in Arlington, Virginia, in April and May. A lot of worries happening there. We want you to stop. Put those worries to the side for just now. You can see her show. Nobody cares. No, I'm not saying that nobody cares. A lot of people caring about the show.

It's the title. It's the title. silly. Nobody cares. Directed by the great Annie Tip. Oh, wait. I just actually had a palpitation. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because whenever I hear the name Annie Tip, I get a positive burst. You'll hear about it a second. Okay. That's just the tip of that conversation. Oh my goodness. Anyways, she's a Tony winner. I fucking love her. I saw her host the Jimmy Awards in 2018. Which you just did last year. There's a legacy. The live stream commenters said I looked dead-eyed and didn't want to be there. And that is not true.

I guess I just read as Hey, can I say something out there? Don't read the comments. Don't read the comments. Then you walk away from an incredible experience with just that poem. Oh, no, no, no. I'm just saying that because I had the time.

I say that because I had the time of my life. We'll discuss this with art with our guest. Everyone please welcome. The best of the biz. Laura Benanti! Thank you so much for having me. Are you kidding? Oh my gosh.

This is the best day of my life. I'm so excited. The background on this is I go to the tone. So we go to the Tony Awards. We're nominated. What? What? We didn't win.

No. But congrats, Shmigadoon. And I, and I, congrats, Lorne. I'm at the, what was that elegant party that we all go to? Carlisle. At the Carlisle. So there's a lot of hobnobbing happening. So much hobnobbing.

And I'm there with Melissa, and I say, there's one person I want to go up to when it's Laura. Banana. Yeah. And I did in that way. And then me, you and your husband almost all went home together. My husband has a problem. He's going to leave me, probably.

I'm into it. He is such a fan. And when you guys walk. up he was like oh my god oh my god but then he was doing like this straight guy like hey man yeah oh it's so sweet but then three more tequila's and he was like i just got to tell you kid i love you i mean i love you i'm a huge fan and i love you and we've only been married for 11 years and we only have two kids and i will burn it to the ground yeah it was it was a lot it's it felt doable i know he was available to you yeah if you guys split i'll take you oh my god

yeah all right patrick bye Can I tell you what we would have figured out right away, like a group vacation? Oh, that, yes. I can see the four of us all having different niches and partnering off in different, like, twosomes for different activities. He wants to hike and I want to read. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You want to read, he wants to hike.

Yes, no. He's like, I want to be busy. I was like, we are busy. We're busy at home. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Vacation is not for busy. A hundred percent. And talk more about the, and I'm not, I don't want to challenge or push back on this.

Okay. we have reading at home wouldn't you say? But not the time, but not the time. Thank you for reading. And that's why, because people do give me guff sometimes about like, you're playing video games on vacation, you're reading on vacation, go outside.

And I'm like, no, I kind of just want to stay in my room. Yeah, that's, to me, that's the point of vacation. To do whatever I want to rest my body, mind, and soul. Yeah. Period. Period. You don't hike. What will sort of happen.

I remember we went on a vacation. We went on a very nice vacation. Like, was it last year? we went to Sicily. Yes. And he reads, and I just sort of sit there with a grenida and stare at it while I eat it. And that's a good binary tool. It's a really good binary.

I guess I'm more sort of Patrick. Yeah, you're the Patrick. Yeah. My very hot Italian cousins have a winery in Sicily called Benanti Winery. Okay. And do they have to deal with the volcanic ash on a regular basis? Yes. But it's why it's delicious, so it's worth it.

So can we tell you the story of our, we're so excited to go to Taramina? Yes. We were so jazzed. We're at the airport. We're like, let's go. We're going. We're in Amsterdam for our friend's birthday. Then we get to the airport.

We get to the gate. They say, please. There's no flight information for your flight. We're like, what? What? We say what? Then we go find an agent. Hold on what?

Hold on what? We say what? And then we go to a gate agent at the help desk. I'll play the gate agent. And we go, hello, excuse me. We were just wondering, is there any information about the flight into Termina that's boarding in about five minutes? It is because the eruption. This is the reason.

This is the reason. So Dutch. Oh, wow. So Dutch. So certainly we wouldn't open a winery there, though it seems like they're already in process. They're driving. They've been there for, I want to say, millions of years. Well, the soil is amazing.

The soil is gorgeous. Just don't be near the volcano or you will. Have you performed at the winery? I've never been to Sicily, but that is my dream. You have to go. I want them to bring me for Christmas and I'll sing like, Tet do-D-D-T-Rat-Pu-T-T-Rat. I love that one.

That's a good song. It's a gorgeous song, but it's all the same. They're all the same song, but then I'll be like, Christmas, Tita Papa. Tita Papa! That's what they call Santa Claus. Tita Papa. That's Rooloculture number four.

In it's in Italy, it's Tita Papa. He comes in and sleeps with your wife. Oh my God. Good for him. Oh, I'm happy for both of them, actually. My wife, she gets nothing. She gets nothing. I'm Patrick's Teeth to Papa.

That's right. I'm sleeping with you. That's right. Now, do we feel as a culture we're in America, we're a little too hard on Italians? No. We do a little gavel, like, we call it. They're fine.

So, they can handle it. For a long time. Yeah. And also, Italians, we can, be racist. Yeah. That's true. You know what I mean?

Not we. Not we. No, no, no, no. Not we. Other ones. Just everyone else. Yeah. Certainly.

Just my extended family. I'm just going to say, I don't think he would have an issue with me saying this. Okay. But anytime you would write like, um, Italian guy as like some kind of Italian meatball gabagool thing into an SNL sketch. Yeah. Or Michael hates it. Why?

I think he has a sensitivity to Italian ex-culture. It's the kind of white people. It's the kind of older white man who still thinks, you know, they were very racist towards Irish people. That's right. You know what I mean? They were. And they were.

To be fair, they were. They were. But to sort of stop conversations and be like, hey, this actually is a problem. In the year of our Lord, 2026, feels like not necessarily the thing. Also, Irish and Italians were all one now. Yeah. If you are Italian, you're Irish. If you're Irish, you're Italian.

Right. You know what I mean? That's what we did. It's just Catholic and just you'd be everybody did it. Yeah. And now we're this. Yeah. It's cultural osmosis.

Everybody did it. And now they do this. And now they do this. You know what's funny? This is crazy though. You're the only Italian here. Can I tell you something? I'm not Italian.

What? So, okay. So when I was a year and a half. The Nanti is as Italian as Basel. You better explain this one. Hear me out. Here we are. My original last name is Vidnovick.

Slavic. Slavic. Oh, yes. Right? So here we are. And then my parents got divorced when I was at a year and a half. I'm fine. And my mom remarried, Sal Bonanti, Salvatore Benanti, and I eventually took his name.

And now I'm Benanti. So then would you say that you like absorbed through shared cultural osmosis, the Italian vibes from Salam? I am Benanti by love, which is what they say. I'm Italian by love. Amazing. And by culture. I mean, it's all I was surrounded by.

I don't have any like sort of shared slavis. shared Slot. You lied to get cast in nine. Yeah, but I sang it up the third. Yeah! Oh my God! Nicole's in every possible movie right now. I think she's fine. No, she's doing amazing. If you're not Nicole Kidman, you are not working. No, I know. Okay. Let's talk about this because you touched on this on the downside with Joan Marco. It's like... The best. The best. I love him. So the movie stars are taking the TV jobs. The TV stars are taking the theater jobs. Yes.

I do feel I feel like after I'm done doing my little stint with O'Mary I'm like I'm not I can't gentrify if you I can't gentrify Broadway

You know you're As a gay man You're a lot What do you mean? I just I don't think As a gay podcast As a gay podcast As a gay man they've been doing it

For a century You're the core bit Yeah Podcast into Broadway Feels like the wrong Pipeline Like Broadway is Right now is the repository

For all of it Which is so not fair Well Speak for yourself. I'm doing Claudia in nine next. Singing it up to fifth. Okay. Oh yeah.

Just whistle tones. You can't even hear it. Really good. That's honestly that was really strong. For 10 a.m. peek behind the curtain? That was gorge. I like it.

No, I think the thing that scares me for like middle class actors, which is me. Yeah. Where I'm like, okay, so the parts I used to play, now like TV stars are taking those jobs. Yeah. Where I'm like, you're better than that. But there's not enough jobs. And so then, you know, then people, and also I think people go to Broadway to, like,

legitimize themselves, which is interesting to me. Because as a Broadway actor, I feel like when I auditioned for TV or film, they're like, is she going to do jazz hands? Like, is she going to be big? Like, I've had so many people be like, you're a good actor. Like, they're surprised. And then I'm like, the only difference is like I have,

I can also sing. It doesn't like make me bad at acting usually. I love. Or like a smactor. Right. You're going to, I am a smactor. Let's be real. I mean, no, but like as Melania, that is likely the biggest performance.

Well, that turned into like a borsed bell bit. Absolutely. Well, she's not living. She's like schmiving. So you have to schmacked. Well, she's a robot. I mean, I made her into something completely lovable. Thanks.

I didn't mean to, but. No, I know. I know. It's tough, though. Like, that just, it hit and then it kept hitting and then all the way to the end. You know what I mean? I'll take it. You guys have both played, um, Melanie.

iconic current day tormentors of the culture. You as JD Vance. You were so funny. Oh, no, we're not talking about my J.D. Vance. It's so funny. He doesn't think it's good. It's awful. No.

I hired a dialect coach and it was still bad. It doesn't. That's what made it funny. I don't know. I'm really proud of George Santos. I feel like I really, it should have gone to Galphinactus. JD Man should have 100% gone to Galvanakis.

Honestly, I really loved it. And I'm not just saying that. I thought it was really, really fun. No, no, you're doing that thing where at, like, you know, when you see a friend at a show, you're supposed to, no matter how, no matter what you thought, you're supposed to see it and go, I loved it. I don't do it. You don't go back. I don't, I don't say that was amazing. So what do you say if it was like, like a C plus?

I'll be like your performance, like you were great. Yeah. And usually they are. I don't have friends who are not great. You know what I mean? Yeah, totally 100%. So, and if they weren't great, I just leave and we're done. Yeah, I get that.

So, no, I mean, I just, I don't want people to lie to me really. Yeah, and you can tell. You can tell. Oh, my gosh, when they comment on the set, that set was. Oh, the set. You're like, I will skin you alive. Just don't come back. Would you prefer that people just don't come back at all then?

Yes. Yes. Yeah. Please don't come back if you don't like it. So I will not name this person. but I was doing a play on Broadway and this famous actress was looking for another actress in the show

she popped her head into my dressing room and was like do you know where so-and-so is and I was like oh I think she left and she went okay and left and I was like she can say that she looked for her right and I'm just like taking my wig off just like crying

I think she left it was amazing but I was like honestly that's iconic that's iconic wait you were were Eliza in my fair leader. I was. Okay, I just, I just wanted to make sure I didn't get that wrong. Oh, no, no, no.

My dream roll. Well, okay. And God, I know you get asked this all the time, but like, I think you, you open up a really good conversation with Mickey Joe. Yeah. Where you were like, I would do a job split, a job share with like a Kelly O'Hara. A thousand percent. If it were like the Countess and Sound of Music or something like that.

Yes, a thousand percent. So I think this should be, this is a really interesting model that I think I know nothing about the biz. I think that it's just so much. I'm so terrified for each shows a week. And I feel like, and I'm childless and under, you know, a certain, my bones are still, although I'm kind of falling apart. But he's a drug addict. I'm a drug addict.

Well, yeah, obviously. Are we all? Yeah. Yeah. But talk more about this because I feel like this is, this can be something. I think what's hard and what people are scared of is that there will naturally be comparison. Yes. So that will be hard for us.

I think that's the part that will be hard for us. But you guys are like that. Yeah, but like also that's hard. You know what I mean? where you're like so really like actually I saw Kelly I guess a year ago and she sang something we were doing some benefit and she sang so beautifully that I was like in tears and she came backstage and I hugged her and I was like the way that I know that I have grown is I am not mad at you at all beautiful beautiful like I am only happy for you like that's I that's it and she was like I feel the

same way like when I saw your show I felt the same way so that feels nice for growth but I do think to have comparison just it feels ugly of course yeah but but but but But then you're not like breaking your body, which I've broken my body so many times on Broadway. You get to see your family, you know? You get to have holidays. You get to breathe a little bit. And then you get to come back and do the show

and you're like fresh and happy to be there. Yeah. Yes. But I do think a limited run of eight shows a week in something as brilliant as O'Mary. I think you're going to love it so much. I really think you are. I'm so excited. I'm so excited to see it.

I did have to fill out an accident report yesterday. I fell on my hip. It's fine. On your hip? He is resisting the teachings of one Hannah-Solo who's attempting to tell him how to correctly stage fall. I'm not resisting. He's committing too hard.

Don't commit. Don't commit to you. I broke my neck committing. Wait, that's crazy. Tell us. I broke my neck and into the woods doing a pratfall down a flight of stairs. Cinderella.

21 years old. And I was like, I can do it. I'm 21 years old. And then I broke my neck. And so don't do that. Like, don't. That's the worst. That was like by far the worst body break.

I broke that and then I broke my pelvis when I did women on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Wow. In the air. And I was just like in a harness just like. You passed out in the harness? Yeah. And then Patty Lepone was like, doll, you broke your vagina. Dahl.

And I did. And I did. Dahl. You broke your vagina. You broke your vagina. Oh my God. But so like please you cannot commit eight times a week. I know.

land gently. I will. No, I've learned. And by the way, everyone is like so chill there. They're like, oh yeah,

just, and you know, let us know if you go to the doctor. We'll do like a workers' workman's comp thing. And I'm like, it's fabulous. I'm loving every second of it.

Amazing. You're going to have so much fun. And then the audience, I mean, you're so used to like a live audience is laughing so hard. Not like 900 people. Right.

Right. But the feeling of it. Oh, so good. I'm so excited. I'm so excited for you. But yes, like,

Even for me, who's like a full-on neophyte dilaton, it's like four shows a week sounds great. Yeah. And then I can do this for like two years, you know what I mean? A thousand percent. You would think that that model would exist. Didn't it exist? Didn't Cynthia Nixon and someone switch off a role? But I think they just swapped roles.

I don't think that they like split the time. Which is also like really exciting. I mean, the one thing I will say for producers too is if you have somebody splitting the roles, like, the rules. Yeah. People want to come back. Yeah, people want to come back. So, you know, some people will come see it twice and then write about you on theater

mania. It would be like somehow if someone were to switch Glinda and Alphabet every night. Right, which we've, that was our dream when we were like 19 years old. Well, here's the thing. We hear, so we heard Wicked, you know, they, like, we need to help Wicked. We need to help Wicked. We're willing to do it. We're willing to do it.

Wait, what do you mean we have to help Wicke on? I think after the movies, this is my fault. Oh my God. Bowen, why would you do this? I know. This is my plan all along. Well, Fannie was a very evil gay character. And so one of the things about evil gay men is they want to take Broadway for themselves like us.

Which is why we're saying, this is what started is a germ of an idea of Fannie. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then when they turned Fannie into a gay guy for the film, they made a huge mistake. They did. They exposed. Because then all gay men finally saw Wicked because they wanted to see themselves on screen. That's exactly right. So now they found, how can we take this back for us?

And now it's going to be Matt and Bowen and Wicked on Broadway. I would see that a hundred times Wait, is it really People are not seeing it after Because now they can watch the movie This is what we hear There's nothing like live theater Truly nothing

And seeing that story in one sitting With an intermission is Unbeatable Yeah You know? I've never seen it That's fine You never seen Wicked on Broadway?

Never This is the reason This is the reason I'm gonna go every night I'm gonna go every night I'm gonna go every night I'm sorry Have you auditioned?

Rude No but I mean like have you Offer. The thing is, they'd be so thrilled to have you, but like back in the day. No, what I was... Oh, Matt Rogers! No, bye Laura!

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Because now it's gonna, now, now you've really done it, because now it's gonna transition into the fact that, like, you have played so many iconic roles that it sort of feels like, okay, what are the few that we haven't gotten you in? There must have been some crazy reason.

Nice try. You know what? It's not as bad as when we, Ben Brantley said that Louise was the role of your lifetime. Then I, that I should have died right after that. Yeah. Wait, was that what he implied? No, I think he was, no, I think he was, I think it was nice. It was nice, but I'm like that, he understands what he's doing when he's, when he writes

that. You know what I mean? What do you think he was doing? But like, well, to you, like, for you psychologically, maybe I'm projecting, but you're like, well, I guess I should die. Like, you're like, well, what am I supposed to do now? I agreed. I actually, and I still feel that way where I'm, I'm like, I will never again have an experience like that and that's okay. You were like there. Perfect in it.

Thank you. I will never forget that. I will never forget her son coming backstage afterwards and I'm still in my gown. Wow. And he starts crying and hugging me and he, and I just held him like he was my child, the real Gypsy Rose Lee's son. And I just like held him while he cried and he was like I felt like I was like seeing my mom. Wow. And it was so moving.

to me and I remember thinking in this moment I will never ever have an experience like this again and that's okay brought to you by the spam brand Matt I think we need a new culture award and the category is hungry for more oh I like the sound of that this is something that brings the sizzle it always hits the spot it's been a part of culture for decades the influencers love it it's like the pop star foods it's the spam brand it's always meat for you well especially when it's crispy on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside, and a flavor for every type of food mood. It's like sweet and savory Korean barbecue flavored, spicy jalapeno, and who could forget the one that started this whole cultural phenomenon. Spam, classic. It's great with your eggs in the morning.

It's great with tacos or ramen or really whatever dish that could use some extra sizzle. It's like pop music. It's great anytime, anywhere. I feel that way about other kinds of music, too, jazz. Yes. So if you're, if you're, if you're a delicious dish that's also a cultural icon, look no further than the spam brand. Grab your favorite flavor or try a new one and sizzle it to perfection today in a pan. Spam brand. Sizzle pork and mm. Learn more and get sizzling at spam.com. The long loading times, the glitchy video calls. That's your house asking for better internet.

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Michael nailed letters to dozens of friends and family members to let them know that they had died by suicide. By the time you get this letter, both Petra and I will be dead. Next stop, Wonderland. Patra and Michael were by all accounts, healthy, happy, and in love. Why did they do it? And what did it do to the people they left behind? I would have given a million reasons to not leave this world had I known. I keep coming back to I truly hope that Petra was a thousand percent on board with the plan.

Do you think of him as having killed her? Yes, I do. I hold Michael responsible from my mother. stuff. I'm Leon Nafeck. And I'm Alice Gregory. Together we set out to interview everyone who got one of Patriot and Michael's letters as one married couple trying to understand another. Listen to death of an artist on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. It kind of is like, well, what's so incredible about you is you have this elegance as a stage performer and you are so refined and you have such a serenity on stage and what you do is so beautiful. But then you only

also are this kind of like feral comedian. Thank you. That's the part of me that's real. Yeah, I guess, but that's what I'm saying is it's like, in that way, it sort of is like this perfect role because the scrappiness and sort of the way that you blend in and then the blossoming that happens right in front of your eyes, it exactly was the let me entertain you sequence was the highlight. Among many highlights of that show, it was something I still to this day, remember,

I remember where we were sitting in the first row of the mezzan. We saw a matinee with my parents. I love the first row of the mess. Where is that during the jimmies when you hosted? And you killed it. And then the next time that you would kill it in this way was when you had your one-liner set for Jimmy Awards. So I went with Joel Kim Booster, Brandon Scott Jones.

Oh my God, amazing. And we were there. Sabrina and... Wait, why? Sabrina Assel. So she was the girl who did George Clooney. And I don't mean. for that to be the claim to fame for her.

Yeah. And she was a finalist. Yeah, no, I know. Amazing. It was such a triumphant moment when you called her name. Yes. Like every, it was like obviously the, like, the, what are they, what are we supposed to call? We're not supposed to call them kids.

We're supposed to call them. We're not. No, no, they were very strict with me. They're, don't call them children. Don't call them kids. Because they, um, they're nominees because it's like, they want to. They're a kid nominees. Excuse you.

They want, and you can say that as a young lady. Like, it's like, what are we pretending that they're not children? I think this is very refreshing because especially because you started, you were, you were incredibly young. You've been on that boat with them. Yes. So thank you. No, but also like, be called kids for as long as you can be. Yeah.

Period. Stay a child. Well, you can be a child. I know. Why do we go? Because we love the jimmies. Yes, I love that. Honestly, I cried basically the whole time.

Yes. It's so moving. And also, I'm so much. I never had that as a young person. Like, I was so other in my tiny, tiny town in New Jersey, the like Alabama of New Jersey. And the idea that there were other kids out there my age who loved it as much as I did, like it made me feel so excited and happy. And they're so talented.

So, walking, talented. And you also, my most favorite thing about it is you see them really have a community. A thousand percent. That's what's so irreplaceable about it, I think, is that like you see, and again, as you were saying when you embraced Kelly O'Hara, they are having an experience so early where. They get to be happy for everybody. Because so few of them get picked as finalists, they actually can be excited, I think. Guys, hold on. Okay, go off.

What do you think? I cannot imagine that that is the undercurrent. Yeah. Is it, are Jen, are they alpha or Z? or what are they? They're like Z alpha cost. There's alpha. Oh my God, it's crazy to think.

So like maybe they are so evolved and they're also like robots are going to kill us all, whatever, it's fine. We're just going to love each other. Maybe that's what it is. But I can't really imagine that as teenagers, they're like, I'm only happy for you. Right. I don't know what I mean? Like I don't.

No, totally. They can't possibly be evolved to that point and yet. Or maybe they are. No, no, no. I just, what they were telling me was they were so. sweet. They were just like, this has just been like the best month of our lives. I believe that. The Knicks one.

What? Who cares? Well, they were, they were in New York when the next one. They're still young and confused. A lot of the boys still have to come up and be like, hey, Bowen, so the Knicks one. Oh, God. Right. And then they turn in there like singing from bridges. Yeah. I love a 16 year old boy singing,

You're wandering from bridges. My ex-husband's role. He was incredible. He was incredible. I mean, I couldn't have seen I'd be carried out on a stretcher. But I remember when I hosted the drama desks and he sang it. And then I had to come right back out and be like, you'll be great. You'll be great.

I was just backstage like, la, la, la, la, la. Kelly O'Hara was like, I want to watch what you do when this is done. Oh, my God. In like a menacing way? No, in the best way. Just like whispered into my ear. Like, what are you going to do? I just stood there for approximately one minute.

Fabulous, of course. Frozen. But that was when I I mean obviously at that point you had done Melania but then like it was like

Oh the Jimmy's? The Jimmy's it was like me and Joel and Brandon like watching you as Laura Benanti being like so fucking funny. Well thank you

and that was the birth of Renee Rapp too and Andrew Barth Feldman Yes Andrew whose mother I played in no heart feelings Oh my God and no heart feelings Oh no heart

Yes literally literally that's one of the First of all I firmly believe I know that people were like oh this is a comedy and so they did do that thing

they did with comedies which is like file it under, don't take it super seriously. I think that was one of Jennifer's strongest performance. I agree. I agree. I think every single scene in that movie is a comedy like feat. She's amazing.

When she's just sitting there watching him like play the piano and sing. And they're slowly panning in on her perfect, perfect face. Top five scenes of her career. She has so much going on in her eyes, but she's not moving a muscle. I'm like literally how do you do that? How? Some people got it.

Some people got an eye? She got it. It's in the eyes, isn't it? Yeah, that's minor or dead. No, I was just going to say. You are a liar. No. I've had it with both of you.

Guys, when I sometimes watch myself in a serious drama, I'm like, hello? You're out of your mind. Are you okay? Where are you? I've become like a dementor. No. Like all of a sudden it's just like gone. You want to know what I watch on the train on the way up here?

Yeah, no. Dressing room scene and gypsy. Oh, well, that's different. That's theater. I come alive. That's theater. Give me the lights. She's alive.

Suddenly. No, just even like the line of like, it's for Vogue. Or you're just like, I love every second. I'm like, holy shit. You're doing the press, the Le Bonn press. You're doing, you're using every fucking crayon in the box. Thank you. Anyway, I'm just like, no, it's all in the, which is just to say it's all in the eyes,

like J-Law, like, I don't know. I just, I- She's unreal. She's unreal, but I love that movie so much. I love you and that. It's so good. Well, thank you. It's so great. And also, you guys shot it in Montauk, which is for my Long Island culture.

I mean, Jersey. Obviously. It's the same culture. It really is. And I need people to understand, like, when they make fun of Jersey, they make fun of Long Island and vice versa. Yeah. Like when you take down anyone in the tri-state area. Outside of Connecticut, they're different.

Yeah. Thank you for that. No. Because you're right. With your stone walls. Yeah. And your Ivy. Yeah.

And your security systems. Yeah. Right. Exactly. We're like, take it. Yeah, exactly. We're like, it's fine. So we've sort of stumbled into this area where we could ask the question.

Whoa. Oh, we go. Let me get myself together. Hold on. So this is the part where we ask you, what was the culture, Laura Benetti, that made you say culture was for you. Okay. So I think we need to start, first of all. Oh, my God.

She's playing. There's a photo. Okay. It feels like a housewife reunion. I need to show you. So this is. I got the receipt. I get the teeth.

It is New Jersey. Remember prostitution for? Who could forget prostitution for? Oh my God. Was it Teresa? It was Teresa. It was Teresa. The Druidice. Love her.

Yeah. She was great. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know what? Yeah, yeah, yeah. We're actually open again. We're open because Teresa and Melissa are everything is good. What?

We're moving forward. Didn't they do some really bad things? Um, yeah. I would say her husband did really bad things and she signed papers sort of not like, like, not thinking. I didn't know what I was stolen. She probably didn't. Let's be real.

I didn't know where I was stolen. So I grew up in Kinalan, New Jersey, a very, very small town, very rural. Like I said, nobody cared about theater. I was like a very odd person on the inside. And then also on the outside. So, and this really, in order to tell you the culture, I feel like you need to see me at 11 years old. Oh. A sailor girl.

No, that's me. You think that little tyke is 11 years old? Have you ever met a child? A staler girl. He's never met a child. You look. I am 11 years old. I'm 11.

Who do you look like? A woman waiting for her husband to return from the First World War? This is my grandma's outfit. This is and her sunglasses and what you cannot see unless you go really tight in is that I'm wearing wooden fish earrings. Of course. And I think I look incredible.

I was going to say in so many ways. Here is and also I mean I kid this is my grandma's elbow. Who is the sailor girl? My little sister. Look how cute she is.

People thought I was her mother on a good day. On a grandmother on a bad day. So okay. So there you are. 11 years old. And what formed this was the

1991 PBS into the woods starring Bird Meredith Peters, Chip Sion, and Joanna Gleason. Yes. So that was the moment where I was like, I will do this. I will do this for the rest of my life. Like, how is this happening?

How are these people so talented? Why? Stephen Sontan, I like musicals. I love Stephen Sondon. Yes. One of the first songs I ever learned how to play on the piano and sing was I remember Sky. I remember Sky. I remember Sky.

Can you imagine walking? in an eight-year-old, like singing that, like in the dark with a candle then? I have to tell you. You're talking to us, we can imagine. Yeah. My parents were like, okay, well, just, you come up to dinner when you're ready. And just crying in a mirror. Yeah.

Just like a ghost. Allowing yourself to live lives. You haven't gotten the opportunity to live. And it could only be done in your room with a candle. A thousand percent. I've never been cool. I've never been cool. And it used to really bother me.

And then when I, because I started acting on Broadway when I was 18, I played Maria in the Sound of Music. Yes. I was not a child actor. All of a sudden, I'm living my dream. And I was like, how can I ruin this? And I just like, how do I ruin my dream? Yeah. How do I sort of burn it down?

And how do I burn this to the ground? Yeah. And so I started like, oh, now I want to be cool. Now I want to be like a folk singer and I'm going to like smoke cigarettes and I'm going to like sleep with everyone. Yeah. I say in my show that so many of the men that I slept with immediately became very famous. Right.

And then I started referring to my vagina as the portal to greatness. Yes. Title of that. Yeah. And like, what if I'd kept the greatness for myself? Like, I think about that a lot. Isn't that a movie? What?

Oh, it's sort of like a reverse good luck Chuck with Dane Cook. How dare you know that? I'm so upset for you. So it's the movie where like Dane Cook sleeps with girls and they get married right after. But this is like a showbiz version. This is like a showbizure. Yeah, where they sleep with me and then they immediately like get a show on HBO. Yeah, they book HBO.

And then they're like, bing. So I can't wait to find out after who these people are. I'm going to tell you. But like then I just was like, I need to be cool. And I tried so hard to be cool for so long. And then finally I was like, you've never been cool. You'll never be cool. Stop trying to be cool.

And then I was just so much happier. And cooler probably. Well, because then that's when I was like, oh, but having. Having, like being, having joy through bits and being funny with friends. Like, that to me is my happiest place. Always. You were living a completely singular life where you were 18 years old playing opposite what, like a 70.

Richard Chamberlain was like 73. He was in a 70s. What? It was a different time. Playing Gayorg, playing. Yeah. Yeah. So like.

Oh my God. That's not, I'm not saying that's like cool. No. That's incredible. It's like you wanted a transformative experience outside of this already completely transformative experience. Yeah. Right?

I feel like I was also just like lonely. Because there were no other girls my age. Right. There was just grown men and who gave me like attention. And I was like, okay, so I guess this. And so you're sort of like alone with the responsibility of like being Maria. Yeah, just like a teenager playing a grown woman opposite of 70-year-old. world now. Right. Right. You know? It's a lot. And like living by myself in a studio apartment and like it was

incredible. I don't want to complain like no. My podcast would just be called like actors complaining because I feel like I. We're free. I will. So I don't want to complain. I feel so grateful for the life I've had and it truly like I did get to live my dream. I think I'm mad at myself that I spent like six years of it probably absolutely just like trying to burn it to the girl. But you know, those coincide with like the college years where you're just supposed to be totally the worst version of yourself away and I was and you need yeah but you need you need you need the opportunity to have rebellion and the fact that you had it but also kind of still maintained it I feel like any success I had during that time was in spite of myself really

it was my better angels just being like hang in there girl you are really ruining this for you but we're just going to allow it to we're going to keep it together for a little while but then I pulled it together yeah of course I mean but how would you describe like the ruin of it like the like the low moments if you want like you don't have to get into too much detail it was like self-sabotage it was like you know instead of like what do I like to do what are my hobbies I was like well I guess I'm just going to fold myself into this man boy's life yes a life already in progress and I'm just going to become what he wants his friends are now my friends yeah and you lose yourself entirely.

And then you're not like cultivating yourself. No. And a lot of people don't come out of that mindset. Truth. Yeah, it's really true. And I did and I'm grateful. And but I think that's part of people pleasing, which I talk about in my show a lot too.

It's like being a recovering people pleaser. You want everybody to like you. But if everybody likes you, you're lying to somebody. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That's the thing too is I think that there is something that happens like when you are the child who,

by the way, mine was green finch and linnet bird which which my dad walked into the room and saw me on the youtube watching green finch and linid bird and i remember he just looked at me and like shut the door yeah he knew and i was like oh god so but when that is true you you do kind of go through all the things of like i know i'm weird and i know i don't i know i'm even if what i'm doing brings me joy i know i'm not right yeah yeah and so i will do what i can to make me right for all of you because I know I'm not right. Like my dad coming in and seeing Green Finch and then closing the door,

I was like, yeah, I shouldn't be watching Green Finch. I'm going to keep doing it. But I will in other ways find ways to make it so that I'm easy. Yeah, like I'll pretend to love Dave Matthews band. Correct. You know what I mean? And crashing to me is good. It is a great song.

Yeah. But like sitting in the woods around a bonfire with a hemp necklace, like, no. Like in high school where I was like, all I want to do is sing from passion. Yeah. And I did dress up as Fosca for Halloween. Wow. And I did go trick or treating with my mom.

See, and that becomes, when that becomes cool later, when you find the people to whom that's cool. Our niche. Our niche theater. Yeah. Listen, I'm into it. And I will say, like, making this transition now from Broadway, like people knowing me primarily from Broadway or Melania, but going into more like of a comedy space at 47

years old, like that is also hard where I feel like I, in some ways I'm walking into something where I feel like, okay, maybe I don't belong here. And how do I maintain what I think is funny without trying to be like, I'm going to do what other comedians do? Yeah. And it's like I feel like I've lived sort of a, and I guess we all have or should live a life of consistent like transition. Absolutely.

You know, where you're always putting yourself out there. But you've said it perfectly. It is that feeling of like, I'm other. So how do I not be other? Totally. But I also love it and I don't want to stop. I closeted. Right.

With this move into comedy spaces, it's like, I don't think you should worry about the fitting in or the belonging. There's like, I don't say this as like a dig at the culture, but I don't think there is such a thing as belonging in comedy. As long as you like just, I feel like you do, but as long as you just kind of like get in there and do it, and if you can make a crowd of people laugh, then like you're a comedian.

Yeah. I feel like because I've started doing, like, I opened for Gia Marco. For he, I called him and I was like, do you think. you know I could do that and he was like is are you okay yeah you want to open for me it's like they're rock bottom um but I I want to do more stand-up my show is stand-up that's what it's stand-up with like original songs that I wrote with Todd Almond who's I love

Todd Almond yeah I've known him for a long time now same he's the best last name not known him I've known of him to be clear he's we've been friends for 20 years oh wow so brilliant he has his own one-person show he's a writer he's an actor he's all the thing yes but like I I'm now trying to go out and write other stand-up and do this so that I can sort of prove to people that I can be funny. I'm not just like Claudia in nine singing it in the crack key. Yeah. Yeah.

I'm blacklisted. No. She runs every show. I'll never be on. No, I love her. I think she's brilliant. She is. She is brilliant.

And she has a sense of humor about herself. She does. She does. Also, by the way, you write when you speak, which is like you have, you have jokes. You already have, you have, you're fluent in. in your own brand of comedy so much so that you write when you speak. And so I wonder about like your process. Have you always written?

Like was that always even when you were in a bit of confusion about like what kind of life you were going to have as a younger person playing Maria? Were you always writing and did it always make you laugh? I wrote a lot of very serious stuff which makes me laugh now. And that counts. That counts. Just a lot of poems. Like a lot of really serious poems.

mostly about young girls living in a forest, like looking for themselves and finding themselves amongst trees. That is the funniest stuff. It's absolutely hilarious. I found my old diary the other day. My mom was like, I think you might want to read this. Yeah.

And I was like, did you? And she was like, of course. Because it is material because I don't think there's anything funnier than, well, people who take themselves so seriously. But then when you've written something where it's very clear, you've taken yourself seriously, and you can make fun of your

yourself, that is the basis of, I think, all the greatest material. That is my entire show. Because you're not dragging anyone else. Never. Except for Nicole. Right. And only today. Punching up.

You're punching up. I'm absolutely punching up. No, my entire, like, the favorite, my favorite review of the show was a virtuastic evening of comedic embarrassment. Good. And that's exactly what it is. Like, I only punch this way, you know? Yeah, yeah.

But being able to see, like, the humor in ourselves. To me, that's my favorite kind of humor. Yeah. But yeah, I do sometimes worry, like, that I'm going to walk into, like, one of these comedy clubs. And, like, the seasoned comedians are going to be like, all right, Broadway. And, like, you think you're funny. And that makes me feel scared. Like, if they were to do that, it's like, okay, what else?

You know, just comedian them. Just be like, cool. You've assessed that I have a storied Broadway career and that I'm here. What else? Yeah, no, you're right. I just don't have that fortitude. I don't have that fortitude. I look like it.

Like I look like a Slavic warrior But like deep Like I look like Zina But deep inside I'm like the fluffiest Of the fluffiest I'm a true cancer I'm a crap I was gonna Okay so now now guess what

Pisci's Scorpio Cancer It's the Trine And can I just say the Trine Happens all the time Really? Although is that what the Trine means We don't know There's no way to know

I think the Trine is cancer Scorpio Piscese Can I say trying? Yeah Oh so then Jim There's geometry in there. We're the triangle. Okay, great.

Like, we're separated, like, evenly between the elements. And I'm just saying... It honestly feels like that. We've moved into an era where now, like, pretty much we just invite the guests to be here. And it happens a lot where it's the trine. I'm sorry. Whatever you want to say. Because I felt like it was treen for a while.

I never said treen, just to be clear. I think our friend Moe said Trine. I mean, she knows better. She knows better. Our friend Mo knows better. Wait, I want to go back to... Yes. Of course.

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They're concerned that, one, they have dementia. And the other one is, do I have ADHD? There is unprecedented promise with regard to cannabis and cannabinoids. To sleep better, to have less pain, to have better mood. And also to have better day-to-day life. Listen to Decoding Women's Health with Dr. Elizabeth Pointer on the IHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you're listening now. want to keep talking about the show, but I do want to quickly go back to the PBS pro shot of Into the Woods.

Yeah. Because I rented that out from the library when I was like 12. Who didn't? Yes. Renting from a library. I know. I know. I had a talent crush on this girl, Mallory Stroud, and she was little red and she got cast as a freshman as Little Red.

In your high school production. And my high school production, which I did not get to see, but then I was like, I need to know everything about this show. So Into the Woods was my first on time and watched the pro shot and I was like, but who was Cinderella in that? Remind me in the original cast. Was it Kim? Kim. Kim Crosby. Yeah.

Kim Crosby. And she married the guy who played the wolf. So yes. And now we live somewhere blissful. Don't you love that? Yes. Oh my God. Honestly, that that pro shot is just perfection.

Gleason. Joanna Gleeson. Joanna Gleeson. Yes, of course. I'm not saying like it's all like. I feel like, you know, one thing I watch all the time is Bernardet's stay with me in that because just at the end, at the end, at the end, the perfect phrasing of, with me

literally the way she like sort of waits to sing it like it's her last moment of just like like I understand I've been yelling at you but I'm actually begging you I'm literally gonna cry

like the way she's when her voice cracks on when she's like stay a child while you can be a child wait a minute when we're just saying that earlier

about the Jimmy's kids yeah we did yeah I mean what was like you watched that And like you remember how you felt? I just remember being like, this is it.

This is the feeling that I feel inside of me that I feel like I have to constantly get out. This melancholic sondime music is the music of my soul. And not jam bands. And like I really, this is how I feel inside. And I want to sing it every day. And if I don't get to sing it every day, I'm going to combust. Yeah. Like that was the feeling I had of like, this is not a want.

This is a need. True musical theater feelings. True musical theater feelings, which is why when I turned my back on it for those few years and like sort of mocked it, I'm like, how dare you? How dare you? The prodigal sign or whatever. Right, I guess. Sorry to be all biblical.

No, I love the Bible. I love the Bible. It's my favorite book. My favorite book. Yeah, I've read a cover to cover. I'm actually adapting it for Showtime. Oh, my God. I hear it's doing great.

Yeah, Nicole came in to Jesus. And we are taking on the Bible. Oh my God. It's coming in 2042. Oh, I cannot wait. Linklater's doing it. I cannot wait. He's doing the songs.

Yeah. He's running the songs. And I'm improvising the scripts. Oh, I love it. I never read it. Oh, don't. Yeah. Don't.

Don't. You guys say to all right. It's sad. It's sad. Wait, I think you might have, the way you seem to be zeroing and I'm like folk, jam bands, you know, sitting around to fire. Yeah. I think you have in your future, I predict a Loribanthi Folk album or some acoustic. So I write.

So this is what's ironic. Of course you do. Is it ironic? Todd and I write, you know, all genres because it's like comedy music. Of course. But I do write and I have always written folk songs. So this is you in a way. It is a facet of me.

But if like if when I get to the pearly gates holding my beloved Bible. Yes. Thread. What is it called when you wear it out? Oh. At that point, there'll be a picture of me on it. Obviously. And you know how when they're making a movie,

they often use the movie branding? Absolutely. That's going to be you. If they were like, you can only sing one thing for the rest of your life. Like, obviously, it's on time. Yeah, obviously. Is there a song? That I would sing for the rest of my life.

I mean, maybe I remember Sky. From dust to dust, guys. Ashies to Ashes. What did he have you sing at his birthday? I remember Sky. Oh my God. So no, but so one of his birthdays, like not the pandemic birthday, he had me sing the first, one of the first songs he ever wrote. Which is what?

I can't remember. That's okay. Did you call him Steve? No, no. No. I could never. Yeah. I could never.

Donna Murphy called him Steve. I know. I know. I can't. He told me to call him Steve. And I was like, no. Wow. You are Mr. Sondheim forever and ever.

Wait, what was the song? Oh, God. It'll come. It'll come. It'll come. It'll come. I'm sorry. We put you on the sky.

No, please. But I'm sorry. I sang, and I remember being, they were like, he asked for you to sing it and being like, this is it. I can die happily. It was the one where all of the women were in red. Yes. Marin and Audra. It was so incredible.

It was so gorgeous. I was in black as well I should have been. And I did not deserve red. I don't know. No, not at that point. Wasn't Mary amazing in that too? Oh my God. What a beautiful soul and such an incredible talent.

I know. I mean, absolutely the best. Yeah. And then the set, when it was the pandemic, then I sang I remember Sky. In my parents' bathroom. Acoustics. Yeah. Acoustics.

All right. And then acoustic album. Oh, and then quickly, the hemp, when you just wanted to sing musicals, reminds me of a John early joke, early joke where he goes, I spent way too much time trying to learn trying to like radio head in high school when I should have been using that time to learn how to use my butt for sex. But for sex. he's always been the best his bit about ask app not to track and allow allow allow he is so funny he's amazing he's always he's always been

brilliant too oh my god him and kate yeah no please we're trying to get the both of them in here for the four of us to all hang because we've never done that i know well people be busy now really yeah Get them on here immediately. Anyway, I know, I can't wait. Call them right now.

We'll call them. I want to see that. Yeah. I want to watch that episode. Okay, Annie Tip. Let's talk Annie Tip. I love, how do you know Annie Tip? Okay, so get this.

Annie Tip was the girlfriend of our friend Mike Spence in college. This is years and years and years ago. Do you want to know what Annie Tip introduced me to? And I'm going to her concert tonight. Robin dancing on my own. And so I met Annie Tip and I was dating one of her friends at the time. And she was in the Enharmonics, which is the acapella group at NYU. And so I knew she was one of the great singers at the school because she is.

Yeah. And she goes, I'll tell you who has the most amazing voice and just released a song that is so good. Robin. And it's called Dancing on My Own. And that was when I first heard it. And it was because that cool girl who was talented showed it to me. And then she ended up, I guess, being pretty correct. I mean, it's a defining song of our generation.

A thousand percent. That's the taste that we're talking about here. She honestly could be a DJ. She could. She did the mix that plays as people are walking in the theater. And it makes me seem so cool. And I'm not. There are songs that I'm like, what is this?

And it's so good. She is brilliant. She is kind. She is loving. She is a director who doesn't give you notes. She gives you offerings. Yeah, may offer. Wow.

That is so. Please offer it. Please offer it. And now I want to. Yes. Because you offered. Yeah. Tell me.

You know, she is absolutely brilliant. I love her so much. The combination of her and Todd Allman. And she's also like a gentle. They're gentle and also hilarious. Yeah. And can be like sharp elbowed at the perfect moment. But the kindness, I only want to work with kind people.

That's that whole community though. I will say like Annie Tip, well, she directed our Ars Nova thing. She directed our Ars Nova. We got a tribute from Ars Nova, which was so crazy of them to do. Crazy. You deserve it. Well, thanks. But they had to put together this amazing night for us.

And Annie Tip did her. directed it and there were so many nods to like you know our past like in the like doing underground comedy and theater with all those people and to see them all there from from all those years ago it meant so much to us and they are all so kind so to hear that you're like in that like direct community with them making this is just like I love her so much also I feel like for so many years I was the youngest person in the room and I feel like I still sort of identify as that and now I'm like, oh, I'm older than Annie. Like, Annie's giving me these brilliant offerings and, like, she is younger than me.

And I guess there's just like a weird Gen X part of me that's just like, you don't tell older people what to do. You know what I mean? Is that a very Gen X thing? Well, it's what we were taught. Yeah. It's what we were taught. And then I think we were just like, no.

Yeah. You know, I mean, I'm only Gen X by like one year, but I claim it. Yeah. I claim it. 79, baby. But yeah, she's so. So smart. She is so smart.

Well, like, I guess what's not an authority thing, but it's like, I guess you can still feel like the youngest person in the room when someone who is coming at it from like such intelligence and care. Yes. It feels like it's like an adult or a grown up or someone quote unquote older than you like imparting something and being like maybe you should try this way. Yeah, like a wise person. You don't have to be, you don't have to be old to be wise. all to be wise In the right now That's

Tita Papa Tita Papa Tita Papa He's coming soon He is And he's coming in your wife Yeah That's what happens

That's what happens Tita Papa Santa comes through and gives Tita Papa comes through and breeds your wife That's right Good luck Chuck too Tita Papa That's what the stockings are for

Yeah exactly Oh Dane Cook Come back Dane Remember the movie Dan in real life? No. No. Well, that was Steve, Steve Carell. Steve Carell.

Dave Cooke and, get ready for it, Juliet Benosh. What? What? Never forget the scene in Dan and Real, okay, so this is actually the plot of Dan in real life. You'll never forget the scene. You'll never forget it. I'm going to tell you the plot and you're all going to be weeping. Also, you know who was in this as a character named Pig Nose? Emily Blunt. She's so good. She's too good. And everyone had to start somewhere and she started as,

Big Nose in Dan in Real Life, a film starring Dane Cook. This is what happens in the movie. I'm disturbed. Steve Carell is a recently widowed guy. Oh, yes. And he is on his way home for a holiday celebration, and Dane Cook is his younger brother. Everyone's excited. He's coming home.

On the way there, he runs into, I believe, at a supermarket, a gorgeous and mysteriously, like, sweet, like alluring woman, played by Juliet Benosh. That's right. They have a connection. Right. He goes home. to his, see his family, Dane Cook is there.

He goes, and Dane Cook is obviously Dane Cook and giving that. He goes, you gotta meet my new woman. No. And it's Juliet Benoche. Hollywood, how dare you? And then there is a scene where Steve Korel is gonna play guitar

and accompany Dane Cook while he sings, let my love open the door. And it's supposed to be funny, right? And so Dane is like, Dane's nervous. And he goes, when people keep repeating, oh God, you'll never vote. love and Steve's like yeah come on sing it buddy and Dane finishes singing it and then Steve kind of

keeps going and gives this very gentle lived in beautiful fragile performance of the my love open the door and Juliet gives the most gorgeous French single tier single tier and then it's clear something has happened in the room so they step outside because no one knows they met at the supermarket and Steve is like I'm sorry I upset you and Juliet Juliet turns things him in because she's in love with him. Obviously. And she goes, why did you sing it to me? Who else was he supposed to sing it to?

Why did you sing it to me? Why? But who else was he supposed to sing it to? His dad? Well, because like it was Dane Cook song to perform to. Right, no, obviously. And so then now clearly. Why is the question, why would you sing it to me?

Well, because she's like. Did she put the emphasis on me or why did you sing it to me? Listen, despite how you feel, she's in love with Dane Cook. No. And she wants to keep. the relationship with Dean Cook going. And so now that she's had this connection with Steve Carell, who's actually amazing at drama.

He is amazing. He's an incredible. Whoa, you got to watch the film. And so then now you see. You don't want to watch that. No. Not even with Emily Blunt as pig face.

I might do it for Emily Blunt. Emily Blunt. It's so crazy. But why is she pig face? Because they're talking about, I guess like someone in the movie, this is where it gets fuzzy for me because my love opened the door,

scene takes up so much real estate. I believe that Emily Blount is like a woman that one of them dated that they're making fun of her pig face. And then she shows up and it's like full Emily Blunt's like absolute knockout 10 out 10 to 10, the Star of Disclosure Day. And then you're like, wait what? Was she using an English accent? I don't think so.

I think she was using an iconic. Have you ever done a British accent? Eliza too. Oh, duh. Absolutely. My cockney accent sounds like an Irish person and a Jamaican person got married. Go ahead. Give it to us.

No. I won't. I won. I won. It's that. It's that. It's that. Yeah.

Yeah. Yes. It is giving. He's so good. He's so good. Honestly, you should use that accent and no, Mary. I will.

Think about it. Well, he's prepared to do it Scouse. No, actually, no. God, I'm so embarrassed. It's all that coaching for nothing. Again, me with the dialect coach is a recipe for disaster. I'm like, I'm throwing it all out the window. It's like, oh, that's not working.

Scouse is not working. Just forget. Sorry. Sorry, Liverpool. Sorry Liverpool. Sorry Liverpool. who? Liverpool.

He was prepared. He's actually from Liverpool. I figured that. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I figured that. I feel like accent work is, I feel like you identify as not someone who is good at accents. But y'all are so musical that I feel like it's kind of a similar ear.

It depends on the accent. I feel like a posh English accent I can do. Like an Italian. She can do like a Fraser accent. Yeah, I can't. But if you're like Australian or New Zealand or South African. See, I can't even do that You can't.

I can't. This is how you act today, Australia and New Zealand. You just go, oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. And then with that lilt, you're locked in. You're good. You're good to go.

All right. So we can continue these interview in Kui if you won't. I would rather die. But you did. Did you have to do it Thai? I did. Yes, I did that. It did sound a little bit like Melania.

Of course. It all blends together. I did a spanish. I did a Spanish accent. Exactly. In women on the verge. And they all sound the same. Like,

they're all just general rolled ours. So has Melania DM'd you like crying, laughing, crying laughing, crying laughing, crying laughing. Like, LMAO, can't believe you queen.

I mean, do you? She's DM'd me like, would you like to come? Would you like to swap? Would you like, help? Please,

please help. It looks like you can pretend to be me. Exactly. Exactly. I do wonder if they've seen it. I'm sure they have. TV watching TV. He's so mad at people who do him,

but it is funny to me that he was like, he hates her. Yeah, he hates her. I think he's like, is that her? Like, I think he probably was just like, what's she doing there? I don't know, what the hell of accent? What's Maloney are doing on the TV?

I don't know what it was like, it puts the lotion on her skin. That's why. It's the same. Exactly. Exactly. The most famous impression you could ever do. Oh, wow.

Okay. I don't know if that was pretty good. All right. James Austin Johnson, you're on burn notice. He's so good. He's incredible. He's in, I really, my dream is to do a scene with him. Oh my God.

I really would want to do that so badly because he is brilliant. And I feel like we could now like improv as those characters, frankly. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. We've lived in their bodies for so long. We can get him up to Arlington. Let's do it. Arlington, Virginia. He's from, he loves it.

He leaves in Nashville. Oh, yeah. So that's close? No. No. It's not at all. No. Can I tell you where I'm going in a few weeks?

Yes. Dollywood. Oh, Dolly. Didn't realize it was so close. No, I know. I know. Did you ever, did Dolly ever come to any of your shows?

Did you ever meet Dolly partner? I never met Dolly. But dear friends of mine have met Dolly and are like, she is everything you want her to do. I'm excited for the musical. I am too. I think it's going to be fab. I do too.

It's actually replacing Titanique at the St. James. Oh, is it all the best theater. The best theater. Isn't it such a great theater? Troy did Gypsy. Yes, it was where you did Gypsy. I know. My favorite.

So my first show, my first Broadway show that I saw was Zanadu next door because Mary Testa during Zanadu made made a gypsy joke like kind of broke the fourth ball and was like, well at least we're not like screeching our faces off next door like in gypsy or something and then the audience fucking loses that. Oh my God. Mary Testa, don't talk about yelling. Don't talk about Mary Testa. Ma'am.

It was something along those lines. I know. Mary Testa. It was, I was like, I love it here. I was like I love Broadway. Everyone is having a blast. I will never forget it. Carrie Butler.

So good. Keras. And then I don't think I've ever heard singing like Cheyenne Jackson doing Don't Walk Away. Oh, so good, so good, so good. Oh, because you were working. Right, I was. I was screaming.

I padded the pump. That does suck, though, that like you, when you are someone who is working a lot on Bravo, you can't see the other things. Yeah, that's true. Sometimes when you do like the actors fun performances on Mondays, and that's fun because then it's like all your people. Yeah. The theater communities.

Who are your people in the theater community? Like who are your besties? Oh my God, this is really putting me on the spot. And I don't mean to, we're not excluding anyone. No, no, no. But like, you know, Celia Keenan Bolger. She's the best. Kelly O'Hara, you know that I love.

I was actually, I went the night, that night at the Carlisle. Yeah. Kelly O'Hara did walk by and I think I was like, I had used all my social energy like bucking up to meet you that I was like, Kelly, I just can't. She's an angel. Jesse Tyler Ferguson. Love. The best.

I mean, there are so many people. I feel like to start naming, then you're just like leaving people out. Delightful people. Delightful people. Who I've known now for 29 years, some of whom. You know, it's really crazy to me. And I looked around the room at the Tonys at Radio City. And I was like, whoa, I am now one of the people who's been here the longest.

And it never used to be like that. So many of my people, Marin Macy, Rebecca Luker, you know, Stephen Sondheim, so many of the people who I equate as like my Broadway are gone. Rebecca Luka too. Not to be like a bummer, but it's really, it's been really interesting to me where I'm like, wow, okay. My Gavin. Oh, Gavin Creel. So it's, and again, you know, not to bring everybody down. But I'm like, oh, now there's younger people coming up and coming up to me being like, I've,

I've loved you since middle school. Yeah. And then having, you know, people nominated for Tony's being like, I've loved you since middle school. And saying to myself, like, that is a compliment. It is. Like, stop worrying about your, whatever you look like. And just be like, that is a compliment.

You know what I? Absolutely. It is like, also the thing is it's the great joy of those people to be able to get to say that. And especially to, to someone they look up to. It's how I felt when I met, you know, to see Bernadette Peters and Bernadette Peters be like, hey, I'm like just chatting to me. Chatting to me, Bernardette Peters.

Patty LaPone is in my phone. Oh my God. My daughter calls her Patty the Pone. Patty the Pone. Since she was, since she could talk, Patty the Pone. Patty the Pond. But she still does. Now she's nine.

She says doll. Dahl. Dahl. Dahl. You broke your vagina. Dahl, you broke your vagina. She drank you under the table. Oh my God.

So many times though. That's crazy. She's and then was fine the next day. And I was ill for like three. full days. I like blacked out, woke up in a shower with all my clothes on. Can you possibly drink after a Broadway show or is that a thing where it's like you have to be on your best behaves? I used to. I could when I was younger. When you were trying to burn it down. It's tough. It's tough. Like anything more than a sort of one drink the next day. I just like it's it doesn't work for me.

Drinking does not work for me unfortunately because I love it. Yeah, because I love it too. Were you drinking at the Carlisle that night? I was, but not as much as my husband. Who is about to leave me? No, I've got to tell you, he's also like... This is not going to shock to him. He's handsome. He's very handsome. Full total, total stuff.

Yeah, he's really relaxing. I was kind of like... What do you make of this? I'm down. The long loading times. The glitchy video calls. That's your house asking for better internet. Switch to Bell Pure Fiber,

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I do feel some... No, don't. Why do you? Why? Don't. You're not the kind of... So whenever anyone is like someone as talented as you, I'm like, oh, I'm nervous. And I feel like I'm treading on hallowed ground. Like, yes, that's good.

And you are, but there are other people who should be much more nervous than you to do that. Who have none of those nerves. You are, like, you're brilliant. You are a comedic genius. You really are. I will tell you my daughter Ella, who's nine, her favorite thing to do is we watch SNL sketches. And you are hands down, her favorite.

And she will dissect why it's funny. Wow. Really? Amazing. I love that you have a comedy and her daughter. Talk about that. Both of them. Both of them are absolutely.

Absolutely hilarious. Where'd they get that? I don't know. Probably their dad. Yeah. We don't know it all dad. But literally, so my daughter, I have like a giant tattoo of a butterfly in my lower back because I grew up in New Jersey in 1997.

It was a lot. I almost got that ring around my bicep. Yeah, of course. No, of course. I might still. Or in your ankle. Yeah, yeah. Just like an anchor from a ship.

I will do it now. Because I know you have that. I will get the sun, the sun ring around my bice. Can it have a cross on it also? For your show. For your show. For your Bible show. Like Justin Timberlake. Yeah.

I was like changing in front of her and she pointed to this lower back tattoo and went, do you want that? And I was like, I don't. Do you want that? I really don't. She is so funny on purpose. She also was like very cranky one day, like very, very cranky. And I was like, I'm going to fix this. So I started doing like voices and characters and singing and dancing.

And she puts her hand in my face and goes, the show must go off. I've never heard that. It's brand new. I know. The show must go off. I didn't even know she knew the phrase the show must go on. To flip it. And you know what's beautiful is that she can use that in the inverse context of the show must go off.

You know what I mean? Yes. Like she could be like at Lost Boys the Musical. Yes. And act one could be over and she could turn to you and go home. The show must go off. This is crazy. And she will.

Yeah. Yeah. And she will. The show must go off. These vampires are on one tonight. These vampires. These vampires. Do you want to know what we did to math?

Our friends all went to go see Lost Boys. This is evil. And then our friends, we all took a little bit of an edible. Oh, yes. And then. It's everything better. I can't do scary, by the way.

Oh, you cannot. Me either. No. Scary or blood. This is relevant to the story. I can't do blood. I can do scary. The blood is fine.

blood is fine. Oh, okay. So I turned. So then our friends, my friend Jared and I turn to Matt and we go, Oh my God, Matt, we heard there are like audience plants. Oh, live actors. Like there are vampires in the audience. Because I heard that when you go to Lost Boys, you have to apparently,

you're not going to believe what you see. And so we made up a thing we were like, didn't you sign the waiver on that website? Like we saw we all sign that waiver. And then Bowen goes, oh yeah, because I bought the tickets, I signed the waiver. I signed a waiver for all of that. Because apparently the vampire. can come grab you and take you backstage. No, take you backstage.

And I had been told you're not going to believe what you see. Oh, my God. So then it's intermission and Matt is like, I'm so freaked out. Because. Because of this. And then. A woman was sitting behind us that wasn't there in Act 1.

An older woman sits behind us who was not there during that. Very unassuming. You would never guess she was an actress. And then at that point, I was like, Wait, are there actual audience plants? I was like, I was believing my own. I'm going through it. But first of all, the performance is incredible.

I loved everything about it. Sure. And then there I am the whole time in the back of my mind thinking, and I haven't seen nothing yet because I'm not going to believe what I see. Right. When this woman behind me grabs me. And we did distract because you were like darting your eyes back. And then I think you were so stone to space that you did,

you did turn a job sharp and you went, did you bring your stakes? I was in it. I was like, I really was ready to protect ourselves. Yeah, you have to be. You know, you know when they should have gotten me. When? When I was really enraptured on the whole thing, my favorite part, when Shoshana gets on the thing where she swings.

She goes, I'm a wedding again. And she's like, oh! That's a very good Shoshana. That's really good. By the way, walked up to Shoshana at the Tonys, I said, we are all happy for you for what's about to happen. And what did she say? She said, thank you so much.

She was doing this. She was in gratitude attitude. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because I think she knew she was going to win. Well, but you never know. You never know. You never know. You never know.

So when I, when I did women on the verge of a nervous breakdown, I had won everything leading up to it. Damn. And I was nominated for a Tony and all of predictions. And when they did not call my name, I literally, I went, oh, wow. Jesse Tyler Ferguson within 30 seconds. Oh, wow. texted me a video of me going, oh, wow.

But that could be mistaken as an oh wow, like, oh, I'm so happy for... Who won? It wasn't. It was horrible. Nikki James, who absolutely deserved it for Book of Mormon. Of course. Of course. Book of Mormon sweep. She's genius. Should have won. I was just believing my own hype.

Never do that. Never read the comments. And my response was... Oh, wow. You had already won one at that point, right? Yeah. Yes. I had one gypsy. But, you know, all the leading up to it where you win. Yeah.

Because I was like, I'll never win. Our show is closed. And then everyone was like, I think you're gonna. And I was like, maybe I will. That's.

So you never know. So she. He's the Susan Lucci of the primetime Emmys. I know. Not true. But it is every year, it's always, it all takes this one person to come up to you.

I know. It doesn't matter if they know anything about the biz. They're just like, I think you're going to win. I know. And I'm like, God, you just,

you should not have said that. You should not. Every year they told me I was going to be nominated for an Emmy for Melania. And I never was. And every year I was like, This is serious? I was like, this is it.

And I was like, surely this will be the year. This year. You want to know what though? This is, I keep saying it. Like, I think you probably would like,

I both have been in a much better position had they had a category that is right for it, which is for variety performer. It's weird that there's not a category for variety performer. It's just like guest star. I know. It's guest star.

And then it's like you're competing with people who are like, Imagine like someone who's doing like a guest star on SNL or a performance on a variety show and then they compete with like Jamie Lee Curtis and the bear. Yeah. It's like someone giving a dramatic Shakespeare performance in the category. You know? And then Betty Gilpin won. I'm obsessed. Did you read her book?

Yes. We love her. I love her so much. I think she's an absolute genius. Just a little bit. You guys would get along like gangbusters. We got along very, very well. I just think she is.

is absolutely brilliant. She has the mind of a writer. She is, and she's also just so cookie and doing it for the right reasons. I just love her. I think she's really, I just,

I thought when you were talking about like the immersive theater of it all, I forgot another Patty La Pone story. Tell us. I went to sleep no more with Patty. Wow. So they give us those masks. You know, they give you masks.

And she was like, I'm not wearing this. Of course not. And they were like, you have to. She goes, I'm Patty Lepone and I'm scared. And then we're walking through. No one's talking.

She is talking full voice. Full, full. Are they naked? Is that person naked? Are we supposed to go into that? I don't want to go in that. We're interacting with theater being like, what is it? What is this?

It was the best. She is, I love her so much. Yeah, she's Patty. She is. We saw her on Fire Island at the Ice Palace. Oh, we did. It was a, you should do that. It was, you should, you, I would love to do that.

It was amazing. It was, it was when she was pulling songs out of a hat. Songs from a hat. Songs from a hat. She would just woke over. She would pull out of a hat. She'd go, yeah, number nine. All right.

Yeah. And then it would be like, don't buy it's a barn burner. Don't cry from the Argentine. Yeah. And we were like, ah, gay guys like. In the original key. Yep. Yeah.

Four martinis deep. Four martinis. Coked up. Smoking cigarette. Yeah. In, in. She's a cocaine lady. What?

No, she is not. First of all, what's a cocaine lady? What are you, my grandma? She's a cocaine lady. She did smoke cigarettes. Apparently you have rehearsal for all marriage. So we have to move into, we have to move into I don't think so honey. Oh my God, I'm so sad.

Okay. Wait, but you're so what? I don't. I'm so sad because it's done. I'm sorry. I think you were apologizing. You have nothing to apologize for. I'm sorry that I have to cut things short.

No, okay. So this is I don't think so honey. This is going to be a time. And mine actually was born today. So this is I don't think so honey. It's our. 60 second segment where we take a little time 60 seconds, if you really need to know, and we just sort of, we work out in something in culture.

Yeah. Yeah. In this cathartic way. And I'm ready to do it. Okay. This is Matt Rodgers. I don't think so many his time starts now. I don't think so, honey, that when you're in a rush and your AirPods are in, you don't get

to control the song. So today, I was a little bit in a rush on the way here because the trains decided to be ornery. And so I had to run here And this was the song I knew it, I knew you And I was like, I was like I like this song

But it's never with what you want it to be like when you're in a rush You're in a rush You want to hear stumbling a bed and I stumble in the kitchen But in other country pop ways I was getting I knew it, I knew you And then I'm like kind of singing along While I'm running wild

As it were And then now maybe I'm thinking it was a good song To accompany my run But I was kind of thinking, I was like, it sucks that I can't. We're not technologically advanced enough. Like, AI is going to kill us, but. We can't go like, hey, Siri, play a song that's going to motivate me here. Five seconds.

But instead it was, I'm new. I'm new. You just want to keep singing that little. Maybe I do think so, honey. And that's one minute. I feel like there is technology to skip. You have to know something about me. I didn't think my computer made PDFs until like four years ago.

No, same. No, same. I asked my husband to print things for me. We were in college and I would always tell... He was the director of the sketch group. He had to open up, he had to export files, scripts, all these things. We would be like, Matt, it has to... Can you send out a PDF?

He goes, my computer doesn't make them because of a virus. On a Mac. You're the virus. I'm the virus. It's me. Okay. So, Boen Yang, but now that we worked that out,

This is Bowen Yang's. I don't think so, honey. His time starts now. I don't think so, honey. There are a new element on this set, and I'm really happy that they're here. But overall, mugs, I think there's always a surplus of it. It is the opposite of ice. It's always too much.

You can never have the right amount. See, the mugs on the shelf are already crowding the glassware. Like, it's, you had the gall. I would say there's way too much glassware up there. You had the gall to put the mugs in front of the David Hockey. book, which you know is a prized possession of mine that I brought into the studio. Well, it has to represent us both. Well, and then meanwhile, you get to have your face on that vinyl in the frame at all times.

Tours on sale now. I want, I want just a few little pops of me, and then the mugs are like a virus invading the space. I think, think about this. You at home, Laura Binanti, you got too many mugs in the cupboards. I just know it for a fact. I know it. How is that universal? It's crazy.

We all. We got to get rid of the mugs. Too many mugs. It's too many mugs. It's not candles as gifts that should be stigmatized. It's mugs. And that's one minute. I actually thought we were doing a fun thing where it could be a fun moment where

us and the guests could pick a different mug every day. I kind of know that I have too many mugs. I brought them here. Thought it could be fun. Cultural element of the show. So today I picked Donald Duck. I thought it could be cute. It's whimsical.

Yeah, you have the Colbert mug. You have a mug-in, mug-out policy. My husband, your boyfriend, has a mug-in, mug-in, mug-out policy. see. That's fabulous. If I bring in a new mug, I got to get rid of an old mug. That's fabulous. So what if you're us and I, we don't have Emmys, you know what we have? Seth Myers' mugs. Okay. I am the jean smart of Seth Myers' mugs. Love it. And I'm going back again and I'm going to do it as a bit. I'm going to bring all my mugs and be like, I'm like Beyonce at the Grammys at any given year. Absolutely. Yeah. Holding. Cradling. So, but don't,

I just think we can lose a couple. You can see I've distributed them. Then fine, how about this? The mugs don't have to be there. They can be in the other room and it can be a fun thing with the guest for every episode. Before we sit down, you have to come into the mug room and pick a mug.

I love it. I just think I love the mugs. Like a menagerie. Yeah, like a menagerie. Mug menagerie. I'm not, I don't want to yuck the mug yum. But I just want us to really restrain and rein it in before it gets out of control. Bowen wants you to see his David Hockney book.

It's signed. David Huckney is a close personal friend of Lawrence. All right. This is true. Okay. And, you know, Lauren will tell you about it. Was. Was.

Well, David passed. So, we rest in peace. And on that note. All right. I'm ready. Are you ready to do? I don't think so, honey? I am.

I am really excited. Okay, here we go. I'm really excited for this. This is Laura Benanti's I don't think so, honey. And her time starts now. I don't think so, honey, searching for a photo on your phone for more than 30 seconds while I stand there. Hell. If it is more than 30 seconds, I am a hostage. You are spiraling. You're like scrolling through your phone as fast as you can. Your eyes are not even focusing.

Do I look over your shoulder? I want you to know I'm invested, but I don't want to see an accidental wiener. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I also have horrible performance anxiety because I know my reaction has to meet however long it took for you to get that photo. Uh-huh. Honestly, the only, the only photo worth waiting more than 30 seconds is a picture of you. you and the Obamas and his shirtless Harry styles in a cheerleader pyramid. Yeah. Or an absolutely gorgeous photo of myself. Preferably that I have never seen before.

So help me, God, you show me a photo of your pet. Even your child. I don't want to see a picture of you at your cousin's wedding. I don't want to see any of that. You would probably text it to me. Five seconds. Text it to me. I don't think so, honey, searching for a photo on your phone for more than 30 seconds

while I stand there. Absolutely. Thank you. I completely agree. And also the thing of surprise weiner or surprise butt is always a threat. It's always there. Always a threat. But also, what else am I supposed to do?

Then you think I don't care. You got to dart around. I want you to know. I'm invested. I want you to find this. What you end up doing is if you, is then you probably go to your own phone. And then you're two people standing on the phone like this. I know.

Just like if you need me to see it that badly, have it at your fingertips. Right. Screenshot it. Put it in your favorites. Yeah. Does this happen to y'all? Someone behind the wheels doing that? Oh.

Wait, no. You said you do that? No. He said, oh my God. I thought you said, oh, my God. I thought you said, I do that. He's never chimed in ever. One single time.

Just to offer that he drives looking for a phone. I do it. I do it. I do it. Oh. Okay. Great. I think I've been guilty of this one time.

Only one? I don't really do this because I hate this. It's awful. Yes. I have a photo of me and Carol Burnett. Sure. Worth it. And I would say that that's with the Obama's and Harry style shirtless.

Absolutely. That is absolutely worth it. Yeah. A photo of you with a comedy icon, I'll wait. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely. And you will, should a weaner scroll past, you're keeping your eyes fixed. Absolutely.

Imagine just right next to the picture of me and Carol Burnett. I just had one of my weiner like, oh, this was so good. I think we took another. And then tug, then you tug your ear. Carol, I love that you met her and worked with her. Me too. She's the best. She is truly, and especially like, you know, in this moment where, like, it's like you're saying,

it's like you realize like, oh, people are getting older. You know what I mean? And like not everyone is going to be here forever. Like, Dolly was just one of those people you felt was always going to be there. And I think that now more than ever we've been given that reminder, it's like that's why I'm going to Dollywood. Yeah. It's because I'm like, got to, got to seep in this culture.

Because also, it's so rare that we can be like, yeah, that's like an American superstar that we're proud of. And that generation has so many of them. Yes. And that everybody loved. Everybody agreed upon. Yeah. And even, but here's the thing with that too. People kind of play Dolly with this because yes, everyone agreed on her.

but the thing is she was always very outspoken. Always. Always. People always like kind of air away from the fact that like she, you kind of knew where she stood on things. But she said it. She never affiliated herself with the political party. She always just took it question by question. Yeah.

You know what I mean? And answered it very plainly. Yeah, here's what's in my heart and me at the top of my intelligence answering your question. And in doing that, I'm not going to sell people out. Yeah. With her answer to Black Lives Matter was brilliant. Yeah. Do you think Black, she was like, of course Black Lives Matter.

Yes. Like, this is, that's ludicrous. That's a crazy question. Her response would just always, I think, made people go like, oh, you're right. Yeah, totally. She was always able to zoom out. It was question by question because she would never answer political questions if they were asking her about politics in general. Right.

But then you look at like the reading library, like the library. Absolutely. And you look at like Dollywood and like the business model of that. And how she spoke of drag queens. Exactly. And, you know, the LGBTQIA plus community. full-throated embrace of everyone in our community and never like always like led with love and I don't know that was and so yes everyone loved her

and they loved her like yes in spite of the fact that she she was saying things that would quote unquote make her unpopular but the fact is she said it was she had like she didn't question herself but she's like no I have dignity and I'm going to say this and this is the way it is and this is who I've always been if you remember plain spoken. Yeah. Absolutely. You guys, I really need you to know how much I'm sweating. This is a silk shirt and it, and the.

Let's see. Are, is it giving? No, can I say something? This actually, by the way, and I also want to say this, styled by Melissa Lehman. I know. Wait, but. It's good. Guys.

Wait, what? It's okay. That's your humanity showing. This is, why am I sweating that much? Because it's hot. You got a little hot. You know what I mean? It's perimenopause.

Love that. It's parimenopause. Is that an act? It'll get. you. It's, oh, of course. Yeah. Yeah. The menopause appetizer nobody tells you about it. I call it the amuse booch to an old cooch. You go, it'll get you and I go, will it? Sorry, lady. Guess what? It won't. A moose booch to an old cooch and that is the portal to greatness. Obviously. This has been the portal to greatness.

I love this so much, you guys. How excited we were to know that you were coming here. This was, I mean, Chelsea texted me and she was like, this is literally the best thing that's ever happened to you and I was like I know. This is so, so, so our honor and our pleasure. I'm sorry though I I, I made it over to reschedule. If anyone understand this, Laura. This is for you. Yes, we're going to frame it.

Can you put this up in your dressing room? I think we should keep it on the sad. Oh, we should frame it here. Yes. This is great. Okay, we'll figure it out. Maybe where the cups used to be, the mugs. Maybe some of that glassware. But on front of the hockney. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. No, framed right there actually.

Fabulous. This has been so fun and nobody cares as acom.com is where you can go to get all the info on Dietz for the tour and she's coming all over and you would be. Don't say that. Absolutely. She's doing the show all over. She's coming at home with her husband. Thank you very much.

Someone should be so lucky. Merry Christmas. Merry Christmas. Tutta poppy, whatever his name is. We end every episode of the song. We love you. We end every episode of the song. Should we do it in the original key?

In a very unusual way. Is this the original game? No. All right, bye. Las Culturacis is the production by Will Farrell's Big Money Players and IHeartRadio podcasts. Created and hosted by Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang. Executive produced by Anna Hosniyah and produced by Becker Ramos. Edited by Hot Dog Sandwich.

And our music is by Henry Kavirsky. Hey, everybody. It's me, Matt, and my tour is on sale now. This time, it's really Christmas. you can go to www.matrogersofficial.com. Podcasts are a visual medium. If you're not watching me right now, I am holding in my hands my vinyl. It's called Have You Heard of Christmas?

The answer to that question is coming. At this time, it's really Christmas. I'm playing all over the country and in London and in Canada. That makes it a world tour. Harry Styles, you're on burn notice. I'll see you soon. On down is on to the most talked about music festival on the planet.

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