Chester Gregory II

Chester is such a sweet, person! It was so nice sitting with him in the empty theatre just chatting. He's doing a fabulous job as Seaweed in Hairspray and you all need to go see it! I didn't take pictures with Chester so I will have to rectify that this week. Enjoy the interview and visit his site: http://www.chestergregory.net

Are you doing anything other than Hairspray right now?

Yes I am! I’m working on my solo project and I perform my own music. When I perform my own music, I use an alias: Ahdae. So I’m excited about that project. Its my own voice, not just a character I’m portraying in a show or something like that. Actually this Monday coming up, I'll be in this contest,. WGN Battle of the Bands. You ever heard of that?

Battle of the Bands, yeah I’ve heard of that.

Ok, yeah so I won the first round like in February. So now its on to the championship round. All the winners compete against one another for the grand prize. I have to do that Monday morning in Chicago then come right
back to New York. Monday night I have to perform and receive an Audelco Award. Have you heard of the Audelco Awards?

Yeah.

Yeah. People haven’t heard of it here. That's crazy. I was like “what?” Especially the some of black actors I know. I tell ’em I have to fly back for the Audelco Awards and they’re like ‘what’s that?’ They haven’t heard of it! You’re a black actor in NY and you haven’t heard of the Audelco Awards?

Yeah that’s pretty bad.

Anyway, I have a showcase I’m doing at Joe’s Pub January 5th. Its actually a split or double showcase with Shoshana Bean.

Oh cool.

We’ll also be singing a song that we wrote together. Some little fun stuff. She jumped from one Seaweed to the next. (laughs) We're good friends. She's still with Corey, they’re doing very well.

Yeah I’ve seen them together recently.

Yep, so that’s what I’m doing, trying to get a record deal. All the usual stuff. You know.

Yeah. So who were your influences? What made you want to be an entertainer?

The biggest influence for me growing up was Michael Jackson. When I saw Thriller that did it for me. Plus I'm from Gary, Indiana Michael Jackson’s home town. So, I learned the choreography from the videos and all that stuff. My mom encouraged me too. People would come over and she’d say ‘oh show them Thriller.’ And so I would do it. She took me to see plays and stuff too. That's when I found that performing was my niche.

What was it like coming into such a successful show at a time when so many changes were being made?

It was exciting because I saw the show in previews. I guess like late July or something. I loved it and I referred it to all my friends and stuff. I basically told everybody they need to come see this show. I felt like it was all the elements of theatre coming together with the choreography, the direction, the writing.....everything. I had no idea
that a year later I’d be in it. It just sorta happened for me. Before Hairspray, I played Jackie Wilson in a show called The Jackie Wilson Story. After a three year run in Chicago, we closed that at the Apollo. Shortly after we did the Manhattan Theatre Club Benefit and Hairspray was also there. And the producers of Hairspray saw me and my agent contacted them and basically did all the talk. They flew me in for the final call back for Seaweed and then the same week I was cast.

Sounds exciting.

Yeah.

What do you think of your character?

I try to play the opposites with Seaweed to try to make him more interesting. I play him as the pro-black student in the 60s. In the 60s the protests were led by students in their late teens to early twenties. So Seaweed, a student in his late teens would be a part of the revolutionary movement at that time. He's the revolutionary that falls in love with this white girl. So I try to play that contracdition. That's life.

How’s your portrayal different from Corey’s?

Corey and I both understand and respect that we play the character differently. Corey seemed to focus on getting his laughs. It earned him his Tony nom. But me I love to sing and dance. I felt like Seaweed grew up with James Brown, Jackie Wilson, and all those people of the 60s. So I wanted to include that into my interpretation. That's why I do the splits and stuff. I think we each just kinda did our own thing.

Those splits are awesome!

Oh thanks, thanks. (laughs) I’m really happy the creative staff allowed me to put my own stamp on it. Cuz I’m not Corey Reynolds. Nobody else is Corey Reynolds.

And nobody wants you to be Corey Reynolds!

(laughs!)

Not an insult to him!

Right, right, I know what you mean though.

We don’t expect you to be the same person.

Right, So I’m really glad though because sometimes they’ll want you to do something exactly the way somebody else did it. Especially when somebody originated the role. So, you know, they allowed me to do my own thing and do my own spin on it and I was really, really strong about not playing stereotypes. I don’t want to play any stereotypes at all. So that was my thing too. And they allowed me to do that and for that I thank them. It's just a wonderful ride

In the aftermath of September 11th, how important is this shows message of tolerance?

I think that September 11th opened a lot of peoples eyes to discrimination because like some people who wouldn’t necessarily get stopped at an airport or wherever, would all of a sudden get stopped and searched. That kind of stuff happened to me all my life. (laughs) So I think it opened peoples eyes a little bit more to what its like to be accused when you haven’t done anything at all. I’m a big fan of Michael Moore and Aaron McGruder, the author of the Boondocks. Michael Moore did a special about cabs. (laughs)

I have issues with cabs, they don’t like stopping for girls in wheelchairs. Means they have to do something.

Wow...... Michael Moore so he was the cab driver on an episode on this very short lived TV show he had called The Awful Truth. Did you ever see that?

No I never did.

Ok, it was very funny. They have it on DVD now. You know, since Bowling for Columbine he’s been able to get a lot of stuff out. It was funny because we were watching the show backstage one day. Hairspray is so
much about race that I can't help but think about it all the time. Its even sparked the company, to start talking about race issues and stuff like that today. So we were watching an episode of Michael Moore drive his cab around and (laughs) he would stop for some white people who are used to getting cabs or whatever. And he’d say "So, where are you going?" And they’d say "Oh I’m going to 26th and 3rd ave." and he would say “Oh no that’s too dangerous.” then he'd drive off! (laughs) So a company member got upset in the dressing room, he was like well why is he doing that to those people? You know? Those people haven’t done anything to him. Some of the other people were talking well it's just for comedic purposes and I said well no not really. I
said its just the flip side of the way things are. He just flipped the script and showed them what it's like for me. That’s a reality for me every day. You know, I go out and try to get a cab, and just because I’m black it’s harder to get one. I watch cabs pass me up and stop for white people all day everyday and I haven’t done anything. So, what about that? You're getting upset over some people you don't even know but what about me? What about somebody you know? I haven’t done anything wrong either. He was like you know, that’s a good point.

(laughs)

So you know I’m really glad that we’re able to talk about race issues and allow you know what its like, and just to talk about our experiences on one another. You know, cuz sometimes people just really don’t understand until you put them in your shoes. September 11th was a hard time personally because we were supposed to go on tour with The Jackie Wilson story and the tour was postponed and I ended up being out of work four months and I started playing this credit card limbo game that they’ve been winning but I’ve been trying to get a hold of now since I’ve got a steady job. I think it was a wake up call to America. To the injustice in our own country. You know, America’s not.... not Mister Goodie Two Shoes, America’s got some dirt too. And you know, with Osama Bin Laden having been trained by the CIA and all of those things too. You know, I have mixed feelings about it because I feel like it was America's karma. You set up what happens to you in the future. So that’s my thought about it.

If you could outlaw one thing, whether it be by act of law or act of god, what would you change about the world?

If I could outlaw one thing...?

Yeah you can outlaw snow, traffic, hate, whatever you want...

Ignorance.

Why?

(laughs)

Stupidity is a common answer.

Stupidity? Well that’s pretty close. I would outlaw ignorance... you know how some people say the love of money is the root of all evil? I think ignorance is the root of all evil. It's how the few control the masses. Lack of understanding, of culture, of peoples experiences, of acceptance.... Its all based on ignorance. So that’s what I’d outlaw.

Now tell us something you’d change about yourself and why.

I would change... I’m a big procrastinator. So I would change that about myself. I will wait til the very, very last minute. Like I’m supposed to fly out tomorrow.

And you haven’t packed?

I haven’t bought my plane ticket. Oh I never pack. Shit, I’ll pack like on my way to the airport. It doesn’t matter if it’s like a trip for a day or a month, you know, I’m packing the day of. You know just throwing stuff in the suitcase. So I would change that because I think I could maximize more of my time and resources if I didn’t
procrastinate.

Now tell us a thought or story about the following cast members.

Ok.

Harvey, to start with.

Harvey, Harvey Fierstein... my experience with him has been really, really wonderful.

(laughs)

Oh does not everybody say that?

Well, Mary said he doesn’t care how abusive he is in her interview.

Oh really?

So do feel free to say whatever you want. (laughs)

Well my experience with him has been great! I haven’t had a bad experience with him. He’s been nice to me. He has just a real crass way period. So that’s just him. That’s his humor. You know the very first time I met Harvey was at the Manhattan Theatre Club Benefit and it was because they had a cheap wig for me for The Jackie Wilson Story so they sent John who does the hair for Hairspray. Who was working on Harvey, they sent John with Harvey’s permission to come and fix up my little like five dollar wig and try and make it look like something for this benefit where people were paying thousands of dollars per table.

Wow.

Yeah so, he’s been nice to me the whole time. Now he hasn’t been nice to everybody. So you have to catch whoever that is on your own. Cuz you know if he doesn’t like your performance or he doesn’t like what you’re doing on stage then he will let you know and there’s nothing you can do about it.

Any suggestions on who I should interview next then?

You may wanna talk to JP. He (laughs) would have something different to say because they didn’t have the best experience when JP had to go on as Mr. Turnblad. Did you see any of those shows?

No I didn’t.

Yeah. So, Harvey wasn’t nice to him at all.

Well Harvey thinks I’m insane or something, he’s told me to go home on a few occasions. Whatever.

(laughs)

Ok, what about, Mary Bond Davis?

Mary Bond and I, we get along fine but people sometimes just take what she says the wrong way or they don’t know how to quite take what she says.

I had that experience with her interview. People didn’t know how certain comments were intended.

Yeah. Like for example Eric Anthony is no longer in the show. Did you know that?

I did. I know everything (laughs)

I figured you did. So she walked up to Eric Anthony and said "Oh well, you’re not in show business until you’re fired." That’s the first thing she said to him. Mary.... She’s quite contrary. (laughs) So but my experience with her has been fine. We give each other incense to put in the bathroom cuz we all have to share this bathroom on the fourth floor and like if anybody doesn’t flush the toilet right or something she’ll get upset about it. You know like the first week I started she said to make sure I put the seat down so I did. We exchange food. She gave me this guys number who makes like cakes. So every so often I’ll have like a double chocolate pound cake delivered to my room or a sweet potato pound cake. I really love desserts. Like chocolate. She exposed
me to these chocolates that are like little chocolate pyramids that have cayenne pepper in it. And its really good. So we talk about food, incense and even movies. She exposed me to Cowboy Bebop.

Thats a great cartoon!

It is! And I would’ve never known about it if it hadn’t been for Mary. So we get along great. I think she’s not as crazy as she says she is. She’s not as crazy as people think she is. Not at all. And she’s been in this business a while so she knows how to cover herself.

What about, Jenn...

Jenn is so nice. Jenn is so wonderful. From our first rehearsal, we just got along great. She just had a certain way in the rehearsal period that she works and I have a certain way that I work. She likes to set everything. So she would talk stuff out with me at rehearsal but I wanted to just play it out and see. So but I think Jenn and I have a great chemistry. I’m glad I had a chance to work with her in the rehearsal process so I didn’t have to come in to a situation and work with Kerry where she had been working with Corey for so long and then all of a sudden, BOOM you have this new person and the first time you’re really, really working together besides the put in is in front of an audience. I’m glad we had that chance to develop our own stuff so that it didn’t look like what Corey and Kerry did that it was our own story. Our own interpretation of the characters. And I think that
Jenn is doing an absolutely wonderful job. There’s certain points in the show that she lands every night no matter what type of audience we have. If its a really responsive audience or if they’re sortve quiet she hits marks every single night. And she’s very consistent. And I love working with her cuz you know she understands my sense of humor because I play around. She’ll just laugh and go along with it so its fine.

Aja?

Aja is great. Aja is the most mature twelve year old I’ve ever seen. Like today she sang the song a little bit different. And when she sang it everybody on stage screamed. We couldn’t dance, we couldn’t do the choreography, everybody was just like what? She sang the hell out of that song! She is tremendously talented. Aja has incredible stage presence. And she can sing, she can act. I think Aja is well on her way to becoming a super, super, super entertainer. I mean she can do whatever she wants to do. Everybody asked her after the show, "Who helped you with that part. Who helped you with your solo?" And she said, "Nobody, I did it on my own."

You worked with Danelle for week as well, correct?

Yeah about a week.

Do you remember that?

Yeah I remember. (laughs) Danelle was really, really nice. She was really nice. I had a great time with Danelle too. I had a great time and I think it was good for both of us because she was used to Corey but yet at the same time, she was open to what I would do too and she would let me know that she liked what I was doing and everything. I just got a card in the mail from Danelle today so that was nice she was really sweet and I wish her well. Her and her sisters.

Now, the leading lady, Kathy.

Kathy is great. Kathy is great. She is so giving on stage. I guess the next person’s Marissa?

Yep.

So, I’ll just do the comparison now.

Yeah you can compare them sure.

When I came into the show... I believe that Marissa has a certain way of working. And that is, when she sets it that’s pretty much it. So like I came into the show and it was set. Plus I came into the show her last month. She was really nice to me even though I heard mixed things, I heard mixed reviews about her personality. We had a great run and it was an honor to work the the original. I loved working with her. Kathy, I guess because she hadn’t done it as much, was more responsive. She’d respond to me and I’d respond to her and we’d just keep playing off each other. So I love working with her too. I think Kathy has a great voice, I think Kathy does some wonderful things with the role and I think Marissa had an incredible likable quality on stage. So no matter what she did on stage you just really, really liked her. Carly is another one. I haven’t worked with Carly yet but Carly plays Tracy on tour and Carly is just incredible. I don’t know if you’ll get a chance to see Carly

I don’t know if I will, I might...

It’s like one of those born to do things. Kinda like how Harvey is just born to be Edna. Carly is like that with Tracy Turnblad. Its just one of those roles for her.

And the last cast member I’m going to ask you about, Jackie Hoffman.

We get along fine. We haven’t had much dialogue. We just started talking more in the past month or so. I think that she’s incredibly funny. I heard some people talking about how they need to bring those variety shows back and I think she’s strong enough to do that. Like the Carol Burnett show, it’d be like The Jackie Hoffman show and just let her play a bunch of different characters. I think shed be hysterical in a show like that. She has a one woman show coming up at Joe’s Pub and I wanna see that.

Tell us one thing that is either embarrassing or little known about yourself.

Hmm... embarrassing...

Or little known..

People don’t believe that I’m shy until they meet me.

Well that seems sort of like a contradiction, a shy Broadway performer.

Right. (laughs) Yeah I’m really shy by nature. And also, I’m not particularly strongest at some auditions like when it’s like a few people in the room or just one or two people, it makes me incredibly nervous and I’m not able to perform to the best of my ability. When there’s a lot of people in the room it helps me to give a stronger
performance. When I had the final call back for Hairspray it was about twenty people in the room. Like all the creative staff,. everybody you had just seen on tv the previous night. The final call back was the night after the Tony’s. They had 13 nominations and 8 wins. They were all there auditioning Monday morning. 9 o’clock in the morning....... because there were so many people it at the audition, it boosted me to performance mode. I think people really don’t know and really don’t believe that I’m shy until they meet me or really, really understand
how I am. Michael Jackson won all these Grammies and sold more records than any other artist, yet he always appears to be so gracious and humble. That’s what I aim for. And also I remember Superman. Yeah I know this is random but Superman the movie.... Wow they’re all screaming outside, wonder what’s going on.

Maybe Harvey’s out there or they’re doing lottery?

Oh yeah maybe. So, Superman, with his ability to fly and all these other powers, never slighted anyone. He was never mistreated people even though he had special abilities. There’s this one scene in the movie where he’s trying to get to like a phone booth to change and there’s some danger of course... But he’s just trying to politely sift through the crowd and he’s like excuse me, I'm so sorry, excuse me. (laughs). That kind of contrast is what I really like. When I on stage it's Superman, off stage it Clark Kent all the way. It's just a job and in this business, you can be unemployed tomorrow. Just like people really, really love you, people can really, really hate you the next day. So none of that stuff ever goes to my head. The reviews I got for Jackie Wilson were great but I know that's not who I am. It's great to have your work recognized but you can't get souped up in that kinda stuff and get a big head because its all not gonna last.

Alright, I was asked to ask you this question. Are you single?

I’m married.

I actually knew that, but I had to ask.

(laughs)

Are you going to regret anything you said in this interview?

No, I try to stay general so... I tried to give you a little bit of spice. I know you like it.

Yeah I like mixing it up a bit. And the last question, Rant. Here at Spouzic we love hearing people complain and we love free speech so this question is not really a question but rather an opportunity for you to complain, whine or bitch about anything on your mind. Go for it.

Al Gore came to the show. Like I guess it was about a month ago and he was really, really nice. He was so incredibly nice and so, um, he appeared to be so honest. And you know again it was that opposite, here
you have the man that’s the elected president who didn’t... for whatever reason, make it to the office. Now, and you know he was really, really nice and you just felt something genuine about him. I don’t get from Bush. So hopefully this next election or whatever...

Bush is a horrible speaker he doesn’t instill trust in his audience.

Yeah. And then, he’s dumb. He’s dumb.

He looks dumb too.

Yeah! He looks dumb. He has the worst speeches. And he has the worst, grammar. He’s grammatically incorrect sometimes. You know I have a book called Bushisms. Its a book full of like misquotes by George W like "They misunderestimated me." I think the state of our country is really, really sad right now. Hopefully, not by electing Al Gore but by we the people starting to speak up. Change as individuals and to really educate
ourselves and not just to our own little individual areas but about other cultures and other people. And you know learn the message you can get from Hairspray, which is, to not necessarily tolerate but to respect
and accept each other. Treat everybody the way you want to be treated. So hopefully we can get a little better, this country because it’s screwed up right now. Michael Moore has a new book out called Dude, Where’s My Country? I’m gonna check that out. I have his other works, Stupid White Men, Bowling for Columbine and Roger and Me and The Awful Truth. Michael Moore for president!

(laughs)

That’d be funny if this was all a big scheme to get Michael Moore elected for president.

Well I don’t have any more specific questions for you but if you have anything else you’d like to talk about...

Clint the drummer from Hairspray, didn’t like my rendition of Run and Tell That. Because he felt like I was putting two endings on it and so he complained to Lon (sp?) and so we tried to have a couple of
rehearsals and it just didn’t work on stage when they just wanted me to cut it short because I’m doing the back bend and you know just putting my own touch to it, something that I said I would do from the beginning just to make it my own. Because it is, Seaweed’s number.

Right.

(laughs) For a while it just became this big thing. And Clint went and complained to stage management about what I was doing. And they told him to just sit back and let me do my thing. And so for a while, so they
took out the drums for about two months and then a couple of weeks ago they added them back in under what I’m doing and now its like a mixture of both worlds and I think its pretty good. You know its all adaptable. Clint and I, we get along fine. Well we always did but it’s just when he became so upset, I just didn’t really understand what he was so upset about because its nothing personal with you I mean I had already discussed it with the creative staff and I was being encouraged by the creative staff to go ahead and explore and play more.

Do you absolutely HATE anyone in the show, production, crew?

No. I guess because, you know I saw the show a year ago so I understand. I’m a big fan of the show and I know that I’m here to do a job. So that's my main thing. I mean I get along great with everybody. I don’t get too involved in people’s personal battles and stuff like that. I am aware of some things but I don’t get too involved with that because the bottom line is we’re here to do a job. To inspire people, to give a kick ass show every night and anything else is BS.

What about the crazy cast parties? You don’t get involved with those either? (laughs)

I go to the cast parties at Marc and Scott’s house. They’re mostly at Marc and Scott’s house and a few other places. I was really surprised when I joined the company because you look and you see such a strong ensemble on the stage and then at the end of the show people just go their separate ways and you know don’t deal with each other. So that shocked me cause they such great chemistry on stage.

And they always promote the show as having such a close cast. Do you not feel that’s true?

Close cast... I know the creative team refers to the cast as family. In some ways I feel like we are. We had a meeting with Jack O'Brien. (Our father) a few weeks ago. He just talked to us and encouraged us and you know just asked us what are we here for? What are we here to do? You know? Think about it. The question is on you. You know and I liked the way he basically just flipped it around. It was basically like an inspirational speech about doing your job and bringing your ass to work or not, cuz if not what are you doing this for?

Was that a response to someone not coming to work?

Today is the first day since I started the show that we’ve had the full company.

Really?.... that’s... bad.

(laughs) I started the show, July 15th and here it is November 15th and today is the first day the board has read "Full Company". So..

Eric Anthony was out a lot

Yeah.

That was part of what he was fired...? .......mmm...you don’t have to answer that.

Ok, I don’t know. He missed a lot of shows but he wasn't the only one. There were a lot of people calling out regularly.

I heard Harvey said something in an interview about attendance and it pissed everyone off.

After you go to a job everyday it only human to maybe sometimes take things for granted. To be in a hit show, a show that’s won eight Tony awards, a show that’s still sold out every performance- even though we still have empty seats in the front sometimes, I don’t understand that (laughs). But it's a blessing. Sometimes people may need to be reminded. Like Rashad Naylor, who plays Thad in the show, swung out to watch the Seaweed track cuz he’s Seaweed’s understudy. He said, he cried when he saw Good Morning Baltimore, and he cried, basically through out watching the show. And its such an incredible show and I think people the cast, need to see it. Then they'll be reminded, I’m in a hit show and a really good one. You know, this is a great opportunity for me and its steady work. Cuz one crazy thing about being an actor is you’re constantly unemployed. God has provided work.

I’m also constantly unemployed. I’m a freelance web designer.

Really? Do you know flash?

I do know flash but I honestly detest it. It’s constantly overused or misused.

Hmm.

Matt’s giving me a bunch of stuff tonight for his site.

Have you been to Ahdae.com site? Check that out and let me know what you think.

Alright, I’ll do that.

The Hairspray site uses flash well. I had to tell them twice to change your profile.

Really?

They had ChestOr instead of Chester, in the title and in the link to your site.

Oh I’ll get my agent on that. Anything else?

Nope that’s it for me!

So, Show at Joe’s Pub January 5th! Be there! Put that in the interview!

Yes I will. Well thank you so much!


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