He can dance, he can sing, he can act, and he can rock ruffled sleeves harder than the fiercest drag queen. We’re talking about Nick Adams, of course, one of the most talented, charismatic, and versatile Broadway actors in the biz. “Blazingly talented” is how Bill Casey, executive producer of the Boston Gay Men’s Chorus (BGMC) describes the star, who has wowed crowds with starring roles in “Falsettos,” “La Cage aux Folles,” “Priscilla Queen of the Desert” and “Wicked.”
Casey should know. As an instructor at Boston Conservatory 20 years ago, Adams was one of Casey’s students and his star quality was radiating even back then. Not surprisingly, Adams went from the Conservatory to the Broadway stage in very short order.
Casey and BGMC welcomed Adams back to Boston for a special guest appearance in their 2016 concert “POPular.” His jubilant performance is the basis for the second episode of BGMC’s “Celebrity Spotlight,” a web series that showcases previously unreleased concert footage of the stage and screen stars who have sung with the chorus. (The inaugural episode featuring Alex Newell dropped Oct. 8).
The “Celebrity Spotlight” episode featuring Adams will be available for streaming Thursday, Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. on bgmc.org and the BGMC YouTube channel. It features a new extended interview with Adams, conducted via Zoom by series hosts Casey and BGMC Music Director Reuben M. Reynolds III (who’s also Casey’s husband). Adams talked up the role Boston played in launching his musical theater career and his coming out as a gay man while studying at Boston Conservatory, the impact of COVID-19 on the theater community, his Britney Spears obsession (natch), and more. The episode also features the previously unreleased recording of Adams’ sultry performance of “Feeling Good,” along with “I Go to Rio,” “Church of the Poison Mind,” “Toxic” and “Hot Stuff.”
We chatted with Casey and Reynolds about the episode and what it was like working with Adams.
Q: It is impossible to take your eyes off Nick Adams when he’s performing. He’s charismatic and makes it all look so effortless. Was his “star quality” evident when he was a young Conservatory student?
BC: Nick was one of my first students at Boston Conservatory 20 years ago. He was in the second class I taught. [BGMC stage director and choreographer] Michelle Chassé, another theatre professor, and I had become friends by that time and were working together. Nick came in and was blazingly talented, and Michele and I—but mostly Michele—swept in and said, “We’re going to turn you into a star.” He immediately bloomed, and it was very, very clear early on that this guy had the goods.
Q: So did he rule the school? Give us the dish.
BC: Well, he was a big star of every Conservatory main-stage show; he did lead roles. When he left the school he immediately launched a Broadway career which is just unheard of. You usually have to pay your dues and spend years and years waiting tables, scrimping, and working toward your big break someday, hopefully. Nick basically left Boston for Broadway and was cast in a matter of minutes. He talks about this during our interview on “Celebrity Spotlight,” so people should watch it.
Q: Spoiler alert.
BC: NIck is the definition of a triple threat, meaning he’s an actor, he’s a great singer, he’s a fantastic dancer.
Q: Did you and Nick remain friendly after he left for New York? How did he wind up as a special guest performer of the chorus back ’16?
BC: We all remained good friends and Nick was by that point a big Broadway star. But one thing that’s really great about him is that from the very beginning of his career he did not shy away for one second away from being an out and proud gay man. And he realized that he was going to have this connection with the gay community. He looks like a model, all the gays love him and his gorgeous smile, so he not only had this identification as a Broadway star, but he was also this sort of gay spokesperson.
Anyway, when we’re looking for people to work with the chorus, we usually come up with a list of women because we want to give as many of our own guys solos as we possibly can.
Q: There’s enough competition among members for those spots already, right?
RR: Yes, and we have no shortage of talented singers, of course.
BC: For example, I also sing in the chorus. [Laughs].
RR: Good grief. [Laughs].
BC: Anyway, we decided to bring Nick in because he’s just so good and so professional and we thought it could be a good fit.
Q: Judging from the “Celebrity Spotlight” episode it seems to have worked out exceptionally well.
BC: Nick was glorious. He swooped in and we staged the whole show in one day. Then he did every single photo op, every single press thing we needed him to do. He got along great with the guys. He’s friends with all of them. Every single nice thing you read about him in the press is all true. He is that nice.
RR: What was really amazing is when you saw him rehearsing for the show with Michelle, he’s not like, “Okay, I’m the dance diva.” He was like, “What can I learn from Michele today?”
BC: Yes. And that’s such a great lesson for our guys and all performers: you’re never too good to learn from somebody who can help you.
Q: Can you talk about Nick’s song selection? How did you settle on those?
BC: We agreed that we wanted him to do material that a real clear gay identification. For instance, “I Go To Rio” by gay composer Peter Allen, who was singing about a man he loved.
Hugh Jackman, who’s a “triple threat” like Nick, played Peter in the musical “The Boy From Oz” and “I Go To Rio” is showstopper in that musical. So we thought it would be perfect for Nick to do as a great splashy dance number that really showcased everything he can do.
Q: It’s really a terrific performance, including by the dancing BGMC members. I love how Nick can go from classic Broadway to Britney and it seems to work.
BC: Exactly! We discuss this in the episode, but Nick makes no secret of the fact that he’s a Britney Spears superfan. He’s obsessed with Britney. So when we got to what he was going to sing, he was like, “Well I’m going to do ‘Toxic’ of course. I’m doing Britney.”
He and Chad [Weirick, BGMC’s principal accompanist and assistant music director], worked up like, a progressive Jazz arrangement. Then Nick shows up on stage in his Britney t-shirt and shorts, looking amazing and fun and festive and just as queer as a three dollar bill, and the guys—and the audience—ate it up.
Q: You love to hear it. It must be a little stressful working with guest artists because rehearsal time is so limited. It’s amazing to see how polished his performances with the chorus are.
RR: Well,one of the reasons that we can have people like Nick come in for just one day of rehearsals is because of the musicians we have working with us. In addition to Chad we have a group of guys that play with us and they can just pick this stuff up. I’ve seen Chad just listen to people hum a melody and then all of a sudden, boom, an arrangement is just ablaze. We’re so lucky to be able to work with these musicians, and part of the success of these concerts is their ability to just pick things up quickly.
Watch Celebrity Spotlight featuring Nick Adams on Thursday, October 15 at 7 p.m., on the Chorus’s website and YouTube channel.