The last couple of Broadway seasons have been chock-a-block full of uptown transfers of funky little upstart shows like Spring Awakening, Passing Strange and In the Heights that have had the kids queuing up along the Great White Way. And kicking off this season is another little-show-that-could which pushes the boundaries of traditional Broadway fare right off the charts. And in fact, the real-life journey of [title of show] from an idea cooked up by two bored best friends in their kitchen one day to Broadway opening just happens to be what the show is about. From its kookily punctuated title (take that, Mr. Tony Kushner!) on down, this entire production might all sound a bit too impertinently post-modern for some Broadway babies, but never fear: [title of show] is also a smart, sharp little piece of classically structured and expertly staged musical comedy, whose success is due in no small part to the handiwork of director and choreographer Michael Berresse. Well-known to Broadway audiences as the Tony-nominated song and dance man whose matinee idol looks and fancy footwork have livened up shows like Kiss Me, Kate, The Light in the Piazza and the recent revival of A Chorus Line, Berresse is helming his first production, but he tells us that all of this onstage experience has prepared him well for his new behind-the-scenes role: "I've always been more fascinated by the whole than just with my own contribution. I find the technical elements fascinating and how they support the story," he says. "Ask any director I've worked with and they're like, 'Yeah, Michael loves to direct,'" he adds with a laugh. "But in a good way! I'm always the oddball who's talking to the musicians, or who's talking to the spot operators."
When Berresse says that he has been involved with [title of show] from the beginning, he means that literally, since in addition to directing the show, he is also the real-life partner of co-creator/co-star Jeff Bowen. We can't help but wonder just how crazy-making it must be to direct your boyfriend in a show in which he plays himself creating the show that you're directing… we're dizzy just asking the question! "The curious thing about this show is that the writers are also in the show playing themselves," he explains. "They're best friends; they're my best friends, and in addition to that, one of them is my partner. It's a very, very complex set of relationships." That seems to be putting it mildly, and indeed, Berresse admits, this can have its downside: "At the end of the day, you need someone to vent with but you wouldn't necessarily vent with the composer and you wouldn't necessarily vent with your actor," he says. "So it gets kind of confusing when the person you need to vent with is the person you can't." And yet, by hook or by crook, he says, they've managed to navigate the potential minefields and stay one big happy family. For one thing, they've all found people outside of the production to vent with. Plus, he adds, "We've also all had a lot of therapy, and that helps."
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