Comedian Alex Edelman on how to make it to Broadway

Writer-comedian Alex Edelman is star of the one-man show “Alex Edelman: Just for Us,” now on Broadway:

There are so many things that make Broadway shows great. Huge musical numbers. Amazing sets. A cast of stars performing timeless classics. I mean, my show is a solo comedy show, so it has none of the things I’ve just mentioned. But still, nothing beats a night on Broadway.

And given that this is Tony Sunday, I’m not just going to tell you about what it’s like having a show on Broadway, but rather how to get it there.

First, you think of an idea for a show. Don’t make it a musical about the guy from the $10 bill or a play about a salesman dying. Those ideas? Taken. Come up with something original.

For me, it was pretty easy, because my show is based on something that happened to me, which is that I went to this meeting of white nationalists. Uncomfortable, a little, given that I’m a Jew. But good for comedy!

So, step one, think of your show. Then? Get it to Broadway.

That part’s less easy. Here’s how I got mine there.

First, I put up the show in a pub behind a London shoe store. Then, I worked it out in smaller venues and at festivals. That took about three years.

The thing about getting your show to Broadway, if you really want to get it there, you have to think it’s never going to get there. You have to love your show and be happy to perform it anywhere you can. Unless you’re Andrew Lloyd Webber; he needs a big stage. All of those cats aren’t going to fit in a pub behind a shoe store, are they?

Anyhow, the show went up Off-Broadway, and believe it or not, it sold out, like, 160 shows in a row — mostly because of The New York Times and Sarah Jessica Parker said nice things.

A year later, I found out I was going ON Broadway, and I thought, maybe now my uncle will stop asking me about law school.

What is it like being on Broadway instead of off? It feels absolutely the same, except not at all.

First of all, it’s literally the nicest theatre I’ve ever been to. The seats are for human-sized butts. Second of all, it’s Broadway!

There’s a really sappy truth, which is that everyone performing on Broadway desperately wants to be there. It’s not easy. You do eight shows a week, you have to compete with the M&M Store, and sometimes you have to sing about baking humans into pies. Everyone you see at the Tonys tonight has worked so hard for this. [Except for one guy. Everyone knows who he is.]

As for my show, it’s about killing a mockingbird. Just kidding. As I said earlier, it’s a solo show. And it represents a lifelong dream coming true. See you there. Gummy bears are eight bucks.

And enjoy the Tonys. I’m not eligible this year, but I will be next year, and it’s always good to have something else to dream about.

Watch The 76th Tony Awards presented live June 11 on CBS and Paramount+ beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT; preshow on Pluto TV

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Story produced by Julie Kracov. Editor: Chad Cardin.