The beloved Tony Award-winning revue, “Forbidden Broadway,” is back with a brand-new edition of the popular and long-running show that continues the tradition of parodying new and recently produced musicals.
Currently delighting audiences at 555 Theater and running through November 3, 2024, “Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song” is written and directed by creator Gerard Alessandrini. This new version stars an intrepid quartet of talented and versatile musical theater performers. Chris Collins-Pisano, Danny Hayward, Nicole Vanessa Ortiz, and Jenny Lee Stern skillfully portray the stars of “Suffs,” “Company,” “& Juliet,” “The Great Gatsby,” “Wicked,” “Back to the Future the Musical,” and more. They sing, dance, and masterfully handle quick changes (of both the costume and vocal kind) leading to a spirited rollercoaster of laughs for the audience.
Nicole Vanessa Ortiz brings her comic chops and powerful voice to the very memorable roles of Ali in “Hell’s Kitchen,” Audra McDonald in “Gypsy,” as well a certain iconic green witch, among others. Thanks to roles in “Spamilton” and “Smokey Joe’s Cafe,” and several high-profile appearances on the iconic TV show “Amateur Night at the Apollo”—as well as several viral videos of her powerhouse singing—Nicole has developed quite a following online. She took some time out from her busy schedule to chat with us.
You are back on the NY stage after traveling all over the world for an extended time. Tell us what you have been doing overseas.
Well, first of all, it’s so good to be back home!
From September 25, 2023 all the way to July 28,2024, I traveled to South Korea and Japan for the EMK Asian Tour of “Sister Act The Musical” in the lead role of Deloris Van Cartier aka Sister Mary Clarence.
Has performing overseas, particularly in Asia, changed you as a performer?
I had such an amazing time getting to perform for audiences that truly love the magic and experience of live theater. It was such a humbling experience to learn that once you build a connection with fans in Asia, particularly in South Korea and Japan, you have a supportive fan for life and that is always touching because it’s part of why I love what I do!
You previously played Sarah in “Ragtime“ at the Serenbe Playhouse, before it closed down. It was known as an immersive theater. What was that like? Is it safe to assume Sarah was one of your bucket list roles?
The first time I got to play the role of Sarah in “Ragtime” it was with the Serenbe Playhouse in Serenbe, Georgia. Not only was the role itself a challenging story to tell but doing it in an immersive live outdoor environment was like nothing I had ever experienced. You enter a world that feels touchable in comparison to a traditional indoor theater.
You get to literally inhale and exhale the story and music being shared with the audience in a way that transcends the atmosphere and allowing my spirit to surrender to the nature around me alone was pure magic!
Luckily, my husband was able to capture a video of my performance and because of that, the video went viral on the Broadway Box YouTube channel in 2019!
The last time you were off-Broadway for an extended time was with “Smokey Joe’s Café,” where NYC got to see your performing chops as well as your incredible voice. Did you feel comfortable singing Lieber and Stoller’s music? Had you had experience with their music prior to being on the show?
I felt extremely comfortable singing Lieber and Stoller’s music because I was musically raised on Doo Wop and Rock and Roll music! Even though their songbook was new to me the genre fluidity of the entire show was right up my alley given the music I grew up listening to.
And now you are in “Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a Song,” which has a lot of Sondheim, as well as other familiar composers. Have you done much Sondheim before? How is performing his music different from other composers?
Believe it or not Sondheim is the reason I landed my very first off-Broadway show! In 2017, I auditioned for Spamilton which was directed by Gerard Alessandrini and produced by John Freedson. Little did I know at that time they were also the creators of Forbidden Broadway.
And for my audition, I was given 24 hours to learn and memorize “Another Hundred People” from Company!
I was terrified but studied all day and night learning the lyrics and ridiculously fast melody and when I finally got to the audition and gave it my best shot. It went better than I thought, and I landed my first off-Broadway gig on the spot!
This show, much like “Smokey Joe’s” really tailors the parts to the performers. Can you tell us a little bit about that process and what you brought to the creation of the role? Did you have any concerns about doing comedy and impressions?
The creative process is very experimental and one of the things I felt excited about bringing to that process was my ability to try anything thrown at me, even if I had never done it before! I was never concerned about doing the comedy and impressions in “Forbidden Broadway” because essentially it lives up to what it promotes! Poking fun at theatrical icons who we all know and love in a way that is silly and campy for people to enjoy a good laugh is what it’s all about and it’s nice to see the incredible sense of humor our audiences have shown.
All of the performers in ”Forbidden Broadway” are so different, yet all so brilliant and the performances really complement each other. What were rehearsals like with four such unique personalities?
Well, to be honest, I was cast in “Forbidden Broadway” almost a week before preview performances began so the stakes were high, and the rehearsal process was a tunnel vision experience for me. My main goal was to absorb as much information as possible with the little bit of time I had left to learn the show before that first official preview performance.
How did it feel to step into the shoes of legendary performers, like Christine Pedi and Christina Bianco, who had appeared in prior editions of the show?
Both of those women are Forbidden Broadway legends, and my only hope is to make them and the remaining Forbidden Broadway alumni proud of all the hard work put into this latest iteration for Merrily We Stole a Song!
Do you have a favorite part of the show or song?
I think my favorite part of the show is my first solo at the top of the show where we spoof “& Juliet” in the song “Sore” (a tribute to the Katy Perry platinum hit “Roar.”) Joking about singing at the top of your vocal range eight shows a week is literally art imitating the life of every musical theater vocalist in our industry. So, I kind of feel like a triumphant vocal advocate for my theater friends after conquering that ridiculously high song, lol!
What is the most surprising reaction you’ve seen from the audience while performing FB here in NYC?
With all the buzz around the “Wicked” movie coming out in November, along with the movie trailer teasers, it’s really fun to hear how excited the audience gets when I hit the final note of the song in tribute to Cynthia Erivo’s iconic “Defying Gravity” riff at the very end of the song!
Forbidden Broadway: Merrily We Stole a song continues in NYC through November 3, 2024. For tickets and information, visit https://www.forbiddenbroadway.nyc.
