'Avenue Q' leads Wheaton native back to Chicago
When people picture a life in the theater, they usually think of the glory part of it: the lights, the audiences, the applause. They don't think of the prep time or, for touring shows, the hours spent on a bus moving from town to town.
That is where I catch actor and music director Michael McAssey, a native of Wheaton - on a bus. He and the rest of the cast and crew of the national tour of "Avenue Q" were traveling from South Bend, Ind., to Flint, Mich., just prior to their stop in Chicago.
McAssey is the conductor/music director for this tour, which comes to Chicago Tuesday, May 4, to Monday, May 10.
"Avenue Q" is the R-rated musical that began as a parody of sorts of "Sesame Street" and grew into a Broadway hit that beat out "Wicked" at the Tonys. Developed in 2002, the show features a cast of foul-mouthed puppets commenting on contemporary life and singing tartly satirical songs like "Everyone's a Little Bit Racist."
The show and songs can be very funny, but a little bit raw for some audiences - and definitely not for kids, even though the puppets look very much like their Muppet cousins.
"I love watching the show every night," McAssey says.
And from the orchestra pit, McAssey definitely sees the show every night.
"I have friends who are out with the 'South Pacific' tour and the 'Fiddler on the Roof' tour - and I like those shows - but I get to sit back and watch how the jokes go. I get to see the audience, I get to see them laughing. Sometimes they are put out. But usually not."
McAssey lives and breathes theater, dividing his time between acting and music directing. He just finished "Hairspray" in the key comic role of Edna Turnblad, the mother of the musical's perky main character.
For the past 20 years, McAssey has called New York home, though his work pulls him away for long periods of time. His theater years, however, started back in Wheaton.
"I went to Wheaton Central, which doesn't exist anymore," McAssey says. "I was into theater in high school. Since day one that was what I wanted to do. In my first show I got into the chorus of 'South Pacific.' Jim Belushi was in that show."
Even then, McAssey divided his time between the stage and the orchestra pit.
"I always played piano," he says. "I would play rehearsals."
McAssey jokes that being able to play piano is both a blessing and a curse. "If I am at a party and they know I can play piano," he says, "that is where I will spend the whole night - at the piano."
But piano and acting also launched McAssey on his career. While in college at Eastern Illinois University, he began working at various theaters in Chicago - and then later around the country. He reluctantly admits he never finished college, but that was just a sign of how well his theater career has gone.
As an actor, McAssey plays both comic and serious roles, singing and non-singing. He appeared in the hyper-serious military drama "A Few Good Men" and in the classic 1940s comedy "The Man Who Came to Dinner."
On the music side, McAssey is part of New York's cabaret scene - that is, when he isn't on the road.
And now, the road is about to take him home to Chicago.
"The cool thing coming back to Chicago is that the Shubert (now called the Bank of America Theatre) was where I went to see my first Broadway show," McAssey says. "It was the original national tour of 'Promises, Promises.' Every Wednesday before Thanksgiving my drama teacher at Wheaton Central would take us on a tour downtown to a show at the Shubert. So I am really kind of thrilled to be back in town and to be in that theater, of all theaters."
• "Avenue Q" runs from May 4 to May 10 at the Bank of America Theatre, 18 W. Madison, Chicago. For tickets and information, visit broadwayinchicago.com or call (312) 977-1700.