Sincerely, Angelo - With Angelo Martinez (Evan Hansen)

Hello! You there! Welcome to another episode of A Spoonful of Theatre. I'm TJ, theatre practitioner, director and performer. And I'm Sam Sam, a teacher of language, literature and self-proclaimed show business, Luvvie. This is our podcast where we spill the tea on all things Singapore theatre. It's Tea Time! And today's episode is titled Sincerely, Angelo.

Because we have the exclusive after-show interview with Singapore's newest star, Angelo Martinez, after his starring role in Dear Evan Hansen. Yes, so don't move an inch as we're about to delve into his experience and find out what his debut performance has meant to him. But for now, pop the kettle on, grab a biccy and let's add a spoonful of theatre to sweeten up your day. Oh Sam, we are back. We're back. What? We're a month old. We are. It's fabulous, isn't it?

You've not been a month old for a while. You cheeky cow! Now while the kettle is boiling and our guest is on the way, I personally just want to say thank you for everyone for tuning in. As always, this podcast is growing and it is only growing because you guys are apparently enjoying it, which you are telling us all, which is really wonderful.

So I would just like to remind everyone that if you are listening, it really does help us in whatever streaming service you're listening to this on, whether it's YouTube, Spotify, Apple, whatever streaming service you found this on, while you're listening right now, right now, look at your screen, press the subscribe button, press the follow button, whatever sort of button it is, give it a click because it helps us get this podcast out to more people. So if you can just do that for us right now.

Thank you. Okay. And if you haven't followed us on Instagram, please do. We really appreciate it because we really want this to celebrate all of Singapore Theatre and it really is making an impact. So thank you all very much. Yes. Thank you. Thank you. Dear listeners. How you been love? I have been wonderful. I had a holiday. Where you been? No, I went to Taipei. I had a lovely time in Taipei and I also had a lovely few days in Koh Samui as well. Very lucky, very fortunate, nice and rested.

Oh, yes. You had a gorgeous hotel, didn't you? Oh, it was beautiful. The second hotel, but we're not going to get into that on the podcast. And I also theatre land wise, of course, we closed Dear Evan Hansen, but I also went to watch Mongol Khan, which we spoke about on the last episode. And I actually really enjoyed it. I didn't, I didn't know what I was in for. But it was this beautiful ensemble theatre piece.

Yes. And I'd just been teaching actually Greek theatre at school, which is, you know, all very ensemble heavy stuff and although it was Mongolian. It was kind of had a lot of Greek theatre kind of pictures and stage pictures and ensemble work and I loved it. So yeah, I did that. Why you been up to Sam Sam? Well, it was a lot really. But I'm still recovering from it actually. I went to be a BWay Rave. Yes, the Broadway dance party. Yes, a first in Singapore. Yes. So it was lovely to go to.

And I have to give kudos and snaps to Rachel and Alicia. I just love the idea of you doing snaps. That's hilarious. Snaps. I have to give give give full credit to Rachel and Alicia and to the DJ Dwayne as well. I'll be honest, it was a little bit more rave than Broadway, if I'm honest. But there was some you know, I was very grateful that Somewhere Over the Rainbow came on. Oh, you you you were in your element.

And I think when when we had the Broadway tunes, I think every the entire room erupted. I think I you know, I wish them all the best and I hope it comes back because I had a great time. I really do. Because I'll tell you why. Because it was another space for the theatre kids. And I really looked forward to another one in the new year. Absolutely. Well done. Well done. The team behind Broadway Rave. Go follow them on IG and go support that because we loved it.

Now in other news, before we get to our interview, there was some quite big news actually this month from the Necessary Stage who organise the M1 Fringe Festival. And it's not going to be the M1 Fringe Festival, unfortunately, not for much longer, because M1 have been title sponsor for that for many, many years. And they've pulled out. Oh, which is quite a big substantial donation towards making that happen. Right. And the kind of producer hat coming on here.

Most things in Singapore, we can only put them on with sponsorship. You know, it's so expensive for the venues and the crew behind it and and putting that on. So finding a sponsor for anything such as the M1 Fringe Festival is a big deal when that changes and finding title sponsors for anything right now is almost impossible. So they are in a bit of a predicament in future editions. I think they're sponsoring the next one, but the kind of future of the festival is a little bit up in the air.

And I really hope that they find some supporters for that. But a shout out to all of our listeners. The M1 Fringe Festival is coming up next year. And I think we can all go and support it and share how how important is the theatre landscape. We'll be there. We'll be there.

Absolutely. Now our guest is almost here. I think it's time to tell everyone who our guest is for this episode. It is ladies and gentlemen, it is Evan Hansen himself. It's Angelo Martinez. Absolutely. We have Angelo with us and we are hoping to pick his brains on everything about the show, how how he got the role, how he felt during rehearsals, how the shows went for him. And also what next? What is he going to do after after his debut role? What's he going to get up to after that?

Shall we find out? I think we should find out. Let's do it. Sam, we are joined by our guests. Oh, hello, darling. How are you, sweetheart? Hi, I'm I'm I'm so tired. I'm good. I'm good. I'm good. Thank you so much for having me. And as you are in the studio, how have you been? How has the past 24 hours been? Oh, it's been very thankfully very quiet. Well deserved. Sleeping the whole the whole day. Yeah, but it's great. It's great to finally just catch up and let my body rest.

I think after the past two months. Oh my God, it's been two months. Yes. Oh, God. And the look of realisation that came into those eyes. Oh my God. As he said it, your eyes just went, wow. It's really it's almost like it's as I look back at it, I'm almost did it just happen? Oh, that just happened. Right. OK. Yeah. How many shows was it in those 33 33 shows? Yeah. My goodness. Yeah. 33 shows and the last show was the last weekend, of course, was a four show weekend. Just a really like so.

Just a nail it right into the ground. Knock it out of the park. My goodness. 33 shows. That's crazy. And just just for context, we are recording this on Tuesday and the show closed on Sunday and the show party closed on Monday, technically. Yes. It's Monday. We're really we're really like we're really less than 48 hours since you properly wrapped the show. 100 percent. And how's the come down sort of going? Is it are you done? Are you is it is it a process?

It hasn't been that kind of stark of a jump because I think my mind is still in the show. Yeah. But of course, at the end of the day, there's actually so much kind of like physical relief because of how demanding the role was. I can really feel the toll that it's taken on my body. Really? Yeah. In what way?

I think I didn't realise how much sleep that I have taken on, especially because, you know, I mean, I think we all can agree when you know, you know, when you're doing theatre and when you're doing shows and the stress that comes from it, you don't have great night's sleep, you know, every night. Right. Because your mind is still buzzing from the show or the rehearsals.

And then after that, when you when you actually go and you finish the show and you close it and you're like, oh, my God, my body is just it's not there. Yeah. So I think I will probably still need like a month of holiday to actually. Oh, I don't blame you, dear. At least. Oh, yeah. Holiday massage. Like whatever you do to everything. Oh, my God. I mean, we'll probably go into this a little bit more later on talking about rehearsals and that entire process.

But out of pure curiosity, because you've just brought it up, when were you when would your days start and when would your days end? It's a great question. I think my day starts usually time wise around like maybe 10 or 11 a.m., probably 10 a.m. Because my body doesn't want to sleep after that. Right. So it sucks because even if I sleep at like six, I don't get four hours of sleep because my body just wakes up at 10. Right. Right. And then I usually get to bed around three or two.

Yeah. I have a very long wind down routine. Yeah. Oh, do you actually a routine? Yeah. So the wind down routine is very long. And the warm up routine for the show and rehearsals is also very long. So literally, it's I wake up and it's show and then I sleep hoping to just rest for the next day. Yeah. So it's basically consumed me for two months. Wow. Fascinating. Okay. Now, overall, in a word, how do you feel now? So it's consumed you for two months.

Yeah. Looking back, I think one word is really hard, but I'm just going to challenge you to think about like what would be the headline of how the last two months has been? Like how are you feeling at this point? Right now? Yeah. I think the word is definitely just literally the word is relief. Definitely. The word is relief. There's been so much work put into it. Yes. For a long time, I had to start working on this show specifically since last year. My goodness.

God, it goes back as far as then. Yeah. My God. So even like the mental prep for it, the decisions that I've had to make apart for the... I've given up a lot to do the show. Right. Yeah. A lot of people, myself included, had no idea who you are. No, perfect. Perfect. Exactly how we all wanted it to be. Not really really really. And so to play a lead role like that, a massive role, the audience is curious. Who is Angelo Martinez? So where did it all begin, dear?

Are we talking about like when I was a kid? Yes. Start there. If that's where it started. Okay. I started singing very late in my life. Really? Yes. 16, 17. Oh, wow. Yeah. 16, 17 is when I started singing. 16, 17 is when I started listening to music. Right. Yeah. And suddenly, oh, I like music because before that I was a fine artist. Oh, right. A visual artist. Yes, that's right. Oh, marvellous. So I did sculpture, I did painting and all. Oh, wow. And kind of that entire route.

So that's what I did in SOTA. Right. So you went to SOTA for the arts program. Yes. And so I graduated in the visual arts course. Was this IB? Yeah. Right. So I did that. Only 16, 17 at around that time. That's when I realised, oh, okay, I like music. And I started to sing around that time. Was there a moment? Did you just end up in a K-box or something? No. I think the truth is I wanted to boost my sex appeal, to be honest. Fair enough. Fair enough. You heard it here, folks. Yes, folks.

No, no, for real. That's around the time in which I was discovering myself. You know what? I had a crush in school. I wanted to be like, it's cooler to be this and that. So I was like, you know what? I'm going to start trying to be into music and stuff like that. Maybe I could catch a girl's attention. Seriously. How romantic. And did learning singing get the girl? Oh, that is a good question. The answer is yes. Oh, there we go. There we go.

Would I be right to assume when you discovered music at this moment, I don't sense it being naturally musical theatre. No, no, it wasn't. It wasn't. It wasn't. Yeah. So naturally, to woo the girl, I assumed, yeah, you got to listen to smooth music. So I was like, all R&B, all of those hip hop and stuff like that. Growing up, I also kind of was around family members that listened to that. And so it was really just lying in CDs around the house, Boyz II Men and all that. And I was like, okay.

And then that was my first deep dive into music. I loved it. And then really my introduction to musical theatre was also very late. How late? The audition. Oh, just before. No, no, no. Well, I mean, the lore is that even when I stepped into the audition room, I told Tracy and Adrian, Dear Evan Hansen is the only musical that I know. At the time, yes. So I came in being like, okay, I haven't done this before. And I don't know that much, but I love these songs. And that's how I turned up.

Hi, my name is Angelo Martinez. I'm going to be singing these songs in front of you all. Wow. Yeah. That's, wow. I'm flabbergasted by that. Yeah, I grew a pair. I really had to grow a big pair to show my face to them. You mentioned Dear Evan Hansen is the only musical that you know. Yes, at the time, yes. What was your connection to that musical? How was it you knew that and not others? Oh, that's a good question. I heard the song For Forever Online first.

I chanced upon that song first and I loved it. And then I realised that, okay, this is by Ben Platt, the guy that was in Pitch Perfect. So then I went down the rabbit hole of the soundtrack and I was like, oh, wow, Words Fail is a nice song too. Waving through the window is also really nice. So then I just listened to all of the songs and I just kept it at the back of my head. So that's why when they posted the audition notice in May, I was like, oh my gosh, they're bringing it here.

I have to try. And it was a big deal, wasn't it? The fact that Dear Evan Hansen is coming to Southeast Asia, it was a huge deal. I almost couldn't get a slot. Yeah, I couldn't get a slot. The first time I tried, I couldn't get the form out. It crashed. Oh my, oh, oh. Yeah, so I had the Taylor Swift concert. But that is how popular it was.

I remember it coming up because I was teaching at Lasalle at the time and every single guy under the age of 30 and even some over the age of 30 wanted to audition for this role. This is such an iconic role. But going back to what you were saying just a little bit before we get onto auditions, I think that's what's the beauty of this show is it transcends musical theatre.

And I think that's why it's done so well in its production here because people, especially, I think people of Gen Z generation and around that, I'd say above and below that, really resonate with the music style. Like, Pasek and Paul, the music is just so... It's got those R&B vibes in there as well. And of course, Ben Platt, he is very popular from movies and things as well as vocally as well. Yeah, and his tone is pretty iconic. So I hear him, I'm like, oh yeah, there's Ben Platt.

So I think it's a show that does transcend that. So it doesn't surprise me that that was one of the only musicals that reached out to you outside the musical theatrr genre. Because when you're musical theatre people, we just assume everybody knows every musical. They do not. Actually, not everybody is like us and has musicals on Spotify every day. People actually listen to other artists. There's people like Sabrina Carpenter and things that Sam has no idea who they are.

Oh, we'll talk about that later. Oh dear Lord. But yeah, I think that's so interesting that that led to you just giving it a go. And I think that's such a big thing to walk into that audition room and give it a go. Kudos. Absolute kudos to you. I think that leads us very nicely into the audition. So once you got secured that slot, how was the day? How did it go? How did you feel? What was it like?

So firstly, I learned actually post doing this show that people don't really come into the audition room singing songs from the musical that they are auditioning for. So I mean, I didn't know that. But then I was like, okay, they're going to want to hear that the people that they're auditioning for can hit the notes or whatnot and can tell the story. So I might as well just sing the songs. I mean, I like them. When I signed up in May, I didn't really know the songs fully.

So I took two months to learn them, singing them literally every day. Every day to myself in the room, I dedicated an hour after work, after school. Okay, I'm going to learn this song. I'm going to sing it to how I think I can make it sound best because I'm not vocally trained as well. I just had to make it work. I just like, okay, I think this is how I can make it sound. So total imposter syndrome, total like I honestly, am I allowed to swear? I don't know what the fuck I'm doing.

But I just love the songs too much to not show up. You know what, just hearing that, that completely explains why you got the role on top of that. I can tell you having worked, I do audition prep with people all the time. I audition all the time and I can tell you that people don't put that much work into most auditions. I wish they did, but majority of people, it's another audition in their cycle and they will prep it really quickly or drag something out. I guarantee that came through.

I was not in your audition, although we worked on the show together. I wasn't in the audition room. And I guarantee that came across and that passion and that hunger and that works so much for Evan. Like, and that kind of almost naivety, like, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Character wise, exactly what Evan is, right? So I think that I'm sure that all the eyes just kind of lit up when they saw this hungry, hungry boy, never heard or seen before come in.

And to add to that, I couldn't make the first two days of, okay, so the audition process was so big, right, that they had three full days worth of auditions. So they saw like hundreds, I think over 150 people. And I couldn't, I couldn't make the first two slots, right? On the first two days. Come back from the Philippines on the last day, I realised I can only make the last slot. So it's either the last slot I don't make, take it.

So I remember my number was 110 and then I came into the room and I said, okay, I'm the last person thinking they've seen hundreds of people already. They're probably so tired, you know, they're probably not going to give this guy who doesn't know what he's doing, who just shows up at the end at that time of day. Yeah. Total imposter syndrome. If you think about it, all the odds were against me. Yeah. That's literally what was going in my head. Yeah. But you know what?

I think this is a lesson for everyone that's listening. And it was really interesting. We put a post up on Instagram before you came asking questions and the auditions were pretty much most of what people wanted to know because so many times we hear it in Singapore that people say, oh, the same people get cast over and over again. It's always the same people.

And to be fair from a producer hat, putting my old producer hat on, there is a reason for that because they're people you trust and you know, and you know, you know that they're going to deliver. In Singapore, it's so expensive to put on theatre that you can't necessarily always take a risk. What I will give Pangdemonium their credit for this is that open call was an open call. They were looking for anyone. It really was anyone.

And to give a complete newbie the central role of the biggest musical in town for the year is a huge leap of faith, is a huge leap of faith and a gamble. It really is. But it just shows that, you know, companies and it's not just Pangdemonium, actually other companies are doing it now. There are new faces coming through throughout the Singapore theatre scene, but it is a credit to all the companies now that people, they are giving people chances in these roles.

And I, but I think especially in this one, it would have been so easy just to go, Hey, we know that, I'm not going to say any names, but there's so many people that, you know, there's the regular people that we always see.

Yeah. They might not have been right into, they might have been a bit older looking or, you know, it might not, you know, but I mean, Ben Platt played him when he's like, what in his like twenties, like, you know, but so they could have gone that route and gone with a more established one, but they took that risk with you. And honestly, it paid off. It absolutely paid off. But that was great.

So I just want to just really quick, so we kind of fast forward a little bit, I suppose, but rewinding back to the audition process. So you're there, you're 110. Yeah. You've sang your song. Yeah. Did you feel like it went well? Because everyone always judges themselves in auditions. Like how did it go? How did, how did you do? What two, two months of practice was in that room. Did you, did you do yourself proud? I couldn't tell. I was so confused.

Yeah. Because what happened, um, and I mean, this is, he was spilling the tea, right? So, I mean, so again, this is my first audition, right? Ever, especially in this space. So you're supposed to come in and the standard, I think is 32 bars of, um, of a song. So I came in and I came in wanting to do the first 32 bars of four forever. Right. I did it. And then they were like, can you please do the whole song? And I was like, Oh, and they're like, do you know the whole song?

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I do. I do. I do. I do. At the back of my head, Angelo, of course you do. You, you tried this for two months. You have, you know, just, yeah. And then I was like, okay, yeah, I can do the whole song. I did the whole song and they were just quiet for like a few seconds. Out of interest, just, just to set the scene in my head here, how many people are you doing this in front of? Oh, okay. So this was in front of Tracie, Adrian, Tim, and Joanne on keys. Joanne.

Yes. And Joanne who was playing keys. And what was this in the theatre? Was this in a studio space where this was in the Pangdemonium rehearsal studio. Right. Okay. Okay. Yeah. So I've got the image in my head now. Okay. Yep. So I put my stuff down and then I, I sang the full song in front of them. I finish it and they don't say anything. They just look at me and then I look back at them and I'm like, now what? They like look at each other and they're like, do you have another song?

And I was like, I do. It's waving through a window. And then they looked at me and they're like, ah, yeah. And then they said, can you do the whole song of that too? And then I was like, yeah, okay. And I did it. Oh, but these are all good signs. Like, was your heart a flutter? Like, oh yeah, I was telling them. I think literally it was caught on. I mean, I'm sure they film all the auditions, but I was telling this straight to the camera. I couldn't feel my hands.

And the, and the next time I had this exact same feeling was during rehearsals of the show when we ran through act one for the very first time. Yeah. It was that exact same feeling when I couldn't feel my hands. Having done all those, all the big numbers back to back. Yeah, man. So I do, I do those songs and, and then they just asked me to step outside and wait for a blue slip or a red slip. That's all. Oh, is that how it works? Oh, well, I, I will, I will add some tea here.

That was the first time that's ever been done. And it was quite, there was, there was different opinions, but yes, it was a little bit, it was a bit like, it was a bit like a Britain's Got Talent or an X-Factor. Yeah, yeah, yeah. A blue or red slip. So it's the first time it's ever been done. Oh, okay. So this is not usually... No. The process. Not, not the red and the red and the slips was a, it was a new thing.

So it did get, it did, it did get quite the conversation started within the performer community afterwards. However, you know, I suppose you know there and then, like there's no waiting. It's like, it's like, and, and actually being on a panel, you pretty much do know there and then. And, you know, as in, I know if I, I know if I'm going to want to see you again, pretty much 20 seconds after you've opened your voice.

Actually, I usually know when you walk in the room, as in like just how you're holding yourself. Like that's a big giveaway for me when I'm on a panel. But especially once you've started singing, I pretty much know, because you know, you hear singers all the time, you work with singers all the time. I know if you're going to hit those notes later, I can hear it in your voice. Ah, yes, yes, yes, yes. Which, which we, we talked a lot about when we were working together. Exactly.

Oh, no, no, yeah, yeah. Just, yeah, just do this and go. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, so yeah, absolutely. So I think, yeah, you, you really do know, you really do know straight away. But, you know, there were, there were people that didn't get those recalls that, you know, were expecting to, or were not necessarily expecting to, but you maybe thought, oh, they might have a good shot and they didn't. And you know, I think that's a bigger lesson about auditions.

It's not necessarily, you know, you don't know what the, you don't know what the director wants. You don't know what the production company wants. Yes. You know, even though you might have a vision of the show in your head that you think I'm perfect for it, you might not be, you know, or, you know, and it's even if you're a seasoned actor and Angelo could walk in and take the role. No, but I, I joke about that, but that's true. You know, like at the end of the day.

History of any production, whether it be movie, TV or theatre is dotted with those examples. I can't think of one coming to mind at the moment, but there are plenty of examples of nobody's debuts and absolutely stealing the show. And then, then they become a household name. You did your first round. You got the slip. Yeah. You got the slip. Which colour? It was the positive one. The positive one. The promising one, the good one, the blue one. Yes. We got the blue step and then recalls, right?

Yeah. And many recalls, I believe for you. Oh yes. It was like, I think if same day. No, no, no, no. No, but the first one was the next day. The next day. Yes. My goodness. Literally. So you got the blue slip. Yep. And a load of recalls. Yes. Over a number of days. So when did... No, over a number of weeks. Over a number of weeks. Yes. So you mentioned earlier, this was last year. This was last year. Yes. When last year? This was July last year. Wow. So this is close to 18 months ago.

Yeah. Wow. Yeah. Yeah. So how many weeks until you got the call? That I was offered the role? Yes. Oh my gosh. I remember this scene like it was yesterday. So the final call happened, I think it was first week of August. It was around there. And what happened was they had a group recall and some of my cast mates were there as well. So Rebecca was there, Ethel was there. Yeah. And we sang Good For You. I remember that.

And then they asked the other cast members to... I mean all the other applicants to be dismissed. And then they got me to sing Words Fail for the first time. So I sang that. After I sang Words Fail, I had to wait, which I remember was one of the longest waits of my entire life. I was like... It felt like three years, it was more like 15 minutes. And then they invited me to their office. And I still remember it was the four of them, Adrian Tracie, Tim and Joanne.

And they all looked at me and was like, what are you doing next year, October? Oh, that's marvellous. And what was your immediate reaction? I can skip school for this. That was the first thought. The first thing I said to them was, are you sure? Oh, you're so modest. The first thing I said was, are you sure? Because this was the same kind of conversation that I had after Singing For Forever in front of them for the first time. They looked at me and was like, have you done theatre before?

And I was like, no, no, no, no, never, never, never. But I watched movies. And then they're like, okay, so no acting experience? No, have you taken a course? And I was like, no, but I have friends who do theatre. So my neighbour does theatre. So I said the same thing. You know, I mentioned to you in the rehearsal, I mean, in the audition room, I've never done this before. And they're like, yeah, yeah, we know. But if you want to take this seriously, we would like to offer you the role.

For Evan. And then I was like, oh, then the next thing I said after that was, the imposter syndrome is really, really, really kicking in, guys. And that same feeling, I think, still kind of sticks with me today. Yeah, it hasn't really left. Yeah. I've just learned how to take it in my stride when I put in the work and show my face in front of 600 people a night. Yeah. Or, you know, 30 in the rehearsal room, because that's also super daunting at the beginning of the process. Yeah.

But I think that leaves us nicely. So you get the role, you know, you take it all in and you say yes. Then obviously there's a big gap. You've got the year and as you said, there was preparation. You were preparing through the whole year. And I know you've had sessions and things before that. Let's fast forward to rehearsals. So let's summarise the rehearsal. So how were rehearsals for you? What were the surprises? What were the... Oh. What happened? Because I was there for most of it.

So I saw it. I saw it. And I was like, how was it for you? How was that process? The hardest thing I've ever done in my life. How so? I was pushed to my limits, I think in every facet of myself. Yeah. Because, I mean, Tracie said it very kind of succinctly. She said, you're basically doing what an actor goes through like in like three years of drama school and like shows and trying things out in five weeks. So you're going to have to just suck it up and follow through and commit to the journey.

So that was the one thing I could lean on was that no matter what, right? If I had a terrible day in rehearsals today, I trust that when I come back to the room tomorrow, I'm going to give it my all again. And I'm going to carry that same spirit I had when I tried to audition. And that is to just make it work. Yeah. The only difference is I am surrounded by a bunch of experienced, talented people I can support and show love.

And that was probably the only thing that was allowing me to survive the past five weeks. Yeah. Me and TJ have been in a number of jobs and things like that. And the people do make it. The people that you live, they can make or break a job. I would say that for any job. I mean, I don't, other than my cruise ships days. Oh, we're finally on the cruise ships. I don't come from a performing background, but... It was on the cruise ship. Angela's looking very confused while you just blew a horn.

That's the cruise ship bell. Yes. Before I came to Singapore, I worked on cruise ships. I think for any job, it's the people that you work with that can make or break it. So that's wonderful. And you could see it on stage. You could really see it on stage how well you all gel together. Honestly, in rehearsals, it was beautiful. It's such a beautiful cast and the process was delicious. It was lovely. I think not every show is as beautiful as that. Everyone gelled.

No, it really, really came together. And I think that even in the tough moments, it was really nice that they weren't ignored. There was so much love and tenderness to embrace how hard and difficult it was to tell the story. But then there were certain moments whereby we could laugh about it and keep things light. And that's why I think I really owe it to some of the cast members to really just make it a lot more bearable.

Because Dear Evan Hansen is so heavy and it never gets easier to tell, even if you're familiar with the show already. It's still as hard to do or hard to watch. About that, because with the questions we had on Instagram today, a couple asked this. With the rehearsal period and playing him and obviously the preparation as well, as you say, it was the first musical you knew. As you went deeper into Evan, was there a favourite part of Evan?

Yeah, actually, I think the first thing is I really like Evan's humour. I think he's hilarious. I think it's so understated. Usually everyone goes, oh no, Jared's the comic relief. He's the one I'll go to for a good laugh. But Evan's humour is actually very sharp. And the reasons as to why so many of the scenes give you a good laugh is because Evan is there to help you make you smile. He's so witty. And that wittiness also translates to when he's fighting with people and things get super heavy.

And he's actually just so aware of his surroundings, of his feelings. And he's just such a sayang boy. Sayang boy, 17 year old. And I think the other thing about Evan that I really like is that it's so ironic to say this, but it's his honesty. So you know, the whole show's about him lying. But you know, in all the scenes, I think in trying to kind of tell Evan's story and to put him to life on stage, the way he reacts and shows his body and stuff, it's so honest.

And the way he tries to help or the way he tries to talk to people, it's so rooted in honesty. He's not trying to be a different person. He's just scared to be himself. You know? Yeah. And it's so honestly real. And I think that's why a lot of you saying earlier, a lot of gen Z's and generations above and below identify with that. Honesty can be quite hard. Yeah. It can be quite hard discovering it and being authentic. Now the rehearsals leads into the show.

What was going through your head's nerves, pressure when it came to tech, to opening, it finally coming together and being put in front of, as you say, 600 people for 33 shows. Yeah. I think the first thing that I had to lean on was that I had to trust the rehearsal period. I had to trust the work that we put in and the decisions that we've all made to make the show and the experience of the show what it was. Tracy mentioned it very, very nicely.

When we start shows, the only difference is that we have a new player in the room and that's the audience. So we can imagine them as like a fourth character. Oh, how beautifully put. I love that. How beautifully put. Like a new character in the show. It just adds a new layer of awareness of how we then not just react to each other on stage, but how we'd hear how audiences react to our decisions on stage. Making Evan a bit angrier in these scenes and making him a bit funnier in these scenes.

But I think that the pressure definitely got a lot more palpable during the opening weekend. I think the reality of having to do the run several times over like four to five days was very, very scary. So like even coming in and doing the preview on a 7pm show, but having done a full run before that, and we can't let our foot off the brakes. We always have to keep on committing to the journey and the journey is never lighter. That's what's so scary.

And then that's why I never found Saturdays to be any easier because we do it twice. And then Gala night was on the... I also know that you're someone who likes the evening as in the warm up. Yeah, exactly. Then warmed up by 7.30pm, but then I still have to do the 2.30pm show and commit to that fully. And you did. I watched a few matinees. You nailed it still, so don't worry.

But I think that's a real interesting point though, that actually opening weekend is way heavy than you even think it is because I mean, you have the pressure of first audience, that new member of the cast that suddenly enters. You don't know. You genuinely don't know. Anyone that watches it before is getting paid to be there. Any reactions. People are laughing and they understand the script and they probably read it 50 times before they come to the room.

So you don't actually have a live audience's reaction to your version of the show until they come on that preview night. So it's daunting for everyone. And that first night, I'm sure it was a surprise. You're like, oh, you're laughing here. Excuse me, I was in a moment. Excuse me. And you're having to slow it down and speed it up. And that's a skill. It's a skill that you kind of have to learn on the job, on the fly.

And so that's like a whole new thing on top of all those other things you had on that opening weekend. You have this whole other skill of like, I need to slow this down. I need to give you space to laugh and cry with me and breathe with you. And I'm sure that got easier over time as you went over. Yeah, definitely. I think it's two things. One is I definitely got a lot more comfortable with the character and the journey he goes through. And secondly, it's getting more comfortable with the stage.

I was telling this to Tracy the other day. After doing like a number of shows, I can finally feel my feet on the ground, especially doing like the big numbers. I can feel myself walk and cross the stage with feeling my body moving. And it really gives me a surge of confidence to just grab the song by the balls because they are very difficult songs. If you don't mind me just going off on a tangent, because you mentioned it a couple of times, you seem somebody that's very connected to their body.

You mentioned about not feeling, being able to feel your hands and then just then not feeling the ground you're walking on. Is that something about you? You must feel the connection through your body. Absolutely. My response to this is actually in two points. The first thing is that I have health anxiety. I am very, very aware of how my body feels. Any kind of slight sensation or difference, I will definitely take notice.

The second thing is, which leads into very nicely to it, when I was working with TJ on doing the songs, it was very natural for me to kind of pick up the idea of having to use more of your body to nail the songs. I think that's kind of the difference in which you kind of understand it from a technical viewpoint and not just kind of making it work. Because when I make it work, I just always use my throat. I pick up pieces of my body and I just try to make the sound.

But then kind of like working with TJ, I was like, oh, okay, you can actually use your body to make things easier for yourself. Oh, you've trained him well, dear. You've trained him well. But I do just want to say, I said this to you as well, but I will say it publicly. You are a sponge. You absorb every note and not only absorb, but you understand, you take on and you apply. And I was genuinely, I watched it on the last weekend.

I was crying not only because of the show, I was just like a proud, I was like a proud, I was going to say a proud dad, but I'm definitely not like proud big brother. Proud big brother, because genuinely, like the process you've gone on to put that up, I know how much you've seen it and I feel it and the audience feel it. And you should be so proud of what you've done. Genuinely. Appreciate it. Really. Could you hear the audience crying? Oh, now that's another question. Yes, I can. Yes, I can.

But it depends on how hard I'm crying. Yeah. Yeah. So there are specific points in the show that I can start to feel and sense them crying. It's definitely towards the tail end, of course. But there are times in which I'm surprised when I hear from the directors in the house, I hear from other people in the audience whereby they tell me that there are criers as early as before you will be found. Yeah. Okay, those I can't hear.

If any sniffles in the house during those times, I really cannot hear it. So there's a sniffler behind us called he wouldn't stop. It was so funny to me. That first show, I remember, again, because as creative, you're sat there and you don't know what everyone's going to react like. Yeah, you don't. So we did Words Fail and there was tears. When was this? This was preview. I remember this very vividly on preview. There was some sniffles after Words Fail for sure.

And then we went in, it's kind of that double whammy in the show, right? You get Words Fail and then it goes into So Big, So Small. Yeah. Oh my gosh. In that moment when the tree is coming up and then the lights are coming up on the audience because it's so bright, all you get is... And then you get grown men pretending and then suddenly this light is coming on them from the projector and they're all trying to pretend like they're not crying, but everybody is sniffling around.

And it was just a sea of sniffles because also the band is quite quiet at that point as well. So you just hear these sniffles everywhere. Yes, that's right. The band is quiet. And then the light's coming up on you and it's just like, yes, you're all crying now. It's like the big reveal.

So we're now... The show is closed and we've gone through all of that. Are you proud of your journey? How are you feeling now? Yeah, 100%. Oh, you're shooting. Like I said, I gave up a lot for this show, even in the most basic technical ways. I gave up alcohol for this show. I changed my diet completely for this show. This was a year and a half of commitment. So I told you all that day I'm at the closing party. The first drink I have is me tasting alcohol after one and a half years. Oh yeah.

I mean, yeah. So I mean, I really gave up a lot for this show and I... Such discipline. Wow. I was a monk. I really was a monk for the two months. I just rehearsed and I came home and I slept. Same with, even more so with the shows. The irony that he only got into singing to be a sex god and then he was a monk when he actually got a role that required him to sing. Oh my god, that's a good one. Well, you're back now, my friend.

I do wonder, because a lot of performers are thinking of the next job. They're thinking of the next paycheque. Has that happened to you or are you still... You're thinking, no, I want to deflate at the moment. I want to just chill and then I'll think about what next. That's a great, great question. The one thing that I put on hold for this is making my own music. So that's the next thing I'm hungry to do again. Yeah, it's two. I have a bunch of demos that I put on pause.

I'm going to be going to make that. That's going to be my project for the next few months. What genre? Oh, R&B. Oh, it's R&B. Yeah. Yeah. I hope this is not the last we've heard of Angelo Martinez as the actor. On the stage? Yes. Yeah, we'll see. We'll see. We'll see. I mean, I've thought about it. Playing Evan is very difficult. So I would love to do a comedy. I love to do something that's super light and doing something funny.

But the world is your oyster there with Dear Evan Hansen on your CV. Oh, we'll see. We'll see. Fabulous. I love it. We really have our Singaporean Ben Platt. Ben Platt did an album straight after Dear Evan Hansen. Oh, did he? Did he do that? You've heard him. I've listened to Honey mind, but I didn't know that he released this album. I think it's after Dear Evan Hansen. I don't know if it's straight after, but it's definitely... We've got our Singaporean Ben Platt.

Nice. And I think what a wonderful addition to our Singapore art scene that we have. Appreciate it. And I know we will be following your career very, very closely. And I'm sure everyone that's listening will be as well. We'll all be buying your album on Spotify. Oh, please. Until the launch. Oh, yes. We will be there. Please. We will be there. Do you know what? When you said we'll be buying your album on Spotify, in my head, I had a CD and Angelo signing it, but I didn't think...

We're not in 2002 anymore, Sham. Oh my gosh. Can I talk about signing for a second? In previews, there were a lot of super fans of the show that came. And I felt... Like I mentioned that the imposter syndrome kind of carried me from the start all the way to now because it's so weird coming down from the stage door and people are like, can you sign my... Can you sign my... I'm like, why? Like why? Yeah. You're so humble.

I know exactly who was there on that opening night and they listened to the podcast and it was Nick and all the crew. Oh really? Yeah, from our open mic. Those were the crazy fans on opening night. Love to them then. Love to them. Yeah, people are so excited and I think people were so excited and are so excited.

It's so lovely that we... I think there's something even more special about it that your specific journey into Dear Evan Hansen and the fact that we found a local performer with your journey and everything we just talked through over the rest of this podcast, I think it makes it even more special. Yes, I agree. I absolutely agree. You made it special on the show as well.

I think all the audiences and from us as well, everyone, very proud of you for your journey and wish you all the best for whatever you do next and we'll be there supporting and waving and cheering along the way. So how can people follow you Mr. Angelo? How do we follow this journey? Sell your music to us. I mean, you can find me and now it's Angelo on Instagram. Yeah. Fabulous. I mean, if you search Angelo on Spotify, I have some of my old songs there. Oh, yeah. So there's that.

They're all like lullabies, to be honest. So you can listen to them if you want to fall asleep. But then your demos that you're going to be doing soon? That will come out 2025 for sure. Fabulous. For sure. Great. Fabulous. And yeah, we'll see if there are other kind of theatre shows to audition for. Maybe you'll see a new boy in the room. Well done. Thank you so much for coming, my darling. It's been an absolute pleasure. Well done you. Seriously. Well done you. Thank you Angelo.

We will see you soon. I loved that. You know what? I was not expecting that story. I really wasn't. I was expecting, oh yes, I was at Lasalle for three years. I mean, he said it himself. He has balls of titanium and such dedication. And it paid off. Well done to Angelo. And I think I mean this in a very loving way. Such a great example of an underdog story.

You know, I think it's that really truly like star search, like found him from pretty much nowhere to then go ahead and do what he did is just incredible. And such a nice person as well. Yes. Such a lovely boy and so dedicated. Yes. And I mean, if you could sum up, and I hope this is a fair thing to say, the entire Dear Evan Hansen enterprise in Singapore, Starship Enterprise, but the entire enterprise itself has been one big risk. And I mean that in a very positive way.

As in, it's the first edition of it in Southeast Asia. You said it's the first one they were allowed to change aspects. Yeah, redesign it. A risk with an unknown actor, a risk with not having understudies. And it's paid off beautifully. And yes, so what a way for all the cast and all the crew and all the production. I hope they're all just on cloud nine and very proud of themselves of what they've achieved, especially Angelo.

Yeah. Especially. And I think everyone listening to this and anyone anywhere near the Singapore theatre scene should be proud that the Singapore theatre scene is established enough now and has the local skills and talent to be put on such a show to rival any West End show. You know, honestly, really well done to everyone.

Now talking about shows in Singapore. It's time for our hot sips. This is our Spoonful of Theatre show recommendations of what to watch in November and December. Yes, we're moving into the holiday season, meaning it's panto time, starting with Wild Rice's The Wizard of Oz, a local adaptation written by Alfian Sa'at and Elaine Chan, directed by Ivan and starring an all star local cast. Looking forward to this one as it performs at Knee Ann Kongsi Theatre at Funan.

Tickets available from Sistic, playing from the 14th of November to the 21st of December. Absolutely. Over at Marina Bay Sands in the Sands Theatre, we have the blockbuster musical Six finally making its way to the shores. Sam's History Nerd is blowing up. It's produced by Base Entertainment with an overseas cast coming in. I think they're from the UK, if I'm not wrong. And it's going to be a fabulous show. I love this show. I saw the original over in London. Please go catch that.

It's playing from the 14th of November to Sunday, 1st of December. Casts are also on Sistic. Sticking in the right time period, a bit of William Shakespeare's coming to town. Hubble, bubble, toil and trouble indeed. Yes, I'm talking about ABA production and Action to the Word UK's edition of Macbeth. As the award winning ensemble use their unique flair of physical storytelling, they promise to give a striking retelling of the famous Scottish play.

Yes, playing at the Victoria Theatre from the 21st of November to the 24th of November. Tickets available on Sistic. Coming back to some local theatre, we have Dream Academy with the Dim Sum Dollies, the classic Dim Sum Dollies. They are back with a brand new show called The History of Singapore, 60 Sexy Years. Oh my word. We love that. So the Dim Sum Dollies will be joined on stage by a massive cast of dancers and singers.

The Hossan Leong is in there and there's also some sexy boys promising me to make history sexy. Oh, very interesting. So go and check that out. It's the Capitol Theatre from the 12th of December to the 21st of December. Tickets on Sistic. And not forgetting Sightlines Red, an artful murder, an experiential murder mystery. Playing until the 1st of December. Tickets available on Sistic. Now that's what's happening in theatre land. TJ, is there anything else going on in Singapore?

So some quick mentions apart from our hot sips. We have a few festivals coming up as well. The French Film Festival is on. I watched a beautiful music ensemble the other day down at the Alliance Francaise. So there's lots and lots of films on at the French Film Festival. The Singapore International Film Festival is also on. So movie buffs are all out there. And of course, the Voices Festival, which is one of our favourite festivals. Yes, it is. The whole year is on at the Esplanade.

Go check those out. But of all the movies that's coming out, there is a big one coming out. There is a big one. I'm sure anyone listening to the podcast probably already knows Wicked. Part 1. I've got something to say about this. I'm very upset that it's in two parts, but I will watch it first to see. So Wicked Part 1 is coming out very soon. It's funny you should say that, not going into too much detail. I'm actually glad it is two parts because... I don't want to wait another year for Part 2.

Oh, that's the fun. I mean, if only you were a Star Wars fan, you would understand the anticipation is a good thing. This is one story that you can watch in one time in the theatre. OK, but there's a little taster of our opinions. We will be going to the cinema to review that on a Spill the Tea very soon. So stay tuned. That will be coming your way very shortly. And love, if I remember rightly, it's 40 odd days until Christmas. It is. It's very soon. So that means the holidays are coming, Sam.

We've got school holidays, two teachers here. Very ready for our school holidays. Very, very ready. I think as a teacher, you're always just counting down the days to this holiday. We love our jobs, but we also love the holidays too. So we've got Christmas coming up and also some other things to tell you about. So we will both be hosting at the Singathon for Sing'Theatre. So do tune into that. It's on the first weekend of December on the Sunday, 12 hours nonstop singing.

And we'll be hosting all those amazing artists. We've been doing it for many years, haven't we? Yes, can't wait. It's our fifth year doing this and we've always raised tens of thousands of dollars going to an amazing cause. It's one of my highlights of the year and really, really looking forward to doing that. And of course, you mentioning the Voices Festival. We're going to be there as well. Yes, we're going to be doing a special open mic night.

And I always look forward to these because I think, oh, we're on the Esplanade, dear. We are. And it's in the Annex Theatre as well, which is really amazing. So we'll be performing in the Annex. Now, if you want to take part in that, you must register. The tickets are free. But go onto the Voices website or the Voices socials and register your ticket for the Voices Festival open mic night with myself, with TG and... Joanne Ho. Joanne Ho. Yes, look forward to that.

I love it when Joanne joins us for the mic. The MD of Dear Evan Hansen. Yes, yes. Absolutely. But anyway, love, my tea's gone cold. Yeah, I think it's time to wrap up. So thank you so much for tuning in. Do remember, if you've liked this episode, to like us on all the socials and follow us on whatever podcast streaming service you are listening on. And we will bring you more juicy tea from the Singapore Theatre scene. So it's cheerio. We'll be back soon. And a ta-ra from me.

And to anyone working in Singapore Theatre for November and December,...Break a leg!