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Video: Colton Ryan Has 'Unbridled Pride' for His NEW YORK, NEW YORK Role
May 17, 2024
In this video, watch as Tony nominee Colton Ryan chats more about the importance of New York, New York's message, how he got started in theatre, and so much more.
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How excited are you, my friend? I'm pretty jazzed, yeah. You, that face
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Well, can you put into perspective, I mean, seriously, I mean, first of all, to get a show like this and do what you do in this show
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and then to be nominated, you got a Tony pin. I got a pin, and it's magnetic
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so it's not going to ruin the blazer. See? It was smart thinking
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It's one thing just to get the show. It's, like, it's actually good perspective you put into that, because that's
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that is so hard just to get that. Then to mount the damn thing
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It is, it is a bear. It is a mountain, and you climb it
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and you still have to turn around, and you got to come back down
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And that was enough for me. To be recognized in this way, by my peers
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to be in this lineup with people that I've quite literally, I grew up listening to
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from far off away, just in my little beat up iPod headphones
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learning how to act through song through these people from far away
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to be in their company, in their midst, is, it doesn't validate anything
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Because going on stage is the validation, knowing that we have those
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we're really bringing those people along with us for the ride. But my God, does it feel like a good cherry on top
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You bring so much joy to audiences at the St. James. I was telling Stroh and everybody else
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it must make you feel so great. It does. To watch how this show touches people
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That is, that honestly, is the gratifying part. It's hard work, brother
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I mean, it's like, I did not know this shit is tough
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I drink a gallon and a half of water a day these days. How many instruments do you play in the show
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I play, if you combine all the percussion, I play seven in total
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And you tap dance. I tap dance. Above the city. All of which I would not have associated
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I did not do before this. So, like I said, it's been a bear
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I mean, it's been an absolute joy because it's my favorite part of this job is
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I can't believe that I got to acquire all these new skill sets because I had this brilliant deadline to do so
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But like you said, it's about all that hard work. It's been for New Yorkers
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It's been for us. I mean, to go out there after three years
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of essentially being told we are non-essential, and to come back in this huge rah-rah celebration
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this is for you all. And we're all collectively just processing it together
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but moving through it with joy, unbridled pride. And the fact that I can feel them
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that they're feeling that and seeing it, it is, it still amazes me
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All right, take me back to Young Colton. Young, young, young, Young Colton. The first show you ever did
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And what would old Colton tell young Colton? Oh my God. Okay, so the first one I did
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was actually a musical version of The Hobbit, but we won't get into that. Why? Why
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But the real first one I ever did was a year later, I was in the fifth grade
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I went to this brilliant arts program, which still exists, and I'm from Scapa
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I'm most proud of that. That's who got me here. But it was an arts program in Lexington, Kentucky
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And I was a fifth grader, we did The Wizard of Oz
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And I was a vocal major. They were looking for munchkins. And I booked the corner of Munchkin City
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And I'll tell you, I was a kid with a lot of like
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not a lot of directions. And that was the first time that I ever got laser focused about anything
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I took that VHS and I broke it as I rewound it over and over
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because I was going to nail that Swedish accent, God damn it, it was going to be the death of me
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And it was. Actually, it was. It was the first time I ever experienced an artistic impasse
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as I brought it in. And I'm not going to lie, it was impeccable
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As good as, you know. I must have... You got that. I'm a little out of practice, out of step
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but I brought it in and they went, can you just sing it nice
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And that was not the last artistic impasse I've ever had, but it was a good lesson. Old occultant to younger occultant
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To younger. You're going to have a lot of artistic impasses. No
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That's good. No, no. Honestly, it's not really to young me, it's the most beautiful thing about this whole thing
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More than the recognition, more than any of that, is the abundance of love in my life that has shown up
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and has really always been there. And I've known it's there, I've felt it my whole life. It's been pushing me
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Because it really does take a village. But I would really say it to my mom back then to say
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thank you. Thank... Don't cry. No, but thank you for all the sacrifice to get
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It was all worth it. And look where you are, my friend
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