Video: Teen Correspondent Liora Catches Up with Broadway 'Teen' JJ Niemann!

Hi, I'm Leora and I'm a team critic with Broadway World

And today, I'm here at the Winter Garden Theater to catch up with JJ Neiman

who is currently in Back to the Future. I'm super excited. Let's go

Thank you for meeting me here, JJ. I absolutely love Back to the Future and you did an amazing job in it

as like all your roles. Thank you so much. It's so nice to meet you, Leora. Thanks for having me

So I love your TikTok and I've been watching it a lot and I know a lot of my friends do too

So do you ever get recognized in public for that? And what's it like just going viral for your stuff

Oh, it's been really cool. I mean, yeah, I, especially in like the theater district

you know, walking around the theaters and in this area, I definitely get stopped quite often

And it's really, honestly, it's so cool. And like, one of my favorite things is like at the stage door

constantly meeting people who like know about the show from me or like know me from TikTok and, you know

we're excited to see me in the show. And so it's been really fun to like merge that like

you know, during the pandemic that, that life at home and like the content I started creating

and then get to like feel that in person now and with people and like get to meet all the people

that like are my internet friends now. It's really cool. It's really special. Yeah, that sounds amazing. Yeah

So you cover multiple tracks in Back to the Future. So what's that like

Do you ever get like stressed about having to go on at the drop of the hat as a different role

Yeah, I definitely am used to the swing nightmare. I used to swing and cover seven

roles in Book of Mormon and so I definitely you know became used to having some

stress dreams here and there but honestly like I in that show never got to

cover lead roles and so you know I'm it's one thing to learn your own

ensemble track and have ownership over your own track in the show and then to cover both Marty and George Mcfly are both huge roles and also very very vastly different Marty is much more me and my energy and George is definitely like a challenge of comedic you know genius to follow the steps of Hugh Coles

So it's definitely been stressful, but also so fun. Like I've gotten to prove to myself so much in the process and learn stuff in real time

You always think you'll, you know, study theater and graduate college or whatever or train

And then like one day you'll just be ready to do it. But like, I'm learning so much in real time on Broadway every day and every rehearsal and every show I go on

And it's been an immense blessing, honestly. It's been really cool. That's crazy

What is it like doing eight shows a week? I know it's really stressful. Yeah. Right

What is it like? Yeah. Okay. So, I mean, again, I was a swing in Book of Mormon

So I've had experience in shows, like long running shows and Broadway shows of not being on every day and not doing every show

So now to be in a position where I'm doing my own role. every day, eight times a week, and then also might have to jump into the lead role at any

given time any day. It's a little stressful, you know. It's important to constantly, you know

just kind of live your life responsibly and try to rest as much as you can. And it's made me

learn how to make kind of sacrifices with my social life a little bit. And I'm just like, listen

if I need to rest, like listen to your body, treat your body well, always hydrate, like

you know, be fueling it with good things. And yeah, I mean, it's been a challenge

but also doing eight shows a week of this show is the most fun I've ever had in a repetitive process

because the building, the cast, the show is just so fun. And it truly, like, I've never had this kind of fun

in a show before. So it's a joy and an honor to show up to work every day, honestly

And if you could be in any show on Broadway currently, besides Back to the Future what would you be in Okay so I don know if I have the best answer for this A show on Broadway currently I just always always wanted to be in Hamilton and dance that show so badly

I love the choreography of that show. And so that is obviously like, it's just one of my favorite shows, but my real answer is that I'm manifesting

So anyone out there, I'm manifesting that Ferris Bueller's Day Off gets created into a musical

And I really want to play Ferris. I get told weekly that I look like Matthew Broderick when he was in that movie

And I get that message on TikTok a lot. You know how people will like see you on their 4-you page

And they're like, what is Ferris Bueller doing? I get that comment a lot. Really? Yeah

So I'm like, that is what I'm manifesting next in terms of like a big show, you know

Yeah. What is your worst or funniest or just like best in general on stage mishap

Well, I've had a few because I don't know if you, for those of you who haven't seen the show

there's a lot of stuff that happens in this and the first time I went on for Marty I had three hours notice and had it rehearsed

like 75% of the show on the stage so I was kind of just

winging it a little bit and there was one time in that show that I truly

jumped a little too far forward and I just boom into the scrim at the front of the stage

where there are projections on because you can't see it was like

pitch black on stage so I run into that and like rip the scrim a little

And then the crew members later on told me that I actually like loki made like an imprint like a cartoon imprint of my face and hands on it that the audience couldn't see but they later on were able to see that

So that's one the other one is that one time I fell off the skateboard on stage and it actually went into the audience

So that was a journey And I did post that full story on my TikTok so it is it's out there it's out there what is your advice to aspiring Broadway actors

Oh wow Okay I advice to aspiring Broadway actors There a lot of stuff I can say I think the biggest thing is that the learning truly never stops

And I say that as someone who like at one point or another thought I had figured everything out

thought that I, you know, trained in college and I studied and did the thing

And I was like, okay, like I'm good. I know what I'm doing now. You really never do

And everybody on Broadway is faking it until they make it. There are people who are pros and veterans of Broadway who are still learning things at 60, 70 years old every show

And I feel like being open and willing to challenge yourself to learn, that's a big one

And then my other advice is honestly just to do the work and show up and be a nice person

Because there's nothing more valuable than being someone that people want to work with, that people want to root for

and showing up and doing the work and being prepared will take you so far

And it honestly helps release and relieve a lot of anxiety that you might have about auditions

rehearsals, performances. The more work that you do outside of it and like really go for it, the less anxious you'll feel

You know? Yeah. All right. So thank you so much for meeting here and talking to me

It was amazing. I know you've got to get back to the show to get ready. But before we go, do you want to be

do you want to tell them what your socials are so you can follow you oh yeah for sure well thank you

so much for having me leora and my name is j j neman the socials will be there and it's just at jrneemann on

ticot and instagram and all that good stuff and um yeah why don't you come with me to the stage door

you want to walk me there sure okay let's go well thanks for walking me to work bye bye hey are nice to meet you you too you too

Ha ha ha