On The Road: Matt Shingledecker
Today's On The Road interview features Broadway veteran and total hunk, Matt Shingledecker! I first met Matt in 2015 backstage at Wicked on Broadway. He was my first Fiyero! Currently, Matt is playing the rebellious leader Enjolras in the national tour of Les Miserables. When the tour passed through Nashville, Tennessee, I was able to set up a photo shoot for him with my wonderful photographer friend Colby Buchanan. I hope you enjoy his interview!
How long have you been a performer?
My first professional show was Bat Boy: The Musical as Pan at Charleston Stage Co. in Charleston, SC, my hometown. When I say professional, I mean I was paid a stipend of just over $100 for the entire run. My first Broadway show wouldn’t come until Spring Awakening in 2008.
What is your favorite show you've ever worked on?
The answer to this question is most often, “The show I’m currently in.” I’ve been so lucky to have been a part of some of the greatest musicals of all time: Spring Awakening, West Side Story, Rent, Wicked, and now Les Miserables. How could I possibly choose?
What is the most interesting day at work you've ever had?
About a decade ago, the cast of Spring Awakening on Broadway was called for a rehearsal with Bill T. Jones on the morning of a two-show day. This was a rare treat for both the Broadway and touring company who had just started the rehearsal process a week-and-a-half prior. Most of the company went to breakfast/lunch at a diner nearby after the rehearsal to fuel up for the matinee. While sitting down to order I received a call from the casting director Jim Carnahan, asking if I would like to join the tour as Georg, and if so, would I be willing to come back to the rehearsal studio to sing for the creative team and perform “Bitch of Living” with the tour cast. I had only joined the Broadway company a few months prior as an understudy for most of the boys, and I had gone on for all of them in that short amount of time except for Georg. The opportunity to play a supporting lead and tour the country at the same time seemed too good to pass up, so I immediately said yes, and the rest is history. On a side note, my lower school principal had bought tickets for the matinee. The team immediately pulled me out of the matinee to begin rehearsing with the touring company, and In the whirlwind of events I completely forgot to tell my principal. And what do you know, he was supportive enough to buy another ticket for the evening performance, and we’ve remained friends ever since. He recently came to see me as Enjolras in his favorite show, Les Miserables, in Greenville, SC, my home state. Interesting indeed!
Who is the coolest celebrity you've ever met at work?
A few stories come to mind, but as a lover of a cappella music since early childhood (I even arranged music for my high school’s barbershop quartet "The Quarter Pounders.”), when I met Pentatonix backstage at the Gershwin after they had all seen Wicked, the kid in me geeked out. (Speaking of Wicked, check out their version of “Wizard of Oz” featuring Todrick Hall.)
What has been your most memorable moment on this tour so far?
Singing with the full orchestra for the first time with Claude-Michel Schönberg (who on occasion would gently conduct directly behind our conductor) and Alain Boublil in attendance. I’ll never forget that moment. I may or may not have cried many times during some of the best three hours of my life.
What is your favorite thing about your job?
Getting to do a musical, an opera, a play, and a war movie eight shows a week. Spoiler alert: I get to live out one of the most iconic death scenes in all of musical theater every night when I fall backwards off that barricade, and there are few better feelings in this world than the feeling of catharsis when I hit the crash mat after having performed this role.
What is the most challenging part of being an actor on tour?
The ever-changing backdrop of our lives other than the show itself and the people involved yields a lack of structure and routine that is difficult at times. Only having one day off a week is challenging for any theatrical performer, but having that day also be a travel day that can sometimes last up to to ten hours is particularly grueling.
What is the most surprising part of your job?
The people…the people in this company continually surprise me with their hard work, talent, and humanity. We are more than just friends and colleagues. We are a family.
How long do cast members usually stay on a tour?
It ranges from six months to many years. The shortest stint I’ve done was ten months on Wicked, and the longest was almost two years on Spring Awakening.
What are some items you absolutely can't live without backstage?
A water bottle is the only item I absolutely can’t live without, but I find that some inspirational photos to decorate the dressing room space helps quite a bit.
What's a random fact about touring that people are always surprised to learn?
I think most people know that touring is a fairly lucrative job, but I’ll never forget the time I was sitting in a hotel jacuzzi during the tour of Spring Awakening, when an older couple who was sharing the jacuzzi with me, after having just witnessed the show, in the course of our banter asked, “So how do you have time to make a living if you perform eight shows a week?” I politely replied, “Oh, they pay us."
What is your favorite part about telling this story every night?
I could go sentimental with this one, but the simple truth is, my favorite part is the feeling of falling off of the barricade every night.
What is it about this job that makes you come back each day?
The feeling that there is always more to explore in the character and in myself, like the depths of the ocean or the furthest reaches of space. Even after doing a show over a thousand times, and I have on a couple of different shows, there is always more to discover. There is always more to find.
Outside the theatre with cast members Phoenix Best and Jillian Butler.
What advice would you give to a young person who wants to move to NYC and pursue a career in the arts?
Don’t sit around and wait for someone behind a table to decide you’re “right” for a part. Surround yourself with supportive, like-minded friends, and make the art yourself.
What piece of advice would you give your 18 year old self?
I had a mental block about even considering myself an artist until well into my twenties. I would assure myself that I was indeed an artist. I would say, “Never stop learning.” And I would re-introduce myself to the poem “If--” by Rudyard Kipling.
What is the best advice you've ever been given?
Laura Henry, my current acting teacher, paraphrased Samuel Beckett’s quote, “Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better,” into simply “Fail. Fail again. Fail better.” (I later heard Peter Dinklage of Game of Thrones echo that same sentiment.)
Fun Facts:
Where did you go to college?
Elon University
What was the first Broadway show you ever saw?
42nd Street
What is your favorite Broadway show you've ever seen?
Avenue Q. I’m in stitches every time I see it.
What is your favorite costume you've ever worn or your favorite costume in your show?
It’s hard to compete with Enjolras's iconic red vest. Fiyero’s tight white pants would be a close second if they hadn’t ripped one time right before my first entrance, but that’s another story for another day….
What is your favorite US city you've visited on tour?
These tours often visit Canada. The three I’ve been on, Spring Awakening, Wicked, and now Les Miserables, all have. And out of all of those cities, Vancouver takes the cake.
What is your favorite restaurant or bar you've found on tour?
I could write a blog about this topic, and I have in the form of Broadway Bites. But the short answer for this tour is any Grant Aschatz restaurant. I frequented Au Cheval (one of the best burgers I’ve ever had and I’m a burger-phile) and the Office on multiple occasions in Chicago and also delighted in the Aviary as well as the Roister.
Images by Colby Buchanan
Nashville, Tennessee
