‘The Voice’ News: Season 6 Winner Josh Kaufman Dishes About Broadway Debut In ‘Pippin,’ It’s ‘Physically Taxing‘ [VIDEO]
The Voice winner from Season 6 on Team Usher Josh Kaufman has opened up about what it's like to star in a Broadway revival.
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On Wednesday Entertainment Weekly reported that Kaufman got the gig as Pippin when he was on The Voice Live Tour over the summer.
He said, "The guy who runs my website contacted me and said, 'I just got a message through the website from a casting company and they want you to do a Broadway show, and I think it's for real. You might want to look into it!' And I ended up contacting them and they had me come out in August to do a little work session and see the show, and then I came out again in September for another work session where [director] Diane Paulus was there. We ran through more scenes, and then they called me back, and here I am."
Kaufman previously dabbled in musical theatre as a teen, but he said, "It didn't feel foreign to start trying to perform like that again. It was definitely something I hadn't really focused on, but it didn't feel like I was out of place. It felt fairly comfortable. And of course, the more I do it, the more comfortable I get with it."
His first show of Pippin was on Nov. 4 and the revival closes on Jan. 4 2015 so there are quite a few weeks left to go see him as the lead.
Kaufman also shared how he's lucky his voice lends itself to the Broadway sound given he "went down that classic soul sound on The Voice."
Kaufman also talked about how his background isn't strong in choreography, but he was delighted to know there's only one song where Pippin does dancing throughout. He said, "I thought, if I can just focus on, On the Right Track, and repeat it over and over again, surely I can get that down. But it's definitely something I had to work on. Before I came out here to start rehearsals, back when I was still in Indianapolis, they actually set me up with some of the instructors at the dance school where my six-year-old daughter takes ballet. Just to get everything in my body."
He admitted neither his wife nor children have seen him as Pippin yet, but there's still time for that. "My family came out and visited for several days while I was rehearsing, and they'll come back out over the holidays when school is out."
Kaufman said the role is "physically taxing" since he's doing so much stunt work. "I'm climbing poles and flipping over guys and falling down five times and jumping all over the place and running...it's a really physical role. But it's been super fun to work on the acrobatics."
Lastly, Kaufman said The Voice is a huge platform that allowed for this opportunity to present itself to him. A lot of different doors can open from The Voice and you just have to "try to make the right decisions."
Will you be going to see Season 6 winner Kaufman on Broadway in the revival of Pippin?