Mary Testa

You Might Know Her From

Oh what a beautiful morning because we are here with actor, singer, and three-time Tony-nominee, Mary Testa. You Might Know Her From Whoopi, Sex and the City, The Bounty Hunter, and the New York stage productions of Queen of the Mist, Xanadu, 42nd Street, Barnum, On the Town, The Rink, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Oklahoma. Mary gave us all the goods on developing Xanadu, and how it found its way to Broadway, accepting the role of Aunt Eller while Sally Struthers was watching the Golden Globes in her living room, and iconically covering for Liza Minnelli in The Rink opposite Chita Rivera. We also got into the collaborative relationship she has with Michael John La Chuisa and the significance of headlining Queen of the Mist. All that plus Mary took all (and we mean all) our hot gossip questions about 42nd Street, taking over for Terri White, and whether or not Jennifer Aniston did coverage! This one was just a beautiful way to ring in 2023. We love you all!

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Discussed this week

L Word Gen Q is rough but Leisha Hailey has chemistry with everyone

Leisha’s Yoplait commercial

We love crab rangoon, sorry

Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese cookbook

NYT got dragged for pea guacamole

Anne in Nxivm kick (The Vow, Seduced)

Shelly Miscavige (wife of head of Scientology, David Miscavige) has been missing since 2007

Golden Globes hosted by Jarrod Carmichael who joked about Shelly’s disappearance

We love you Leah Remini (Second Act is a great movie of women for a plane)

Composer Michael John La Chiusa wrote Queen of the Mist for her (story of Anna Edson Taylor who went over Niagara Falls in a barrel in 1901)

Mary’s full interview with Transport Group

Bonnie Milligan is giving an incredible performance in Kimberly Akimbo on Broadway is

Mary was so good in 2007 Broadway production of Xanadu (bootleg) opposite Jackie Hoffman

Appeared with Nathan Lane & Whoopi in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and her eponymous sitcom, Whoopi (2003)

Adriana Trigiani got Mary out to LA and on an ep of A Different World

Starred as Aunt Eller in the 2019 production of Oklahoma (“Sexy Oklahoma”) directed by Daniel Fish

Aunt Eller making Jiffy cornbread at the start of the show

Stepped into Kander & Ebb’s 1984 Broadway musical, The Rink for Liza Minnelli (Stockard Channing was supposed to go on when Liza left) Clips from The Rink

She never really liked Sondheim and he never really liked her

Was a standby in Barnum and had to do a bunch of circus skills (and cover for Terri White)

Stepped down from March of the Falsettos for Barnum (job was on Broadway and paid so much more)

Carrie Bradshaw talked through her rendition of “All That Jazz” on Sex and the City (with Stanford’s husband, Sean Palmer)

2001 revival of 42nd Street was thrilling (Kate Levering and Mary were both in Best Supporting)

Yes, the tappers DID sing (maybe with sweeteners)

Christine Ebersole is a 9/11 truther (here with Alex Jones)

9/11 was a Tuesday

Was in the notorious flop, Marilyn: An American Fable (Frank Rich’s review)

Original star was Geralyn Petchel

Jennifer Aniston (The Bounty Hunter) was nicer than Julia Roberts (Eat, Pray, Love)

Mary’s “When You’re Good to Mama”

Annie Golden calls them “nods from god”

We love supermodels

Patricia Velasquez interview (ep #84) was in two 90s supermodel docs to watch: Catwalk / Unzipped