BWW Exclusive: Richard Jay-Alexander Introduces You To The Kid in Those Crazy Car Videos With His Mom

We are living through an extraordinary period in history here in the United States and across the globe, the majority of us in #StayAtHome and #socialdistancing mode, where the internet has been one of our most important survival tools for communication.

Over the length of the current pandemic, so far, people are utilizing the internet as a place to vent, circulate information, gather important medical news and, of course, lots and lots of parody videos, some of which are now seeming a bit "tone deaf" as the gravity of the situation has become crystal clear.

However, that stated, there have been some sincerely uplifting things to put smiles on our faces and distract us, with humor, which can undoubtedly aid us in remaining healthy.

Randy Rainbow has consistently been there to entertain us with his videos and it's always an "event" when a new one "drops" .... kind of like Beyonce or Kanye West. But, once we had nowhere to go and we were all sheltering in place, some amazing things happened. It started with Rosie O'Donnell doing a re-boot of her beloved daytime Rosie O'Donnell Show, complete with her sidekick, John McDaniel, welcoming us from his home in Florida. Masterminded with Erich Bergen and Broadway.com's Paul Wontorek, it hit home and made everyone feel good, with over $600G being raised for THE ACTORS' FUND and stars and surprises, aplenty.

Simultaneously, Seth Rudetsky and his husband, James Wesley, began STARS IN THE HOUSE, also benefitting THE ACTORS' FUND, with extraordinary combinations of stars, reunions and surprises. AND ... they do it EVERY DAY .... TWICE A DAY! Two #Netflix viewing phenomenons that have taken off like crazy are LOVE IS BLIND and THE TIGER KING. With so many people at home, searching for something to watch, these shows seem to have been "the perfect storm." THE TIGER KING cast such a "spell" on Broadway's Andrew Lippa, that he decideds to write a song for Kristin Chenoweth to sing, in the guise of Carole Baskin, with a FULL-ON VIDEO, made at home, in Manhattan. You can find NY1's Frank DiLella spending time with Broadway's best and even BroadwayWorld is re-booting "timeless" episodes of Broadway Beat, hosted by Richie Ridge, and are oh, so enjoyable and nostalgia inducing.

And, in between, plenty of other stuff to try to make us forget, distract us and try to lift our spirits, including the crew from Marie's Crisis, the legendary Greenwich Village piano bar, among them.

ENTER Colin O'Leary. You may not know his name, but you have certainly come across his insanely brilliant videos, while journeying online via the internet. They gained huge notoriety for the madness of watching a young man, totally possessed by Musical Theatre, trapped in the passenger seat of a car, jumping from character to character, song bite to song bite, complete with props, costumes, wig changes, make-up .... even smoke effects. Meanwhile, in the driver's seat, his mother (his real-life Mom) non-plussed and deadpan. I don't' even know how she did it.

Well ... Everyone wanted to know who he was, where he came from, what does he do, where does he live, etc. These videos came and went, in waves, for awhile. People would discover them, for some reason, in cycles. Various people would send them to me and I would say, "Yeah, I've seen that (those). Does anyone know who that kid is???

Then, like magic, ... in the middle of the "Stay At Home" order, ... BOOM! A new video drops! And it's CRAZY GOOD:

So, once again, I ask myself (and post on Facebook), "Does anyone KNOW this kid?" I get responses, private messages, start searching and, yes, ... SUCCESS!

Ladies & Gentlemen, I am SO VERY HAPPY to introduce you to .... (drumroll, please) .... The crazily talented Colin O'Leary.

We say our "hellos" and I dive right in. He's also excited and, it turns out, a fan of BroadwayWorld. Not a bad start.

Colin is 22 years old. He is hunkered down for the for the "shutdown" at home, in Rockville Center, L.I. He was born one town over, but in the same area. He wanted me to know he didn't just stay there, "I lived in Manhattan, .... So I did get out," It made me laugh because I understood what he was doing and he's quite charming.

There isn't much to read about him online, but I was able to glean that he attended PACE University, in Lower Manhattan. He left after his Junior year because he just wasn't "feeling it" and studying Production Design there, missing the performing aspect where he wasn't allowed to take the performance classes. 18 year old Colin was desperate to live in New York and it was his dream. He didn't have luck with schools in Manhattan and, then, PACE accepted him. He jumped at the opportunity. He wanted to be around the excitement and be near Broadway. He even worked a little in the parameters of the performing community.

I asked if there was a Dad in the family - because we've only seen his Mom in the videos.

There is and, although his parents are separated, all seems quiet in the land and his relationship with his Dad is a good one. (He's the one in the picture with Liza Minnelli, in the new video). Colin is gay and unapologetic, knowing early on. It required him, quickly, to develop some deft skills and, over time, broke down his family into acceptance. "It took a couple of battles and a couple of wars, but it's all good." He has two older brothers and a younger sister. The brothers are part of the band The Post Nobles and you can often find them playing in New York City.

His love and passion for "theatrics" seemed to reveal themselves as early as when he was two or three years old. It's that early that his "battles" began, trying to be understood as to WHY he loved what he loved and WHY he did what he did. His salvation ... His Grandmother. She would buy him the costumes, Ruby Slippers, props, etc. Dad had a hard time with this. Mom, pretty non-plussed, just like in the videos. He was pretty much on his own, to fight for his life. Even his sister loved football, while Colin played with dolls one field over.

He considers his "coming out" was at age 14, playing FULL-ON the character of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in THE ROCKY HOROR SHOW (a midnight performance). He decided to throw everything into that role and his secret was out.

In the latest video, you can find lots of details of recognition to his grandparents. His grandparents, on the O'Leary side (featuring Grandma GOG, who was always there for his artistic expression), are in the BEETLEJUICE scene and he recently gained confidence in his "American Gothic" painting skills, having recently gained the skill to address faces.

He used to get all the details and the faces would stay blank ... but no longer.

When Colin is speaking, his passion and creativity are alarming (in a good way). He is crystal clear in his head, which he admits is sometimes difficult to live in. It is at his grandparents house that he has a stage and creative workspace in the basement. That is where he flourishes.

He told me about how he gathers up materials and about a warehouse in Long Island City that periodically gives away excess items from Broadway and Off-Broadway shows ... even stuff from MACY'S and window displays. They will let you have it for free, as long as you can cart it out. He has accumulated a lot of STUFF! He has been collecting his entire life and it is down there in his grandparents' basement.

Even right now, at this moment, he is in the midst of a Disney homage video and sketching away. Colin is having NO problems filling the time we all have on our hands during this pandemic.

His FIRST video (only on Facebook) he never put on YouTube because he didn't think it was good enough. The sophistication of editing and laying in the sound, etc. later developed. However, watching it, you can clearly see where he was headed. It's called CHRISTMAS CAR RIDE and "sets the stage" for what would follow:

He filmed it with a hairband securing his phone to his mother's wallet, to act as a stand, but things got more sophisticated. He directs, produces and, of course, stars and does post-production, but will grab anyone handy to help, if available. It really IS remarkable. But he KNEW he had to do a musical theatre video and, well, as they say ... THE REST IS HISTORY.

He designed a full production of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA in high school! He saw the show 15 times. A "sign" for sure.

At 5 years old, he saw his first Broadway show, THE LION KING. He was traumatized when Mufasa fell off the cliff, even though he saw the animated version. His musical taste grew over the years and he fell in love with everything Andrew Lloyd Webber.

There are 5 major videos he's done and plenty of clips if you go on an internet hunt.

I got into the history of his attraction to the stage and performing. He's done a myriad of musicals, including OKLAHOMA, CAROUSEL, MARY POPPINS and THE LITTLE MERMAID among them. He was never cast in the lead roles, but always relegated to the comic characters and dancing. As it turns out, he also choreographed many of the shows he was in. He also painted the scenery, etc. It was at this point in the conversation that I realized this kid was headed to "the circus" with the rest of us. It's a story I knew well, as do most of my colleagues.

He went to a Catholic school and felt lucky that there was ANY kind of program at all. He did not get a lot of encouragement to pursue his passion as a career. He was "a bagel on plate full of onion rolls."

I asked about his Mom and he says "that's who she is." He clearly loves her and has his theories and tells me about a certain psychic, but keeps those thoughts private. He also tries to drag in his sister when creating and reveals she plays the tornado in the latest video. Colin is clearly exploding with creativity and can do it all.

When they press "GO" on life, I asked what he's thinking or where he's headed. Whether he searches out another school and/or training ... only time will tell. He has debt from student loans for his PACE years already. Colin would be a brilliant intern for anyone in the creative field and he is still passionate to connect with audiences. It gives him the greatest feeling in the world.

He feels his influences are (without hesitation) Dorothy/Judy Garland, Tim Burton and Andrew Lloyd Webber, explaining he knows EVERYTHING ALW from front to back. He listens to anything Lady Gaga and loves HAIM. And, of course, lots of Musical Theatre. As you can sense ... the picture of Colin is becoming ever clearer.

The responses to the videos have overwhelmed him. He has a small tight group of friends in his life that he is proud to tell me about. He has quite a legion of fans that include Sean Hayes, Betty Buckley, Sarah Silverman, Lea Salonga and Gavin Creel. Sean Hayes and Max Mutchnick (Creator/Executive Producer of WILL & GRACE) invited Colin and his mom out to L.A. to see a taping of the show and that is high on his list of memorable events that have happened in his life, so far.

Coronavirus has not been the source of any humor for him, but the escapism is more than welcome. The dancing in the streets in the neon pink shoes (which he saw in a window for $10) while neighbors watch, bemused is positively joyous. All the things he puts in the videos are big decisions, but his vision is clear and he is not afraid of risk, a good sign to head him into his professional career. He's young, he's fearless, he's complicated ... AND talented!

Colin spends plenty of time on his computer on YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, LGBTQNation, BroadwayWorld and WOW (World Of Wonder). He usually has something on the screen, while working and these are his "GO-TOs" over traditional viewing and information gathering. "I'm really a YouTuber."

I totally know I'm gonna see this young man in our orbit and our industry and I look forward to meeting him, in person, when this pandemic is all over.

I hope you've enjoyed him as much I enjoyed making the introduction.

You can find him on social media at: YouTube, Instagram and Facebook.

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