Interview: Westfield's Joshua Burrage Talks SCHMIGADOON!

Westfield native Joshua Burrage knows a thing or two about stepping, or in his case dancing, his way into the fantasy worlds of Broadway musicals.

Burrage made his Broadway debut in the 2016 revival of “Cats” and, in the 2024–25 season, was in the ensemble of “BOOP! The Musical,” about the animated film vixen Betty Boop. These days, Burrage can be found onstage, eight shows a week, at the Nederlander Theatre playing Larry the Fireman and singing and dancing in the ensemble of the 2026 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, “Schmigadoon!”

From “Saturday Night Live” creator and executive producer Lorne Michaels – winner of 24 Primetime Emmy Awards and the record holder for most nominations, at 112, and now a Tony winner – with book, music, and lyrics by Cinco Paul, winner of this year’s Tony Awards for Best Book and Best Score, and directed and choreographed by Tony award winner Christopher Gattelli (“Newsies”), “Schmigadoon!” is an adaptation of the first season of the Apple + musical comedy series of the same name created by Paul and Ken Daurio.

In the story, New York doctors Josh and Melissa head out on a backpacking retreat to relaunch their romance, but instead find themselves in Schmigadoon, a magical town that’s a Golden Age musical come to life. The townspeople won’t stop singing, the bridge leads nowhere, and the only way to escape is through true love.

The musical features Broadway and television favorites including Tony nominee Alex Brightman (“Beetlejuice,” “School of Rock”) as Josh, Sarah Chase (“The Great Gatsby,” “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt”) as Melissa, Emmy Award winner Ana Gasteyer (“Once Upon a Mattress,” “Wicked,” “Saturday Night Live”) as Mildred Layton, Ann Harada (“Avenue Q”) as Florence Menlove, and Tony nominee Brad Oscar (“Something Rotten,” “The Producers”) as Mayor Menlove, plus Isabelle McCalla, Ivan Hernandez, Maulik Pancholy, Max Clayton, McKenzie Kurtz, Ayaan Diop and others.

Burrage – whose older brother Nick Burrage is the dance captain for the Broadway production of “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” – was at home in New York recently when he took time to talk about “Schmigadoon!” and his own thoughts on living in a Broadway fantasy world.

How would you describe “Schmigadoon!” to anyone unfamiliar with the stage musical or the television series?

I feel like it is a musical theater lover’s dream on stage, an homage to classic musicals. The essence of the story is simple. It’s about everyday people – in our case, a couple at the height of an argument – getting sucked into a magical musical theater land.

Through the lens of all these old musical theater love stories and relationships, they are put through trials and tribulations of their own. The couple tries to work through their relationship issues while also navigating this very big, bold, and beautiful Broadway musical. Our show is a celebration of musical theater, and a big love letter to Broadway.

Have you given Larry the Fireman any backstory in your own mind, like what he does when he’s not involved in a big musical number?

Cinco Paul is amazing and he’s written a great book that’s been so helpful to me in figuring out who everybody is. It’s also given us so much freedom to explore who we are playing. We learn later in the show that Larry is not quite who we think he is. So I’ve given him the kind of personality where you can see he’s just trying to figure things out day by day.

He’s not necessarily a great fireman. He doesn’t know anything about putting out fires, or any of that business. He’s just trying to find his way. I don’t think he has any family in Schmigadoon. It’s just him, so he’s trying to stay relevant and feel important. You know, he’s trying to find his importance. I don’t know if he’s quite found that yet.

Do you like the character, and do you support his efforts?

I do! I think he’s a bit of a people pleaser, and he’s not always very sure of himself, so I think sometimes his decisions and the way he goes about his business aren’t fully formed. He’s a little bit lost, but I have hope for him that he’ll do the right thing and become the best version of the fireman that he can be, or thinks he can anyway.

What’s it like being directed and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli?

It’s wonderful, because he gave me my very first job ever, 12 years ago in the national tour of “Newsies.” I was 18 years old and I booked “Newsies” right out of high school. That was my first job ever and my big introduction into theater. That show will always be very special to me and hold a big place in my heart because of how much it really introduced this career to me.

Christopher Gattelli is the best. I’ve been dying to work with him again ever since the “Newsies” tour closed 10 years ago. It’s been top of my list to get back in a room with him, because he’s one of the most generous and kind people in this business. His mind is incredible, too, and while he choreographed “Newsies,” now he’s directing and choreographing this show, so watching him use his brilliant creativity to lead a room has been an honor and a privilege, and I’ve learned a lot as well. Working with him again is truly a dream come true. Now, I’m dying for the next opportunity.

What was Tony night like for you this year?

I was at last year’s awards but we didn’t get to do a number from “BOOP!” because that show wasn’t nominated for Best Musical. This year, of course, “Schmigadoon!” was nominated so we got to perform at Radio City Music Hall. It was so special, because that has always been on my bucket list. This year was cool, too, because they brought back the big opening numbers that they used to do back in the day and all the nominated shows got to be a part of the opening number. That was incredibly special because I got to see so many friends from different shows on Broadway and we got to share the stage together. It was a celebration among friends.

What were your nerves like on Tony night?

They were hard to handle at first. But what was nice is we were able to break the ice with the opening number, and then our performance was the first one to go. So I felt like I’d seen the audience, the lights, and the stage already, so that when we came on for our number, I felt a bit more settled than I initially anticipated.

But you just can’t adequately describe the energy. It’s electric. You’re in that room looking out at the audience of some 6,000 people and you can’t believe how big and how grand Radio City Music Hall is, but special, too. To be performing there with this group, whom I love so much, was like the cherry on top of everything.

Were you seated in the audience when “Schmigadoon!” received its four Tony Awards, including one for Best Orchestrations won by Doug Besterman and Mike Morris?

No, because after we performed, most of us were taken by bus back to the Nederlander where we got out of costume, and where the show hosted a party for us. We all went there to watch the rest of the telecast.

What was it like to hear “Schmigadoon!” named as Best Musical?

It was amazing. I mean, we had hope, and we believe in our show so much, we wanted the best for it, but this group is so humble and honest and real that nobody was like, “It’s definitely going to happen.” Then hearing our name called felt like being part of the biggest thing ever. I’ve never been a part of a sports team, or been a huge follower of sports, but when I see those big game-winning celebrations now I think I’ll understand what they’re all about.

For us, the 2026 Tony Awards were like a championship celebration. That’s exactly how the room felt. There was an explosion of energy, with people screaming and jumping up and down. It was very surreal. I’ll remember being in that room for that exact moment forever.

Were there such a place in real-life, would you ever consider moving to a town like Schmigadoon?

That’s an intriguing idea for me, because the older I get, the more I have to do for myself and figure out how to make a schedule and how to go day to day, and there’s something about letting people and music just take you away and having it all solved for you which sounds really enticing, so I think I would be into that.

Might you one day be looking at property in Schmigadoon?

Absolutely, I’ve looked at several properties already. In fact, I’m looking at a studio there right now!

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