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Alison Stewart: You're listening to All Of It on WNYC, I'm Alison Stewart. Our Get Lit with All Of It book club selection, Audition, centers around acting and performance. We wanted to invite a musical guest who also knows a little something about the actor's creative process. We were thrilled that actor and musician Reeve Carney was able to join us. Reeve is best known for originating the role of Orpheus in the Tony Award-winning musical Hadestown. He's also fronted rock bands and performed as a soloist. In 2017, he released the solo album, Youth is Wasted. You'll hear some of my interview with Reeve in just a bit. First, let's kick things off with some music. Here is a special live performance from Reeve Carney.

[MUSIC - Reeve Carney: America]

[applause]

Reeve Carney: Thank you.

[applause]

Reeve Carney: Well, this is like my first-- it's like a daytime late night talk show.

Alison Stewart: Kind of. Right?

Reeve Carney: Yes.

Alison Stewart: It's good, right?

Reeve Carney: It's awesome.

Alison Stewart: Where were you when you wrote that song?

Reeve Carney: At home in New York.

Alison Stewart: Here?

Reeve Carney: Here. Yes.

Alison Stewart: What prompted you to write it? Just listening to the lyrics.

Reeve Carney: See, I mean, I love this country and I love people and I do think that America at its best does both of those things. It's the American experiment. That we're still striving towards reaching what we're aiming-- our ultimate goals in a positive way. I guess that's where it comes from for me.

Alison Stewart: When they said we have to find a musical guest to go with Katie's book, your name was first in my mind.

Reeve Carney: Thank you.

Alison Stewart: [crosstalk] it would be great because you're an actor, because you're a musician. When you think about the two of them working together, how has being an actor helped you as a musician, and how has being a musician helped you be a better actor?

Reeve Carney: That's a great question. I do have the opportunity to work with amazing writers in this business, so it certainly helps. I was talking to Katie backstage. I think writing is the hardest part of what I do. It takes the long system. It's very isolating as well. You're there by yourself. I mean, I guess you could write. I could maybe-- that'd be pretty boring for all of you guys, though, if I was sitting here writing a song in front of everyone.

[laughter]

Reeve Carney: Especially since they take like-- this was a fast one. That one took me maybe like 40 hours, which for me is fast. Sometimes they take years.

Alison Stewart: Yes.

Reeve Carney: Yes, I don't know. I guess you learn. It's nice to have things to jump between, because this business, as Katie, you were both speaking of this in her book. We were speaking backstage a little bit. It is an interesting business when you don't have something else aside from auditioning or waiting for the next job. So I'm really grateful that I do have these other things because it keeps my mind really engaged.

Alison Stewart: In the book, Audition, the protagonist is having a hard time with her part. She doesn't seem to feel that she can get the part down. When you're struggling to get a part down, when you're struggling to find the character, what do you do?

Reeve Carney: That's another good question. I think that's one thing that's nice about the audition process when it's reasonable, because sometimes it's a bit-- there's some new SAG rules, which are really helpful, because during the pandemic, it got kind of nuts. You'd get auditions and they'd be due the next morning like by 12 noon or something like that. You're like, "Oh my gosh, I don't even have time to develop this character." With a longer process, I find it's really useful because then you kind of learn yourself, "Am I going to be able to do this or not?"

That's one thing I do like about auditions. That it gives you the opportunity to say, "Maybe this one's not for me." Or, "Yes, I can pull this off." It can take-- sometimes you get it quickly. I'd say a couple days at least, to memorize the lines and get a foundation of a character is what I would like to have. So, yes.

Alison Stewart: I want to ask you about Green Room 42.

Reeve Carney: Oh, yes.

Alison Stewart: You've got a big show coming up.

Reeve Carney: Oh, thanks. Well, I love Queen, and I'm doing like a tribute to them. They're one of my favorite bands of all time. I try to keep it interesting. Change it up every month. I play there every month, but I do a different show every month there.

Alison Stewart: Why do you like that space?

Reeve Carney: It's a lot like this, actually, in terms of the size. I have a more elaborate setup there just because it's more music of the night in the night. They've got a nice piano there. I like the intimate spaces. It's a real listening room, which is really nice. I love that. As opposed to, like, it's fun playing a rock club when you're with a band, but it can get distracting when you're doing a solo act and all you hear is people ordering drinks in the back.

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: Wait, last month, did you do Broadway Divas?

Reeve Carney: I did. Yes. Wow, that's great. Thanks for knowing that. Yes.

Alison Stewart: Yes.

[laughter]

Alison Stewart: You're doing Queen next month?

Reeve Carney: Yes. In June 20th.

Alison Stewart: June?

Reeve Carney: Yes.

Alison Stewart: Do you give yourself a break between Broadway Divas and Queen? That's a lot on the voice.

Reeve Carney: I guess you just got to practice a little bit every day. That helps.

Alison Stewart: What are you going to play for us next? Two songs.

Reeve Carney: I'll play a song from my album, Youth is Wasted, called CheckMate. Why not?

Alison Stewart: This is Reeve Carney.

[applause]

[MUSIC - Reeve Carney: CheckMate]

[applause]

Reeve Carney: Thank you.

[applause]

[MUSIC - Reeve Carney: Think of You]

[applause]

Reeve Carney: Thank you very much. Thanks for having me.

Alison Stewart: That was a special live performance from Reeve Carney, musician and former star of Hadestown on Broadway. He joined us for our May Get Lit with All Of It book club event. That is it for our spring season of Get Lit. We are taking a break for the summer, but we will be back in September with a very exciting event. I'll be right back here tomorrow with another special book series. Full Bio returned with a discussion of the life of Mark Twain with biographer Ron Chernow. I'm Alison Stewart. I appreciate you listening, and I appreciate you, and I'll meet you back here next time.

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