#96 - Jai Rodriguez: A Thousand Sweet Kisses

“Trail blazers very rarely get to reap the benefits of the very
trail they helped blaze.”  This conversation with Jai
Rodriguez is a perfect conversation when it comes to being a
multi-hyphenate. What happens if we get pigeon holed into one
thing? Jai had a tough time breaking out of what people thought
they knew about him or what he could do after Queer Eye. So how did
he lean into the full rounded multi-hyphenate he is now? In this
episode we discuss… How he landed the original cast of Queer Eye on
Bravo. The multi-hyphenate life he was leading while being a TV
star. How he broke out of what people thought they knew about him.
Gatekeeping.  Understanding the type of life and career you
want to exist simulatenously. Avoiding bad professional
relationships. Jai's upcoming 54 Below show, A Thousand Sweet
Kisses Emmy Award winner and Broadway veteran Jai Rodriguez returns
home to the NYC stage after 17 years, with his new cabaret show A
Thousand Sweet Kisses, chronicling his hilarious journey through
love, sex and relationships. Purchase tickets here.  Best
known as the “Culture Guy” in the groundbreaking original “Queer
Eye,” theater audiences first met Jai at the age of 18 when he
played Angel in RENT, making him the youngest person ever cast in a
leading role in that show. While in NYC, Jai appeared at Lincoln
Center in Spinning Into Butter, as Carmen Ghia in The Producers and
as Zanna in the cult classic Zanna, Don’t! While performing eight
shows a week, Jai became a fixture in nightlife with his popular
post modern pop cabaret night at XL called Twisted Cabaret. Since
then Jai has become a regular fixture in TV and film guest starring
on shows like “Grey’s Anatomy,” “The Rookie,” “The Magicians,” “How
I Met Your Mother,” “Fantasy Island,” and as the scene stealing
Geoffrey in “Malibu Country” opposite Reba and Lily Tomlin to name
a few. Most recently Jai was in the Judd Apatow film BROS and is in
“Uncoupled,” which is about to shoot its second season. A Thousand
Sweet Kisses is a hilarious and touching musical cabaret featuring
Broadway and pop classics as well as never before told behind the
scenes stories. Each night will feature a different surprise guest
dueting “I’ll Cover You” from RENT with him. Join us for Jai’s
unforgettable return to the NYC stage! Featuring special guests
Claybourne Elder (Company, “The Gilded Age”) on October 26, Orfeh
(Tony Award and Grammy nominee, Legally Blonde) on October 27, and
Dan Amboyer (“Younger,” “Uncoupled”) on October 28. The performance
on October 27 will also be livestreamed. For tickets and more
information, click here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
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