*NSYNC’s Joey Fatone has always been a theatre kid

The boy band star, who appeared on Broadway twice in the early aughts, now returns for the first time in 20 years to play a limited run in the musical & Juliet.

Joey’s back, alright! Wait, wrong boy band. Nonetheless, it works: Despite famously being a member of *NSYNC, Joey Fatone sings multiple Backstreet Boys songs in & Juliet on Broadway, the pop musical in which he stars through March 16.

Thirty songs from Grammy-winning songwriter/music producer Max Martin, made famous by these bands and other pop stars, score the show that imagines what would happen if Shakespeare’s Juliet didn’t die after losing Romeo. Fatone plays Lance, Juliet’s friend’s imposing father who falls into an unexpected romance of his own.

Fatone joins a mini-boy band renaissance on the New York theatre scene; for one, New Kids on the Block’s Joey McIntyre just wrapped a run in Drag: The Musical off Broadway. The crossover is natural, according to Fatone.

Theatre is “where we started,” he said. “Joey Mac has always been a theatre kid. I’ve always been a theatre kid. Crazy enough, a lot of the people I went to high school with have come out to do shows.” The alum of Orlando, Florida’s Dr. Phillips High School attended within 10 years of Wayne Brady, Aladdin‘s Michael James Scott, and Tony Award nominee Tony Yazbeck, among others.

Fatone made his own Broadway debut in Little Shop of Horrors in 2002, going on to lead Rent for a limited run in 2004. & Juliet marks his first time back since then, and despite the challenges, he said he’s been having “a blast” getting to finally return to an art he loves.

“I wasn’t really nervous-nervous. It was just a matter of getting things out and making sure I tell the story,” Fatone said. “It’s [an] amazing adrenaline rush.”

Hear more from Fatone about taking up the codpiece in & Juliet and his hopes for the future of his Broadway career below.

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How does it feel to be back on Broadway?

Crazy, after so many years. I feel old and humbled.

No, it’s good. It’s exciting to be back. It’s been a long time coming for me, and finding the time to do it is always not that easy.

I did Rent many moons ago. And it’s a great show, but it’s very mentally draining [doing] scenes that are very dark sometimes. For & Juliet, it’s so light and so much fun. I’m having a blast, and if I mess up, it happens. It’s a live show. What are you going to do?

How did you get the opportunity to do & Juliet?

I knew the show since the birth. [Producers] Tim Headington and Theresa Page are very good friends of mine that got this show pretty much up and running [in London’s] West End […] and then brought it to Broadway.

I’ve seen the show, gosh, two or three times. Many years ago, we even said, “If there’s ever a part, let us know.” And they came to us and said, “Hey, here’s Lance. Obviously, this should be right up your alley.”

Maybe I should have been like, “Darn. I should have been in the original cast!” But nevertheless, it is what it is. I’m here.

What was your first impression of the show?

“Man, I can’t do a French accent.” I’ve tried. It’s awful, but I think that’s what’s fun about this show and about this character. It does poke fun of it a little bit.

I love this script, and you’ve got to love the music. It’s all Max Martin, it’s all Britney, *NSYNC, Backstreet, Katy Perry, Bon Jovi, Celine Dion. Hit after hit after hit after hit are in this show, and you know them, and you love them, and it’s amazing to see how they actually connected the script and the show to the songs. Sometimes that’s not very easy.

What was on your mind during your first performance?

When I walked on stage and I was like, “So, Francois,” people screamed. I was like, “Okay, are they gonna stop?” I’m standing there and people are still cheering. I’m like […] “Please stop applauding because I’m not going to remember the line if you keep doing that.”

Once I started talking, I don’t remember exactly what I said, but I said all the right words. And I walked off stage, and I went, “What the hell just happened?” That was the first scene. And then once you get into it, it’s just doing it.

Was it a challenge to adapt to the demands of Broadway after being away for 20 years?

Honestly, it’s with age. Seriously, no lie. You’re not as receptive and […] quick. For me, learning stuff is happening a little slower. But once I have that repetition, then it’s smooth sailing.

A lot of celebrities sometimes go into these shows not knowing the grind — the eight shows a week, the one night off. Thank goodness my character, honestly, is not a very demanding character, which is nice, but he’s got to be present. There’s a lot of connections with his son, Francois, that [are] going on within the show.

I only had […] about 11 days of rehearsals. When you’re doing these rehearsals, you’re not with the full cast; you’re with a stage manager and a dance captain and people that have done the show, but only, like, two or three.

And that’s really what a put-in [rehearsal] is for. They even said, “Don’t worry about the lines. It’s the matter of getting your feet in the position of what you’re doing.”

They’re like, “You need to be up forward.” And I’m like, “Why?” “Because a donut’s going to start moving and something’s going to hit you in the head if you do not go downstage.” And I was like, “Okay, lesson learned.”

Did you get any advice from Paulo Szot, who originated Lance on Broadway?

Paulo, I met a few times. Handing the codpiece over was a very cute, very funny service we did. He’s great, though his take is definitely different because he’s an opera singer, classically trained. That’s amazing within itself. He is a Tony Award-winning guy. I have no Tony Awards.

My take is a little more comical. His is funny, too; mine’s just a little more cartoonish, a little more over the top. His is very deliberate, very sweet, and very sincere. I took some of that, but the great thing about doing these shows is putting a different twist on it.

What is your favorite moment in & Juliet?

Of course, mine are the best, what are you talking about? I love the bedroom scene with Angelique, [played by] Jeanette [Bayardelle]. She’s awesome. And that scene I have with Francois [where we sing] “Shape of my Heart,” which is also a beautiful ballad by Backstreet. You can’t not get choked up when you hear that song.

There’s a couple other ones, [like the song] “One More Try.” I thought it was a song that was already written, but that’s actually original in the show that Max did, which is probably one of my favorite songs.

Do you hope to do more Broadway shows in the future?

It would be fun to do a brand-new show. Whatever that show is, or whatever musical. So, people, if you’re looking and if there’s a show out there and you think I’m fit for it, (makes phone gesture) ring-a-ding.

Get & Juliet tickets now.

This interview has been condensed and edited for length and clarity.

Top image credit: Joey Fatone. (Photo by Amy and Gabe Mendoza at TwentyNine Northwest Studio)
In-article image credit: Joey Fatone in & Juliet on Broadway. (Photo by Rebecca J. Michelson)