STNJ Stereophonic’s “Grover” Checks in to the Studio

Stereophonic is the most Tony Award-winning Show of the year and the most Tony Award-nominated play of all time. It examines the highs and lows of creating music, focusing on a recording studio in 1976.

Magic 98.3 is the official radio sponsor of State Theatre New Jersey's Broadway Series in New Brunswick. My latest Broadway cast conversation is with Jack Barrett, who plays “Grover” in Stereophonic.

Jack’s story is unique. Stereophonic is his first major show that he booked coming out of college. He shared, “It’s been a nerve-racking experience at times, but also incredibly exciting.” We were hard-pressed to think of an instance where this has happened to another actor.

“It was a long audition process; it was not easy," he continued. "There were a lot of scenes and a lot of rounds of auditions. Every round of auditions, I was so sure that I did not get the part. At one point, I called my agent and said I don’t think I got it.”

Jack got the call while he was at his bartending job in New York. He was so happy and almost in tears that he ran outside and called his Mom right away. He put in his two weeks at the bar immediately.

Jack’s story is a little bit like his character, Grover. He said, “I think in a lot of ways, it’s sort of similar. He feels a little bit out of his element at first, and kind of grows into his role in the show. I feel like that in real life too.”

Hear more and check out the full interview with Jack Barrett here:

Jack said, “The play follows a band as they come off their most recent tour, and they start recording their next album almost immediately after. Early on in the recording process of this next album, their song is rising in the charts very quickly. It sort of becomes a pressure cooker as they try to record this next album with higher expectations.”

The show is written by David Adjmi, directed by Daniel Aukin, and features original music by Arcade Fire’s Will Butler.

Stereophonicis coming to State Theatre New Jersey, March 28^th and 29^th. Go to STNJ.org for tickets or more information.