‘It’ll move your soul a little’: How Andrew Broderick became Canadian Stage’s leading choir boy

You don’t get called “the closest thing Canada has to a young Stevie Wonder or an Usher” by a national publication without being a standout performer.

Andrew Broderick, a “Canadian Idol” alum and frequent player on some of Ontario’s most prestigious stages — Shaw, Stratford and so on — continues his tradition of wooing audiences with his voice this month at Canadian Stage.

Broderick stars in “Choir Boy,” by “Moonlight” writer Tarell Alvin McCraney and directed by Mike Payette. Opening at Canadian Stage on Nov. 11, “Choir Boy” explores the dynamics within a legendary gospel choir at an all-boys prep school, binding together a cappella hymns with heart-wrenching storytelling.

Broderick leads as Pharus, who as the play progresses must learn to balance his identity as a young gay Black man with the legacy of his school and its expectations.

When we spoke, Broderick had just finished a stumble-through of “Choir Boy” — theatre-speak for a first run of a work in progress. His joy for the creative team and the project shone through the phone.

“It’s so cool to see what we’ve done so far,” he said. “It’s challenging and exciting … we’re learning each other’s voices, how to blend and harmonize when it’s all a cappella.”

Broderick followed “Choir Boy” for years before joining its Canadian Stage cast. The show had a short but critically acclaimed Broadway run in early 2019, with Jeremy Pope starring as Pharus, a role New York Times theatre critic Jesse Green called “captivating and fresh.”

“I really wanted to see it in New York but missed out. But I saw it in Montreal and (Payette) also directed it there. I was kind of obsessed with it. It was a great production, super heartfelt, but I thought I’d probably missed the boat on being in it.”

Soon came the announcement of a joint Toronto/Vancouver production and Broderick jumped at the chance.

“There aren’t a lot of roles of this scope for young, Black, male performers,” he said. “It’s a challenge for sure. But I think my career has prepared me for it.”

That’s an understatement. Since graduating from Sheridan College’s musical theatre training program, Broderick has held meaty roles in a number of musicals, including Schroeder in Donna Feore’s “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” at the Stratford Festival and Harper in the Canadian premiere of “The Colour Purple” at the Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre in Winnipeg (the latter is one of his favourite past roles). Broderick also charmed television audiences in Season 2 of “Canadian Idol,” which earned him that “Stevie Wonder” Maclean’s clipping.

“Different shows have prepared me in different ways,” said Broderick. “‘Choir Boy’ isn’t just a musical, it’s a play with a lot of music … This is the first thing I’ve done where it’s 50/50 music and acting. It’s a marathon. It’s a one-act and Pharus is there from beginning to end.

“There’s a stamina to it,” he continued. “I’ve been training for this for years.”

At the age of 16, “Canadian Idol” was the star turn that, according to Broderick, took him out of his shell.

“I learned a lot … and I think I found a lot of stage confidence,” he said. “I had a lot of stage fright, but overcoming something like that when you’re so young really did give me the bug for live performance.”

Broderick, who was himself a member of his high school’s chorus, finds “Choir Boy” fascinating for a number of reasons — perhaps most of all for its enduring timeliness.

“It was written in the Obama era, and so it’s filled with a lot of hope and possibility,” said Broderick. “And then (the 2016 U.S. election) happened … the world has changed a lot since then.

“What the play deals with is supremely timeless in the Black community,” he continued. “It’s five boys with different struggles in the ecology of an all-Black boys private school where we find family in each other. But we also get bumps and bruises along the way, as well … that’s a perfect reflection of our society.

“‘Choir Boy’ takes you on a journey you won’t expect,” Broderick concluded. “It’s filled with twists, and there’s lots of comedy and there’s lots of soul in it.

“This is music that will stay with you. And it’ll hopefully move your soul a little.”

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