Gavin Creel Doesn’t Just Break The Fourth Wall (He Smashes It to Bits!)

Ask any actor: stage performances don’t always translate well on television.

But when Gavin Creel, the star of the new revival of the 1967 musical Hair, took the stage to perform the song “Hair” at this year’s Tony Awards, it was instantly clear why his explosive, trippy performance, with its subtle hint of bisexuality, had been nominated for an award.

Before you knew it, Creel and his fellow cast members had broken the fourth wall, jumping off the stage and dancing out into the audience. Creel even got to serenade Anne Hathaway.

“The ‘Hair’ number just rocked,” Creel admits. “I was really proud of the show and how we came off on the Tonys.”

Now Creel, who was also nominated for a Tony for his Broadway debut in 2002’s Thoroughly Modern Millie, is getting more intimate still, with a performance later this month at Joe’s Pub in New York. It’s his first concert since coming out publicly earlier this year, and Creel promises a night of emotional honesty unlike any performance he’s ever given before.

Recently, we chatted with Creel about that breathtaking Tony performance, how his life has changed since coming out as an actor, and his desire to have the first number one single where a guy sings about his love for another guy.

AfterElton.com: So I’ve been listening to your 2006 CD GoodTimeNation and really liking it. I was expecting showtunes, but it’s not. Some of it is very pop. Do you see yourself as a pop star?
Gavin Creel: That would be a dream-come-true. I want to tour and play an auditorium and have it packed with people who know my songs. I don't need to play arenas. I wouldn't turn it down if I got that famous, but I want to be as much of a musician as I am an actor. I want to do both. And be a theater actor. I love the theater. That's where my heart is. I love the way I've been embraced by the musical theater community.

The projects that I've picked, and been able to do, have been really varied in a beautiful way. Going from being in the 20s [in Thoroughly Modern Milly] to Classic Contemporary [in La Cage aux Folles] to being a chimney sweep [in Mary Poppins] to being a hippie [in Hair] is kind of a bizarre group of dudes. All the while, I've always had a desire to sing and compose myself, getting closer and closer to being able to stand in front of an audience and expose who I am through my music.