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On Broadway,Jagged Little Pillis actually a pretty big pill.
How are your vocal cords?It doesnt hurt to sing that way, for me.
I said, Heres how Im singing it.
Lets confirm Im not killing myself singing it.
It, of course, being the Alanis Morissette songbook, including You Oughta Know.
Were you familiar with her work before the show?Not super-familiar.
How old are you?Im 27.
She was more like, Get out of my room.
Then I realized how many songs I actually knewIronic and You Oughta Know, of course.
She is a deeply special person.
She is one of those people who walk into a room and her energy just immediately precedes her.
Whenever shes been around, it renews our spirit.
One of my favorites right now is with me and Celia, who plays Frankie.
We enter together at the top of Act Two.
Were all sort of milling about on the stage before Act Two places.
So we both go, Standing bi?
Wheres my standing bi?
You identify as bisexual and queer, right?Bisexual and queer.
Not that identity isnt something we reevaluate daily.
Right, thats a constant process.
WithFun Home, when I first started the job I saw myself as straight.
It took time to really understand that for myself.
It was not long after that that I started developing Jo.
So I was still very newly out, I suppose.
[Both laugh.]
If only.When we were in Cambridge, we marched as a cast in the Boston Pride parade.
That was my first as an out queer person.
You literally grow up learning and hearing [these things].
But I also feel confident that I am very believable.
So it was also never a question of, Oh, should I not talk about it?
A very important question.
Have you ever been to a Connecticut Muffin?
I didnt realize it was real until recently.
I thought that was a thing Diablo made up.
The night I saw the show you got a standing ovation mid-song during You Oughta Know.
What do you do in that moment?
Where does your brain go?Its not something you ever expect, because its insane.
you might look at the notes, but the way that she writes is often not according to expectation.
Theyre very catchy, but her rhythms, her scansion of words is often really weird and not normal.
Which obviously makes the song so great.
But you have to be on your toes.
It felt like this embarrassment of riches that I was not expecting.
You do have the best role in the show.It is an ensemble piece.
It is a deeply ensemble piece.
Okay, in myopinionyou have the best role in the show.I could accept an opinion.
Update June 13, 9:45 p.m.:This interview has been updated to reflect Pattens Drama Desk Award win.
