Amber Ruffin, Crystal Lucas Perry, and Grey Henson from 'Bigfoot! A New Musical'

Summary

All Of It with Alison Stewart

Episode: Amber Ruffin, Crystal Lucas Perry, and Grey Henson from 'Bigfoot! A New Musical'
Air Date: February 27, 2026
Podcast: WNYC's All Of It

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Episode Overview

This episode takes listeners to the delightfully deranged world of "Bigfoot! A New Musical," in conversation with the show's co-writer Amber Ruffin and stars Crystal Lucas Perry and Gray Henson. Hosted by Alison Stewart, the conversation explores the story, creation, and cultural resonance of the musical—a comic yet heartfelt tale set in the whimsically grim town of Mud Dirt. The cast and creator dive into the show's origins, the process of developing a new musical, the making of its offbeat songs, and how it reflects (and lampoons) contemporary issues of otherness and belonging with both comedy and compassion.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Introducing Mud Dirt & The Bigfoot Musical

• Setting & Tone:
  • Mud Dirt is humorously described as "mostly wet and gross and smelly and brown, whose population is steadily going down, whose happy face is a slightly smaller frown" (Alison Stewart quoting the show's lyrics, [01:53]).
  • The town, set among chemical plants and environmental hazards, is the home of Bigfoot (Gray Henson), raised in the woods by his mother Francine (Crystal Lucas Perry) to shield him from the town's prejudice.
• Plot Premise:
  • A corrupt mayor exploits Bigfoot as a scapegoat to distract the townsfolk and fill his own pockets.
  • Described as broad, zany, and hilarious, but underscored by genuine characters and catchy, 80s-inflected musical numbers.

2. Long Road to the Stage

• Development Timeline:
  • Amber Ruffin explains the show has been in the works since 2014: “That’s 1,100 years ago, if my math is right.” ([03:22])
  • Delay due to real-life events increasingly mirroring the plot. “The real world becomes more like Mud Dirt. I’m sorry if I’m a prophet of some kind.” ([03:32])
• The Broadway Development Process:
  • Ruffin describes the unique, exhausting demands: “There's nowhere on earth that requires you to be awake at midnight talking about what rhymes with fart." ([05:41])

3. Casting and Characters

• Gray Henson (Bigfoot):
  • Jumped at the role for its singular, comedic, and heartfelt quality.
  • Reflects on his comedic typecasting: “There’s a through line of sensitivity and, like, sort of honest goodness ... after years of growing up a little gay kid in Macon, Georgia.” ([06:47])
• Crystal Lucas Perry (Francine, Bigfoot’s Mom):
  • Discusses how, despite the farcical setting, the actor’s commitment to full immersion makes the show emotionally resonant.
  • On the townsfolk: “They share a mind, in a sense...but they get to expand on that and learn a little bit more...they actually start to shift and evolve.” ([11:46])

4. Comedy, Music, and Audience Connection

• Comedy Style:
  • The show's humor is broad yet precise, relying on both physical gags and sharp writing.
  • Crystal Lucas Perry on making broad comedy work: “The final character in our play is when the audience is there…A lot of listening, a lot of trust, and it’s just about the assembly of the people in the room.” ([07:54])
  • Stage slaps are a standout running joke: “There are multiple actual slaps in the show…that joke hits really hard. Pun intended.” (Amber Ruffin, [08:52])
• Music and Songwriting:
  • Composer David Schmoll brings an improv sensibility from Boom Chicago, contributing to the show’s “reckless abandon” and ensuring every number is a standout: “Why can’t every song just be a hit?” (Amber Ruffin, [24:13])
  • Songs are written to be memorable, many with the emotional resonance (and tempo) of “11 o’clock numbers” due to the serial competition format from which the show originated ([23:30]).
  • Featured song “Day to Day” is Bigfoot’s yearning solo about craving normalcy and connection ([22:11]).

5. Themes of Otherness, Kindness, and Hope

• Bigfoot as Metaphor:
  • Amber Ruffin sees Bigfoot as a figure for all ways people are othered: “Bigfoot in my mind is a black woman. Then I was like, Bigfoot in my mind is all LGBTQ. Then I was like, Bigfoot is an immigrant. ... Bigfoot becomes, you know, whatever way in which you are othered likely as you're watching it.” ([24:24])
  • The show balances humor with empathy, showing Bigfoot as “more human than anyone,” even as he’s ostracized ([12:44]).
• Mother-Son Bond:
  • Francine’s protective love is central: “She catches onto very early … that’s her baby. That’s the one she loves. And she’d do anything to protect her son, the same way her son would do anything to protect her.” (Crystal Lucas Perry, [15:05])
• Optimism and Happy Endings:
  • The show ends on a joyful note: “Very few things are honest about how bad it is and hopeful, and this show is both. And I hope that combination is healing to people.” (Amber Ruffin, [26:05])

6. The 1980s Setting

• Why the 80s?
  • Set partly for comedic resonance (originally to riff on Hulk Hogan—scrapped) and because the score’s spirit fit the era: “We wrote a couple songs for the show, we were like, this is the 80s, because of the way the show kind of ended up sounding.” (Amber Ruffin, [13:20])
  • The time period reinforces themes of innocence and pre-Internet simplicity: “You only know what you see. I think Bigfoot just comes from such a great, honest place...” (Gray Henson, [16:58])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Amber Ruffin on the show’s prophetic resonance:

  • “And then the world started becoming the plot of Bigfoot.” ([03:32])

• Crystal Lucas Perry on audience participation:

  • “The final character in our play is when the audience is there. We learn so much about, you know, what's landing, about what people are picking up.” ([07:54])

• Gray Henson on the heart of Bigfoot:

  • “He is more human than anyone, which is sort of the butt of the joke...everyone else is sort of the monster around this big, perceived monster.” ([12:44])

• Amber Ruffin on themes of otherness:

  • “Bigfoot in my mind is a black woman. Then I was like, bigfoot in my mind is all LGBTQ. Then I was like, bigfoot is an immigrant. That’s a lot to take in, girl.” ([24:24])

• On the writing process:

  • “There's nowhere on earth that requires you to be awake at midnight talking about what rhymes with fart.” (Amber Ruffin, [05:41])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp (MM:SS) | Description | |---|---|---| | Musical intro & Mud Dirt lyrics | 01:48-02:11 | The cast sings opening lines from the show. | | Origins and timeline of Bigfoot | 03:17-03:59 | Amber Ruffin explains the show’s 12-year journey. | | Casting and types of comedy | 06:47-07:36 | Gray Henson relates Bigfoot to his Broadway roles. | | Comedy and physical gags | 08:52-09:26 | The "slaps" bit and physical comedy. | | What/Where is Mud Dirt? | 10:42-11:40 | On inventing the setting and townspeople. | | On Bigfoot’s longings | 12:35-13:08 | Gray Henson on Bigfoot’s yearnings for humanity. | | Setting the show in the 80s | 13:10-14:16 | Amber Ruffin explains the era choice and comedic effect. | | Francine’s protective love | 15:05-15:58 | Crystal Lucas Perry on playing Bigfoot’s mom. | | “Day to Day” song clip | 22:08-23:09 | Grayson introduces, and listeners hear, Bigfoot’s solo. | | Writing and musical structure | 23:30-24:21 | Amber explains the show’s all-hits, no-filler approach. | | Bigfoot as metaphor for being ‘other’| 24:24-25:39 | Amber discusses Bigfoot's evolving symbolic resonance. | | Happy endings & hope | 25:41-26:49 | The cast on the importance of joy and optimism in theatre. |

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Conclusion

"Bigfoot! A New Musical" is a playful, whip-smart show offering great laughs, a surprisingly affecting story about acceptance, motherly love, and the joy found in belonging. Its creators and cast exude warmth and infectious enthusiasm, inviting audiences to celebrate both the weird and the wonderful within and around us. As Amber Ruffin puts it, “Go see it. It’s fun!” ([27:49])

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Transcript

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[Amber Ruffin]

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[Alison Stewart]

This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart, and now we're going to take a trip to a town called Mud Dirt, the setting of Bigfoot, a new musical co written by my next guest, Amber Ruffin.

[Gray Henson]

Mud Dirks Mud Dirt's a hell of a town.

[Alison Stewart]

What's mostly wet and gross and smelly and brown, whose population is steadily going

[Amber Ruffin]

down,

[Alison Stewart]

whose happy face is a slightly smaller frown.

[Gray Henson]

Mud Dirt. Mud Dirt.

[Amber Ruffin]

A hell of a town.

[Alison Stewart]

Mud Dirt is the home of the musical's titular character, played by my guest Gray Henson, who lives there on the outskirts of town, which is situated somewhere between a chemical plan, a toxic river, and a hill with an imminent mudslide. Bigfoot's mom, yep, he has a mom is Francine, a normal, played by Crystal Lucas Perry. Bigfoot grew up in the woods because his mom feared how the townspeople would treat him. That fear turns out to be warranted when a corrupt mayor uses Bigfoot as a boogeyman to stir up an angry mob in town, where he pockets the money from a brand new water park. If that sounds like a zany plot, it is. It also happens to be Hilarious and carried by great. A great musical score and some seriously talented voices. With Tony nominees all all over the place. Bigfoot, a new musical, is running at New York city Center now through April20. What is it? April 26th. April 26th. I don't have my glasses on. Amber Ruffin, Crystal Lucas Paris, and gray Henson are with me now. Thank you for coming to the studio. Yay.

[Amber Ruffin]

Thank you for having us. Yay.

[Alison Stewart]

That's excellent. She started writing Bigfoot in 2014.

[Amber Ruffin]

That's right. We started writing it in 2014. That's 1100 years ago, if my math is right.

[Alison Stewart]

Why did it take 12 years to make it to the big stage?

[Amber Ruffin]

We really were like, hey, we did it. What a great show. The end. And then the world started becoming the plot of bigfoot. And then we were like, well, it might be time to revisit this. And I feel like every day, the real world becomes more like mud dirt. So I'm sorry if I'm a prophet of some kind of.

[Alison Stewart]

So, Gray, when you heard about this idea of a musical about bigfoot, how long did it take you to say, I want to play bigfoot?

[Gray Henson]

Not very long. There was a reading of it that I couldn't be a part of, and I was super bummed because I think it's so rare to find new material that is this funny and with music that is this catchy. And so, yeah, I jumped on it the moment I heard I was invited to the party.

[Alison Stewart]

It's so interesting to look in your eyes, because the last time I saw you were in a big, giant fur suit.

[Gray Henson]

I know, I know. But you can really tell.

[Alison Stewart]

But your eyes are very expressive.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, thank you. Thanks. That's good to hear that it breaks through, because I do worry that I get lost in the fur.

[Alison Stewart]

No, you don't get lost in the fur. You don't get lost in the fur.

[Amber Ruffin]

Lost in the fur.

[Alison Stewart]

Yes. Behind the scenes.

[Amber Ruffin]

Lost in the fur. Lost in the fur.

[Alison Stewart]

So, Chris, you've done all kinds of theater. I saw you in 1776. You were amazing in that you've done Shakespeare. What is similar about this show compared to the other shows that you've done?

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Oh, goodness. I would have to say the commitment is still there. I mean, you have to go full force in. We've got some great characters in the show that Amber and the team have created. And so leaning all the way in so that you can feel something at the end of the night is kind of what brings it all full circle. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

So you've worked on Broadway before, obviously, Amber and Yes.

[Amber Ruffin]

I'm like the Wiz. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Yes. Those are both great shows. Yay. How did working on those shows help you develop bigfoot after the 2014 version of it and had to continue to develop the show.

[Amber Ruffin]

Working on those shows helped me develop Bigfoot because the development process for tv, for a movie, for a podcast, all of it is so wildly different than the process for a Broadway show. So really getting in there at night after every show and then writing however long it takes and then waking up and getting to work, that is, like, unheard of. That's nowhere else. There's nowhere on earth that requires you to be awake at midnight talking about what rhymes with fart. That never happens. So I.

[Alison Stewart]

Do you like that? Do you like that sort of work around the clock energy?

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Oh, yeah.

[Amber Ruffin]

I thought it was very fun. But, you know, I'm from late night, so if you have more than an hour, you're a rich man. So I really did. I really liked. I liked it a lot.

[Alison Stewart]

So, Gray, you were in Shucked Elf, a Tony nominee for Mean Girls. So what does Bigfoot have in common with those shows? And then what's a little different about it?

[Gray Henson]

It's funny. I was just talking about this because I feel typecast. I mean, I know obviously Bigfoot is very. From Buddy the Elf or Damien Hubbard and Mean Girls, but there's a through line of sensitivity and, like, sort of honest goodness that I think I tap into through, you know, years of work on anxiety and growing up as a little gay kid in Macon, Georgia. And so, yeah, I think that's the similarity for me. But I also just love musical comedy. I think when you can do it well, there's nothing like it because especially in a show like Bigfoot, which I'm sure people write off as being, oh, that's a silly new musical, 90 minutes off Broadway. It's got a lot of intelligence and smarts, and I think when humor can teach you something, that's like when it's working at its best. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Part of the show, which is a great part of the show, is it's sort of broad, sort of broad comedy. So what is the key, Crystal, to making broad comedy work and not come off as corny or cringy, but really make it laughable, make it just enjoyable.

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Yeah. I would say a big thing is pace, you know, not sitting too much in it, but also the discovery. The final character in our play is when the audience is there. Right. And we learn so much from them. We learn so much about, you know, what's landing about what people are picking up? And also, you know, we had a really lovely long tech process which allowed us to be able to really kind of throw things up on the wall and see what's sticks and see what's, you know, see what we need and what we don't. But it's a lot of listening, it's a lot of trust, and it's. It's also just about the Assemble the assembly of the people in the room. We've got the right people in the room to really kind of make these things work. So when you combine all of those things together, that. That allows for the things that need to come to the surface and reveal themselves to make it to take place. For sure.

[Alison Stewart]

Amber, what is something that just slaps in the room once you got the audience in? You said, I didn't know that that was gonna be as funny as it

[Amber Ruffin]

was a joke that hits hard consistently. Well, listen, I don't want to ruin any of them, but you said slaps, and that makes me think of the. I don't know. I feel like they're all 11.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, the actual slaps.

[Amber Ruffin]

That's true. There are actual slaps. That's a great. Good job. Good job, Gray. There are multiple actual slaps in the show. They're not real, everyone. It's stage slaps. But that joke hits really hard. Pun intended.

[Gray Henson]

Yeah. There's a lot of physical comedy in the show.

[Amber Ruffin]

It's more physical comedy than I thought, but I feel like one by one, we realized everyone was capable of it, and so then it just got more and more out of hand, and that's where the show is. It's out of hand.

[Gray Henson]

Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

I'm speaking with writer and creator Amber Ruffin and actors Crystal Lucas Perry and Gray Henson about Bigfoot, a new musical that's running at the New York City center through April 26th. I have my glasses on now. Okay. The town is called Mud Dirt. It's surrounded by toxic chemicals. It's got a super corrupt mare. Where did you draw from to get Mud Dirt? What town and experience?

[Amber Ruffin]

Thanks for assuming that. Nowhere. Nothing. We just wrote what we thought was the silliest thing we could think of.

[Alison Stewart]

And.

[Amber Ruffin]

And then. But, you know, real life creeps in, right? So we just thought, how far can we go while still being believable? You know what I mean? Like, how silly can it get before people are like, no, thank you. So I feel like that's where the show resides, is at the edge of silliness, and you can still care about these characters, which is not at all what you asked, but that's where we've ended up.

[Alison Stewart]

Well, let's listen to a little bit of Mud Dirt and we can. And talk about it on the other side.

[Amber Ruffin]

We're all up at the crack of

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

dawn, depending on what kind of crack we're on. The devil had himself a spawn and that's where we live.

[Gray Henson]

That's where we live.

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

We try so hard to do our best. Nearby towns are not impressed.

[Gray Henson]

They do well.

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

We stay stressed a hell of a day.

[Alison Stewart]

Mud. Dirt.

[Gray Henson]

Mud.

[Alison Stewart]

Dirt.

[Commercial Narrator]

Mud.

[Gray Henson]

Dirt.

[Amber Ruffin]

Mud. Dirt.

[Alison Stewart]

Mud. Dirt.

[Amber Ruffin]

Mud. Dirt.

[Gray Henson]

A hell of a town. Mud Dirt. Mud.

[Amber Ruffin]

Dirt.

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Dirt.

[Gray Henson]

Mud. Dirt.

[Amber Ruffin]

Mud. Dirt. Dirt.

[Gray Henson]

Mud.

[Amber Ruffin]

Dirt.

[Gray Henson]

Mud. Dirt. Mud.

[Alison Stewart]

Mud.

[Gray Henson]

Dirt. My dirt. Have fun in town, y'. All. We want a hell of a time.

[Alison Stewart]

Yay. So what are the people like of Mudder? What are they like, Crystal, the people who live there?

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Well, there's so many of them, and they, you know, share a mind of a sense, But I think that they're curious to the point where, hey, what one thinks is what they all think, I think. And it's tricky because they get to expand on that and they learn a little bit more. But it's only when they're challenged and pushed to the end of where their thoughts begin and where they actually make their own discoveries within, you know, the town and with the outskirts of town, AKA Bigfoot, that they actually start to shift and evolve. So they are. They are complex and they become more knowledgeable throughout, I would say.

[Alison Stewart]

What does Bigfoot think of Mud Dirt? He looks at that town.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, he loves it. It's. It's Disney World for him. It is the place of his dreams, and it's because he's not fully accepted there.

[Commercial Narrator]

Right.

[Gray Henson]

And the through line with Bigfoot is he just craves humanity and connection, and he is more human than anyone, which is the sort of the butt of the joke of the show is that everyone else is sort of the monster around this big perceived monster. So for him, Mud Dirt is nirvana. It's everything, but it represents connection and just what we need as beings on this earth.

[Alison Stewart]

Amber, this is set in the 80s?

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah, baby.

[Alison Stewart]

Aside from some great suits on Alex Moffat and there were jokes about Reagan in the script. Why did you decide to set it in the 80s, girl?

[Amber Ruffin]

First of all, we did it because we couldn't stop making jokes about Hulk Hogan. This show was just a vehicle to get jokes about Hulk Hogan out. But then he died. So then we were like, oh, God, we gotta pivot. So we cut all the Hulk Hogan jokes. But, I mean, I guess it's set in the 80s now. That is real. But it's also set in the 80s because it was a extremely fun time. And after we wrote a couple songs for the show, we were like, this is the 80s, because of the way the show kind of ended up sounding. And I think it's to the show's benefit, because when I think of 80s, I go, oh, yeah, that was fun. Especially from 2026. The 80s, was it?

[Alison Stewart]

80s were good.

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah. Remember them?

[Alison Stewart]

Well, Bigfoot and his mom are really close. Gray.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

What do you. What do you. How come they're close? You send him to live in the forest, but they remain close. Why do they remain close?

[Gray Henson]

I think he sort of just craves the comfort that you can only get from a mother.

[Amber Ruffin]

Right.

[Gray Henson]

And she has protected him his whole life. And so I guess it's a naivete, but it's also just umbilical. And so, yeah, there's a lot of sweetness in that, but it sort of. It not infantilizes the character, but it sort of makes him the sweet innocent, which I think you need when someone just needs their mother in that really youthful way. But, yeah, she represents warmth, comfort.

[Alison Stewart]

Francine, why does she send her son to live in the woods by himself?

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Oh, gosh. Francine just wants to protect her son. You know, I think one of the. One of the beauties of Francine is that she is able to see the heart in others and also kind of see through things in a way that both elevates and lifts them and also just appreciates. And I think, again, the one person that teaches Francine as she's trying to teach the town is her son. The way that she's constantly surprised by him, the way that she's constantly just in awe of how he's able to literally have his huge presence make such a huge impact on people in the way that you wouldn't expect. Kind of is something that she's. She catches onto very early on. But that's her baby. That's the one she loves. And she'd do anything to protect her son, the same way her son would do anything to protect her.

[Alison Stewart]

Amber, how did you come on the voice of Bigfoot? Because he's sort of naive, but he's also the smartest person in the room.

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah. I really felt like this is what would happen if you were living alone in the forest. Right. You'd be extremely smart because all you'd have to do is read and you'd be Extremely kind. Because once a month or every two weeks, when people see you, they're happy to see you. So everything you ingest would be laced with joy. So I do think that that's as silly as the show is. That, I think, is the realest part of the show is how happy this guy is. I think you would have to be happy if you lived in the forest.

[Alison Stewart]

When you play Bigfoot, how do you find that balance between being sort of emotionally mature but also being naive and wanting to see others, to have connection with others?

[Gray Henson]

Yeah. I mean, when you think about. When I think of kids and children, they are oftentimes smarter than adults because you just aren't weathered by the world, I guess, in a way, there's sort of a lot of intelligence in purity. And I think that's also why I think the show works so well and also why it's set in the 80s. This is like pre Internet, and so you only know what you see. And I think Bigfoot just comes from such a great, honest place of, like, realness and intention and connection and.

[Alison Stewart]

Yeah, he's such a sweet guy.

[Gray Henson]

Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

He's also a smart guy.

[Gray Henson]

So smart.

[Alison Stewart]

That's the thing I got from it. Like, he's just so smart.

[Gray Henson]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Amber, this could be just really funny. Joke, joke, joke, joke, joke. But it also has really good music. Yay. In it as well. Tell us a little bit about the composer.

[Amber Ruffin]

Our composer is David Schmoll. He and I have written a total of. Excuse me. A total of four musicals together. I didn't know four Girl. Two are excellent and two are very bad.

[Gray Henson]

This is one of the bad ones.

[Amber Ruffin]

But Shmuel and I met at a theater called Boom Chicago in Amsterdam. That's a lot like the Second City, except it's way more short form. And Shmohl worked there for 1,000 years. So every show at Boom Chicago has multiple improvised songs in it, and I would always be put in the improvised songs. And I worked there for five years alongside Shmohl. So together we've improvised 100 million songs. And. And Shmol is, you know, of course, a talented musician and composer. He can play any instrument, but he's the world's best musical improv accompanist. Accompaniment. Accompaniment. It's a hard word of all time. If you are making up a song and you look over and it's Shmol on the keys, you're going to win. And it's not even close. Second place to Shmole is nowhere close because it was his full time job for decades. And he had to do it, you know, multiple times a night. He's untouchable. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

So out of the two that turned out to be good. That's right. What did he bring to the table? What did he bring to your score?

[Amber Ruffin]

Well, hey, to be clear, the two bad shows aren't. The music still rules.

[Gray Henson]

Okay, yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Oh, that's interesting.

[Amber Ruffin]

The songs out of those two bad shows, we will take those. All those songs and then make like a third. Third musical. But he really is. There is a reckless abandon that you improvise with that people don't use musically. And we all do at Boom Chicago and at that theater. And because the singers will do it, the musicians will do it too, because it's their full time job. You know what I mean? Most musicians, their job is to open up a. Open up sheet music and play what they're told. But when you're without that for so long, it's just. He lives in this wild area where comedians also live. Yeah, it's really natural.

[Alison Stewart]

Crystal Francine gets to sing this. Has this beautiful moment when he sings about her son. Can you describe what that scene is like for us and how you get in the mood to sing that song?

[Crystal Lucas Perry]

Oh, yeah. Well, again, there are many things that are going on in the show which I'll leave for the show. But at this point, Francine is in a place of hope and in a place of, you know, of dreaming for her son with her son. And when you have a child who's in the forest because of who they are and because the town isn't perhaps ready, even though you know that they would love him, you find yourself, you know, painting pictures and creating an ideal life of what is to come. And, you know, I think one of Francine's biggest fears is what happens if I'm not there to, you know, to be there to take care of Bigfoot. So throwing out wishes, wishing on stars, thinking about, you know, what things lie in store for him, but also knowing just how incredible he is and knowing that no matter what, he will be fine. But also, hey, maybe. Maybe there's more for him.

[Alison Stewart]

So Bigfoot also has a really heartfelt song called Day to Day, and we're gonna play a little bit of a clip of it. Would you set it up for us?

[Gray Henson]

Yeah. This is Bigfoot's I want song that happens towards the beginning of the show. And it's him alone after he just got a visit from his mom and the doctor. And it's sort of what he longs and hopes for which is to belong and to have a normal life. To be a simple, everyday not person, I guess. Thing. Being creature. Being creature. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Let's listen.

[Gray Henson]

Can you imagine a three bedroom ranch, plain white picket fence, linoleum floors, a refrigerator full of expired condiments. I'd make a sandwich, clean my lint trap, have a mediocre cup of tea and everyday humdrum life. Sounds so good to me. I long for the mundane. Give me that day to day. If it bores you, I'll adore it. You won't hear me complain, I promise. I'd survive it. I'd thrive with joy to spare. I take myself to Kmart and buy breathable underwear.

[Alison Stewart]

I'm not kidding. This song got. This song truly got me. Like, just like the day to day, the little bits of life that you should pay more attention to and be thankful for.

[Gray Henson]

Yeah, it's a great song.

[Alison Stewart]

When you were writing the songs and the music, did you follow the pace of musicals like the 11th Hour and the I Want songs or so?

[Amber Ruffin]

This show was written in 2014 as a part of a series called Serial Killers where, you know, five shows enter and three shows get voted on to next week. So we wrote this show 10 minutes at a time. So every 10 minutes of the show are two songs that we hope will get enough votes to vote us through next week. And that's why there are so many 11th hour songs in this show. Like darn near every song is an 11th hour song. So we're just.

[Alison Stewart]

Just keep going. Just keep going with it.

[Amber Ruffin]

And then when we ended up with the show, I was like, how come every musical doesn't do this? Why we gotta wait on one good song?

[Alison Stewart]

It's interesting.

[Amber Ruffin]

Why can't every song just be a hit?

[Alison Stewart]

That's interesting.

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah. So we didn't want any vegetables in this mug. So every.

[Alison Stewart]

You broke the mold a little bit.

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah. Every song has gotten handy for sure.

[Alison Stewart]

Yeah. All right, Amber, you told NPR our friends, you said, bigfoot in my mind is a black woman. Then I was like, bigfoot in my mind is all lgbtq. Then I was like, bigfoot is an immigrant. That's a lot to take in, girl.

[Amber Ruffin]

That's how long it's been. Wasn't 2014 a long time ago?

[Alison Stewart]

It was a long time ago.

[Amber Ruffin]

But I mean, you know, as you're looking at the show, it. Bigfoot becomes, you know, whatever way in which you are othered likely as you're watching it. So as I was writing it, it's crazy because I was like, well, Bigfoot's mother is gonna be white because I don't want a black woman worrying about the safety of her son. Then I was like, well, bigfoot's gonna be black, because there's no way that bigfoot can be anything other than black because of how severely Bigfoot is othered. And then just like, everything came crashing down the past 10 years. And then I was like. It just. I went around and around in circles about it, and then I thought, let's just have the people we love the most be everything. And then that's why everyone's cast and what they're cast in.

[Alison Stewart]

So Bigfoot gets a happy ending. Gray.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Were you happy to see that he has a happy ending?

[Gray Henson]

Yeah, of course. I think we're all rooting for that. I think we all want to belong in some way.

[Alison Stewart]

Why do you think audiences are ready for happy endings?

[Amber Ruffin]

It's really hard not to make a joke about happy innings. Audiences are ready for a show that ends joyously. Public radio, because.

[Alison Stewart]

Public radio.

[Amber Ruffin]

I didn't say anything because, you know, because we're really all hopeful that that's the way America is headed. Right. We think that we are in hopefully. Every day, I wake up and go, maybe this is the worst part of this administration. And then tomorrow I'll wake up and go, maybe this is the worst part of this administration. So I remain hopeful, and I think that very few things are honest about how bad it is and hopeful, and this show is both. And I hope that that combination is healing to people.

[Alison Stewart]

When you wear the suit, do you feel different?

[Gray Henson]

I really do. I feel different when I look in the mirror. And then, you know, it's so funny. I forget that I look like that, which I think is what's so beautiful about the character. Bigfoot's like, oh, what do you mean? I'm normal? And then he sees how other people see him through their eyes. And so that's kind of the beauty of it, because I also get lost in it. I forget. I look and move around like a massive person. I'm hitting people, and I don't even know it. And so ye. I had that realization the other day. I was like, oh, yeah, this is Bigfoot. He doesn't know. He's a weirdo freak.

[Amber Ruffin]

Yeah, but you can.

[Alison Stewart]

But your eyes. You can really see your eyes.

[Gray Henson]

Oh, that's so good that it reads. And also, that's why the space we're in is so perfect. It's, what, 300 seats? Maybe it's intimate, and it needs intimacy. This show.

[Alison Stewart]

The name of the show is Bigfoot, a new musical. It's running at New York City center through April 26. My guests have been Amber Ruffin, Gray Henson and Crystal Lucas Perry. Thank you for coming in.

[Gray Henson]

Thank you, thank you.

[Alison Stewart]

Thanks for having us. Yay.

[Amber Ruffin]

Go see it. It's fun.

[Alison Stewart]

Yay.

[Commercial Narrator]

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[Gray Henson]

Quick choose a meal deal with McValue, the $5 McChicken meal deal, the $6

[Amber Ruffin]

McDouble meal deal, or the new $7

[Gray Henson]

Daily Double meal deal, each with its own small fries, drink and Four Piece McNuggets.

[Amber Ruffin]

There's actually no rush.

[Gray Henson]

I'm just excited for McDonald's for a limited time only. Prices and participation may vary. Not badly for McDelry.