← All Of It with Alison Stewart
All Of It with Alison Stewart
Isa Briones Stars in 'Just In Time' on Broadway for a Limited Time
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A
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This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. Once a theater kid, always a theater kid and I mean that in the best way possible when it comes to Issa Briones. She made her Broadway debut in Hadestown in 2024 and is now in the musical Just in Time. Here she is singing who's Sorry Now. She's gonna sing it as soon as
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the doctor right to the end Just like a friend I tried to warn you somehow but we had our day and now we must b I sad and so sorry now. We had our way and now we must pray.
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Keep that V When you watch her doling out nicknames as Dr. Trinity Santos on HBO's mega hit the Pit, all while coming up with life saving medical solutions while catching up on her charting who's Sorry now. Right. Issa Briones is here with me now in studio. It is nice to meet you.
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A
So nice to meet you. Thanks for having me.
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B
When did you discover you could sing?
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A
Pretty early on. My parents are musical theater people so I think they just sing around the house and I think as long as early as I could harmonize with them, I was doing it.
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B
What was your entry show of into musical theater?
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A
Definitely Miss Saigon. That's the musical that is kind of the reason I'm alive because my parents met doing it and, and I was raised on tour while my dad was doing that and that is really like I got to watch him do it. I heard the music every day. My aunts and uncles were the ensemble members that I would visit backstage while they were in their like showgirl costumes.
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B
It's funny because you are from show folks.
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A
Oh yes, right.
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B
Yeah. Your dad is John, John Brion. He's a well known act award winning but a working actor. So what did you know about being in this business that other people didn't?
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Well, I think just what growing up with my parents kind of really gave me and my brother who is also an actor was just we saw every side of the business When I was very young, we were on tour, and so we had a set. Stable income, but also not a stable place, but. But it also taught us, oh, home is your people. Home is your community. And then when they decided to settle down and try film and tv, that was a real long stretch of. Of nothing for a while. And we got to see that version of being an actor. When you don't feel like you're an actor, you don't get to do the things you want to do. You're auditioning and getting turned down or you can't even get in the room. And. And I think we saw a. A lot of that, and it kind of showed me and my brother, like, okay, if we're gonna go into this, it's not because you think, oh, you're gonna get fame or you're gonna get a bunch of money or whatever. It's because you have to. It's because, like, this is the thing you have to do with your life, as we saw with my parents. And thank God, because I think it set us up really well to be like, oh, I. I know what I'm getting into this for.
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B
What advice did your father give you about dealing with rejection? Because a lot of actors have to deal with rejection, I think.
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A
I don't know if it was always advice in the way of, like. He's like, yeah, here's my wisdom, daughter. Like, it's. It was more just. We. We learned by watching.
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Yes.
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And we saw our parents go through rejection kind of nonstop. And I think watching how they dealt with it was the biggest lesson. And the biggest part of it that I always keep with me is that we celebrated every little win. It wasn't about, like, did you book the job or not? The little wins were. You got a call back, like, that's so exciting. What do you want for dinner? Like, let's do something special or. Or, like, oh, hey, you didn't get that thing. But those producers said they really liked you, and they're gonna, like, keep calling you in. Like, those are the little wins. And I think always remembering that, because if you. If you're always like, it's all about the final product. It's all about getting to the highest point. You're just never gonna be happy. Yeah. And when you experience mostly rejection, which is what this business is as a working actor, of course, it's different for, you know, the 1%. Yeah. But, like, as a working actor, it's mostly. It's like, 98% rejection.
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Yeah.
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And you have to celebrate the little Things or you'd give up very quickly.
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B
That's so interesting because I'll save for later because you're kind of experiencing both at the same time with the success of the Pit, you know, like, but, you know, three weeks before the Pit was on, people might not have. They wouldn't have known your name.
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No.
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Oh, that girl. Maybe she can sing. But, like, overnight your life can change like that.
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Yeah. No, it is a funny concept of that because I've also experienced that, like, with my dad, where he'll have. Like, when American Horror Story, the Assassination of Gianni Versace came out, all of a sudden people were like, who is this guy? Like, why have we. Oh, and overnight, he's an overnight success. And it's like, that's 55 years in the making. But, yes, to you, it's overnight. But, like, it is so funny how that perception changed it all. It. It becomes so much about how you're perceived. Sure. And. And so, yeah, there's a lot of, like, the hard work that goes into it. And you can kind of be like, I think it's funny when struggle can be so a part of your identity as an actor for so long, and then as soon as something works, it's like, well, that was never a part of your life. It's like, now you're successful and so that's all you know.
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You're like, yeah, what about those years and years behind me?
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But then you have to, like, shift and be like, oh, that's not my personality anymore. And that, I guess, never should have been a part of my personality. You shouldn't always make it about like, oh, this is like the struggle. This is my strife. It's like, but you do need to be like, oh, all of that is still there. And like, all of that played into the amazing place that I'm in right now. And like, none of it would exist without the other.
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B
It's sort of interesting because you and your dad were. You made your Broadway debuts together.
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Well, he made his Broadway debut with Miss Igon Years in 2017, 2016, 2015.
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But you were both in Hades.
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We were both in Hadestown. Yes.
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Yes, you're both in Hadestown. What was it like for you to make your Broadway debut next to your dad?
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That was really special. That was. That was just. Especially with it being theater. I think that feels. There's so much weight to that. Since I grew up watching him on a stage and him being my father, but also this larger than life figure when he's on a stage and he we always make this joke. He's. He's a shorter man, but, like, when he's on. When he's on stage, he's like a giant. And I think there's this really cool thing about being like, oh, I'm no longer, like, looking up to this giant. I'm up there with him, and I get to see his process, too, and, like, see him rehearse, and I don't see the final product. I get to see him trying and. And also being willing to fail, too, which is always so inspiring to see because I. I definitely can so get in my head and get in my own way of, like, it has to be perfect on the first try. But then seeing my dad, like, willing to screw up and then. And then, like. But be amazing in the end, because he's amazing. But, yeah, it was really cool to go through a process like that with him.
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B
Mime speaking to Issa Briones. You know her as Dr. Santos on the medical drama the Pit. She's currently starring as Connie Francis in the Broadway musical Just In Time. You're playing a real person in your performance. Did you want to embody Connie Francis? Are you playing Connie Francis? Which way did you go?
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A
Well, I think the. The show in general, the way that Alex Timbers, the director, has talked to us all about it, is we are telling this story about, you know, real people who lived at that time, but we are still acknowledging that, like, we are not those people. We. And it is today. It is 2026, and showing kind of the connection between that. I think it's like, especially if you're looking at Connie Francis, she was a superstar. Like, she was a Beyonce of her time. Like, she was huge. And we still have those people. It's. It just looks a little different and. And it sounds different, but we still have those pop stars that we look up to and idolize. And I think the coolest part for me was looking at this as, like, a peek behind the curtain of these superstars and seeing, like, what went into them becoming who they were. And even though you only get a little for context, Connie Francis is only in, really act one of Just in Time, but it's such a short amount of time, but you see her skyrocket to fame in the Show's World, like, 10 minutes. And I think for me, that felt really special because it has, like. Like, we talked about felt like this overnight, kind of like, oh, things have shifted with the Pit, and all of a sudden people know who I am. And that's. That's really Cool, but also really weird. And how do I deal with that? And I think that was a cool way to look at. Playing Connie was like, oh, I can relate to this sense of, I came into this for the art form that I love, and now people are looking at me for so much more than that and looking at me as, like, this object and figure and not as a person all the time. And performing through what you're going through on the inside. And that's what the song who's Sorry now, like, where you find her singing that song. She's experiencing really horrible pain in that moment, but she's also performing and giving her fans what they want at the same time. And it's. It's a really beautiful thing. And that was kind of how I went into it. Of, like, I'm gonna embody the essence of that feeling. I'm not going to pretend I'm Connie Francis or be like, I'm doing an impression of her, but I'm going to give the essence of what I get from her. And that. That was kind of my in.
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When did you sort of realize that your fan bases between the Broadway musicals and the folks who like the Pit sort of converged? Did it happen on. In the show? Did it happen on the street? When did you kind of realize these two worlds were colliding?
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I think. I don't know. I think it all. I really sense it now. Like, once I started doing Just In Time, it was like, oh, theater people are really claiming me in a way, because they're like, she came from us first. She's one of us. She may be doing TV now, but she's a musical theater nerd. And so I think that was the real, like, I don't know. That clued me into, like, oh, the pit has really. The fan base is so vast. It's. It's fast. More than any medical show I've ever seen before. Because I think especially going into the pit, I was like, oh, yeah, it's. It's a medical show. Like, we'll see if people watch it. The people who watch medical shows will watch this. But then it was like, oh, I'm seeing, like, teenagers love this, and also your mom's mom. And then, like, it's. It's kind of all over. And I think it makes a lot of sense that musical theater people love it because we're quite dramatic. And Pitt is real good drama.
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B
It's so interesting. We tied Patrick Ball in. He's in Becky Shaw, which is great. Have you two bonded over being On Broadway. Have you traded stories? Do you go see each other's shows when you can?
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Well, I mean, yeah. He came to see just in time, the day before his opening night.
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B
Oh, wow.
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And that was so special. And his girlfriend, Alicia, she told me that they were in the car, and she was like, are you nervous? And he was like, honestly, if Issa can do that, like, it's gonna be fine. No, he's like, if she can do that, I'm gonna. It's gonna be great. Yeah. And I think that was really cool was to be like. I think it also kind of tests the. The friendships outside of, of course, your place of work. It's like, oh, we are still wanting to support each other wherever we go. And. And when I found out I was gonna. He was going to be doing Becky Shaw, and I immediately called him and was like, guess. Guess who's gonna be on Broadway with you? I was like, we're gonna be, like, two blocks away from each other.
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B
Oh, that's awesome. Season two of the Pit wrapped a few months ago, and you've had some time to sit with it now. When you think about how Dr. Santos character evolved between season one and season two, what would you say? What. What changed about her?
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A
I think there's a little more sadness in her. I think there's been 10 months in between the two seasons, and when you first see her in season one, she's first day at work, trying to show off. She's very, like, young and hungry, and 10 months in an ER, I think can really humble you. And I think she has been humbled. I think she is struggling to feel like she belongs there still, but also likes to pretend she doesn't care if she belongs or not, but clearly she does. And I think that has all kind of settled in a bit of a sadness. And we know that she deals with mental health issues, and I think that she's kind of found the, like, I give up, sure, if I'm going to be your villain, I'll be your villain kind of mentality.
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When you think about it, why did she decide to go into medicine?
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I think deep down, even though a lot of people like to think of her as just a real true villain, I think she's a really deeply caring person. I think anyone I've, when we've been able, had the honor of getting to talk to real doctors and nurses, health professionals. Like, we. Everyone went in it to do something good. Like, even though there may be also some ego, we. We joke about the surgeons, how they're they're egotistical and, like, blah, blah, blah. But at the end of the day, people went into healthcare to help. And so I think for her, like, she. We've also seen her talk a little bit about how she lost a friend and to two mental health issues, and I think that has colored her worldview a bit. And she talks about how she regrets that she wasn't there to help that friend. And I think this is her way of constantly trying to be there for people who feel helpless and feel vulnerable like she does. Deep down.
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There's this really interesting moment when the nurses discover she's Filipino.
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Yes.
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How is that aspect important to her identity?
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Well, she sings so Filipino. No, I think. I think I was really happy that we got to address that there were three Filipinos working in close quarters with each other, because I think, you know, naturally, when you're at work and when you are of an underrepresented group and you find people who are in your community, you. You are naturally going to like, hey, I'm gonna have a little bit of a camaraderie with you. Not trying to be exclusionary or anything, but just, you know, you feel comfortable with these people. And I think for her, there is such a. Like, we know there are a lot of Filipinos in health care. There are a lot of Filipino nurses. And I think it's really also special that, you know, we get to show there's also Filipino doctors. There's. There's a whole range of that. And also you get to see her have this. These, like, ates, these ates or even titas there. That. That she feels comfortable with that. Even though she may not always feel comfortable in this place of work, she does almost have family there. And you. And I think it brings out a vulnerability in her, and I think it shows, like, that care is so naturally there, even if she is like, I also like that. I don't know. Santos gets to be a bit of a challenge to the model minority thing.
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Yeah.
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She does not care if you like her. She is going to be unlikable. She is not trying to make herself smaller and fit into a box, but she is also hospitable, caring, and all these things that we also assign to Filipino healthcare workers. And showing that she is all of that is really cool.
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You're gonna be in just in time. Until May 29, season three of the Pit has been renewed. If you could come back to Broadway, what role would you come back in?
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Oh. Ooh, that's a hard one. I mean, hey, my dream is to originate a musical. So that's the big dream, but I think. Dream role.
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Yeah.
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Baker's wife, into the Woods. That's definitely a dream role for me.
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All right.
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Big time.
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We put it out into the universe.
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Put it out into the universe.
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B
I have been speaking with Issa Briones. Thank you so much for joining us.
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Thank you so much. Hi, I'm Maggie Smith, poet and host of the Slowdown. Each weekday, I share a poem and a moment of reflection, helping you turn listening into a daily ritual. It's five minutes to slow down, pay attention, and begin the day with intention. Find it in your favorite podcast app and make the Slowdown your new daily poetry practice.