What's Up, Corbin Bleu? The Former High School Star Raps on Hitting the Heights and Hoping to be the Jerk

In the Heights star Corbin Bleu claims New York has given back the anonymity taken by the high-profile success of his breakout vehicle, Disney's megahit High School Musical series. But a recent step out the Richard Rodgers' stage door with the laid-back leading man, currently making his Broadway debut as hip-hopping narrator Usnavi in the Tony-winning hit, suggested otherwise—no sooner had Bleu popped out on the street than two young fans disolved into shrieks and giggles. "Times Square doesn't count!" Bleu defended with a laugh when Broadway.com raised a brow. Prior to the screaming, we sat down to see what's up with the actor, singer, dancer and recording artist, who riffed for us about everything from the perils of stunt-casting to getting a proper "Usnavi Rap School" education. Read on to better know this rising star.

Your run with the show’s extended twice. What’s made you stay on board?
The show’s f***ing awesome! [Laughs.] Coming into this, I was excited—it couldn’t be a better show to make your Broadway debut in. But I was nervous, about leading the cast and about the stigma against “celebrities” being brought into a Broadway show. So I decided I’d just work my ass off and prove [myself]. Eventually [the cast] warmed up and now we’re family. How could I not want to be here?

You said it yourself: There’s a stunt-casting stigma.
In most cases, you’re dealing with pop icons who’ve developed a following based off a big TV or film project—which is exactly what my career is built on right now, by the way. Most of them don’t have any theater experience. That’s understandably hard for people who dedicate their lives to the stage. I worked off-Broadway when I was 6. I grew up in New York coming to, and dreaming about, Broadway. I went to a performing arts high school in Los Angeles. Theater is my home. So I understand the wariness against “stunt casting” from the inside out, and understand why people look at me and see only the “pop star” stuff. I meet people at the stage door who flat out say, “I’m not a fan of stunt casting.”

They’ll say that to your face?
Oh yeah. Sometimes all you can say is, “Um—okay?” But it’s been so redeeming, and exciting, that most finish that statement with, “…but you won me over.” I have a letter taped up in my dressing room from a woman who came to the show and was not at all excited I was starring in it. She actually wrote how bad an idea she though it was to promote a High School Musical kid as the star of a major Broadway production. But she finished the letter by saying she was wrong, and that my performance had completely changed her mind. It made me cry! To me that’s what this is about. You can’t make everyone happy—but you can try.

You’re a baby, career-wise. What kind of career are you ultimately trying to build?
Right now it’s about taking on a variety of projects and wide array of characters. And also the intention behind projects. Does it have a great message? Will it change the way people perceive me? I hope and I pray to work and one day be at the Tony Awards, the Oscars and the Grammy Awards.

Who are your career idols?
Denzel. Denzel Washington! What he’s been able to do on stage and screen inspires me. Johnny Depp’s another one. Will Smith. These are guys who grew. They started on 21 Jump Street or Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, pop culture-y shows, and became people you respect and admire.

How difficult is it to go beyond something as big as High School Musical?
When it comes to getting projects—stepping into an audition room and letting directors see who you are now—that’s not too hard. What’s difficult is the audience. They only remember you from the last thing you did. The last thing anyone saw me do was High School Musical. I had big, bushy hair and was a teenager. So people see me In the Heights now and go, “I didn’t recognize you until the third song.” They’re still expecting the kid with the hair to step onstage. That’s the hard part. You have to choose projects very carefully.

Why was In the Heights the right project?
I totally related to it. I’m from Sunset Park, Brooklyn, and grew up in a very Dominican neighborhood similar to the one shown in this show. I’d walk to the corner bodega with my grandmother, who I swear is Olga Merediz as Abuela Claudia. The house dress, the slow walk where it took half an hour to make it to the bodega, the way she’d stop and say hi to every single person because she knew them. Same person. And, again, it has a positive message I can support.

You’re a self-admitted workaholic. How do you unwind?
I love going to see other shows. I cook a lot. Whole Foods is like an amusement park. I buy a ton of stuff and play around in the kitchen. I love to travel, which is one of the reasons I love New York. You can go anywhere here without ever leaving the city. I’ll go to a random dive bar and see some of the most talented people alive just messing around at a piano during an open mic night. Or accidentally end up at some crazy event that feels like another planet. I can also walk around New York City without people starting to scream my name or ask for pictures, which is nice.

I’m sure that still happens.
Well, yeah, it does. [Laughs.] But not much in New York—this is a safe zone.

Is it nice to have your anonymity back?
It really is. To be able to walk around without being noticed. Not that the alternative is a hassle—those are my fans. I love them, and any affirmation that people enjoy your work is a blessing. But on some days you just need a second to yourself. It’s hard to find that in Los Angeles.

You do a lot of hip-hop in In the Heights. How sick is your flow now?
Ha! [Creator and Usnavi role originator] Lin-Manuel Miranda has all his narrators go to Usnavi Rap School. He gives us CDs of the people Usnavi would listen to, examples of who inspired him. Most recently, he turned me on to the new Eminem album, Recovery. Which is ah-mazing, by the way.

What’s in the Usnavi Rap School textbook?
Lot’s of people. Ludacris. Biggie. Tupac. And lots of showtunes. All of which I’m fine with. One of my first days of rehearsal, [orchestrator] Alex Lacamoire saw my iTunes—I have 50-Cent playing into Pippin playing into Rihanna playing into Queen—and was like, “Oh, you and Lin are going to get along so well.” He has very varied taste and interests, which is why he’s so good.

Are you confident enough now to stand up and freestyle?
Oh god no. Honestly? I can’t flow. Can’t. Maybe if I were a little tipsy—no, even then, I’d never have the confidence. That’s one of those things you’re born with, or you learn to do at a young age and develop over years. There was a little kid, couldn’t have been more than 13, at the stage door one night. He goes, “Yo, man, I’ll battle you right here.” I was like, “No way. You win.” I bent over and took the loss immediately.

Your run ends in August. What’s the best way to get you back to Broadway?
I have some film stuff to go over for a little while—once I’ve caught up with my family and relaxed—but I want to be here as soon as possible. And I’m dying to do a straight play. I want to originate a role, ideally an antagonist. Someone with real cracks in their character.

You want to shed the cute, nice, Disney guy image and be the jerk for a change.
That would be nice. Come on, I am a jerk, right? I could do it.

If you’ve been using this interview to prove you’re an ass, you’ve failed.
Damn. Well, anyway, I tried. And I could do it. The jerk would be fun.