Wicked's Michael Wartella on Life in Oz, Twitter Superfans & His Drag Alter Ego

Age: 28

Hometown: The Berkshires, MA

Current Role: A Broadway debut as Boq, the Munchkin torn between Glinda and Nessarose in Broadway’s Wicked.

Stage Cred: Before touring the country with Wicked, Wartella appeared off-Broadway in Rent at New World Stages and in regional productions of Seussical, Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol.

“When I was seven, I saw Rocky Horror for the first time. I asked my mother if I could dress up like Frank-N-Furter for a party, and there I was in my fishnets and high heels and pearls, having a great time. My parents knew from a young age that I was going to be an actor.”

“I went to Circle in the Square Theatre School for the first two years out of high school, which is right next door to Wicked. It took a lot of work and determination to get here. It took me 10 years to go 10 feet.”

“My five-year-old son Hunter is my world. He’s everything to me. If he told me he wanted to be an actor I think I’d cry a little on the inside—probably on the outside, too. But I’ll encourage it if that’s what he wants to do, and really be there for him.”

“I have a drag character, a punk rocker named Freddie Couture. I started blowing people’s minds in the sense that I’m straight. Even some of my close friends said, ‘Oh, you’re doing drag now, so you must be gay.’ For me it’s become politically important to say, ‘This is OK, too.’”

“There are a lot of crush fans on Twitter, people making their names 'ILoveMikeWartella' and stuff like that. It really blows my mind. It’s not me they love necessarily, it’s Boq and Wicked. This show has touched so many lives and I’m so glad to be a part of that."

“My job is to come to work every day and perform, and I’m so grateful. Even on the days when I can’t muster the energy and I’m really tired, I think to myself, hey, at least I’m not working brunch!”