Watch The Music Man's Shuler Hensley Reminisce About Oklahoma!, Tarzan & More

Tony winner Shuler Hensley has received awards and acclaim for playing some serious souls on the Great Bright Way, but right now, he's spreading joy on Broadway as Marcellus Washburn in the hit revival of The Music Man. On The Broadway Show, he joined Broadway.com Editor-in-Chief Paul Wontorek in the heart of New York City for a walk through his stage career, reminiscing in front of the theaters that were home to shows like Oklahoma!, Tarzan, Les Misérables and more.

On playing Jud Fry in Oklahoma! at the Gershwin Theatre: "You couldn't have asked for a warmer welcome to Broadway than this show. The habit would be to cast me as the villain or the heavy—but I'm adorable in person. It was a nice change. I didn't have to play the villain. I got to look at the other side of it and make Jud Fry a more sympathetic character. You know, not focusing on the dark side, but really what makes a person dark. That's usually pain and something that we can relate to more."

On playing Kerchak in Tarzan at the Richard Rodgers: "Everyone was required to go through training on these bungee cords. The bungee cord down was okay, but the coming back up was fast and furious. So, I did research on silverback gorillas and found out that they actually don't live in trees. So I mentioned that to them, and they're like, 'OK, fine!' So, I didn't have to bungee cord.""

On making his Broadway debut as Javert in Les Misérables at the Imperial Theatre. "It was not only my Broadway debut, but it was also when 9/11 happened. After 9/11, we closed for a couple of days. The day back, we probably had about 300 or 400 people in the audience, but every single person in the audience came to the stage door afterwards. They said, 'Thank you for giving us a place to go.' I was like, 'Bing, bing! That's what's important about live theater: to give people a chance to escape.'"

On performing in The Music Man revival at the Winter Garden Theatre: "Oklahoma! was the first time I worked with Hugh [Jackman]. Twenty-something years later, I couldn't be prouder to be a part of this kind of show bringing Broadway back. It's amazing."

Watch the video below, and head here to check your local listings for The Broadway Show. Hosted by Emmy-winning anchor Tamsen Fadal, it is the only nationally syndicated weekly theater news program.