Max Clayton Brings Classic Leading Man Charm to Broadway’s Schmigadoon!

You can’t tame him! After more than a decade on Broadway, Max Clayton is making his principal debut as rabblerouser Danny Bailey in the Tony-winning Schmigadoon! If you didn't already recognize him from one of his nine additional Broadway credits, his Billy Bigelow/Curly McLain-esque character brings a familiar warmth—much like the nostalgic embrace of Schmigadoon! Clayton spoke with Broadway.com Editor-in-Chief Paul Wontorek about his years on Broadway, originating a role that highlights his experience and words of wisdom from a certain Australian Tony winner.

Growing up in Manchester, New Hampshire, Clayton was introduced to the work of Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire and Donald O’Connor through his grandfather. “I have such crystal clear memories of me sitting on his floor while he was sitting on the recliner behind me smoking his pipe, watching An American in Paris and Singin’ in the Rain,” Clayton recalls. Those afternoons of entertainment turned into invaluable information. “I had this knowledge but I had no idea that it was going to be something I would use.”

As for performance education, Clayton took the stage at Manchester’s Palace Theater, where New York professionals led productions featuring local performers. Clayton’s childhood best friend, Kaleigh Cronin, and co-star Jennifer Simard trod the same path from the Palace to Schmigadoon! “That is where I learned that it was possible to do this as a career,” Clayton says of the New Hampshire venue. “That is how I got my experience.” Giving in to the theater bug after suppressing it with basketball, Clayton eventually took the Troy Bolton approach and did both. Admission to the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music followed, along with a Broadway career spent learning from the performers around him.

One particularly significant assignment was standing by as Harold Hill for Tony winner Hugh Jackman in The Music Man. "It changed my life," Clayton says of the opportunity. Before Jackman stepped into rehearsals, Clayton worked to develop the character with two-time Tony winner Sutton Foster. “I had that experience of creating [the role] without the pressure of thinking I was ever going to do it,” he says. “That was a fantastic eight weeks, and then time went on and eventually I got the offer to stand by, and then I got to do it.”

It’s only right that he continue the Jackman prophecy, playing a role inspired by characters Jackman has played himself. While Clayton has never played either, Schmigadoon! allows him the space to explore the varying facets of the classic leading man mold. “I love Schmigadoon! because I get to be a goofball, serious, smart, dumb—all of the things in one,” he says. “It's really fun to get to tackle all those things.”

Getting through Danny’s big number takes stamina and a strategy for keeping perfectionism at bay. Clayton trained on the treadmill à la Beyoncé, but he also carries a lesson from Jackman into each performance. “He said, ‘One scene at a time,’” Clayton recalls. Focusing on his scene partner being in her happy place helps, too: “It's hard not to smile when I get to look at Sara Chase in heaven watching it all happen around her.”

Asked what advice he has to share, Clayton puts character ahead of credits. “Truly the most important thing is to be a good person and be the person in the room that everyone wants to spend a lot of time with,” he offers. “Life is short. Everyone in New York is talented. Everyone's good.” For now, he’s savoring the job at hand. “It's so rare to go to work and to really want to go to work and to be with people who also want to be there. It's the happiest building.” No wonder Clayton is literally jumping for joy eight shows a week.

Watch the full interview below!

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