I just knew when I saw the tweet. Jimmy Fallon couldn’t have the remarkable Audra McDonald as a guest and not do a Yahoo! Answers. As usual, I was right. On Monday night’s “Tonight Show,” Jimmy had the six-time Tony Award-winner sing replies to real Yahoo! Answers to questions like, “Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?” and “Whatever happened to Ja Rule?” Quite honestly, it’s one of the most brilliant things the show has given us, as searching through Yahoo! Answers is one of my favorite pastimes, having Audra and Jimmy make a cabaret act out of them is even better.
Later, McDonald sat down to talk about the highly-anticipated new musical Shuffle Along, and explained the historical significance of the show (it broke many barriers including being first to feature jazz in musicals, feature black actors, and even have black audience members in the orchestra seats). She also talked about what it’s like learning choreography from tap phenomenon Savion Glover (she swears she’ll have it together by the first preview).
As a bonus, The Tonight Show blessed us with another clip where McDonald recalls some of her tales from backstage while doing Porgy and Bess and 110 In The Shade, which includes dog poop and ladybug tattoos.
Check out the videos below and if you haven’t already, get your Shuffle Along tickets here. Previews start at The Music Box on March 15th, and officially opens April 28th. Trust us, it’s a show you definitely don’t want to miss.
