Television star Katey Sagal (Married with Children, Futurama, Sons of Anarchy) & writer Paul Gordon (2001 Tony Nominated Composer for Jane Eyre) pull back the curtain to talk about the new Off-Broadway Musical, The Gospel According To Heather.

In this interview, they reveal:

• What they relate to most about the show
• Their creative processes
• Stage/Theatrical mishaps
• Best Advice they received
• One rule they each live by

In The Gospel According To Heather, Heather Krebs just wants a boyfriend. But how can she even navigate her way through high school if she might be the New Messiah? A small town in Ohio grapples with politics, religion and teenage romance in this eclectic pop musical.

The Gospel According To Heather plays at Theater 555 in NYC through the newly extended date of July 16, 2023.

*This interview took place live at The Gospel According To Heather press event, where members of the media were given a sneak peak of this new Off-Broadway Musical.

More on Katey Sagal:

TV: The Connors, Rebel, Sons of Anarchy (Golden Globe Award), Superior Donuts, 8 Simple Rules, Futurama and Married with Children.

FILM: Bleed For This, Pitch Perfect 2 and The Good Mother.

Music: CDs Well..., Room, Covered and performs with her band The Reluctant Apostles.

Books: Her first book, Grace Notes: My Recollections, was published in 2017 by Simon and Schuster.

More on Paul Gordon:

2001 Tony Award nominated composer for his musical Jane Eyre. Other works include Sense and Sensibility (winner of the 2015 Jeff Award for Best New Work), Daddy Long Legs (2009 Ovation Award, 2 Drama Desk Award nominations, Off-Broadway Alliance Award nomination and 3 Outer Critic Circle award nominations). He is the co-founder of StreamingMusicals.com, where his musicals Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Estella Scrooge, Being Earnest and No One Called Ahead can currently be streamed. Knight’s Tale, written with John Caird, has had multiple productions in Japan. His other shows include: Stellar Atmospheres, Little Dorrit, Schwab’s, Analog and Vinyl, The Front, Juliet and Romeo, Sleepy Hollow, First Night, The Circle, Ribbit, Greetings From Venice Beach and The Sportswriter.  In his former life, Paul was a pop songwriter, writing several number one hits.

Special Thanks:

• Richard Hillman PR
• Theme Song by Bobby Cronin
• Podcast Logo by Liam O'Donnell
• Edited by Adam Rothenberg

More Call Me Adam:

Website: www.callmeadam.com

Facebook: @CallMeAdamNYC

Instagram: @CallMeAdamNYC

Hey everybody, it's Adam, Adam, live and in person for you.

Hey everybody, it's Adam.

Wonder who he'll interview?

I am so excited to be at The Gospel According to

Heather Press event, and all is well today because I get to talk to

Katey Sagal and writer Paul Gordon for The Gospel According to Heather.

You're making your off Broadway musical debut in this show, The

Gospel According to Heather.

So how do you appreciate now that you are making your Off Broadway debut as opposed

to say when you were in your 20s or 30s?

At this time of my life, I, I guess it's because I never say no lately.

And I begged.

So that was part of it.

It wasn't a difficult choice to make.

And Paul, what made you write the show?

I'm constantly thinking of ideas, story ideas, but this was

actually a screenplay that I wrote in the early 2000s and it went the way

of most of my screenplays went in that era, which is nobody paid any attention.

So at about a year and a half ago, I was just musing on what the next show

I was gonna write, and I had remembered the screenplay and I got it out and

I read it and I went, this is kind of cool and it really struck me that it

was so much more pertinent for now than it was for when I originally wrote it.

So that's what triggered the idea.

And what do you relate to most about Agatha?

There's a lot about Agatha I don't really want to talk about,

you'll have to come see the show.

But, she's wise, she is, matriarchal I would say.

She's pretty funny.

What else do we know about Agatha that's that's fair to?

Well, I think, I think we can say that she's part of, she's an important

part of Heather's life and she's somebody that Heather goes to, to, to confide in.

How do you mentally and physically prepare for the show,

or how do you think you will mentally and physically prepare for the show?

Well, it's interesting, you know, I didn't sing a lot during

the pandemic and I usually sing a lot.

I have a band at home, I, I, I play around.

And so when Paul called, I realized, oh, I better get it together because

as you will hear, this is an amazing bunch of incredibly talented people,

so, I have been preparing, I've been going to my vocal lessons and

trying to sing every single day so that I can do the material justice.

It's really amazing material.

And Paul, can you talk a little bit about what

your creative process is like?

You know, do you have a specific place that you like to write?

What time of day that you write?

What is your writing process like?

I'm sort of a 9 to 5er, or more accurately, 10 to 6.

I really just discipline myself to write every day.

I read an article years ago that Paul Simon said, "I just get up every

morning whether I have an idea or not.

And I, I work from 9 to 5."

And that kind of inspired me cuz he's sort of a hero of mine.

And I also love to write, so it's really a joy and I feel incredibly lucky that I

get to wake up every morning to do this.

And so whether I'm writing lyrics or music or book scenes, it feels

all sort of the same thing to me.

And Katey, when you're performing in a show, whether,

whether it's a theatrical show or on TV, how do you guard your time and

energy so you don't get worn out?

It's been easier as my children get older.

You know, when I was working and my kids were little, I, I don't know

that I did guard my time and energy.

You know, you just show up and do it anyway.

So it's been easier, lately.

I sleep, I try to sleep a lot.

And, as much as I say yes to most things, I've also learned how to say

no to things that are, not necessary.

Mm-hmm.

That's a great lesson.

And Paul, how, same question for you.

How do you guard your time and energy when you're writing so you don't get

worn out or, or if you get writer's block, how do you get past that?

I watch TV basically, which is the main theme of the, the show.

Um, no, I mean actually, after writing all day, my wife and I hang out.

We like talk about our day.

We have something we call our fireside even though we don't have a fireplace,

but we imagine that we do and we talk about our day and then we, watch

some of our shows for relaxation.

That is such good marital advice.

Thanks Katey.

I must say [Katey Laughs].

I'm gonna go home and suggest a fireside chat.

And what is the best advice you've received, but not taken?

You mean in general?

In my entire life?

Generally, yes.

Well, I can tell you the best advice I did take.

Is that better?

Can I do that?

You can, you can do that.

Bette Midler told me years ago when I worked with her, "Save your

money" [Paul, Katey and I laugh] and I'll never forget her telling me that.

And that's what I've done.

I love it.

I love it.

And Paul?

I'm gonna go with the best advice I ever got from

both Alanis Morissette and Stephen Schwartz both said the same thing

to me, "Don't read your reviews."

That's a very good one too.

And now for you, Katey, I know you've, you've gone

through a lot of hardships in life.

How do you continue to keep going and how do you bounce back from tough times?

Ooh, that's a good question.

Well, first of all, we all go through hardships in life.

After all it's life.

I would say, I have a good community that, I don't try to do things alone.

I also have, an enormous amount of faith.

So I sort of have this overall belief that whatever's going on

is supposed to be going on, even though I may not understand why.

And when I can sort of surrender to that fact, it just makes life easier.

Also, I'm just gonna say this, I don't avoid pain if, if, if

it's painful, it's painful.

Rather than try to run from it, I think the fastest way out is through.

So I just try to keep my eyes open.

How's that?

Wow.

I love that.

You should write it in the script [Adam Laughs].

Can can that be my answer as well?

Yes, exactly.

Exactly.

I can't say it better than that.

And, and would you say it's a simple act of faith?

A simple act of faith?

Oh, like my song.

Yes.

Would I say it's a simple act of faith?

I, I think faith is a decision.

I think faith is believing in things that you cannot see, and

I think that that's a decision.

And, what would you say is your biggest mishap, either on stage or

on set, that you still laugh about today?

Once again, I'm gonna go back to when I was a Harlette.

Mm-hmm.

Which is like years and years and years and years ago.

But I had to wear a mermaid fin and, and roll around the

stage in an electric wheelchair.

And, I never actually fell off the stage.

But I did have some problems with the breaking system sometimes and,

my fin was a bit hard to maneuver in, but, Bette was an expert at

it, so I just followed her lead.

So not quite a mishap, but almost.

I I love it.

And the wheelchair, of course, prepared you

for this role eventually.

Absolutely, yes.

It all, it all works out.

Right.

Everything comes around.

And Paul, what would you say?

Do, do you have a writing mishap?

It's not a writing mishap, but what that makes me think of is when

we did Jane Eyre, at La Jolla Playhouse, I think we only played there for a

month and I want to say that the fire alarm went off during the show about

15 times and it was sort of horrifying to find yourself in the parking lot

with the audience in the middle of the show going, "Hey, how you doing?"

"Hey, good show so far."

And then like 20 minutes later you go back in and try enjoy the rest of the show.

Yeah.

Oh my god!

That was, that was really fun.

Amazing.

That is an amazing, amazing story.

I do have one final question.

So what would you say is The Gospel According to Katey?

Like what is one rule you live by?

One day at a time.

I love it.

And what would you say is The Gospel According to Paul?

Watch more TV.

[Adam Laughs] I love it.

I love it.

Well, thank you both for your time today.

Everybody listening come see The Gospel According to Heather at Theater 555.

He'll get the dirt and the scoop and the story for he happens to be

in the know, just ask anybody whose had him, Adam, lives for the business of show.