It's been four years since I first spoke with Broadway, Film & Television Actor Kyle Dean Massey! So much has happened for him, that it's great to catch up as he gets ready to make his solo cabaret debut at Feinstein's/54 Below!

In this NEW interview, Kyle Dean once again answered my call, but this time around he shares:

• Why now was the right time to make his Feinstein's/54 Below debut
• What he still wants to accomplish
• His love for Dolly Parton
• When he is most alive
• So much more

Connect with Kyle: Website, Instagram

Kyle Dean will be performing at Feinstein's/54 Below (254 West 54th Street, between Broadway & 8th Avenue) on January 30, 2016 and February 10, 2016 at 9:30pm!

In this concert, Kyle Dean looks back, not at the things that were, but at the things that weren’t. Come listen to Kyle Dean share songs he heard nightly but never sang himself, the ones he played on guitar or belted in the shower, the ones that made him dance or mended his broken heart…all songs he was not able to share the way he wanted until now.

Kyle Dean Massey
Broadway Style Guide, Photo Credit: Cameron Bertron

1. It's great to catch up with you Kyle Dean. Last time we spoke, you were filming an episode of Wade Dooley's Pzazz 101. Since then, you went back in to Wicked for a bit, starred in Broadway's Pippin, and been seen on TV Nashville, The Good Wife, and Inside Amy Schumer. As a boy from Arkansas, what goes through your head when you look at all you've done? I can honestly say that I don’t think about it much! In this business you’re always just trying to do better and more varied work. So I think my eye is more trained on what’s ahead than what I’ve done. With that being said, I know how fortunate I’ve been in this career and only hope that I can continue to do exciting work.

2. Now you are making your Feinstein's/54 Below debut. Why is now the right time to make your debut there? I’ve been doing more and more concert work the last several years and it just seemed like a logical thing to do since I have never done a solo show in the city before.

It’s so hard to do these kinds of shows on top of a grueling eight show a week schedule. And since I’ve been working mainly on television for the past year it’s given me the opportunity to be able to put this show together.

Kyle Dean Massey performing at Feinstein's/54 Below

3. In this show, you are performing songs that you yourself never got to perform, you just heard them nightly during the show you were in. What made you want to construct a show of things that weren't instead of were? The beautiful thing about doing your own show is that you get to sing whatever the hell you want! And so my set is made up of several songs I’ve always wanted to sing or songs that symbolized rejection or songs that different characters from my shows performed. So it’s really a grab bag of different "were-nots."

4. What do you still hope to accomplish that you haven’t? I’d love to become a parent someday!

Kyle Dean Massey
At Dolly Parton's The Today Show sound check

5. In our last interview, you mentioned that if you could dream about anyone while you sleep, it would be Dolly Parton. So, my follow-up question is a three parter:

• If you could record any Dolly Parton song which one would you record? I would definitely record "The Grass is Blue."
• What Dolly song would you want to do a duet with her on? I would obviously duet on "Islands in the Stream."
• What Dolly song would you want to make a music video to? I would make a music video of "Two Doors Down."

Kyle Dean Massey backstage at Pippin
Photo Courtesy of Kyle Dean Massey Social Media

6. A song that you have performed on Broadway that I love is "I'm Alive" from Next To Normal. When are you most alive? It feels cheesy to say, but I definitely feel alive onstage when I’m performing. I feel like I have a special kind of focus that I don’t normally have during normal life. I feel like everything works just a little bit better.

7. On Call Me Adam, I have a section called One Percent Better, where through my own fitness commitment, I try to encourage people to improve their own life by one percent everyday. What is something in your life that you want to improve by one percent everyday? Well I’ve been trying to say "fuck" a lot less. It’s going marginally well.

More Kyle Dean Massey Interviews:

2012 (Read Here): Getting The Theatre Pzazz with Wicked's Fieryo

Kyle Dean Massey, Photo Courtesy of Kyle Dean Massey

More on Kyle Dean Massey:

Kyle Dean Massey is an American actor best know for his work on Broadway in Pippin, Next to Normal, Wicked & Xanadu and to television audiences as "Kevin Bicks" from ABC's Nashville.

Kyle Dean was raised in Jonesboro, Arkansas, a town 60 miles northwest of Memphis, TN. He started taking dance classes at age six and spent his adolescence singing in school choirs and studying the piano. After discovering musical theatre in high school he went on to receive a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from Missouri State University.

In addition to his stage work, Kyle Dean has been seen on the screen in The Good Wife (CBS), Inside Amy Schumer (CC), High Maintenance, Up All Night (NBC), Hart of Dixie (CW), Cupid (ABC), Sex And the City 2 (HBO Films) & Contest. He has also performed on Good Morning America, The CBS Early Show, Regis & Kelly, The 62nd Annual Tony Awards and lends his voice as a voice-over artist for many popular cartoon shows.

While starring in Next to Normal, Kyle Dean was the star of his own popular web-blog series, Normal Life, on Broadway.com. Five years later he hosted another series, Fresh Prince, while starring in the title role of Pippin.

As a vocalist Kyle Dean has performed across the country in pops concerts with symphony orchestras and in more intimate cabaret settings with his one man show. He also tours with his concert group The Broadway Tenors.

Kyle Dean serves as a masterclass instructor and panel contributor for several different teaching organizations including Camp Broadway, Broadway Artists Alliance, Broadway Connection, VIP Tours of New York, the Missouri Fine Arts Academy, Stagelighter & Broadway Triple Threat. He also serves as a private acting and voice coach to students all over the country.

Kyle Dean is a passionate supporter of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, The Trevor Project and various human rights groups. He frequently performs in charity concerts at various venues across New York City including Joe’s Pub, Ars Nova, The Laurie Beechman Theatre and Feinstein's/54 Below.