Exclusive: Why Jesse L. Martin Decided to Sing in New Episode of THE IRRATIONAL

Last night, Broadway alum Jesse L. Martin and actor and singer Karen David starred in a television musical. Well, sort of. The duo, who are currently appearing in NBC's The Irrational, took on slightly different roles in the newest episode of the crime drama series. Martin leads the show as Alec Mercer, a professor of behavioral science. His partner (both romantic and professional) is Rose Dinshaw, played by David. 

The latest episode of the series brings the couple to a surprising location that also doubles as the scene of the crime: a rural community theater. As their investigation takes off, so does their acting career, as Alec is cast as the hungry Audrey II in the theater's production of Little Shop of Horrors. Even though performing is far outside Alec's comfort zone, Rose couldn't be more at home among the sets, costumes, and inevitable drama that comes with a theatrical performance.

BroadwayWorld sat down with Martin and David to discuss their journey to the stage within the show, how the storyline allowed them to explore a new side of their characters, and why Martin agreed to sing for this particular project.

This interview has been condensed for clarity and length.

It was so fun to see you both in the show, but now I want to see you both in a real-life production of Little Shop!

Martin: Oh, that's fantasy right there for me too. I certainly have an affinity for the show and the music and my voice does sit in the plant range. It's weird how kismet happens because Curt, who played Seymour in the show, has a friend who works on the current off-Broadway production. At the time, the actor who was playing Audrey II was going off to do a production of Rent playing Tom Collins and they had the plant and the cast sing, “I'll Cover You (Reprise)" as a sendoff to him. He showed me a video of it when we started doing our version of Little Shop and I thought “He's getting sent off by my voice for Collins, and I'm using his character to use my voice as Alec. That's kind of wild."

What were your first reactions when the concept of the episode was proposed? Had the idea of a musical component been discussed before?

Martin: There was a conversation initially, but it was more of me saying that I don't need to show up singing in every role I ever play. I certainly felt that way about playing Alec Mercer in this show. No part of me ever planned to sing anything.

But, cut to a year later in season two, Karen David and I were talking about cases that we'd work on together. And because we're actors who are very, very in love with theater and have a history in the theater, we thought "Wouldn't it be amazing if we went undercover in some small-town community theater?” We were thinking that maybe we'd do something like Shakespeare. But then, out of nowhere, we proposed this to our showrunner, not very seriously. We just thought, "Wouldn't it be cool if we did that?"

She took it very seriously and came back with a story. She said, "How do you feel about actually singing?" And I was like, "You know how I feel about it. I don't really think Alec is that guy." The only way that I could imagine him doing it is at the behest of Rose. I would end up doing it accidentally. 

As for it becoming Little Shop of Horrors, that had everything to do with what was available for rights. But when they did choose Little Shop of Horrors, I knew full well that I could at least sing the plant, and Karen could very surely sing Audrey. So it kind of worked out beautifully. 

David: It fell into place so seamlessly, and I think that's what was so exciting. It just could not have been more of a perfect storyline that aligned with what we wanted for our characters, and especially for Jesse too. And secretly, we could all get Jesse singing, which was the win!

But it worked out storyline-wise and I love that we're pulling Alec more into Rose's world in the last few episodes. For this episode, all the stars aligned: we got to sing and do something that we love. We were both huge fans of Little Shop. Right from drama college, it was always on the list of shows I wanted to do! Of course, I'd love to play Audrey. I'm not exactly blonde and blue-eyed, but I just love that it was possible in this episode because, for Rose too, it was by accident. 

And we also learned that Rose went to drama college and that she takes this all very seriously. I find it so yummy and delicious, seeing Rose and her enthusiasm for all things theater and trying to rub that off onto Adam, who's so clearly petrified at what he's committed himself to. To see both of them navigate through it together on the work front, and as partners too was just so utterly delightful and magical.

Do you have insights as to why Little Shop was ultimately chosen? Was there a backup or alternative plan if there were rights issues with the music itself? 

Martin: When it became a musical, we didn't have any idea what it would be. Everything had to do with what was available rights-wise. I remember seeing Man of La Mancha at one point, and there was a version of As You Like It, which was a musical. There's also a musical version of Two Gentlemen of Verona. But Little Shop fit the best. Among the things that we could get the rights for, that was the best choice.

As professional performers, is it difficult to portray somebody acting who is not a professional? How do you approach that?

Martin: It's obviously a challenge because we were all trained to be these people. We all went to drama school. No matter what, the show goes on and you do the damn thing. But, what I can remember and what I imagine other people go through if you are not used to being on stage, is the absolute terror of things. I still have actors' nightmares where you get involved in a show and you don't know what you're doing or you're not wearing clothes or whatever it might be. The only thing I could tap into at that point would be the absolute terror of getting on stage. Terror is pretty easy to tap into.

David: I think for Rose it's a bit easier because she went to drama college. A few episodes ago, she talked about how she was a lounge singer in Nairobi. Drama college has allowed her to do these things in her past as an MI6 agent. So she just completely threw herself into all of this. In the beginning, when she didn't know she would have to perform as Audrey, she was very much living vicariously through Alec's adventures. You can see that she's so passionate and deeply committed, particularly in that coaching session that she has with Alec. 

That was, by far, my favorite scene to do in that episode. It takes you through a rollercoaster of emotions and you see why these two work so well together, not only on solving cases but also as partners. I pulled out my old drama school notes and the first thing we did in those first few weeks was trust exercises. And I said, "That's what Rose needs to do!" It's all about trust and creating a safe space for Alec. It's supportive and encouraging to say, "Hey, you've got this. You can do this."

I told Jesse that we were going all in with the trust exercises, and he was such a good sport about it throughout. It was very difficult to keep a straight face, but I just loved all the nuances that we both threw in during that scene. And seeing the vulnerability of these two characters with each other was so wonderful. 

Watch a clip of Martin and David singing from the episode below.