LISTEN: Barton Cowperthwaite Discusses TINY PRETTY THINGS & AN AMERICAN IN PARIS on WHY I'LL NEVER MAKE IT

Dancer and actor Barton Cowperthwaite (Tiny Pretty Things, Fosse/Verdon) sits down with Why I'll Never Make It podcast host Patrick Oliver Jones to discuss his journey from ballet dancer to musical theater performer and TV actor.

Cowperthwaite's performances range from contemporary dance in La Traviata at the Metropolitan Opera to modern movement in Travis Wall's Shaping Sound dance tour. The esteemed choreographer Lar Lubovitch describes him as a "movement poet" and credits him with having what he calls musical visualization. "Rather than hearing the music, this kind of dancer has the impression of being the music." But Cowperthwaite has proven he's much more than just a good dancer with a pretty face.

In this episode, Cowperthwaite takes us behind the scenes on the night he went on for Jerry in the national tour of An American in Paris. He was only given 15 minutes notice and had not rehearsed the role in over a month. This was a big step forward for him as the dancer had to become actor and singer as well in this demanding leading role. "I never thought I would sing in front of people. I grew up being told I had a terrible voice, and I was ruining a song if I would sing along with it," Cowperthwaite recalls. "So to be in L.A. singing in front of three thousand people on a Saturday night was terrifying."

Two years later, Netflix cast Cowperthwaite as Oren in their dancing drama Tiny Pretty Things. He talks about the joys of being on set with such a talented group of dancers and the thrill of watching the show skyrocket to the top of Netflix charts. But he also shares the disappointment of being canceled after only one season. "The showrunner emailed the cast, and the first sentence was just like, 'This is the email I never thought I'd have to write.'"

Listen to the full interview with Barton Cowperthwaite below!

Barton Cowperthwaite is an actor and dancer best known for Oren Lennox in Netflix's Tiny Pretty Things (2020), Dancer in FX's Fosse/Verdon (2019), and Damon in Lifetime's Center Stage: On Pointe (2016). He has appeared at The Met Opera as the lead dancer in La Traviata, Off-Broadway in I Married an Angel and The Golden Apple (City Center's Encores), and the US national tour of An American in Paris.

WHY I'LL NEVER MAKE IT is one of Feedspot's Top 25 Theater Podcasts and received a 2022 Communicator Award of Distinction. This performing arts podcast is hosted by Off-Broadway actor, singer, and producer Patrick Oliver Jones. WINMI Podcast features fellow creatives sharing the realities of a career in the performing arts, all while challenging the notion of what it really means to "make it" in this business. Past dancing guests include Bianca Marroquín (Chicago), Tovi Wayne (Mean Girls), and Chaz Wolcott (Newsies).