Paulo Szot Talks About His RADIO FREE BIRDLAND Concert and More on Backstage LIVE With Richard Ridge

Nothing can stop BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge from bringing you interviews with your favorite Broadway stars! Yesterday, September 24, he chatted with the incredible Paulo Szot.

Szot headlined a concert with Radio Free Birdland last night at 7PM ET. In the interview, he talked about the performance.

"When Jim Caruso sent me the message [about the concert], along with Billy Stritch, they invited me to be part of this and I was very glad at first. I was like 'oh my god, can I sing again?'" he said. "I was so worried that it was the first time after so many weeks of not doing anything."

Szot went on to talk about why it is so important for him to be able to perform again.

"We build our confidence by doing things, by performing," he said. "And when we don't perform, it all goes away. It's like starting from the beginning. I don't know about other performers, but I'm like that. I'm very insecure all of the time and every time I'm not doing things, I forgot how it's done."

He then talked about what fans can expect from the concert.

"It was a program that we created along the years with Billy Stritch and we selected a collection of songs, mostly from the Broadway stage, but not only. Songs that are very close to my heart, and of course some Brazilian songs and of course songs from South Pacific," he said. "There's a little bit of everything for everyone."

Szot also talked about the importance of voting, how he became an American citizen in 2014 and is grateful he gets to vote.

Watch the full interview here!

Paulo Szot has garnered international acclaim as both an opera singer and an actor. Born in São Paulo to Polish immigrants, Mr. Szot has appeared with most major opera companies throughout the world in Europe, the United States, and his native Brazil. In 2008, he won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Emile De Beque in the Broadway revival of South Pacific at Lincoln Center Theatre, becoming the first Brazilian actor to receive such honors.