Inside THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL: Ethan Slater

Additional reporting by M. William Panek.

Broadway World Chicago goes for a deep dive all the way to Bikini Bottom all this week with our coverage of the new show THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL. Today, we chat with the show's resident Sponge, Ethan Slater.

Ethan Slater is making his Broadway debut playing the title character in THE SPONGEBOB MUSICAL. Though an ensemble piece, the show ultimately carries his character's name in the title and one might expect Slater to feel like he has to carry the show.

"Playing SpongeBob is freeing," Slater says. "There is something intrinsically about him that people identify with no matter their age. You play at the heart and humanity of him and I feel you can't go wrong."

If there is pressure leading into its Pre-Broadway opening here on June 7th, Slater isn't showing it. Much like his cartoon counterpart, he's having a good time and remains optimistic.

"It's so much fun to work on that any daunting nature is overwhelmed by the joy that comes from working on it and knowing that I have Tina Landau making sure it is going to go well, that it's going to be what it needs to be and that it's going to be human," Slater says. "This is not going to be just some cartoon brought to life on stage, it's going to be something special."

"I guess it's starting to sink in a little," he adds.

It's the character's signature optimism that Slater says initially drew him to the project.

"When you play a character, the character sometimes seeps into the process," Slater says. "We all should be so lucky to be as optimistic as SpongeBob."

Slater has been with the project since its early inception five years ago.

"I refer to it as my time at 'SpongeBob University'," he says.

Of course, at the time the casting director of the show wasn't exactly being forthcoming with what Slater was being called in for.

"When I got the initial call from a casting director for the workshop, I was sitting in a friend's dorm room on a beanbag chair," he recalls. "There was a SpongeBob poster in the room and there was a SpongeBob plush doll next to me and the casting director told me it was for a character named 'Bubble Burt' or something like that, but I kind of knew it was SpongeBob."

While some actors might have been intimidated when asked to audition for the part of such an iconic character, Slater chose to plunge right in.

"It was one of my first auditions in New York. Basically, I was young and didn't really know any better and went out and had a very good time," he says with a laugh. "It was that naïve SpongeBob-like optimism that I think really helped me land the role. "

The show's director and co-conceiver, Tina Landau, says there's more to it that just optimism.

"Ethan came in with this uncanny ability to embody the essence of SpongeBob" Landau says. "I don't know where he got it from, but over the five or so years we have been workshopping and working on this, he has honed and perfected it. From the very beginning, his body and face seemed to be elastic and malleable, though."

Slater credits classic comedians for helping him prepare for the more physical aspects of the show.

"I've gone back and studied classic, physical comedians like Buster Keaton, Charlie Chaplin and Laurel and Hardy and learned how they all approached comedy," he says.

Slater says the character's signature voice and laugh came last.

"When I went in, I didn't try to do SpongeBob's voice. For one thing, I knew I didn't quite have it down just then," he says. "I also wanted to approach the character as keeping him as much a person as I could."

Cast mates say fans needn't worry. He's gotten really good at it since.

"Nothing compares to Ethan's [SpongBob]," says Lilli Cooper, who plays Sandy Cheeks in the show. "It's perfect. It's so good. He's incredible. And no, I can't do anything Ethan can do."

Gavin Lee (Squidward) also sings his co-star's praise. "Ethan's fantastic. And I want him to do [the laugh] more in the show," Lee says. "I think, now, he only laughs as Spongebob twice, but when he does it I'm like "Oh god! Get that in more!" It's so funny. He's so funny."

Slater says its finding shared moments with Cooper, Lee and others that make the show what it is.

"It goes back to finding the heart of the character, the realness of the situation and connecting with the rest of the characters," he says. "It really is an ensemble piece. Tina points out time and time again these are very real connections between these characters in this world."

"This is a very heartfelt show," he adds with a confident smile.

The pre-Broadway World Premiere of The SpongeBob Musical will begin performances on Tuesday, June 7 at the Oriental Theatre (24 W. Randolph St., Chicago, IL) in a limited engagement through July 10, 2016. - See more at: broadwayinchicago.com/the-spongebob-musical/world-premiere-of-broadway-bound-the-spongebob-musical-in-chicago.

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