Under the Influence (with Jo Piazza) - Sunday Nice Things： Broadway Husbands

00:00:00.000 Hey y'all, happy Sunday. Today's Sunday Nice Things is an episode of my podcast Committed

00:00:06.300 that I recorded earlier this year. I love the couple on this show. Stephen and Brett are

00:00:14.000 Broadway actors and dancers, but I first found them, as you'll hear in the episode,

00:00:19.080 on the Broadway husband's Instagram account. And I just fell in love with them. I fell in

00:00:24.620 with them and with their love story. And like me, they love belting out a good Les Mis in the middle

00:00:31.980 of dinner. I recently just found out that Brett, one half of the couple, has been diagnosed with

00:00:39.240 a form of T-cell lymphoma, a rare and life-threatening immune condition. He's currently

00:00:44.720 going through treatment while he and his husband, Stephen, continue to raise their young child.

00:00:48.900 And I wanted to drop this episode in your feed just to raise awareness about this wonderful

00:00:53.760 couple, I'm going to put the GoFundMe to raise money for Brett's treatments and family in the

00:00:58.960 show notes. And I just think after hearing their love story, you are also going to fall in love

00:01:03.340 with the two of them. Stephen and Brett are both Broadway actors and dancers. I first discovered

00:01:17.380 the two of them on their Broadway husband's Instagram account. They're also Broadway dads,

00:01:22.680 by the way, which is why I think their account was served to me in the first place. And frankly,

00:01:28.220 I just cannot get enough of these two. I'm a musical theater geek. So I mean, naturally,

00:01:35.380 naturally, I just, I want to see everything that they do, all of their singing and their dancing

00:01:39.760 and their dadding and their husbanding, their loving each other. There is so much joy in this

00:01:46.240 account. There is so much joy in their relationship. I'm going to play you a little

00:01:49.780 taste of some of the musical antics that the two of them get up to for those of you who've never

00:01:56.700 joined us before my name is steven and this is brett and we are the broadway husbands

00:02:02.320 and we do this every monday night uh yeah every monday night

00:02:19.780 what's up we're live welcome to our joy chat my name is steven and this is what's my name steven

00:02:29.680 papa papa this is dada they're adorable adorable between the two of them they have eight broadway

00:02:41.320 plays brett has a creative coaching business steven teaches ballet and they're also dads to

00:02:47.120 their adorable little boy, Maverick. I wanted to talk to them today about being husbands who are

00:02:54.100 pursuing passions together, but also about their journey. They got engaged in 2009 and then married

00:03:01.200 in 2011. And when they decided they want to have kids, they embarked on the path to surrogacy.

00:03:08.160 It was a four-year journey from embryo to baby. And it wasn't easy, but all along the way,

00:03:14.980 it strengthened their bond.

00:03:33.660 How did the two of us meet, Stephen?

00:03:37.180 Well, we first met because we were both sober.

00:03:41.820 So we met each other in a meeting, and then the first time we really took notice of each

00:03:50.440 other was I went to Brett's Christmas party in 2006, and then we were like really close

00:04:00.340 friends, and then we became more than friends later in 2007.

00:04:05.360 That's right.

00:04:06.580 When did you both know it was serious?

00:04:07.820 For me, this is Brett, I was doing an out-of-town tryout for the new musical on Broadway of The Little Mermaid.

00:04:17.980 And Stephen came to visit me.

00:04:20.320 And then he came for like a week.

00:04:23.180 It was like almost seven days.

00:04:25.900 And I like every day was having so much more fun than the next than the day before.

00:04:33.140 And I was like, this is really fun.

00:04:34.760 And I was like, I think I might be in love with you.

00:04:38.460 And he goes, I know.

00:04:40.620 That's right.

00:04:41.260 That is exactly what I said.

00:04:44.700 Who proposed to who and how did it happen?

00:04:48.100 And I got to tell you, actually, let me preface this by saying that I ask all couples this.

00:04:53.340 Gay, straight, everyone.

00:04:55.420 But the straight couples get really thrown by it as if, why would you? 0.91

00:05:01.360 He did.

00:05:03.640 He did.

00:05:04.060 Well, this is Stephen and Brett proposed to me and it was planned that I was leaving the New York City Ballet to go to perform in the show Billy Elliot on Broadway.

00:05:20.940 And so it was my final performance at New York City Ballet and Brett had a big party for me and it was kind of titled, you know, like my going away party from City Ballet.

00:05:33.140 so there were a lot of people from the ballet people from broadway because at the time bros

00:05:37.300 in the little mermaid and um he started talking and i think he was going to propose and i thought

00:05:44.460 he was just trying to get me to say thank you to everybody so i took over and started talking and

00:05:49.100 then he interrupted me again and i said i don't know what the future holds so i will be back

00:05:53.900 and brad said well since we're talking about your future um you got down on my knee and proposed to

00:05:59.280 in front of at least I'm sure there were a hundred people there at least and uh yeah that's how we

00:06:04.420 did it was on the rooftop at the Empire Hotel with a view of the city and it was really beautiful

00:06:10.480 it was really funny because at the time I had a lot of friends who didn't make it to the party

00:06:16.480 and couldn't make it and before like leading up to it I was getting so many messages from people

00:06:20.140 like I'm so sorry I couldn't be there did it and I was like um it's fine like I'll see you again

00:06:26.160 you're going to see me perform again like it's like you know um but then i'm not now looking

00:06:30.920 back i know because everyone knew that bro was going to propose to me except yeah and then like

00:06:35.580 two years later we hadn't been married yet and i was uh i just came back from tour and i was like

00:06:42.400 are we gonna do this what's happening and stephen's like yeah fine let's do it so we planned our

00:06:47.720 wedding it was like february 14th that we decided to do it and we planned it for april 18th literally

00:06:53.440 like two months later. So we planned the whole wedding within two months. And it wasn't legal

00:06:59.860 yet in New York. So it was still sort of this novelty to have a gay wedding. And we were able

00:07:04.980 to get this awesome event space for the reception in Union Square. And we did it on Monday nights

00:07:12.660 since most of our friends were off from the show. So we got a discount on it. And we got married in

00:07:18.620 Connecticut, where it was legal. And we had everyone take the train from Grand Central to

00:07:25.120 come attend the ceremony. And then we all came back to the city and then we had a big party that

00:07:29.220 night. And it was so much fun. Now, the two of you are stars in your own right. But now you're

00:07:37.740 you're also the Broadway dads. I mean, that's how I found you. That's that's how I think about you.

00:07:45.120 So when you first got together, did you both know that you wanted kids?

00:07:52.340 I would say it was always an idea.

00:07:55.700 It was always something we talked about and said we would want kids.

00:08:02.380 We didn't know how we would want kids.

00:08:05.140 And then we finally went to a meeting at the Gay and Lesbian Center about all of the different ways that you can family build.

00:08:10.440 And in 2017, we decided to start our surrogacy journey.

00:08:15.120 And from the time that we made our embryos, which is in March of 2018,

00:08:23.640 it took us almost four years to have our baby boy, Maverick,

00:08:28.360 who was born March 26th of 2022.

00:08:33.320 The journey was challenging.

00:08:36.520 Challenging.

00:08:37.520 It was like the most exciting and depressing,

00:08:41.700 happy, stressful rollercoaster ride ever.

00:08:45.840 And in the end, it was all worth it.

00:08:48.260 Because you just like, you live in the vision of it for so long.

00:08:51.500 You know, like picturing what it's going to be like.

00:08:53.080 Are you going to have a boy or a girl?

00:08:54.020 There's so much anticipation.

00:08:55.180 And then there's so many things you can't control.

00:08:57.720 Like so many hurdles, like a miscarriage or, you know, money or like finding a gestational carrier and all those things.

00:09:05.300 So, you know, it took us four years, but it was 100% worth it.

00:09:09.920 Yeah.

00:09:10.020 okay i'm asking this as the mom of three children i'm really curious was having a baby

00:09:18.460 more intense than being on a broadway stage in front of thousands and thousands of people every

00:09:24.260 night yes yes definitely that day was like something because like you can't you can't

00:09:31.400 compare it really because i mean maybe for some people being on stage in front of people is

00:09:36.500 kind of otherworldly but when you've done it for so long it kind of becomes a habit like you just

00:09:43.920 sort of know how to handle being in front of people when you're in the hospital room and you

00:09:50.280 see the birth mother like on display and you know you're about to see yours I mean it's it's like an

00:09:57.920 alien experience you're just like seeing biology like transform in front of you it's magical you

00:10:04.660 know you go into the we went into the hospital where there are four of us because it was me and

00:10:08.060 Brett and our carrier and her husband so there are four of us and then we came out five and um so

00:10:15.720 it's always exciting because it's like magic and it's amazing and beautiful and an experience I'll

00:10:22.680 never forget what was most surprising to you about becoming parents I mean honestly for me

00:10:30.280 it's been the relationship and healing from my birth,

00:10:35.880 like my blood family.

00:10:39.120 It changed my relationship with my whole immediate family.

00:10:45.560 And, you know, in a good way,

00:10:48.400 but also in a really just a surprising way.

00:10:50.920 I just didn't expect to have the relationships with them

00:10:56.320 evolve the way that they have.

00:10:57.600 And I think it's mostly because I want,

00:11:00.280 uh my child to have an emotionally healthy life much more than what you know we've experienced

00:11:06.580 and so that requires setting boundaries and and being honest and you know prioritizing

00:11:13.640 emotional mental physical health first and i think that's not something that culturally

00:11:18.880 we're sort of taught to do you're sort of taught well your family's your family you just have to

00:11:22.440 put up with them and um i don't think those rules apply anymore in 2024 2025 now i mean

00:11:29.760 I agree with everything Brett said, and I think the most surprising thing is something that's not a surprise, but everyone tells you your life is going to completely change, and I don't think you can wrap your head around that statement until you're living it, because literally everything is different.

00:11:51.440 Like, just everything in the best of ways and, you know, just your life has completely changed and you are different.

00:12:00.660 Like, our life is so different because of him and it continues to change and get better and better and tests my patience.

00:12:09.380 And, yeah.

00:12:11.100 Okay, let's take a quick break.

00:12:12.900 We'll be right back.

00:12:21.440 And we're back with the Broadway husbands, the Broadway dads, Stephen and Brett.

00:12:28.980 I know better than anyone that having kids completely changes you.

00:12:34.840 It changes your relationship.

00:12:36.600 I can hear mine screaming downstairs right now. 0.98

00:12:39.760 And I want to kill my husband because he's not doing anything about it. 0.94

00:12:43.760 I'm sure that everyone else can hear it right now, too. 0.95

00:12:46.560 I mean, how did having Maverick change things for you?

00:12:49.820 honestly it's definitely we're in an evolution i would say right yes i mean because i think

00:12:57.020 one of the things no one really talks enough about is the fact that you relive your own childhood

00:13:04.500 traumas and you're sort of healing in the process you're kind of healing your own childhood and so

00:13:10.940 it brings up a lot of old stuff when you're you know when you're not parenting and you're sort of

00:13:17.580 left not being a parent, you have to kind of deal with that and talk about it and heal from it. And

00:13:22.220 you see a lot of habits and things come up. And so we've been in this like healing, I mean,

00:13:29.020 I can speak for myself personally, I've been a real healing journey for myself in trying to

00:13:36.160 process so much of my own childhood stuff. And so that definitely affects your relationship,

00:13:42.380 because sometimes I don't feel so confident. And sometimes I'm feeling insecure, I'm feeling

00:13:46.580 a lot of self doubt, you know, or I'm just like needing some time alone, you know, because

00:13:52.820 you have to be so regulated when you're with your son. So we're with our son. So I think that's been

00:14:00.740 for me, you know, trying to figure out how to support each other in those healing processes

00:14:06.020 personally, and then find time to be together as a couple is definitely a journey, you know,

00:14:14.160 And we're evolving with it.

00:14:16.440 Yeah.

00:14:16.720 I mean, I agree with all those things and just that, you know, it's changed our relationship in the way that like we have to communicate more than we ever had to before and in a different way.

00:14:30.020 And keep in mind that everything that we do is a lesson and that we're always modeling behavior.

00:14:35.280 And I think that that's, you know, so that requires you to just kind of try and always be your best and best communicator.

00:14:44.380 And that is not always an easy thing.

00:14:46.400 It's not always easy.

00:14:48.040 How are you training this baby to be a Broadway baby?

00:14:51.400 Well, we're not training him, but he's definitely, he's around dance all the time.

00:14:56.160 He definitely models our behavior a lot.

00:14:58.300 So he knows, he's very familiar with musicals.

00:15:01.720 He's very familiar with dance.

00:15:03.100 he loves he knows how to hold a microphone yeah yeah so that's how just because he's watching us

00:15:10.160 yeah i i have to say that becoming a mom made me feel like a superhuman i'm also so surprised

00:15:19.700 every day by how much i like it i like it more than i thought i would

00:15:23.320 what has surprised the two of you the most about parenthood

00:15:27.140 just

00:15:31.800 how

00:15:33.560 I think the most surprising thing is just how

00:15:37.060 great it is and how hard it is

00:15:39.260 and just

00:15:42.500 how emotional

00:15:45.300 it can make you feel

00:15:46.560 and yeah

00:15:48.840 I don't know just I think that's the biggest

00:15:51.060 surprise is just that

00:15:52.420 and also that

00:15:57.140 I don't have all the answers and I'm not always sure what to do.

00:16:01.080 And yeah, I think one of the things that surprises me the most is how,

00:16:07.620 how, uh,

00:16:10.400 when you are a parent and then you're around other parents,

00:16:15.620 like you don't, you don't realize like how some people,

00:16:22.820 like it's just, it's such a different experience for each person.

00:16:25.820 And it's so unique. It's like,

00:16:27.140 You hear about parenthood as this blanket statement, but every single parent is having

00:16:32.700 their own experience and their own level of consciousness around parenting.

00:16:38.160 And sometimes it can be super surprising to see how people treat their kids or how they

00:16:44.420 talk to themselves or their partner.

00:16:47.340 And, and it's a, you know, it's hard sometimes because you, you're, you know, you're looking

00:16:51.800 for answers.

00:16:52.520 you're constantly looking for a way to make it better and be a better parent because you're

00:16:57.000 never going to be a perfect parent. And then you look around and you see other parents

00:17:01.200 not seeking to be better parents. And you're like that, that surprises me. I'm I, every single day,

00:17:07.620 I'm like, how can we be better? How can we improve this and be, you know, better for him? And I just,

00:17:13.720 you just realize not everyone is out to be the best parent. And that's, that surprises me,

00:17:19.880 I think the most. Between the two of you, you have been in so many incredible shows,

00:17:26.120 some of my very favorite shows, but you also each have your own projects, your creators,

00:17:34.660 your speakers. You've got this whole platform where you share your parenting and husbanding

00:17:41.620 journey, but you're also, I feel like you're both constantly doing new and exciting things.

00:17:50.440 And, you know, sometimes we lose track of that in a marriage. Sometimes we lose track

00:17:56.320 of what is important to the other person. And I'm just really curious how you both support each

00:18:03.520 other in what you want to be doing outside of your marriage and outside of parenthood.

00:18:08.480 well i think that we've both done a million self-tapes with one another and you know and

00:18:16.540 now that maverick is here i think that there are a lot of different factors um but if it's some you

00:18:24.340 know whatever the other one wants to do and if it's something we really want to do the other one

00:18:29.280 usually supports like rat will support me and my decision um especially if it's something we can

00:18:34.920 make work for the whole family then it's definitely an easy thing and I think we just

00:18:40.580 you know try and figure out what's best for us as a family as opposed to what's just great for us

00:18:47.520 singularly unless that singular thing is like amazing you know yeah what did the two of you

00:18:55.660 envision your life's like in 20 years well 65 oh my goodness oh my gosh so will we be able to

00:19:05.800 retire yet i don't think you can until 67 i think they're changing it um well you can retire at any

00:19:10.900 age if you have enough money 100 people's true if you're freelance um i definitely picture you

00:19:18.800 know maverick will be in college if he chooses to go to college and i kind of picture us

00:19:26.840 living in a more of a palatial like place with less people around us mountain and nature and

00:19:35.960 hiking um i see us continuing to make content because it's really fun and i think that it'll

00:19:44.420 be even easier without a toddler. And I can see us traveling a lot and traveling the world and

00:19:53.520 meeting people and having experiences. And because that really, I think is the thing we

00:20:00.200 love the most is having adventures and experiences more than things and stuff, you know.

00:20:07.880 I agree with all those things. I think they will be living in like some big

00:20:11.220 mountain house with hiking sometimes though i have this vision too that like what when maverick's in

00:20:15.940 school are we gonna at that point be like i kind of miss new york i kind of miss performing like

00:20:20.640 maybe we'll go and we'll be those old actors that play like the old guy in waitress or the revival

00:20:27.700 of waitress or something and you know and we'll because we won't need the income the way we did

00:20:33.800 it'll just be kind of fun to just go do that at night since we don't have a kid anymore you know

00:20:38.580 It could be kind of an interesting life.

00:20:41.800 Yeah.

00:20:42.780 I kind of feel like New York is more fun when you're young

00:20:45.380 or probably when you're really old

00:20:47.180 because it's easier to get around.

00:20:49.200 Is it easier to get around?

00:20:50.360 I don't think.

00:20:50.980 I think that in general.

00:20:51.900 As long as you have an elevator.

00:20:52.960 That's true.

00:21:01.160 And that is all we have for today.

00:21:03.320 If you love this show, please leave us a review.

00:21:05.860 Recommend it to a friend.

00:21:06.980 sing and dance to it on the TikToks. That, you know, that is a missed opportunity. That is exactly

00:21:16.180 what I should have asked Stephen and Brett to do for this episode. I should have asked them

00:21:20.680 to compose a committed mini musical. Okay, next time for sure, I'm going to call them up. I'm

00:21:29.060 going to make that happen for you guys because I love you. If you have a story that you want

00:21:34.340 to see On Committed, you can email it to me at joe at influentialmedia.biz. I'm the host and

00:21:41.440 executive producer of the show. Ramzi Yund is our other executive producer and editor, and just

00:21:46.600 general man about town, wonderful wizard of all things. So happy you were here with us today.

00:21:53.640 Love this couple. Love you guys. See you next time.

00:22:04.340 You

Under the Influence (with Jo Piazza) - September 07, 2025

Sunday Nice Things： Broadway Husbands

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