Conrad Ricamora and Cole Escola Exchange Expletives Before Oh, Mary! Performances

There is officially drama backstage at the Lyceum Theatre, currently home to Broadway's Oh, Mary! Conrad Ricamora, starring as Abraham Lincoln, shared on a recent visit to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon that he and show writer and star Cole Escola have a pre-show ritual that involves some expletives. But don't worry—we're pretty sure it's mostly in good fun. Find out how the two lovingly address each other eight nights a week in the video above.

Performances of the multi-extended hit comedy are currently scheduled to continue through January 19, 2025. The show officially opened its Broadway transfer at the Lyceum Theatre July 11 after beginning previews June 26. Read the reviews here.

Written by and starring Escola, Oh, Mary! centers on famous First Lady Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. In Escola's demented take (or as press notes put it, "through the lens of an idiot"), Mary Todd becomes a madcap, cabaret-obsessed alcoholic.

The piece premiered at Off-Broadway's Lucille Lortel Theatre earlier this year in a run that was extended three times. The production earned two 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding New American Play and Lead Performer in an Off-Broadway play, both for Escola. The show also won the 2024 Off Broadway Alliance Award for Best New Play.

The full Off-Broadway cast is back for the Broadway run, including Escola as Mary Todd Lincoln, Ricamora as Mary's Husband, James Scully as Mary's Teacher, Bianca Leigh as Mary's Chaperone, and Tony Macht as Mary's Husband's Assistant. Rounding out the company are understudies Martin Landry, Hannah Solow, and Peter Smith.

READ: Camp and the Art of Being Cole Escola

Escola's screenwriting credits include At Home With Amy Sedaris and The Other Two, and they've appeared as an actor in Difficult People, Mozart in the Jungle, At Home With Amy Sedaris, and Big Mouth, among others. They released a comedy special on YouTube titled Help! I'm Stuck With Cole Escola in 2021, and an homage to '70s westerns Our Home Out West in November.

Sam Pinkleton is directing the Broadway run after staging the Off-Broadway premiere. His full creative team is back as well, including scenic designer dots, costume designer Holly Pierson, lighting designer Cha See, composer and co-sound designer Daniel Kluger, co-sound designer Drew Levy, wig designer Leah J. Loukas, and music arranger David Dabbon. Casting is by Henry Russell Bergstein. Bryan Bauer and Ryan Patrick Kane are production stage manager and assistant stage manager, respectively.

Visit OhMaryPlay.com.