Bowen Yang on Oh, Mary!, Leaving SNL, and Relearning Mandarin | The Run-Through with Vogue

Vogue has been a fan of Oh, Mary! since before the play transferred to Broadway. Now, ten Marys later, Bowen Yang has stepped into the lead role of Mary Todd Lincoln (X), making his Broadway debut just under a month ago. Marley Marius, who made her podcast debut in 2024 while interviewing Oh, Mary! creator and performer Cole Escola, joined Chloe again, this time to talk to Yang about starring in this wildly beloved production. Yang is a seasoned performer from years as a cast member on Saturday Night Live, but now is learning a new kind of endurance in the eight a week performances on Broadway. “I would just nod my head politely any time someone would say, like, "Broadway performers are athletes." And I never doubted it, but now I understand that it is absolutely true,” he told them. His secret stamina lies in a potent combination of energy drinks—Fuji Apple Celsius to be specific—and traditional Chinese medicine. When asked about his most Mary-like quality, Yang turned to the duality of the clown, “There’s the misunderstood outcast and the murderous deviant. It’s like Pennywise and Bozo,” he explained, “And I am certainly not murderous. But I have this trickster energy that coincides with this idea that we all have where we feel sort of alienated by the arbitrary rules of society.” So far, his favorite guest to come to the show has been Malala Yousafzai. And his hope is that Cher will one day make it to the theater. “I think Cher would really get a kick out of this. Like wow, that’s a horny legend. I feel comfortable saying that.” As for who should be cast next in the role of Mary? His votes are in for Keke Palmer and Lisa Rinna. 00:00 — Intro: Bowen Yang Joins the Pod 00:45 — Theme Parks, Kids’ Birthday Parties & Outsourcing Gifts 03:03 — Best Gifts Received 05:10 — Bowen’s Instagram Handle & Faye Dunaway Knowing About It 07:00 — First Time Seeing Oh, Mary! Off-Broadway 08:38 — How He Was Offered the Part 10:51 — The Most Mary Thing About Bowen 12:08 — What He Took From Each Previous Mary 14:04 — Why So Many Broadway Debuts Happen in This Show 15:10 — Best Backstage Visitor 15:36 — The White Whale Guest (Cher) 16:32 — Dream Next Mary: Keke Palmer & Lisa Rinna 17:22 — Taking Care of Himself 18:27 — The Rider 19:12 — SNL vs. Broadway 21:21 — One Year Out From SNL: His Relationship to the Show Now 21:55 — Best SNL Afterparty: RuPaul, Dancing on Tables at STK 22:43 — The Devil Wears Prada Lip-Sync That Started It All 23:52 — First Fashion Memory 25:16 — First Big Paycheck Purchase 25:45 — Red Carpet Drama 26:32 — Social Life on Broadway 28:13 — Dating While on Broadway 29:00 — Céline Dion Paris Residency Pilgrimage Plans 30:00 — What He’s Reading & Watching: Survivor, The Story of Your Life 32:20 — The AirPods Stop When You Laugh Problem 33:11 — Dream Pod Guest 34:18 — Post-Oh, Mary! Project: The Rules of Culture Book 35:10 — No Ma’am of the Day: Faux Flowers & Subway Etiquette 37:10 — Most Used App: Duolingo & Relearning Mandarin 38:15 — Outro Still haven’t subscribed to Vogue on YouTube? ►► http://bit.ly/vogueyoutubesub Get the best of Vogue delivered right in your inbox ►► https://bit.ly/3xAZyQg Subscribe to the magazine ►► http://vogue.com/subscribe_yt Download the Vogue App ►► https://apps.apple.com/us/app/vogue-r... Check out 'The Run-Through with Vogue' podcast ►► https://swap.fm/l/vogue-trt-youtube Vogue YouTube Channels: British Vogue:    / @britishvogue   Vogue Taiwan:    / @voguetvtaiwan   Vogue France:    / @voguefrance   Vogue India:    / @vogueindia   Vogue Japan:    / @voguejapan   Vogue México y Latinoamérica:    / @voguemexicoylatinoamerica   Vogue Germany:    / @voguegermany   Vogue Italia:    / @vogueitalia   Vogue Spain:    / @voguespain   ABOUT VOGUE Vogue is the authority on fashion news, culture trends, beauty coverage, videos, celebrity style, and fashion week updates.