‘Schmigadoon!’ Cast Details Why New Apple TV+ Series Is a Must-Watch (Exclusive)

Schmigadoon! is now streaming on Apple TV+ and pays tribute to some of the most iconic musicals in history. At the same time, the new series also makes fun of some of the things that make musicals very unique. PopCulture.com recently caught up with the cast of Schmigadoon!, who explained why the comedy musical series is a must-watch this summer.

“Well, are you a fan of funny people because Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key are pretty funny,” Ann Harada, who plays Florence Menlove, told PopCulture.com. “You might know of them. So if you’re a fan of theirs and you can see them do something new and different, maybe you should check it out. Ultimately I’d like Schmigadoon! to be a gateway drug into musicals.”

Strong and Key star as Melissa and Josh, respectively, in Schmigadoon! They are a couple on a backpacking trip designed to reinvigorate their relationship when they discover a town called Schmigadoon, in which everyone is living in a 1940s studio musical. The couple tries to leave the town but can’t until they find “true love.” Strong, who is known for her work on Saturday Night Live, enjoyed being a part of this project because of the musical aspect.

“I absolutely was a fan,” Strong told PopCulture in a roundtable interview when asked about being a fan of musicals. “My grandma would bring me VHS. She’d give me some, we’d rent them from the movie store, was VHS when I was little. I watched Oliver. I loved South Pacific. I think I watched My Fair Lady, West Side Story. And then I remember, as I got older, then it was like, I have the Once on This Island soundtrack that I listened to every day in sixth grade. And then, I mean, I was a theater nerd from very young.”

Schmigadoon! is based on the 1947 musical Brigadoon, which has a similar concept. Because of the concept and the layout of Schmigadoon!, the cast features performers who have experiences in Broadway, such as Kristin Chenoweth, Alan Cumming, Jane Krakowski and Aaron Tveit who plays Danny Bailey in the series.

“I think the wonderful thing about Schmigadoon is it combines our stage work with our film work, our television work,” Tveit said. “It puts and throws them all together into one piece. I think I’ve never really worked on something that juxtaposes this very traditional style of storytelling with this very contemporary style of storytelling, right? I think that the humor of this piece is these kinds of one-dimensional earnest characters put in the same scene with contemporary sarcastic comedians, with Cecily and Keegan. I just think what happens with that friction between is there’s a chance for some really fun and new things, and that’s what I was most excited about by this project.”

For the full interview with the cast, head to our YouTube and watch the video above. Schmigadoon! is now streaming on Apple TV+ with an episode dropping weekly. Head to Apple TV+ for your free 3-month trial. For more on this show and more, stick to PopCulture.com for the latest!