We sat down with one our favorite Broadway ladies (and Patrick’s Mothers), Kate Baldwin, to find out a little more about her upcoming show at 54 Below, Sing Pretty, Don’t Fall Down. Kate said the name came from advice her college musical theatre professor would give her when she had, she’s ashamed to admit, let her musical theatre assignments fall behind her academics. So the very least she could do was go out there, sing pretty, and don’t fall down. Little did she know, however, that this ended up being good preparation for the way professional performers are often expected to learn things on short notice.

So, the idea for the show was formed from all of the things Kate wished she had known about the business, all the ways you could “fall down.” She’ll be sharing stories about her falls, but also how she got back up again. Get ready to hear showbiz tales about her interactions with fans at the stage door and run-ins with other actors. We also learned that she is not good at ad-libbing, in fact it’s one of her least favorite things to do. Not great when you just did a show with who she calls “the master ad-libber,” Norbert Leo Butz. And we can’t wait to find out what “salty advice” she got from an actor.

Interwoven with these stories, of course, will be what Kate calls some of her “greatest hits.” Included on this list will be a song from each of her most recent shows, Big Fish and Giant, songs from one of her favorite collaborators Sheldon Harnick, a couple of Sondheim songs that Kate doesn’t think she’s ever performed publicly, and a song with special guest Katie Thompson. But there’s much more than this in store, and really, it doesn’t matter what Kate Baldwin is singing because, in the end, Kate Baldwin is singing.

We once again ended our conversation by asking Kate to answer our silly little questionnaire. Here are her answers:

Patty & Emily: Do you know Beth Leavel?

Kate Baldwin: Yes, I do. I have photos with Beth Leavel.

P&E: Which show do you most want revived?

KB: I want to do Sunday in the Park with George, and I want to play Dot.

P&E: Have you ever fallen asleep on stage while pretending to sleep or be dead on stage?

KB: Yes. In high school, in A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I played Titania. And you know, she has to fall…I fell asleep.

P&E: What happened?

KB: Um, I don’t remember. I just remember somebody jabbing me and waking up. And probably not saying something in Shakespeare. Like Shakespeare’s a language. It wasn’t in Shakespeare. It was English, but it wasn’t in verse.

P&E: What’s your favorite Broadway house?

KB: Oh, the St. James. It has to be the St. James.

P&E: Dreamcast us in a show.

KB: Dreamcast you in a show? Newsies? You could be some Newsies.

P&E: Do you have a monologue prepared?

KB: Hell no. Do I have a monologue? I have never had a monologue in my life. Never. That’s a big fallacy.

P&E: What is the show you’ve seen the most times?

KB: The Full Monty because I was a swing, so I would go every night and watch it.

P&E: What about shows you weren’t working on?

KB: I don’t think I’ve seen a show more than twice. I saw The Wedding Singer twice because it was fun. I dug it. I saw The Drowsy Chaperone twice. I saw The Light in the Piazza twice because I cried through the first time. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels twice? Maybe.

P&E: Who would you fangirl over?

KB: I fangirled all over Laura Linney and turned into a big pile of mush.

P&E: On a scale of 1-10, how awful is the Broadway World message board?

KB: What? Is it…it’s a message board so people post their opinions about things?

P&E:  Don’t ever go on it. If you don’t know about it, then you don’t need to know it. It’s a 10. No, it’s a 20.

P&E: If you had comps and a time machine, what would you go see?

KB: Julie Andrews in My Fair Lady? Patti LuPone in Evita?

Kate will be at 54 Below for three nights: May 15th, 16th, and 17th. Get your tickets here, and we’ll see you there! And there’s a good chance she’ll be wearing these shoes, so you don’t want to miss out.