Every month, a fabulous actor/singer/dancer fills out editor Matthew Wexler’s nosey little questionnaire and offers a glimpse of what he looks like from a bit closer than the mezzanine. This month we go on a magic carpet ride with Aladdin’s Yurel Echezarreta.
Name:
Yurel Echezarreta
Hometown:
Winter Haven, Florida
If you could go on a magic carpet ride, where would you go and why?
I’d love to go to Australia. . . I’ve always wanted to visit. It’s massive, which means I’d want to stay for a while but with my magic carpet transportation it would be a breeze and I think the sights would be incredible from its vantage point! Also, you have New Zealand, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea all right there. It’d be pretty cool. There’s also the whole “traveling across the world” thing, which would probably happen faster on my magic carpet than on a plane.
Forget three wishes from your Genie in a bottle. . . you’ve only got one. What is it?
To live a full life with no regrets.
If I wasn’t a performer, I would be:
Something active and maybe an extreme sport. Love rock climbing, SCUBA diving. . . but I also love science. Three things I wanted to be when I was a kid: marine biologist, archaeologist, or an astronomer, which has changed to be an actual Astronaut. Let’s go with an Astronaut!
Places, Intermission or Curtain Call?
Curtain Call. You feel good because you accomplished something great, the audience is happy, and then you get to go home and eat all of the food and then cuddle up in your bed to sleep the night away!
The best post-show cocktail in New York City is at:
Vinyl in Hell’s Kitchen. They have delicious frozen beverages that get you feeling so nice…
After you’ve hit all the traditional sites of New York City, you should totally go to:
Chelsea Piers on 23rd Street and the Hudson River. It’s an amazing sports complex with every way to entertain yourself imaginable. I love it.
If I could live anywhere else in the world it would be:
Somewhere in Europe. It’s easy to get around to visit different countries and I love an accent.
My workout “secret” is:
To stay active doing other activities. I’m lucky to have been born with good genes so I don’t have to go to the gym. Don’t hate me. It’s weird because there’s this whole gym culture that I’m just not a part of.
When I’m looking for a date, nothing attracts me more than:
Someone who enjoys my humor. . . with my jokes and stories, you really understand who I am.
My favorite website to visit that you may not have heard of is:
CreditKarma.com. It provides you anytime-access to your credit score for FREE and does not negatively affect your credit report!
People would be surprised to learn that I . . .
That I listen to music other than Beyoncé. I’m obsessed with her. If you haven’t seen her Super Bowl performance this year. . . do it now!
When I was 10, I wanted to be just like:
My neighbor, Kevin. He was so hot and could get all the girls. But I think really just wanted to him <wink>.
Ten years from now I’d like to be:
Content and happy—regardless of what I’m doing as a career. But as of now, I’d say married to the best guy in the world, shopping for a house somewhere, and working as a well-known and respected performer.
Yurel Echezarreta is currently appearing on Broadway in Aladdin at the New Amsterdam Theatre, 214 West 42nd Street.