From Country Australia to Cartoon Manhattan: Ainsley Melham Originates His First Broadway Role in Boop!

Australian musical-theater performer Ainsley Melham has charmed audiences at home and abroad with breakout turns as Aladdin, Pippin, and more. But Boop! The Musical at the Broadhurst Theatre marks a thrilling first for the performer: he’s originating a role from the ground up. Playing Dwayne, the earnest love interest to the iconic Betty Boop, Melham brings humanity to a technicolor world bursting with zany characters and soon-to-be-iconic showstoppers.

Melham has built a career that bridges continents and genres. Now, as he steps into this larger-than-life new musical by David Foster, Susan Birkenhead, and Bob Martin, he reflects on growing up far from the lights of Times Square, the unique challenge of being the “straight man” in a cartoonish universe—and just how surreal it feels to see his name in lights.

This conversation has been condensed and edited for clarity.

Being from Australia, was Betty Boop part of the culture when you were growing up?
I was born in 1991, so her cartoons weren’t circulating on TV or anything, but we certainly know who Betty Boop is in Australia. She is much more woven into the fabric of your pop culture here in the States. When I came here and when I became aware of the project, I started seeing her everywhere: handbags, shirts, social media. I started to realize that even for a young generation who may not have grown up watching her shorts, she still figures as this model for independence and empowerment and sexuality.

Is the show as fun to do as it looks?
Absolutely. I mean, it’s hard, but how can you not have fun when you get to come into work each day and sing David Foster and Susan Birkenhead’s music, and get to live in this world that’s full of color and love and crazy characters. I get the job of playing the most grounded and real character—I say real, but we’re still in musical theater, so it’s heightened—and he’s in contrast to Betty’s cartoonishness.

Is playing the straight man difficult in a world that’s so over the top?
It can definitely be a challenge as an actor. You’re constantly questioning the size of your work, because you’re seeing these big characters around you. So you go, “Am I doing enough? Am I doing too little? Is this going to read?” That’s where the creative team comes into play. You have to trust them and that if it wasn’t working, they’d tell you.

I’ve done this before. I had to do it in Aladdin, versus the Genie. Even in Pippin, versus the leading player. I’ve been in these situations where I’ve had to play the straight man against these bigger, larger-than-life characters.

Do you ever wish you could just be the goof?
I think that would be fun to explore. I don’t know if I’ve explored it in a huge commercial musical, but I’ve had the chance to do it other ways. Back home, I did an amazing production of Kiss of the Spider Woman, where I played Molina. That was a character where I could lean into all the corners of the camp and pomp and neuroses. Maybe it’s not comparable to someone like Betty Boop, but it’s still a large character that you can really breathe into. But I don’t mind being in the position of the grounded character in a show, because it’s a challenge to make it work.

How does the American musical-theater scene compare with what’s going on theater-wise in Australia?
We have an amazing industry back home. What feels different is that here in New York, it’s all within 15 to 20 blocks. You can see each other, and you can see the other shows. In Australia, we have a handful of theaters in Sydney and Melbourne and some in Brisbane, but they’re spread out around the country. You’re part of a collective, but it feels a little isolated. You don’t have that immediate community.

What is it like to be originating a role on Broadway for the first time, as opposed to being the next Aladdin or the next Fiyero?
It’s the stuff of dreams. I grew up in country Australia. Three hours outside of Sydney. How does a country boy make his way to New York City to originate a role on Broadway? It seems sort of unfathomable.

When I was growing up, I didn’t know what the path was. I had wonderful mentors who have given me opportunities along the way that have led me here, but to be here now and share it, I actively have to remind myself what a big deal this is. You can probably count on one hand the number of Australians that have originated a role on Broadway. And I don’t say that to pump myself up. I’m just like, “Oh, shit!”

And it’s not easy, because of things like getting a green card, the paperwork. Just getting here. You’re dealing with the accent barrier. We have to put on an American accent and have it feel natural, unless they’re employing you as an Australian. And we don’t often hear Australians singing their own accent in a musical.

I do have to pinch myself and remind myself that this is pretty, pretty cool.