David Byrne’s Broadway show “American Utopia” returned last month at the St. James Theatre in New York, and, last night, Byrne and the cast returned to The Late Show With Stephen Colbert. After Byrne discussed the show, showed off some of his pandemic drawings, and taught Stephen Colbert some dance moves, the cast performed Talking Heads’ “I Zimbra.”
Byrne and the “American Utopia” cast previously performed on the show in 2018 with an assist from Colbert. On this episode, Byrne said the previous Colbert appearance caught the attention of Broadway producers, which prompted the then-touring production’s long-term move to New York.
For the second time on The Late Show, David Byrne and the amazing cast of ‘American Utopia’ light up the Ed Sullivan Theater performance of a song from their smash hit Broadway show.
David Byrne’s first solo Top 10 album, “American Utopia” further explored the optimistic themes of the singer-songwriter’s “Reasons to Be Cheerful” multimedia project. The collection was supported by a world tour whose cutting-edge technology and inventive choreography lent itself well to the theatre, and the show was adapted as a stage musical in late 2019.
“I realized a Broadway setting would likely be a different audience than the concert crowds I was used to,” noted Byrne of the show – which also includes solo and Talking Heads songs. “I thought to myself that this new context might be good – it might actually help to bring out the narrative arc a little bit more.” The Tony-nominated “American Utopia” On Broadway spawned an Original Cast Recording that earned a Grammy nomination for Best Musical Theatre Album.
The Fat Angel Sings 