How does a boy from ‘The Soo’ land on Broadway, working alongside Grammy award-winning artist Alicia Keys?
“Isn’t that the craziest thing ever?” John Yun, MMus’12 said, reflecting on the path that’s brought him to his current role as associate music director for Hell’s Kitchen, Keys’ semi-autobiographical Broadway musical opening April 20.
This is the third Broadway show for Yun, who served as associate conductor for Bob Fosse’s Dancin’ in 2023, and Tina: The Tina Turner Musical from 2021 to 2022.
But it was the furthest thing from his mind growing up in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., where he worshipped hockey heroes, playing just as much ‘shinny’ and soccer as piano.
He stopped playing piano for two years during high school, losing interest until he discovered Canadian jazz pianist and composer Oscar Peterson though a CBC television special.
“I was blown away,” Yun said. So much so, he “reconsidered his choices in life,” and pursued his undergraduate degree in music.
“But I still wasn’t really thinking about music as a career,” he said. “I was a late bloomer that way. Even when I arrived at Western to do my master’s, I was still very behind the curve. I remember my first studio session with professor Stéphan Sylvestre in a room full of very strong pianists, and I was not prepared.”
Yun credits Sylvestre for “opening his eyes.”
“I needed someone like him to show me I was not operating at the same level as the others. Until then, I just wasn’t as interested, but once that switch turned on, I realized, ‘Oh, I am into this!’”
Sylvestre recalls Yun as a unique student.
“John was exceptionally creative in how he absorbed diverse sets of learnings and combined them in such a way that he shaped his endeavours as an expression of artistry,” Sylvestre said. “His versatility, his talent as a communicator, and his immense gifts as a pianist and musician are exceptional.”
Western connections
John Yun (Curt O’Neil Photographer)
Now a successful conductor, music director and pianist within New York’s Broadway community, Yun’s introduction to musical theatre began at Western in 2009, first working as an accompanist for students in the opera program.
“I was like a sponge playing for the singers during their private lessons, absorbing everything their teachers were saying. I was learning how to work with singers, how to play with singers in a way that makes them want to work with you again.”
Yun became head opera coach and assistant conductor for UWOpera’s production of Cosi Fan Tutte. Then, a classmate connected him to musician Mark Payne, a “fixture in the London, Ontario music community,” and current music director of the Victoria Playhouse in Petrolia. Payne helped Yun land a summer job at the Imperial Theatre in Sarnia.
“The real jump-off point into musical theatre was Western,” Yun said. “Before that it wasn’t even part of my world, let alone a possibility for a full-time career. Western was the start of the path that brought me to where I am now.”
From ‘Tina’ to The Tonight Show
Yun joined the U.S. travelling tour of Godspell in 2014 and took a performance job with the 2015 national Broadway touring production of Annie, wrapping as the show’s associate music director. The courage to make a cold call brought Yun the role of associate conductor of the international travelling production of West Side Story, which took him through Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
After working as the associate conductor of the U.S. national tour of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Yun made his Broadway debut as associate conductor of The Tina Turner Musical ─ a role that landed him on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, playing piano alongside “Tina” lead Adrienne Warren in 2021.
John Yun (far right), on The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon Sept. 14, 2021, collaborating with Adrienne Warren, the lead performer of Tina: The Tina Turner Musical. (John Yun instagram)
“I had never done a major TV performance, so that was a big moment,” said Yun, who finds it exciting “to experience that combination of professional growth and discomfort.”
The appearance also put him in close proximity to Fallon’s house band The Roots, a group he long admired.
“During the recording, the piano was located right in front of the band, and all I wanted to do was turn around and tell them what a huge fan I was,” he said.
The experience made performing live on NBC alongside Keke Palmer and Adam Blackstone for the Rockefeller tree lighting ceremony in 2023, “less scary.”
Other recent career highlights for the multi-faceted musician include performing as a pianist for the 74th Tony Award Show and on the Disney music video for Zombies 3.
“I’m discovering, after doing Broadway for a while, it’s useful to have a pretty good understanding of a lot of different genres because a lot of shows will jump from style to style for storytelling purposes, requiring a person to be convincing in all of them.” -John Yun, MMus’12, conductor, music director and pianist
Sylvestre, who remains in touch with Yun, is thrilled – but unsurprised – to see his former student making his mark on Broadway and beyond.
“John has a natural facility to connect with people and he understands how to build relationships,” Sylvestre said. “When all of this is combined with his strong capacity to take risks and his drive to excel, it’s not surprising that to see John achieving this level of success on the international scene.”
Yun’s taking it all in stride, collaborating with industry giants like Blackstone, Pulitzer Prize finalist Kristoffer Diaz, and the legendary Keys.
“Alicia has been fantastic to work with,” said Yun, who also performed on the Hell’s Kitchen cast album, recorded in Keys’ studio, Jungle City.
“This whole process has been exciting. Sometimes you engage in projects and the creative team can be a toss-up. You never have any idea or say over who’s going to be working in each department, but for this production, it really feels like you’re in a room with a bunch of Michelin star chefs. Everyone is either a Tony winner or a Grammy winner. Just being a fly on the wall and absorbing the collaborative energy and watching things come together is incredible.”
