Actor Laird Mackintosh first joined the Broadway company of The Phantom of the Opera in 2013, but it wasn’t his first Phantom. Having started his career as a dancer with the National Ballet of Canada, Mackintosh transitioned to musical theatre with the Toronto-based production of Phantom.

“I really felt like I didn’t want to make that my entire career, and I knew that I wanted to sing,” says Mackintosh. “I had seen Phantom of the Opera in the Toronto production, and I took my photo and resume to the office of the casting director and they called me in.”

After playing Raoul outside the U.S., Mackintosh made his Broadway debut with Phantom in New York—this time in a different role. “I got older and I basically aged up into the role of Andre,” he says. “Andre is a wonderful character to play—you can really feel the audience responding to the managers.”

Check out Mackintosh offering a sneak peek into his dressing room as he gets into character—wig, faux mustache, opera garb, and all—above. Below, John Easterlin discusses becoming Ubaldo Piangi.