‘New York, New York’s’ Colton Ryan is literally lighting up the city
nypost.comColton Ryan is still getting used to spotting his image on street lamp banners throughout the Theater District.“Every time I take a new block home, I’m like, ‘Oh hey, me,'” said Ryan of the nearly 100 flags bearing his likeness. “It’s pretty wild, honestly.”The 27-year-old — who this year was nominated for his first Tony Award for his portrayal of Jimmy Doyle, the leading man in “New York, New York” — was at first unaware of his high-flying honor.“I was asked to approve a photo and I did, but I didn’t know that’s where it was going,” he said of the banners, which feature a shot of him and his costar, Anna Uzele.In the musical, nominated for nine Tonys, he plays the role of Robert De Niro originated in the 1977 film of the same name.
The Broadway star “didn’t find it terribly daunting” to be following in the A-lister’s shoes.“When you accept a role and his name is in the same sentence … there’s so much gravitas already just built in that I don’t have to work so hard,” Ryan told The Post.The Kentucky native never tires of the iconic titular song made famous by Frank Sinatra.
Whenever he hears it on the radio or TikTok, he finds himself humming along.“It’s the power of the song,” he said. ‘It is freaky.” The words, “If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere,” hold true for the Kentucky native, who landed his first gig on the Great White Way — as an understudy in “Dear Evan Hansen” — while he was still a senior in college. “By the next week, I needed to find a place to stay,” he said.
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