Kate Hudson. Natalie Portman. Bowen Yang. Who Will Play Sally Next?

New York Times

4 days ago

For fans of the singer-songwriter Role Model, whose real name is Tucker Pillsbury, a big element of surprise during his No Place Like Tour has been the reveal of each night's Sally.
At every show, someone is handpicked to represent the protagonist of his single 'Sally, When the Wine Runs Out.' As Mr. Pillsbury performs the song, he'll call out, 'Where's my Sally?' and out Sally comes, strutting and dancing to the music.
The Sallys have run the gamut. One night, Sally was played by the actress Natalie Portman, who will star in a Lena Dunham-produced romantic comedy called 'Good Sex' opposite Mr. Pillsbury (his acting debut). Another night it was the actress and singer Reneé Rapp. Bowen Yang from 'Saturday Night Live' took a turn, as did the singer and actor Troye Sivan. Last weekend, it was Kate Hudson. On other nights, Sally is an enthusiastic fan plucked from the crowd.
And it all started with a rumor.
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In February, the influencer and comedian Jake Shane, who Mr. Pillsbury said had been rumored to be the inspiration for the song, texted Mr. Pillsbury to point out that they were both in Dallas.
'We were like, 'How funny would it be to just, like, play into that and have him come onstage?'' Mr. Pillsbury, 28, said in an interview. The audience loved it. 'We were like, 'We should do this every night and just have a fan come up.''
From there, it became a thing.
Among those chosen was Dani Coker, a dance teacher in Portland, Ore., who was in the crowd dancing at a show in April when she felt a tap on her shoulder, just as Mr. Pillsbury started singing 'Sally.'
'I turn around and it's his manager, and she's like, 'Do you want to come be Sally?'' Ms. Coker, 36, said in an interview
'I think what maybe caught his eye was my disco ball hat,' she added. 'Up there, I just was kind of focusing on Role Model the whole time. But as soon as I looked into the crowd and saw all the phones, I just kind of went blank, and I was like, 'Oh my gosh, what is happening.''
Mr. Pillsbury took time out from his tour to discuss how his team picked each Sally and who his favorite Sally had been thus far.
Sally is blowing up the internet. Revealing Sally has become such an integral part of your show experience. How do you pick a Sally?
This whole year, we really tried our best to just do fans every night. Honestly, I would keep my eyes open and see who is, like, jumping up and down the whole time and performing while I'm performing. And then sometimes my tour manager would be out in the crowd, up in the balcony, looking. It was a group effort. And sometimes the decision is made during the show, and sometimes it was before. We chose one in Chicago, this kid was just losing his mind to the preshow playlist, putting on a show for everyone on the ground. And we were like: 'OK, this is Sally. We need this energy.'
And then for festivals, I liked the idea of doing some special guests.
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With the special guests, how does that come about logistically? How long does it take to coordinate something like that with people like Natalie Portman and Kate Hudson?
The goal is to really make it as easy for whoever we're asking. I want it to be very low-lift. So it's usually a matter of finding out who's in the city while we're doing it. For Natalie, for example, we were shooting a movie in New York. And I heard murmurs that Natalie would be down if I were to ask.
For Kate Hudson, someone on my team was like, 'Hey, Kate is in Aspen when you're performing at this festival.' And they were asking if we would want her to be Sally. And I was like, 'Obviously.' That was … I mean, everyone's perfect in their own way, but that was just a very cute rom-com little moment there. She exudes the Sally energy.
This has become great content for social media. Was that part of the equation when you planned the tour?
None of this was planned. The day after Jake Shane, we had this 7-year-old boy come up and everyone loved it, and we're like, 'OK, this has to be to be a thing.'
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I imagine the art of picking Sally has been honed over time?
Yeah, I guess so. Now I think people understand a little bit more how we're picking it. It's based off of energy and what's the word? I don't know, just a performer. We need a performer. And I think people know that. And, honestly, it's made the shows very fun.
That's my favorite part of the show now. It can be very repetitive touring and playing the same damn songs every night. And so it's a very fun moment for me — I get to just dance and have fun with a stranger onstage. It's beautiful.
I saw that one of your Sallys was your mom. What did that feel like?
I had never had her onstage. My mom is very shy and quiet, and she surprised me and my entire family with her performance. I never would have thought she'd be that comfortable. But I was blown away — I was kind of in shock while we were up there. I guess I don't know my mom when she has a couple shots
Do you have a favorite Sally?
Well, see, I have to say my mom. That's my safety net, so I don't hurt anyone's feelings.