When Chris White talks to the legions of adoring fans of the "biggest little show on Earth", the actor and puppeteer knows he'll earn instant cred when he lets them know he grew up "just up the road from Bluey".
From the theatre scene of his hometown of Toowoomba to the dizzying lights of Manhattan, White has brought Bandit, the much-loved dad of Australia's favourite four-legged family of heelers to life.
"It still blows my mind how huge Bluey is over here in the States," says White from backstage, where he's getting ready for another live performance of Bluey's Big Play theatre show.
For the next 45 minutes, White will criss-cross the stage with a large blue puppet, as he and the troupe recreate the Emmy award-winning show that has topped US streaming charts.
"That's what I do every day. Literally playing and it is amazing," he boasts.
Playing to packed audiences
Just like the TV series, the stage show is also a hit, playing to sold out crowds since opening at Madison Square Garden on its US tour.
Despite performing the show more than a hundred times in Australia, White reveals the cast members were nervous before the curtains opened abroad.
"It's so rare for Australian artists to get to perform at such an iconic venue, so to be able to do that with something home-grown like Bluey has been such a treat," he says.
"It is so much bigger than any theatre we'd played in Australia before. But as soon as Bluey came out, everyone went wild. The atmosphere was electric, and it was one of the best experiences I've ever had."
Hours spent with his thoughts on the tour bus, White reckons he's figured out why a family of Aussie dogs resonates on the other side of the world.
"It celebrates the joyful simplicity found in family life, role play, and imagination – and that's universal," he says.
"And the Aussie touches make it unique because it's different to their 'regularly scheduled programming'."
He says the show has also done wonders for cross-cultural relations.
"I'd been to America in the past and people would hear my accent and mistake me for being British or from somewhere in Europe. Now, as soon as I open my mouth people say 'are you from Australia?'," he laughs.
"So I think we have Bluey to thank for putting our accent back on the map.
"And I'll never get over how funny it is to hear an American kid say 'dunny'."
Kids are the best audience
White is no stranger to the stage.
After fronting punk and heavy metal bands, he turned his attention to the theatre, studying in Toowoomba and at Queensland's Conservatorium in Brisbane.
His long list of credits includes Rent, Miss Saigon, and Jesus Christ Superstar.
But he says there's nothing quite like performing to an auditorium packed with pint-sized pundits.
"Kids are the best audiences. They don't lie," he explains.
"You can really tell if they are having a good time or not. They also are unafraid to express their joy at maximum volume, even in the quieter moments of the show!"
It's this innocent joy that makes it easy for White to get on the tour bus day after day.
"Post-pandemic, it's probably even more desired," he says.
"The fact that Bluey is so focused on physical and emotional resilience — and just playfulness and finding the joy in the everyday things of life — has made it so special."
Taking the show on the road
Even the gruelling schedule can't take the shine off White's heady showbiz life.
"We sleep on a tour bus up to four nights a week to maximise the amount of ground we can cover, then wake up in a new city," he says.
"The bus life is not always glamorous, but it makes me feel like a rockstar and that's something that I always wanted to do since I was really young.
"I feel lucky, and I reckon Bandit would love it."
Such is its popularity, the Bluey US tour has already been extended several times, so White has no idea when he'll set foot on home soil again.
"I think I'm going to ride the Bluey train — or bus — for as long as I can and then, who knows?" he says.
But after spending so long with a family of dogs, there's at least one show he's crossed off his list.
"I think Cats is out of the question," he laughed.
