David E. Steele/Disney/ABC
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When Hugh Jackman performed in his first musical, he got his feet wet -- literally. The Reel Steel star admits that he actually peed himself on stage while performing as Beauty and the Beast's Gaston in Melbourne, Australia, in 1996. In an interview airing Friday on The Rachael Ray Show, he tells the hilarious story.
"Gaston has red tights, knee high boots, and it's very physical," says Jackman, who turned 43 Wednesday. "I had headaches every day for two months. I went to an astropath (psychic), and he said, 'Well, you're dehydrated.' So of course (following his advice) I had four liters of water.
"I go down to the stage, getting ready for my first number... and I'm like, I really need to go again," the actor continues. "(The routine is) the most cardiovascular song I've ever done. Literally, I'm picking up Belle, and as I pick her up, I stopped singing and right in that moment I realized the muscles you need to release in order to sing are the ones you do not want to release if you need to go."
Having no choice but to urinate on stage, Jackman threw Belle over his shoulder -- with her whispering, "What's going on?" -- and skipped an entire verse in order to relieve himself!
A soggy Jackman went on with the show, showing a dedication that would eventually pay off in a Tony Award for the 2004 Broadway show The Boy From Oz. He'll soon be returning to the New York stage in a one-man song-and-dance show, Hugh Jackman: Back on Broadway. This time around, we doubt he'll be chugging water before curtain time; otherwise, he'll have to change the show's name to Singin' in the Rain!
