Thursday, October 1, 2026
It has been over a year since Rockville Centre native Shaun Taylor-Corbett spoke with the Rockville Centre Herald, and the Broadway actor has experienced much change in that time. A star in the musical “In the Heights” since its start off Broadway three years ago, Taylor-Corbett has set off to play the comic relief character of Sonny, one of the musical’s main roles.
The actor revealed that he loves to play Sonny and feels right at home in his stylish sneakers. “He’s a wise cracker and a truth teller,” he said of the character. “He’s cocky and arrogant with a good heart, but everybody humors him because it’s amusing to them and they love him.” Taylor-Corbett said that he plays the character honestly. “Every time I say one of his lines I try to really believe it,” he said.
Because Taylor-Corbett has been able to learn many of the roles of “In the Heights” as an understudy, he is able to understand Sonny more fully. “He is the hardest character to play in the show, because you have to put yourself out there on the line, and you have to commit to everything you do,” Taylor-Corbett said seriously. “I put all the parts of me that I think are weird or quirky into Sonny. I have to put them on display to the fullest level, and that’s when people believe me.”
Looking back on his childhood, Taylor-Corbett recalled his life in Rockville Centre fondly, but he did remember being teased through his years at South Side Middle School. “I looked different from most of my friends because I was a mix of different cultures,” he said. “People were either black or white and I was a mix of everything. Sometimes my height would come up,” he said laughing. “I was always very respectful and loving, and I would always make sure everyone was comfortable and very respectful to the girls.”
Taylor-Corbett’s respectful nature might have been a source of contention when he was a teenager, but he has gotten the last laugh. In March he proposed to his new wife Noemi, who also stars in “In the Heights.” The couple were married last Sunday — on Halloween — in Chappaqua, N.Y. “We had a nine piece salsa band,” Taylor-Corbett said of the wedding. “I’d say about 20 of our guests were ‘In the Heights’ cast members.”
Taylor-Corbett’s relationship with the cast of “In the Heights” is close, but he still finds time to return to his roots in Rockville Centre where his mother still lives in his childhood home. “I used to jump over the fence in front of my house and all of the kids that lived around the Links would too,” he remembered fondly. “Or we’d go to the golf course, or Hempstead Park, or hang out on Harvard [Avenue].”
Taylor-Corbett said he wasn’t a troublesome kid, but he did go through a rebellious phase. This period in his life also marked his first questions about his Native American heritage. “I remember I used to sit out on my roof and look up at the sky thinking, ‘What is this Native American thing all about?’ My mom took me to a reservation and introduced me to some great people, and it changed my mindset about who I was.”
Taylor-Corbett’s time at the reservation also inspired him to write a musical. To date he has completed 12 songs.
“After my last interview with the Rockville Centre Herald I went back to the reservation and stayed with the same wonderful people. We drove everywhere, and we talked about issues going on with the tribe,” he said. “I have such a sense of pride for the kids and for the culture. I saw these little kids and I wanted to help them.”
Planning a wedding and starring opposite American Idol winner Jordin Sparks in “In the Heights” has kept Taylor-Corbett busy, but he hopes to get back to work on his musical once life settles down. In the meantime, he is currently enjoying his place in the spotlight on Broadway.
“It’s every actor’s biggest dream to be on Broadway, and to play a principal role. You get all this incredible attention from the New York community seeing you,” he said. “There’s something about when you come onto that Broadway stage, and you feel the responsibility to uphold the level and the quality that the other actors have been upholding there.”
