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The emo icon gets candid — from dressing up as Julie Andrews and almost getting kicked out of his Mormon parents' house to opening up about being sexually fluid

Sex, Drugs and Show Tunes: Panic! at the Disco's Brendon Urie Talks His Unconventional Road to Kinky Boots Stardom

PEOPLE caught up with the pop-punk star, 30, who plays Charlie Price in the Tony-winning musical in New York through Aug. 6.

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You just made your Broadway debut in Kinky Boots. Were you a theater nerd in high school?

All my friends were in theater; I was just the stoner that built the sets, backstage smoking a joint, like, “I made your castle wall!”

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Do you remember your first musical?

I grew up watching my mom’s VHS tapes of musicals. I wanted to be Julie Andrews in Sound of Music. I remember dressing up like her in the ugliest dress I could make out of curtains and singing, “Doe, a deer!”

What was your experience with stilettos before joining this production?

I’ve worn heels since I was, like, 5. The ones I wear in the show are actually so comfy. I have to act like I’m bumbling around, but I’ve never felt more right in my life.

Image zoom Matthew Murphy/Kinky Boots Broadway

You’ve opened up about experimenting with your sexuality. Why did you want to speak publicly about sexual fluidity?

It doesn’t freak me out. Why does it matter who I’m f—ing? I’ve gotten so many amazing letters and tweets from fans saying, “I didn’t have the courage to tell my parents, but I had you to fall back on.” I want to create a support system.

Image zoom Pete Wentz and pal Brendon Urie in 2006.

Your parents are conservative Mormons. What do they think of your rocker life?

When I told them I wasn’t going to college or on a Mormon mission, that I don’t believe in God and I was pursuing music, they were like, “You’ve gotta move out.” They cooled off, and when we made our first Panic! at the Disco album, I got a care package from my family with this beautiful letter: “No matter what, we will always love you.”

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For more on Brendon Urie, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE on newsstands everywhere now.

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