Omigod you guys!

Like, Broadway turned blonde last night with the opening of 'Legally Blonde: The Musical,' a rad new show based on, like, a totally killer 2001 movie that you might have seen starring a total betty, Reese Witherspoon.

Um, OK, I'm actually annoying myself.

Valley Girl speak aside, this original musical is as bouncy as a beach ball and as sunny as Malibu (California, that is), and the show is as refreshingly sweet and funny as anything that's come down the Great White Way's pike in quite a long while.

In case you've inexplicably missed the movie (I'd be shocked if you did as this is a gay website, after all), the premise -- according to the show's press notes -- is simple: When Elle Woods' boyfriend dumps her for someone "serious," she puts down the credit card, hits the books and sets out to go where no Delta Nu has gone before: Harvard Law. Along the way, Elle proves that being true to yourself never goes out of style.

A few hours before the show opened last night, I was excited to brave the maze-like stairwells of Broadway's Palace Theatre and visit the dressing room of single-named Orfeh (one of the show's stars with a powerhouse voice) and her equally-talented husband, Andy Karl (who also stars in the musical). She plays Paulette, the manicurist with the heart of gold; he plays an assortment of hilarious characters and steals focus on more than one occasion. (Insider alert! If you visit Andy at the stage door after the show and utter the word "bonecake" to him, hilarity will seriously ensue. And tell him I sent'cha.)

Amid the nonstop well-wishers calling and the constant delivery of Opening Night gifts (I counted 162 in 45 minutes ... OK, I'm exaggerating, but not by much), I had a highly entertaining and friendly chat with the acting couple.

Read away, people!

Sanford Marcus: OK, first things first. Like Prince, Madonna and Cher, you only go by one name. How'd that happen?

Orfeh: Well, when I was going to school in New York City, there weren't any other Orfeh's in class, just Andy's and Michelle's. So when people called out my name, they would just call me Orfeh and it just stuck. And then I got a record deal and I had to join AFTRA [the union for entertainment industry professionals] and they just signed me up as Orfeh. In the music business, no one cared or batted an eye that I had one name, so I just went with it.

Sanford: Ah yes, the record deal. I did some research and discovered that you were a recording star with your group, 'Or-N-More.' This is what I read: Your group's self-titled Top 40 album and single 'Everyotherday' went gold and the single climbed to #1 on the club music charts --

Orfeh: -- actually, the single went platinum ... allegedly.

Sanford: Ha! My bad. But I read that your then-business manager ran away with your money. That sucks!

Orfeh: Our business manager didn't do the right thing with our money. Our parents didn't look at anything, and I was smart but, you know, I didn't know any better. I was really catatonic after it all happened. It was so hard for me to deal with. But I had to carry on, pick myself up and keep going. But it wasn't like I could go and do a desk job. By that time, I had already seen the world with the group and I had done things that no one my age had really done. Going back to a "normal" life wasn't going to happen. I had to grow up really quickly and I did.

I should have fought for another record deal, but I was really blindsided. And at the tail end of my pseudo-success, everything changed. All the big voiced white girls were going out of favor. At that point, it wasn't cool to resemble Madonna. My timing was just horrible: I was this little skinny white girl with a big, booming voice and there was nothing for me to do.

Sanford: What's interesting to me is that you morphed from a recording star to a theatre star ...

Orfeh: Actually, the theatre found me. When I was a recording artist, I had the best dancers; groups existed back then on how great your choreography and dancers were. I had four male dancers and two female dancers. And two of my guys – A.C. Ciulla and David Marquez – were my core. After the group ended, they kept dancing and teaching. And then A.C. ended up choreographing 'Footloose' on Broadway, and that's how I ended up in the theatre.

Sanford: OK, I was thinking we could do some "one name/one word association" with some of the shows you've been in. Ready?

Orfeh: Of course.

Sanford: OK. Your Broadway debut, 'Footloose' ...

Orfeh: Young!

Sanford: And then there was 'The Gershwins' Fascinating Rhythm,' which only ran for 17 performances ...

Orfeh: Brilliant!

Sanford: In-ter-e-sting. What about 'The Great American Trailer Park Musical'?

Orfeh: Exuberance!

Sanford: And how about 'Saturday Night Fever,' where you met your husband, Andy?

Orfeh: The beginning.

Sanford: OK, technically that's two words, but whatever. Speaking of Andy, he really is very hunky; his arms are the size of barbells.

Orfeh: He's beyond hunky. He's the hottest person I've ever met in my life. He's like Jeff Bridges in 'Against All Odds' – and I was looking for that guy! He's the guy who I always wanted to throw me down and have his way with me. Not to mention that's he's exceptionally handsome. And exceptionally talented; he really is a triple threat.

Sanford: And now you're both in 'Legally Blonde' together. How's that been?

Andy Karl: It's actually effortless. This is our fifth show together, but it's the first show where we're opposite each other in a lot of scenes. She's wildly talented, and I know some of her tricks when she's going with a moment on stage, and I just go with her.

Orfeh: Us together on stage is a like a great game of tennis going back and forth. And I can't think of another actor I'd want to work with. People think, "They can't be THAT into each other." But we are.

Andy: It's funny because I worked with one of the actors here in another show in Los Angeles, and she knew I was married ... but she didn't know who I was married to. When we started rehearsals for 'Blonde,' she saw Orfeh and me canoodling off to the side and she was getting upset because she knew I was married. But she didn't know Orfeh and I were married --

Orfeh: -- she was giving me shade. I was like, "Why does she hate me?"

Andy: But then she figured it out. It was pretty funny.

Sanford: So now you guys get to "bend and snap" together at work AND at home ...

Orfeh: We bend and snap more than eight times a week ... IF I'm not tired.

Sanford: I love it! In "Legally Blonde," you play Elle's manicurist and friend, Paulette, and you really do look like you're having a blast.

Orfeh: I really am. Paulette is a complete open-hearted innocent who's not bitter and not jaded. The thing I love about her is that, no matter what's happened to her, she remains optimistic and hopeful. She's completely open, which is why she can help someone like Elle, who has everything. What Elle DOESN'T have is a Paulette in her life.

Sanford: And in the show, you and Andy have a hilarious 'Riverdance'-like dance number ...

Orfeh: That was completely a figment of [Director] Jerry Mitchell's imagination --

Andy: -- and the day before we went in front of an audience, they wanted to cut the whole number.

Orfeh: But they didn't, thank God. And the audience loses their shit during that number. No matter what kind of audience it is – if they're quiet or not responding up to that point – they all of a sudden lose it with that number. It's pretty great.

Sanford: And you've been nominated for an Outer Critics' Circle Award AND a Drama Desk Award. You're the only "blonde" to score a double whammy!

Orfeh: I screamed so much after the Outer Critics nomination that I hurt my voice. I mean, my voice is built for belting, but not for screaming. I'm happy because with this role, it's not necessarily just about my singing, it's about the character, and I'm excited people notice it.

The thing is, when I did 'Saturday Night Fever,' everyone wanted me to write my speech for the Tony Awards before the nominations even came out. Rosie even said it on TV that I'd win the Tony. But I didn't even get a nomination. Now I know better. You don't do this work hoping someone rewards you. You do it for the audience. With live theatre, you get one shot with those people sitting in the theatre.

Sanford: The thing I appreciated about this musical was that I felt like, in a way, it spoke directly to gay men and women ...

Orfeh: I think gay audiences get it. The show's message is acceptance, and I think gay audiences enjoy and appreciate that.

Andy: When one of the characters announces he's gay in the show, the whole cast goes "Hooray!" Elle eventually finds acceptance with her peers as a lawyer and as a person of merit. And Paulette is this woman lost in the fray who thinks she'll never find love in her life. And when she finally does, she accepts it whole-heartedly. THAT'S the biggest message of the show. Jerry wanted acceptance for all the characters and, at the end of the show, they get it. Everything's OK no matter who you are. We think that's pretty cool.

Sanford: And off-topic, you were the tough 'Sex and the City' "we're going to beat the shit out of you" chick in the 'Post-It Always Sticks Twice' episode!

Orfeh: It's on tonight actually! How ridiculously ridiculous is that? I had a great time doing the show. All of the women were really nice. We were shooting for two days, 18 hours a day, for a scene that's probably 17 seconds long. The women were totally chatty and friendly ... and they fed us well.

Sanford: Omigod you guys! You have to get ready for your Opening Night. Good luck tonight! But before I go, I just need to say this, Orfeh: We, the gays, just love you.

Orfeh: Thank God!

Ah, a woman after my own heart!

For information and tickets to 'Legally Blonde: The Musical,' log on to www.legallyblondethemusical.com. (And do it QUICKLY. You won't be able to good grab seats after today.) To learn more about Orfeh and Andy, log on to their websites at www.Orfeh.com and www.AndyKarl.com.