In Touring 'The Cher Show.' Tyler Pirrung Plays Superstar's Go-to Costume Designer Bob Mackie

In a time when jukebox stage musicals that draw on an artist's catalogue and serve as bios of iconic singers-songwriters and musical acts have become commonplace – think "Jersey Boys," about The Four Seasons, "Ring of Fire" about Johnny Cash, "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical," or the Neil Diamond-centered "A Beautiful Noise," to name just a few – it takes a true icon to stand apart from the rest.

Enter "The Cher Show," which traces the career and musical evolution of one of gay fandom's most beloved entertainers. Boasting a book by Rick Elice, and featuring hits from across Cher's career with onetime husband Sonny Bono ("All I Ever Need is You," "The Beat Goes On," "I Got You, Babe,") and her solo career ("Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves," "If I Could Turn Back Time," "Believe"), the show includes three different iterations of Cher from across the decades: Babe, Lady, and Star, each of them a personification of a personal and professional era.

"The Cher Show" enjoyed a 2018-2019 Broadway run of nearly 300 performances (and 34 previews), then saw a touring production in the UK in 2022-23. The current American tour, though delayed by the COVID pandemic, got underway this past November and is ongoing. The show arrives in Boston, where it will play four shows across three days at the Boch Center on March 15, 16, and 17.

Cast member Tyer Pirrung plays several roles in the production, including that of fashion designer Bob Mackie, whose dazzling list of accomplishments include helping design Marilyn Monroe's "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" dress, costumes for two Mitzi Gaynor TV specials (each of which earned Mackie an Emmy), and concert costumes for Whitney Houston. But the celebrity Mackie is most associated with is Cher, whom he first met in 1967 on "The Carol Burnett Story." He has been designing for her ever since; most recently for her dazzling looks for her Caesar's Palace Vegas residency and "Dressed to Kill" tour. And in a full-circle meta twist, Mackie also designed the costumes for the Broadway run of "The Cher Show" – costumes that won Mackie a Tony that are used in the touring production.

"The Cher Show" is the 29-year-old actor's first tour. EDGE caught up with Tyler Pirrung to hear about playing the famed designer, what it was like the night Mackie himself showed up to see a performance, and what songs and styles Pirrung most adores.

EDGE: Were you already a Cher fan when you when you went up to audition for this part?

Tyler Pirrung: I was a fan of her very well-known songs, "Believe" and "If I Could Turn Back Time," and I'd seen a couple of her movies; but I wasn't, like, a die-hard fan. But my parents are big Cher fans. My mom, especially, talked about growing up watching the "Sonny and Cher Show" with her parents.

EDGE: "The Cher Show" was a Broadway hit. What has the response been from the audiences on tour so far?

Tyler Pirrung: Oh my gosh, it has been absolutely incredible. We've had so many sold out shows, and audiences are absolutely loving it. So much of the way the show is built is that it feels like you're at a concert, with the lighting and the set design and the costumes and the choreography. At the end of the show is a six-minute-long mega mix of all Cher's hit songs, and it's just so fun.

EDGE: This is your first touring show. What's it been like, as opposed to being in one place for a while?

Tyler Pirrung: So much of being an actor is being a nomad – like, we're always moving, we're always hustling. The number one thing a lot of people don't necessarily jive with on a tour is how much moving around you do. You're living out of a suitcase. But I have actually loved it. It keeps things fresh. You don't really have a routine so, everything's kind of new and exciting every day.

EDGE: Is it hard to be apart from your family for so long?

Tyler Pirrung: Yeah, it definitely is. But we get breaks every couple months or so, where we're able to go home. And, of course, with phone calls and FaceTime it's easy to keep in contact and stay in touch.