For all of the Breaking Bad superfans who watched the season finale with melancholy at the thought of the brilliant show’s demise, Miles Allen has answered your prayers. The actor has penned a “love letter” to the iconic program in the form of a one-man show called One Man Breaking Bad- The Unauthorized Parody. The show evolved from a YouTube video he made in which he portrayed a homeless man who, in return for a handout from a passerby, does a series of killer impressions of the cast. Allen’s impersonations of Walter White, Jesse Pinkman, Saul, Skyler, Hank, Mike, Gus and Walt Jr. are all part of his one-man show, which condenses 60 BB episodes (six seasons) into just a single hour. The result is a hilarious homage that is now touring across the U.S., and will make a stop at The Straz Sept. 17-19. CL recently chatted with Allen about how his love for Breaking Bad turned him into an overnight success.

CL: First of all, congratulations on the show and the tour! It looks completely hilarious.

Miles Allen: Thanks so much! It’s been a crazy ride!

In terms of the conception of One Man Breaking Bad, was it something you were thinking about while the series was airing and you were watching it? Or was it a response to the show ending?

Definitely happened towards the end of the series, when my YouTube video went viral, and I found out people really thought my impressions were good. So, I decided to put my impression skills and love for the show to good use and keep the Breaking Bad flame alive.

Which impersonation did you work on first?

The first one that I started doing was Jesse Pinkman. He is such a distinct character and very fun to imitate. And like most of my impressions, it made me want to learn more characters.

Did you initially garner attention when the homeless man video went viral? While you were making it, did you have any idea that the video would receive such a positive response, or lead to a one-man show?

It was so crazy, I was just sitting in my apartment in L.A., having just finished the penultimate episode of Breaking Bad with my buddies, and I was doing the impressions of the characters for them. They thought was hysterical, and then one of them came up with the idea to shoot the YouTube video. I thought, “Sure, some of our friends might find this funny.” So, they shot it the next day and uploaded it, and in less than 24 hours, I was getting calls from the Huffington Post and The Daily Beast. It was crazy. I had no idea that I would’ve gone viral because of this and subsequently have an internationally successful one-man comedy show from it either. I’ve been abundantly blessed by all of this.

You’ve said that Jesse Pinkman is your favorite character. Is he also your favorite to impersonate? Jesse seems like he’d be a lot of fun to perform…

YEAH BITCH! He was my first and still is my favorite. His personality is so much fun, and I love how he grows as a character throughout the series.

You have captured every character (comically, of course) down to their most minuscule mannerisms. Was there any specific attribute of a character that was tough for you to master?

Walt Jr. was definitely a difficult one in terms of the sensitivity of impersonating someone with CP (Cerebral Palsy). I wanted to make sure that people knew I was not at all mocking his condition, but rather treating him like I would any other character in the show. I truly believe to not include him in my show would be a greater act of discrimination for his disability, and the response towards my impressions has been overwhelmingly positive.

Having to condense 60 episodes, especially from a show where so much happens, into one hour…was the editing process stressful?

Excruciating. It’s so hard to cut out a single second of the greatest TV show of all time, but it had to be done.

You have a very cool relationship with your audience, and you meet most of them after a show. I assume that you’d attract mainly fans, but do you ever encounter people who aren’t very familiar with the show?

I am always shocked at just how many people come to my show and haven’t seen Breaking Bad yet. I’ve had folks come up to me after and say, “Your show was so great, I’m going to actually watch Breaking Bad now!” I would have honestly preferred the reverse, but whatever gets people addicted to Breaking Bad, that’s all that matters.

How much freedom do you give yourself to improvise during each performance?

Luckily, because it’s just me on stage, I can improvise as much as I want. I love playing with the audience and have things happen unexpectedly, that always keeps things interesting.

What has been the most rewarding part about touring with One Man Breaking Bad?

Getting to talk to and meet fellow Breaking BADdicts from all across the globe, and get to have them enjoy living through a comedic nostalgia trip as much, if not more, than I do.

Tell me a bit about your background – have you always veered towards comedic acting?

I first started doing impressions in middle school, and then at the encouragement of friends, I tried out for my first play in high school, and absolutely loved every second of it. And then I studied both theatre and film in college, which lead me to moving to Los Angeles where I did film, improv and sketch comedy. I’ve always had a great desire to make people laugh, and it’s a rare privilege to be able to do that for so many people with this platform.

Are you based in L.A. right now? What are your hopes for the future of One Man Breaking Bad?

Technically, I actually am homeless now! Oh, the irony. But, I guess, it’s a good kind of homeless. I’ve basically been living out of a suitcase since February because of how much this show’s been touring across the world. But, ultimately, after this show has eventually run it’s course, I’ll be heading back to L.A. to focus on sitcom and sketch comedy. But man, I’m definitely enjoying the ride this show is giving me.

One Man Breaking Bad- The Unauthorized Parody will appear at The Straz Center's Jaeb Theater Sept. 17-19 at 7:30 p.m., strazcenter.org. $39.

This article appears in Sep 3-9, 2015.