1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:02,042 --> 00:00:03,584 [TV static drones] 3 00:00:03,667 --> 00:00:06,000 [bright tone] 4 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 5 00:00:13,000 --> 00:00:15,542 - [groans] 6 00:00:15,626 --> 00:00:18,626 It's been a long, hard year, y'all. 7 00:00:18,709 --> 00:00:20,792 A long, hard year. 8 00:00:20,876 --> 00:00:22,918 Couldn't go to bars, 9 00:00:23,000 --> 00:00:24,751 couldn't hit up the clubs, 10 00:00:24,834 --> 00:00:27,751 liquor stores close all early. 11 00:00:27,834 --> 00:00:30,417 Just stuck in the house eating snacks, 12 00:00:30,500 --> 00:00:33,167 bored out my goddamn mind. 13 00:00:33,250 --> 00:00:34,709 If y'all know what I'm talking about, 14 00:00:34,792 --> 00:00:36,375 let me hear you say, "Hell, yeah." 15 00:00:36,459 --> 00:00:37,709 all: Hell, yeah. 16 00:00:37,792 --> 00:00:39,417 - So can you blame me for wanting to get 17 00:00:39,500 --> 00:00:41,709 with Madam Page and Madam Ford? 18 00:00:41,792 --> 00:00:45,000 Huh? Them some merry wives, man. 19 00:00:45,083 --> 00:00:46,751 Just as fine as they want to be, right? 20 00:00:46,834 --> 00:00:48,083 Beautiful, right? 21 00:00:48,167 --> 00:00:50,125 I mean, look, if y'all know what I'm talking about 22 00:00:50,209 --> 00:00:52,334 and you feel for me, let me hear you say, 23 00:00:52,417 --> 00:00:54,626 "We feel you, Falstaff!" 24 00:00:54,709 --> 00:00:57,125 all: We feel you, Falstaff! 25 00:00:57,209 --> 00:00:59,125 - Thank you! [laughter] 26 00:00:59,209 --> 00:01:01,792 - Here is the twin of thy letter. 27 00:01:01,876 --> 00:01:04,292 [intriguing orchestral music] 28 00:01:04,375 --> 00:01:06,417 - No! - Mm. 29 00:01:06,500 --> 00:01:08,792 If he come under my hatches, hey! 30 00:01:08,876 --> 00:01:10,542 I would sink. - Because he's so big. 31 00:01:10,626 --> 00:01:14,250 [both laugh] 32 00:01:14,334 --> 00:01:17,083 [both sigh shrilly] 33 00:01:17,167 --> 00:01:20,125 - We lived a time when we were pushed inside. 34 00:01:20,209 --> 00:01:24,167 Not a hug or held hand was felt worldwide. 35 00:01:24,250 --> 00:01:27,667 Spirits, guide us in this time anew, 36 00:01:27,751 --> 00:01:31,000 when we recognize a reckoning due, 37 00:01:31,083 --> 00:01:33,959 for our hues and lives matter. 38 00:01:34,042 --> 00:01:35,500 Full stop. 39 00:01:35,584 --> 00:01:39,000 [cheers and applause] 40 00:01:39,083 --> 00:01:42,542 Spirits! 41 00:01:42,626 --> 00:01:49,542 ♪ ♪ 42 00:01:57,959 --> 00:02:00,834 [gentle orchestral music] 43 00:02:00,918 --> 00:02:07,959 ♪ ♪ 44 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:26,417 - [sighs] 45 00:02:27,959 --> 00:02:30,834 These are all playbill albums, full. 46 00:02:30,918 --> 00:02:35,167 And then there's some more over there. 47 00:02:35,250 --> 00:02:39,125 These up here-- [laughs] 48 00:02:39,209 --> 00:02:41,876 All of these on the top are Black shows, you know-- 49 00:02:41,959 --> 00:02:44,167 [laughs] Not that I don't care 50 00:02:44,250 --> 00:02:47,792 about the others, but I just wanted to categorize. 51 00:02:47,876 --> 00:02:51,918 And I don't have them in order of, like, 52 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:54,709 who--you know, which ones are important or anything. 53 00:02:54,792 --> 00:02:56,459 Oh, there's my play! 54 00:02:56,542 --> 00:03:00,417 Look at that. Yay, "School Girls." 55 00:03:00,500 --> 00:03:02,292 I never thought I'd get here. 56 00:03:02,375 --> 00:03:04,584 I never thought I'd have a office. 57 00:03:04,667 --> 00:03:06,250 [laughs] 58 00:03:06,334 --> 00:03:08,876 I never thought I'd have a lot of things. 59 00:03:08,959 --> 00:03:11,375 Truly, truly. I'm not one of those people 60 00:03:11,459 --> 00:03:13,918 who are like, "It was always in my sights." 61 00:03:14,000 --> 00:03:17,167 It was in my sights, but it never felt like a reality. 62 00:03:17,250 --> 00:03:20,834 Almost every story that centers around Black people 63 00:03:20,918 --> 00:03:23,959 is about pain, is about some sort of struggle, 64 00:03:24,042 --> 00:03:26,083 is about overcoming. 65 00:03:26,167 --> 00:03:27,542 And that's not to say that 66 00:03:27,626 --> 00:03:30,626 that's not what my shows are about either. 67 00:03:30,709 --> 00:03:31,834 They're overcoming something. 68 00:03:31,918 --> 00:03:34,918 That's, you know, kind of the purpose of a story is, like, 69 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:38,250 to show somebody moving through some sort of adversity, 70 00:03:38,334 --> 00:03:40,626 but being told in a lens 71 00:03:40,709 --> 00:03:42,834 that feels like you can enjoy it, 72 00:03:42,918 --> 00:03:46,250 that it's not going to, like, bring your spirit down, 73 00:03:46,334 --> 00:03:48,334 we don't have enough of those stories. 74 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,167 - You know, the summer of 2020, 75 00:03:53,250 --> 00:03:56,209 as I was gearing up to do "Richard II," 76 00:03:56,292 --> 00:03:58,083 George Floyd was murdered the week 77 00:03:58,167 --> 00:03:59,792 before our first rehearsal. 78 00:03:59,876 --> 00:04:02,918 And it really, really made theater feel, 79 00:04:03,000 --> 00:04:04,792 like, so unimportant. 80 00:04:04,876 --> 00:04:06,626 It made it feel, like, 81 00:04:06,709 --> 00:04:08,250 so frivolous, you know. 82 00:04:08,334 --> 00:04:10,626 It was like, in this moment when we're talking 83 00:04:10,709 --> 00:04:12,834 about the racial reckoning in this country 84 00:04:12,918 --> 00:04:14,626 and Black lives, 85 00:04:14,709 --> 00:04:17,000 like, should we be doing Shakespeare? 86 00:04:17,083 --> 00:04:20,542 And as a community, as a collective, 87 00:04:20,626 --> 00:04:23,667 we decided that, you know, art and activism 88 00:04:23,751 --> 00:04:25,167 can actually live side by side. 89 00:04:25,250 --> 00:04:29,167 Finding "Merry Wives," finding a way in that-- 90 00:04:29,250 --> 00:04:31,834 where the concept was about Black joy, 91 00:04:31,918 --> 00:04:34,083 that happened because of last summer. 92 00:04:34,167 --> 00:04:36,292 That happened because of George Floyd being murdered. 93 00:04:36,375 --> 00:04:38,792 That happened because of COVID, you know? 94 00:04:38,876 --> 00:04:42,042 All these things led to this production. 95 00:04:42,125 --> 00:04:43,459 - Thank you, folks. We are back. 96 00:04:43,542 --> 00:04:45,500 We are officially back. Thank you. 97 00:04:45,584 --> 00:04:48,167 [intriguing orchestral music] 98 00:04:48,250 --> 00:04:53,375 ♪ ♪ 99 00:04:53,459 --> 00:04:57,000 - This is the public theater costume storage. 100 00:04:57,083 --> 00:04:59,250 It's archival, but it's also active. 101 00:05:00,959 --> 00:05:04,042 This was--Denzel Washington did a "Richard III" 102 00:05:04,125 --> 00:05:05,626 at the Delacorte. 103 00:05:05,709 --> 00:05:08,751 And this is Patrick Stewart from "Tempest." 104 00:05:10,500 --> 00:05:12,751 A couple of "Twelfth Nights," 105 00:05:12,834 --> 00:05:16,626 this is what Anne Hathaway gets washed up onstage in. 106 00:05:16,709 --> 00:05:19,459 Al Pacino's "Merchant of Venice" 107 00:05:19,542 --> 00:05:21,584 with Lily Rabe. 108 00:05:21,667 --> 00:05:25,167 My first show that I saw in New York in 1975 109 00:05:25,250 --> 00:05:27,709 when I moved here was "Trelawny of the 'Wells'" 110 00:05:27,792 --> 00:05:30,959 with a new actress named Meryl Streep. 111 00:05:31,042 --> 00:05:34,209 And these were her debut costumes 112 00:05:34,292 --> 00:05:36,626 in "Trelawny of the 'Wells'" 113 00:05:36,709 --> 00:05:38,918 It's like the history of the Shakespeare Festival 114 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:40,334 all in one corner. 115 00:05:42,918 --> 00:05:45,751 So all of this stuff in normal times 116 00:05:45,834 --> 00:05:48,375 would've been put away, 117 00:05:48,459 --> 00:05:52,167 put back on the rails for future use. 118 00:05:52,250 --> 00:05:55,292 But when we all went home, this stopped. 119 00:05:55,375 --> 00:05:57,792 So now we've got to get caught up. 120 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:02,709 I remember being stunned when Vanessa, 121 00:06:02,792 --> 00:06:04,834 my associate, came in and said, 122 00:06:04,918 --> 00:06:07,375 "They've just shut the city down." 123 00:06:07,459 --> 00:06:09,876 And I kept saying to her, "What do you mean? 124 00:06:09,959 --> 00:06:12,209 You can't shut New York down." 125 00:06:12,292 --> 00:06:14,626 And she just goes, "Yeah, we all have to go home." 126 00:06:17,083 --> 00:06:18,751 [car horn honks] 127 00:06:23,584 --> 00:06:25,334 - [sighs] 128 00:06:39,042 --> 00:06:41,167 [grunts] 129 00:06:43,876 --> 00:06:46,125 March 2020 for me 130 00:06:46,209 --> 00:06:48,959 was like the first episode of "Walking Dead," 131 00:06:49,042 --> 00:06:51,417 because I went into the hospital 132 00:06:51,500 --> 00:06:53,167 on March 10th with COVID, 133 00:06:53,250 --> 00:06:55,792 and when I came out, the theater had closed. 134 00:06:55,876 --> 00:06:58,792 [soft dramatic music] 135 00:06:58,876 --> 00:07:02,584 ♪ ♪ 136 00:07:02,667 --> 00:07:05,209 It started to feel like this is apocalyptic. 137 00:07:05,292 --> 00:07:08,459 [insects chirping] 138 00:07:09,918 --> 00:07:13,083 And I think when George Floyd was murdered, 139 00:07:13,167 --> 00:07:17,459 that was psychically a bigger deal than even the pandemic. 140 00:07:20,876 --> 00:07:23,751 We are recognizing our weaknesses 141 00:07:23,834 --> 00:07:26,167 and the ways that we have failed our community. 142 00:07:26,250 --> 00:07:27,500 - Hands up! all: Don't shoot! 143 00:07:27,584 --> 00:07:29,959 - Hands up! all: Don't shoot! 144 00:07:30,042 --> 00:07:33,125 - This is fundamentally a democratic theater, 145 00:07:33,209 --> 00:07:36,792 and the culture belongs to everybody. 146 00:07:36,876 --> 00:07:39,834 And that's both everybody should get to see it, 147 00:07:39,918 --> 00:07:43,876 everybody should get to watch it and receive it, 148 00:07:43,959 --> 00:07:46,083 but also everybody should get to make it. 149 00:07:46,167 --> 00:07:50,250 - So this is the space where we'll be rehearsing. 150 00:07:50,334 --> 00:07:55,542 These are, like, the, like, temporary set pieces. 151 00:07:55,626 --> 00:07:58,375 So all the walls and the turntable, 152 00:07:58,459 --> 00:07:59,459 they're actually to scale, 153 00:07:59,542 --> 00:08:01,000 so this is the actual size. 154 00:08:01,083 --> 00:08:01,959 The thing about the space-- 155 00:08:02,042 --> 00:08:04,500 I grew up in Nairobi 156 00:08:04,584 --> 00:08:07,375 until I was in my early 20s. 157 00:08:07,459 --> 00:08:09,334 I moved to the U.S. for college. 158 00:08:09,417 --> 00:08:10,500 Front of it. 159 00:08:10,584 --> 00:08:12,542 And then this is Falstaff's bedroom on that side-- 160 00:08:12,626 --> 00:08:14,667 I came as a computer science major, 161 00:08:14,751 --> 00:08:16,709 and I switched my major to theater. 162 00:08:16,792 --> 00:08:17,834 I didn't tell my parents, 163 00:08:17,918 --> 00:08:19,709 because they were not gonna approve of that. 164 00:08:19,792 --> 00:08:22,584 We're on page 79. 165 00:08:22,667 --> 00:08:24,417 It was just undeniable. 166 00:08:24,500 --> 00:08:27,083 Like, that was the thing that I had to do. 167 00:08:30,417 --> 00:08:34,292 So, yeah, this is the model of "Merry Wives." 168 00:08:34,375 --> 00:08:37,000 You know, the stores are below and their apartments are above, 169 00:08:37,083 --> 00:08:39,375 Like, that's a very, like, New York thing. 170 00:08:39,459 --> 00:08:41,626 You know, where I'm from, life is not like this. 171 00:08:41,709 --> 00:08:44,042 So it feels like such a beautiful, 172 00:08:44,125 --> 00:08:46,876 like, slice of New York City. 173 00:08:46,959 --> 00:08:48,834 Very first time when I was reading the script, 174 00:08:48,918 --> 00:08:51,542 the first image that came to my mind was these two women 175 00:08:51,626 --> 00:08:52,751 in a braiding salon, 176 00:08:52,834 --> 00:08:54,042 'cause it's the two wives, 177 00:08:54,125 --> 00:08:55,876 and they're getting these letters from Falstaff, 178 00:08:55,959 --> 00:08:59,250 and I was, like, hearing the West African dialect 179 00:08:59,334 --> 00:09:00,667 and just picturing these two women 180 00:09:00,751 --> 00:09:02,125 getting their hair braided and, like, 181 00:09:02,209 --> 00:09:04,167 exchanging letters, and I was like, wow. 182 00:09:04,250 --> 00:09:05,959 That's, like, it, that-- 'cause I was looking 183 00:09:06,042 --> 00:09:09,250 for the concept, I was looking for the way in which 184 00:09:09,334 --> 00:09:13,334 this was going to feel, like, unique and contemporary 185 00:09:13,417 --> 00:09:15,959 but also a world that I find hilarious. 186 00:09:16,042 --> 00:09:17,250 Because when I read the play, 187 00:09:17,334 --> 00:09:18,417 I just heard it with those dialects, 188 00:09:18,500 --> 00:09:20,500 and I was like, this is so much funnier, 189 00:09:20,584 --> 00:09:23,667 when it's in, like, a Nigerian or a Ghanian accent. 190 00:09:23,751 --> 00:09:25,751 So we're in a corner of New York, 191 00:09:25,834 --> 00:09:28,667 and there's a turntable here 192 00:09:28,751 --> 00:09:31,250 so that we can kind of switch locations 193 00:09:31,334 --> 00:09:34,334 from time to time, so this rotates... 194 00:09:35,834 --> 00:09:39,167 Into what's-- this is Falstaff's bedroom. 195 00:09:43,167 --> 00:09:44,667 And then when it rotates to this side, 196 00:09:44,751 --> 00:09:46,167 you have the laundromat. 197 00:09:46,250 --> 00:09:48,459 And we're gonna get, like, actual laundry machines 198 00:09:48,542 --> 00:09:51,209 that, like, can actually spin around. 199 00:09:51,292 --> 00:09:52,876 I think it would be funny. We're gonna try and get, like, 200 00:09:52,959 --> 00:09:55,250 Falstaff to, like, go in and hide-- 201 00:09:55,334 --> 00:09:58,000 try and hide when the husbands are coming in, 202 00:09:58,083 --> 00:10:00,000 in one of the laundry machines. 203 00:10:00,083 --> 00:10:02,000 And it's kind of green and white, 204 00:10:02,083 --> 00:10:03,209 because the Fords are Nigerian, 205 00:10:03,292 --> 00:10:05,042 and Nigerians are very proud of their colors. 206 00:10:05,125 --> 00:10:06,876 Like, their flag, like, you know, they-- 207 00:10:06,959 --> 00:10:09,375 they, like, plaster that shit everywhere. 208 00:10:09,459 --> 00:10:12,500 Beowulf and I really wanted to give a sense 209 00:10:12,584 --> 00:10:14,626 of a street in Manhattan. 210 00:10:14,709 --> 00:10:17,459 So just the sense of architecture, the buildings, 211 00:10:17,542 --> 00:10:19,334 the way the street corners are, 212 00:10:19,417 --> 00:10:21,626 so we feel like we're in New York. 213 00:10:23,125 --> 00:10:25,751 - We spent, like, endless days just kind of biking around 214 00:10:25,834 --> 00:10:27,751 just to look at the buildings and see what is specific 215 00:10:27,834 --> 00:10:30,042 and different from, you know, Central Park West... 216 00:10:30,125 --> 00:10:31,209 - Yeah. - Or the Upper East Side 217 00:10:31,292 --> 00:10:32,918 or wherever. 218 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:35,542 We've got these details that are pulled very specifically 219 00:10:35,626 --> 00:10:36,751 from the neighborhood... 220 00:10:36,834 --> 00:10:38,500 - Mm-hmm. - To reference the reality 221 00:10:38,584 --> 00:10:40,250 of New York in 2021. 222 00:10:41,500 --> 00:10:43,000 How do I show that? - Mm. 223 00:10:43,083 --> 00:10:44,876 - The sense of the old and the new 224 00:10:44,959 --> 00:10:46,876 and these different cultures that are coming together 225 00:10:46,959 --> 00:10:48,459 to make this kind of New York block 226 00:10:48,542 --> 00:10:49,834 in this New York neighborhood. - Right. 227 00:10:49,918 --> 00:10:52,792 [soft dramatic music] 228 00:10:52,876 --> 00:10:59,834 ♪ ♪ 229 00:10:59,918 --> 00:11:02,042 - A favorite New York City tradition halted 230 00:11:02,125 --> 00:11:05,167 during the pandemic is planning a comeback this summer. 231 00:11:05,250 --> 00:11:09,500 - I am happy to say the bard is back in Central Park. 232 00:11:09,584 --> 00:11:11,667 [tool motor revving] 233 00:11:11,751 --> 00:11:14,584 Shakespeare in the Park is the epitome 234 00:11:14,667 --> 00:11:16,167 of the New York ideal. 235 00:11:17,667 --> 00:11:21,918 And no place represents all of us more 236 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:25,042 than right here where we are, the Delacorte Theater. 237 00:11:27,000 --> 00:11:29,876 For this to be coming back 238 00:11:29,959 --> 00:11:32,792 is a great harbinger of better things to come 239 00:11:32,876 --> 00:11:34,459 in New York City. 240 00:11:40,292 --> 00:11:41,334 - Hands on. 241 00:11:41,417 --> 00:11:43,334 - For laughing together, for crying together, 242 00:11:43,417 --> 00:11:46,459 for getting sunburned waiting in line together. 243 00:11:46,542 --> 00:11:50,751 This collective experience is what makes New York special. 244 00:11:50,834 --> 00:11:53,334 - We're excited to fill this theater with laughter, 245 00:11:53,417 --> 00:11:56,500 with radical Black joy, and to celebrate the rich diversity 246 00:11:56,584 --> 00:11:58,334 that New York City has to offer. 247 00:12:00,709 --> 00:12:03,834 [indistinct chatter] 248 00:12:06,042 --> 00:12:07,792 - I think next to both of the movers 249 00:12:07,876 --> 00:12:10,834 is gonna be the best decision. 250 00:12:10,918 --> 00:12:12,542 - Yeah. 251 00:12:18,167 --> 00:12:20,417 - Hold there. both: Holding. 252 00:12:27,167 --> 00:12:28,918 - Can you imagine? There's gonna be people here. 253 00:12:29,000 --> 00:12:31,000 [laughs] 254 00:12:33,876 --> 00:12:35,334 - Is Falstaff here? 255 00:12:35,417 --> 00:12:38,000 - Fe--fe--fe--fe--him? - Yes! 256 00:12:38,083 --> 00:12:40,000 - "Merry Wives" is a comedy. 257 00:12:40,083 --> 00:12:43,167 This character gets up to all sorts of antics. 258 00:12:43,250 --> 00:12:46,876 He's trying to seduce these two women, the merry wives, 259 00:12:46,959 --> 00:12:48,709 who discover his plot. 260 00:12:48,792 --> 00:12:50,542 - Who does he think he's fooling? 261 00:12:50,626 --> 00:12:51,959 - Me, I know not. 262 00:12:52,042 --> 00:12:55,959 - Let our wives yet once again, to make us public sport. 263 00:12:56,042 --> 00:12:57,876 - Falstaff in our production is played 264 00:12:57,959 --> 00:13:01,167 by the extraordinary Jacob Ming-Trent. 265 00:13:01,250 --> 00:13:04,542 - So can you blame me for checking out Madam Page 266 00:13:04,626 --> 00:13:06,459 and Madam Ford, you know? 267 00:13:06,542 --> 00:13:08,125 These are some merry wives, man. 268 00:13:08,209 --> 00:13:09,500 You feel me? 269 00:13:09,584 --> 00:13:12,042 - It just felt really, really important to me 270 00:13:12,125 --> 00:13:13,834 to not only create opportunities 271 00:13:13,918 --> 00:13:17,042 for these actors, to show this community onstage. 272 00:13:17,125 --> 00:13:19,375 Like, a Black, immigrant community in New York 273 00:13:19,459 --> 00:13:22,083 at the Delacorte being uplifted in this way. 274 00:13:22,167 --> 00:13:23,709 To me, there's something beautiful 275 00:13:23,792 --> 00:13:25,459 and subversive about that. 276 00:13:25,542 --> 00:13:29,751 - Wives may be merry, and yet honest, too. 277 00:13:29,834 --> 00:13:32,334 [birds chirping] 278 00:13:47,000 --> 00:13:49,000 - Watch your feeties. - Hands on the back. 279 00:13:49,083 --> 00:13:50,500 Hands up. - Got it. 280 00:13:50,584 --> 00:13:52,500 - One, two, three. 281 00:13:54,709 --> 00:13:55,876 Relax. 282 00:13:59,459 --> 00:14:01,083 I like that. 283 00:14:01,167 --> 00:14:03,334 We usually start prepping 284 00:14:03,417 --> 00:14:06,918 and opening up the Delacorte in March. 285 00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:09,125 We had just started and just ordered all of the material 286 00:14:09,209 --> 00:14:11,918 to begin our build, we had all the plans ready. 287 00:14:12,000 --> 00:14:13,751 And they told us to go home. 288 00:14:13,834 --> 00:14:16,876 So everything was just kind of 289 00:14:16,959 --> 00:14:18,375 weatherized and sitting here 290 00:14:18,459 --> 00:14:20,334 waiting, um... 291 00:14:21,792 --> 00:14:23,626 For a year. 292 00:14:23,709 --> 00:14:27,083 And then when we came back, it was a whole new set design, 293 00:14:27,167 --> 00:14:28,918 so we had to start from scratch. 294 00:14:33,709 --> 00:14:35,542 Off the record, we are way behind. 295 00:14:35,626 --> 00:14:37,876 [laughs] 296 00:14:38,959 --> 00:14:40,834 The performance date, the opening night, 297 00:14:40,918 --> 00:14:42,792 that date never changes, 298 00:14:42,876 --> 00:14:45,959 so it's always kind of a scramble. 299 00:14:46,042 --> 00:14:49,292 That's, I guess, part of the excitement of theater. 300 00:14:49,375 --> 00:14:51,500 - One, two, three. 301 00:14:51,584 --> 00:14:54,292 [cheerful marimba music] 302 00:14:54,375 --> 00:14:56,000 - When I tell people that I work 303 00:14:56,083 --> 00:14:57,626 on Shakespeare in the Park, they have this image 304 00:14:57,709 --> 00:15:00,292 of just sitting on a blanket and a rolling hill 305 00:15:00,375 --> 00:15:02,292 and there being some sort of meadow 306 00:15:02,375 --> 00:15:03,626 in which Shakespeare happens. 307 00:15:03,709 --> 00:15:07,250 So I think the fact that it exists in this physical space 308 00:15:07,334 --> 00:15:09,209 is sometimes a surprise for folks. 309 00:15:10,709 --> 00:15:13,584 - Working outside is a slow process. 310 00:15:13,667 --> 00:15:15,584 We're working in the middle of Central Park. 311 00:15:15,667 --> 00:15:18,667 It's not like working downtown, where you have, 312 00:15:18,751 --> 00:15:21,334 like, ample supplies and materials and tools. 313 00:15:21,417 --> 00:15:23,167 Like, we bring up what we need. 314 00:15:23,250 --> 00:15:25,542 The problems are so unique to, like, that space-- 315 00:15:25,626 --> 00:15:27,000 and I'm supposed to take a left here, 316 00:15:27,083 --> 00:15:28,125 and I don't think I can do that. 317 00:15:28,209 --> 00:15:29,709 [honks horn] Go. 318 00:15:29,792 --> 00:15:32,000 Yeah, and, like, you know, wood warps 319 00:15:32,083 --> 00:15:34,167 when it's outside, it gets wet. 320 00:15:34,250 --> 00:15:35,792 So things that we make now, 321 00:15:35,876 --> 00:15:37,876 three days from now might get wet. 322 00:15:37,959 --> 00:15:39,834 And then we'll have different problems to solve 323 00:15:39,918 --> 00:15:41,417 once the wood has absorbed some water. 324 00:15:41,500 --> 00:15:42,626 [laughs] 325 00:15:42,709 --> 00:15:45,709 - We're constantly contending with the elements 326 00:15:45,792 --> 00:15:49,083 and raccoons, weather. 327 00:15:49,167 --> 00:15:50,626 Anything that can happen in a park, 328 00:15:50,709 --> 00:15:53,292 we've probably experienced it at the Delacorte. 329 00:15:56,042 --> 00:15:57,959 - This is exactly what I thought I was gonna be doing 330 00:15:58,042 --> 00:16:00,083 when I got that theater degree. 331 00:16:00,167 --> 00:16:02,626 Just carrying heavy things through the park 332 00:16:02,709 --> 00:16:04,959 among strangers going like, 333 00:16:05,042 --> 00:16:07,125 "Hey, how do you get to the turtle pond?" 334 00:16:09,167 --> 00:16:11,417 "You know where the bathroom is?" 335 00:16:11,500 --> 00:16:12,959 Oh, my God. 336 00:16:15,250 --> 00:16:18,250 We're very limited by the amount 337 00:16:18,334 --> 00:16:20,375 of covered space we have. 338 00:16:20,459 --> 00:16:23,876 We've got cable runs everywhere, tools down here. 339 00:16:23,959 --> 00:16:26,334 It looks like a million bucks out there, 340 00:16:26,417 --> 00:16:28,083 you know, Meryl Streep's on the stage, 341 00:16:28,167 --> 00:16:30,000 but under here, it's-- 342 00:16:30,083 --> 00:16:31,167 it's just under risers. 343 00:16:31,250 --> 00:16:33,375 There's nothing special about it, nothing flashy. 344 00:16:33,459 --> 00:16:35,250 We just got to get super creative 345 00:16:35,334 --> 00:16:38,292 using every single inch of storage, 346 00:16:38,375 --> 00:16:39,834 especially this year. 347 00:16:39,918 --> 00:16:42,709 You can see some of the wiring-- 348 00:16:42,792 --> 00:16:45,250 raccoons love this stuff. 349 00:16:45,334 --> 00:16:46,959 They love to be just, like, up in here, 350 00:16:47,042 --> 00:16:49,626 especially when these machines get on a little hot. 351 00:16:49,709 --> 00:16:52,292 This is the lighting shop. 352 00:16:52,375 --> 00:16:54,584 And everything in here has to get loaded in. 353 00:16:54,667 --> 00:16:58,417 We take everything out-- every cable, every wire, 354 00:16:58,500 --> 00:17:01,667 the stage, the truss, the sets. 355 00:17:01,751 --> 00:17:04,667 Like, all of this has to get reloaded in. 356 00:17:04,751 --> 00:17:06,584 Coming this way... 357 00:17:07,792 --> 00:17:10,542 Let me show you the dressing rooms. 358 00:17:10,626 --> 00:17:13,292 But, like, here's the-- 359 00:17:13,375 --> 00:17:16,417 I guess, the Gate One... 360 00:17:18,792 --> 00:17:20,375 Like, book. 361 00:17:20,459 --> 00:17:22,417 Like, the rounds that the security made, 362 00:17:22,500 --> 00:17:24,751 and you can see... 363 00:17:24,834 --> 00:17:28,834 it just sort of stops, 3/12/2020, 364 00:17:28,918 --> 00:17:31,375 3/16/20, 365 00:17:31,459 --> 00:17:34,959 and then we just stop, right, then it's just... 366 00:17:35,042 --> 00:17:36,000 empty. 367 00:17:36,083 --> 00:17:39,334 They got it going for the top of the summer. 368 00:17:39,417 --> 00:17:41,709 Just sort of ends there. 369 00:17:41,792 --> 00:17:43,667 I don't know, just stopped. 370 00:17:43,751 --> 00:17:44,667 It's kind of weird. 371 00:17:44,751 --> 00:17:46,667 We all thought we'd be right back. 372 00:17:48,292 --> 00:17:49,792 [doorbell rings] 373 00:17:54,292 --> 00:17:56,417 - Hello? - [speaking indistinctly] 374 00:17:56,500 --> 00:17:57,626 - Hey. 375 00:18:03,959 --> 00:18:07,000 [laughing] 376 00:18:09,459 --> 00:18:12,459 How many years, it never gets old. 377 00:18:12,542 --> 00:18:14,500 [laughs] 378 00:18:14,584 --> 00:18:16,792 - [sighs] 379 00:18:16,876 --> 00:18:17,834 What in the world? 380 00:18:17,918 --> 00:18:19,334 - I live in the Mt. Everest of Manhattan. 381 00:18:19,417 --> 00:18:20,417 - You know what? 382 00:18:20,500 --> 00:18:22,918 When I move, I'm gonna make you take the steps. 383 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:25,375 Okay, you're not allowed to take the elevator. 384 00:18:25,459 --> 00:18:27,792 Jesus. 385 00:18:29,417 --> 00:18:30,792 My God. 386 00:18:30,876 --> 00:18:33,167 - Hey. - Hi. 387 00:18:33,250 --> 00:18:35,000 Whew. - Come on in. 388 00:18:35,083 --> 00:18:36,834 Okay. 389 00:18:36,918 --> 00:18:39,042 [breathing deeply] 390 00:18:39,125 --> 00:18:41,000 I've earned whatever I'm eating tonight. 391 00:18:41,083 --> 00:18:42,250 - [laughs] 392 00:18:42,334 --> 00:18:43,334 - Okay. 393 00:18:43,417 --> 00:18:45,167 I guess we should talk through 394 00:18:45,250 --> 00:18:47,667 what's gonna be the big changes for-- 395 00:18:48,459 --> 00:18:51,417 Okay, so you want to keep this "goat meat" line? 396 00:18:51,500 --> 00:18:53,000 - [laughing] Why, you don't like it? 397 00:18:53,083 --> 00:18:54,417 [laughter] 398 00:18:54,500 --> 00:18:55,876 - I just don't know if-- 399 00:18:55,959 --> 00:18:57,542 Okay, okay, okay, hold on. 400 00:18:57,626 --> 00:18:59,334 "I'm glad to see your worships well." 401 00:18:59,417 --> 00:19:01,751 You know, "I thank you for my goat meat, Mr. Shallow." 402 00:19:01,834 --> 00:19:04,626 [sighs] 'Cause what is the joke here? 403 00:19:04,709 --> 00:19:07,876 - Yeah. Honestly, it's probably a joke that doesn't land, 404 00:19:07,959 --> 00:19:09,167 so we should just cut it. 405 00:19:09,250 --> 00:19:12,250 - They might just be like, "Why they over here eating goat?" 406 00:19:12,334 --> 00:19:13,918 - [laughs] 407 00:19:15,459 --> 00:19:18,125 - Even though goat is delicious. 408 00:19:20,375 --> 00:19:21,834 He's saying, "I wish I was younger... 409 00:19:21,918 --> 00:19:23,959 - Yes, yes. - So I could holler at her"? 410 00:19:24,042 --> 00:19:25,125 What? 411 00:19:25,209 --> 00:19:27,167 - There are, like, all these, like-- 412 00:19:27,250 --> 00:19:29,834 There's xenophobic, there's also, like, you know, 413 00:19:29,918 --> 00:19:32,751 paternalistic, sexist, like, there all--yeah. 414 00:19:32,834 --> 00:19:35,292 We just need to clean all that shit up. 415 00:19:35,375 --> 00:19:37,584 - Ugh. - I know. 416 00:19:37,667 --> 00:19:41,584 - Like, chill out. - [laughs] 417 00:19:41,667 --> 00:19:44,751 - Billy Shakes. - [laughs] 418 00:19:44,834 --> 00:19:46,334 Like, Shakespeare gets put up on this pedestal, 419 00:19:46,417 --> 00:19:47,918 but it's like, he also wrote 420 00:19:48,000 --> 00:19:49,918 some problematic shit, you know. 421 00:19:50,000 --> 00:19:53,042 So it's like, you can take that stuff out 422 00:19:53,125 --> 00:19:55,375 and, like, keep the good parts, but just because it's there 423 00:19:55,459 --> 00:19:56,667 doesn't mean it's, like, all right. 424 00:19:58,918 --> 00:20:01,209 - I didn't think it was gonna happen. 425 00:20:01,292 --> 00:20:04,083 Like, when you called me about it-- 426 00:20:04,167 --> 00:20:07,042 - I called you in February. - Yeah, I was like, okay. 427 00:20:07,125 --> 00:20:09,042 I said yes because I was like, it's not happening. 428 00:20:09,125 --> 00:20:12,209 - [laughs] 429 00:20:13,584 --> 00:20:15,167 - And then next thing you know, 430 00:20:15,250 --> 00:20:17,667 mid-March, you know, they're like, we're announcing. 431 00:20:17,751 --> 00:20:19,792 I'm like... - [laughs] 432 00:20:19,876 --> 00:20:23,167 I've written nothing. 433 00:20:23,250 --> 00:20:25,667 So, yeah, yeah, it was very quick. 434 00:20:25,751 --> 00:20:28,792 I opened my laptop quickly that day, 435 00:20:28,876 --> 00:20:30,375 trying to figure it all out. 436 00:20:30,459 --> 00:20:32,250 So, yeah, I just didn't think it was-- 437 00:20:32,334 --> 00:20:34,125 I just-- I-- 438 00:20:34,209 --> 00:20:36,876 I was-- at that point, I was done 439 00:20:36,959 --> 00:20:39,459 with getting my hopes up about anything. 440 00:20:39,542 --> 00:20:41,584 There's two things, you know, with plays. 441 00:20:41,667 --> 00:20:44,125 That, one, they're meant to be performed, not read, 442 00:20:44,209 --> 00:20:46,125 otherwise they'd just be a book. 443 00:20:46,209 --> 00:20:48,751 And two is that you need an audience 444 00:20:48,834 --> 00:20:51,083 to actually complete the play, otherwise it's just-- 445 00:20:51,167 --> 00:20:52,334 - It's incomplete. - Yeah. 446 00:20:52,417 --> 00:20:55,334 Even if it's theater for one, you know, that's-- 447 00:20:55,417 --> 00:20:57,334 it's incomplete without an audience. 448 00:20:57,417 --> 00:20:59,542 - Like, after 50 years of Shakespeare in the Park... 449 00:20:59,626 --> 00:21:01,417 - Yeah. - There has never been 450 00:21:01,500 --> 00:21:02,918 a production that had, like, 451 00:21:03,000 --> 00:21:05,167 a community of, like, immigrants of color... 452 00:21:05,250 --> 00:21:06,834 - Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. - Onstage, like-- 453 00:21:06,918 --> 00:21:07,876 - Yeah. - People thought, like, 454 00:21:07,959 --> 00:21:08,918 they've seen it all. 455 00:21:09,000 --> 00:21:09,918 - Mm-hmm. - You know? 456 00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:11,500 But they hadn't seen this. - Yeah, yeah. 457 00:21:11,584 --> 00:21:12,709 - You know? - That's true. 458 00:21:12,792 --> 00:21:14,000 That is true. I was-- 459 00:21:14,083 --> 00:21:16,250 I remember that when you called me, and you were like, 460 00:21:16,334 --> 00:21:18,042 yeah, but it would be, like, you know, 461 00:21:18,125 --> 00:21:19,500 like, African people. 462 00:21:19,584 --> 00:21:21,626 And I was like, 463 00:21:21,709 --> 00:21:23,125 saying the text? 464 00:21:23,209 --> 00:21:26,125 - [laughing] 465 00:21:26,209 --> 00:21:28,292 - Huh? 466 00:21:28,375 --> 00:21:32,792 It was like, yeah, I mean, of all the Shakespeare I've seen, 467 00:21:32,876 --> 00:21:36,042 I guess I never-- I don't think I've ever-- 468 00:21:36,125 --> 00:21:38,500 I mean, and I'm sure it exists somewhere. 469 00:21:38,584 --> 00:21:40,876 I do not want to be presumptuous 470 00:21:40,959 --> 00:21:43,959 in thinking that we are, like, you know, 471 00:21:44,042 --> 00:21:45,542 reinventing the wheel here, 472 00:21:45,626 --> 00:21:48,042 but at least for Shakespeare in the Park, 473 00:21:48,125 --> 00:21:50,375 we're adding some new spokes, for sure. 474 00:21:50,459 --> 00:21:53,292 - [laughing] - For sure. 475 00:21:53,375 --> 00:21:56,709 So to be able to, like, do a show, you know, 476 00:21:56,792 --> 00:21:59,584 that's comedic and joyful and fun 477 00:21:59,667 --> 00:22:02,876 that, like, kind of centers Black joy, 478 00:22:02,959 --> 00:22:07,167 after a time of experiencing so much Black pain, 479 00:22:07,250 --> 00:22:11,292 is like, very important to me. 480 00:22:11,375 --> 00:22:12,667 So I'm-- 481 00:22:12,751 --> 00:22:16,000 Another thing to take seriously. 482 00:22:22,375 --> 00:22:25,584 - The very beginning of the process before rehearsals, 483 00:22:25,667 --> 00:22:27,417 I said to the management, I said, I'd love to talk 484 00:22:27,500 --> 00:22:30,751 about anti-racism and what it means at The Public 485 00:22:30,834 --> 00:22:33,125 and what it's gonna mean for "Merry Wives." 486 00:22:33,209 --> 00:22:35,250 I would've never done that 487 00:22:35,334 --> 00:22:37,542 two years ago, a year ago, without question. 488 00:22:37,626 --> 00:22:38,709 And I actually-- 489 00:22:38,792 --> 00:22:41,209 I sort of conflate March, April, May, June, July, 490 00:22:41,292 --> 00:22:44,250 'cause it all was that summer-- spring/summer time 491 00:22:44,334 --> 00:22:46,959 when it felt like-- it just felt like... 492 00:22:48,209 --> 00:22:51,542 There were so many Black people being killed, you know, 493 00:22:51,626 --> 00:22:53,626 at the hands of our police. 494 00:22:53,709 --> 00:22:57,083 And so that's-- that, to me, will always be 495 00:22:57,167 --> 00:22:58,626 what 2020-- 496 00:22:58,709 --> 00:23:01,250 and then the pandemic, of course. 497 00:23:03,292 --> 00:23:07,459 In 1994, Daniel Sullivan directed a production 498 00:23:07,542 --> 00:23:09,042 of "Merry Wives of Windsor." 499 00:23:09,125 --> 00:23:11,626 Andrea Martin-- Who else was in that? 500 00:23:11,709 --> 00:23:14,792 David Alan Grier, Tonya Pinkins. 501 00:23:14,876 --> 00:23:17,959 I was a production assistant on that production. 502 00:23:18,042 --> 00:23:19,459 It was my first-- 503 00:23:20,709 --> 00:23:21,959 Was that my first time in the Park? 504 00:23:22,042 --> 00:23:23,584 That was my first time in the Park. 505 00:23:23,667 --> 00:23:25,292 Had a miserable time. 506 00:23:25,375 --> 00:23:28,209 Was treated horribly. 507 00:23:29,542 --> 00:23:30,792 And... 508 00:23:31,876 --> 00:23:33,417 Yeah, I mean, I don't even think-- 509 00:23:33,500 --> 00:23:34,792 I didn't have words for it. 510 00:23:34,876 --> 00:23:36,250 I didn't even know 511 00:23:36,334 --> 00:23:40,000 the racism and the abuse that I was living under 512 00:23:40,083 --> 00:23:42,000 until much, much later. 513 00:23:42,083 --> 00:23:44,167 We all want to feel valued. 514 00:23:44,250 --> 00:23:47,375 We all want to know that we matter, that our work matters. 515 00:23:47,459 --> 00:23:49,500 We all want to be able to show up to work, you know, and-- 516 00:23:49,584 --> 00:23:51,167 with our authentic self and-- 517 00:23:51,250 --> 00:23:53,876 and that be okay, as opposed to, 518 00:23:53,959 --> 00:23:55,834 you know, marginalized in any way. 519 00:23:55,918 --> 00:23:59,000 And all of that-- again, I didn't have words 520 00:23:59,083 --> 00:24:01,459 for any of that back then, but that is absolutely 521 00:24:01,542 --> 00:24:03,000 what I vowed to do. 522 00:24:07,542 --> 00:24:10,459 [soft music playing] 523 00:24:10,542 --> 00:24:15,918 ♪ ♪ 524 00:24:16,000 --> 00:24:17,542 - I got a feeling it's gonna change... 525 00:24:17,626 --> 00:24:18,667 - Yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely, absolutely. 526 00:24:18,751 --> 00:24:20,584 - With the actors, yeah. 527 00:24:20,667 --> 00:24:23,250 "When you were born." - [vocalizing] 528 00:24:23,334 --> 00:24:25,876 - Pah! She talks again, no sound. 529 00:24:25,959 --> 00:24:28,083 "With trial fire touch his finger end. 530 00:24:28,167 --> 00:24:29,542 If he be chaste, the flame will be--" 531 00:24:29,626 --> 00:24:30,709 So it's like, that's in silence? 532 00:24:30,792 --> 00:24:31,667 - Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh. 533 00:24:31,751 --> 00:24:33,250 - "And turn him to no pain, but if he start, 534 00:24:33,334 --> 00:24:34,375 it is the flesh--" 535 00:24:34,459 --> 00:24:35,459 Yeah, "But if he start, 536 00:24:35,542 --> 00:24:37,542 it is the flesh of a corrupted heart." 537 00:24:37,626 --> 00:24:39,959 Duh-duh-duh, "A trial, come." 538 00:24:40,042 --> 00:24:42,209 It's getting a little louder. - Yeah, yeah. 539 00:24:42,292 --> 00:24:44,209 - "Aha, but stay." Bum! 540 00:24:44,292 --> 00:24:46,042 "I smell a man of middle-earth." 541 00:24:46,125 --> 00:24:47,459 Gung, gung! 542 00:24:47,542 --> 00:24:49,250 Then-- duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh-duh. 543 00:24:49,334 --> 00:24:50,250 - Rrr-- - Okay. 544 00:24:50,334 --> 00:24:52,667 - "Flesh of a corrupted heart." - Got it. 545 00:24:52,751 --> 00:24:54,083 - Pastor Evans says, "Come, spirits, come. 546 00:24:54,167 --> 00:24:56,000 "Remember your parts. Be bold, I pray you. 547 00:24:56,083 --> 00:24:58,459 "Follow me, and when I give the signal, do as I bid you. 548 00:24:58,542 --> 00:24:59,500 Come, come, gather." 549 00:24:59,584 --> 00:25:03,083 And he gives Farai the signal. Farai starts. 550 00:25:03,167 --> 00:25:04,417 And then, like, the spirits move 551 00:25:04,500 --> 00:25:06,083 and start to shift the stage. 552 00:25:06,167 --> 00:25:07,584 - Yep. - "And as you trip, 553 00:25:07,667 --> 00:25:09,626 still pinch him to your time." 554 00:25:09,709 --> 00:25:12,792 [vocalizing drum beat] 555 00:25:12,876 --> 00:25:14,542 You know, I think we just start there. 556 00:25:14,626 --> 00:25:15,542 [continues vocalizing] 557 00:25:15,626 --> 00:25:18,542 [drums playing] 558 00:25:18,626 --> 00:25:21,542 ♪ ♪ 559 00:25:21,626 --> 00:25:22,542 Faster. - Okay. 560 00:25:22,626 --> 00:25:24,876 - [vocalizing drum beat] Like, faster. 561 00:25:24,959 --> 00:25:28,417 ♪ ♪ 562 00:25:28,500 --> 00:25:29,751 Uh-huh, uh-huh. - So, then when we get 563 00:25:29,834 --> 00:25:32,042 to the next layer, we have that little acceleration into it? 564 00:25:32,125 --> 00:25:33,083 - Yeah, yeah. 565 00:25:33,167 --> 00:25:35,667 At the part where it goes, bah, bah, bah, 566 00:25:35,751 --> 00:25:38,375 that'll probably be collective group going all together, 567 00:25:38,459 --> 00:25:41,667 all together, so really make that really, like... 568 00:25:41,751 --> 00:25:43,542 - Mm-hmm. - Duh-duh, duh-duh, duh-duh! 569 00:25:43,626 --> 00:25:50,709 ♪ ♪ 570 00:26:01,417 --> 00:26:03,792 - Hey! - Yeah, that's awesome. 571 00:26:03,876 --> 00:26:04,959 - [laughing] - All right, man, that's it. 572 00:26:05,042 --> 00:26:06,375 That's it, that's it. That's it. 573 00:26:06,459 --> 00:26:07,709 African people are not a monolith. 574 00:26:07,792 --> 00:26:08,751 The languages are different. 575 00:26:08,834 --> 00:26:10,083 I love drumming, 576 00:26:10,167 --> 00:26:11,459 because that's one of the common things that's found 577 00:26:11,542 --> 00:26:13,751 all over the place, but it's so different. 578 00:26:13,834 --> 00:26:15,918 I can't even tell you, like, now I get into a cab, 579 00:26:16,000 --> 00:26:17,959 I can hear somebody talk and be like, oh, you from Senegal-- 580 00:26:18,042 --> 00:26:19,292 because you sound like the drum. 581 00:26:19,375 --> 00:26:21,834 The rhythms that I'm playing are intentionally secular. 582 00:26:21,918 --> 00:26:24,250 So they don't have a spiritual connotation, 583 00:26:24,334 --> 00:26:26,500 they don't call down spirits, in a way, 'cause I-- 584 00:26:26,584 --> 00:26:29,876 I'm not a person that's in any specific spiritual practice, 585 00:26:29,959 --> 00:26:31,167 but I have ultimate respect for it. 586 00:26:31,250 --> 00:26:32,751 I never take any of them lightly. 587 00:26:32,834 --> 00:26:34,542 One of the biggest things I do at the beginning of the show, 588 00:26:34,626 --> 00:26:37,834 I always pour a couple of drops of water, of libations 589 00:26:37,918 --> 00:26:41,083 to their spirit and their energy, because it's real. 590 00:26:41,167 --> 00:26:43,000 I feel like we do have to pay respects. 591 00:26:44,250 --> 00:26:47,167 This is why I can't have family and relationships, 592 00:26:47,250 --> 00:26:49,083 'cause everything is instruments. 593 00:26:49,167 --> 00:26:51,334 [laughs] 594 00:26:51,417 --> 00:26:53,834 So these are my drums. 595 00:26:53,918 --> 00:27:00,918 ♪ ♪ 596 00:27:05,375 --> 00:27:08,042 When you create music or you create film or theater, 597 00:27:08,125 --> 00:27:10,167 we're able to get into the hearts and minds 598 00:27:10,250 --> 00:27:11,417 of the people 599 00:27:11,500 --> 00:27:13,167 and in a way that's non-offensive, 600 00:27:13,250 --> 00:27:15,918 you know, and nonjudgmental. 601 00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:21,042 And that constant mantra that we provide in the arts 602 00:27:21,125 --> 00:27:22,876 creates society. 603 00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:26,959 If Congress took a African dance class, 604 00:27:27,042 --> 00:27:28,959 we'd get bills passed. 605 00:27:29,042 --> 00:27:31,000 Now all of a sudden, you're able to take hundreds 606 00:27:31,083 --> 00:27:33,375 of people and make them all dance to the same beat 607 00:27:33,459 --> 00:27:34,834 and, you know, work in the same thing. 608 00:27:34,918 --> 00:27:36,542 And then the beauty of African culture 609 00:27:36,626 --> 00:27:39,709 is that there's also space in that for individual expression, 610 00:27:39,792 --> 00:27:42,042 which is universal through African culture-- 611 00:27:42,125 --> 00:27:44,834 the cypher, the break dancers, coming into the circle. 612 00:27:44,918 --> 00:27:48,167 So you have a core that brings people together, 613 00:27:48,250 --> 00:27:50,626 and then you have space for individual expression. 614 00:27:50,709 --> 00:27:53,751 That is the core of any intellectual pursuit. 615 00:27:55,667 --> 00:28:00,876 So, without art in balance of technology and advancement, 616 00:28:00,959 --> 00:28:02,500 there is no society. 617 00:28:05,542 --> 00:28:08,459 [atmospheric music] 618 00:28:08,542 --> 00:28:15,459 ♪ ♪ 619 00:28:24,500 --> 00:28:26,167 - Oh, this is in "Othello," yeah. 620 00:28:26,250 --> 00:28:27,417 Yeah, that's great. 621 00:28:28,792 --> 00:28:30,792 I emailed Saheem, and I said, can we put the-- 622 00:28:30,876 --> 00:28:32,959 Doctor Caius' name on the clinic door? 623 00:28:33,042 --> 00:28:33,959 - Mm. - 'Cause I love that, 624 00:28:34,042 --> 00:28:35,667 that their names are all just written there. 625 00:28:35,751 --> 00:28:38,459 Every one of the laundries had all the bubble stuff 626 00:28:38,542 --> 00:28:40,792 all over it, and so we were trying to copy that. 627 00:28:47,209 --> 00:28:49,584 - And one, two, three, magic. 628 00:28:51,292 --> 00:28:53,667 And one, two, three, magic! 629 00:28:55,834 --> 00:28:58,584 All right, rolling. And... 630 00:28:58,667 --> 00:29:00,834 one, two, three, magic. 631 00:29:09,375 --> 00:29:11,459 - That looks cool. 632 00:29:11,542 --> 00:29:13,167 Well, this was dirty. 633 00:29:25,959 --> 00:29:29,209 - I have definitely not 634 00:29:29,292 --> 00:29:32,584 been a lover of Shakespeare, traditionally. 635 00:29:32,667 --> 00:29:35,584 I never really thought it was for me. 636 00:29:35,667 --> 00:29:37,792 And I never really, like-- I never went out of my way 637 00:29:37,876 --> 00:29:41,959 to see it or to work on Shakespeare-related things, 638 00:29:42,042 --> 00:29:44,626 but right before we talked, 639 00:29:44,709 --> 00:29:48,375 I had just read this essay that James Baldwin wrote 640 00:29:48,459 --> 00:29:51,959 about why he stopped hating Shakespeare. 641 00:29:52,042 --> 00:29:57,709 And it was when he moved from America to France. 642 00:29:57,792 --> 00:30:01,751 And in being in a country with a different language, 643 00:30:01,834 --> 00:30:05,042 he realized how much Shakespeare's English 644 00:30:05,125 --> 00:30:08,876 really spoke to the Black American experience. 645 00:30:08,959 --> 00:30:12,417 And how it was the language of the people 646 00:30:12,500 --> 00:30:14,876 and how the kind of epicness of it 647 00:30:14,959 --> 00:30:17,167 felt very true to his experience. 648 00:30:19,918 --> 00:30:22,709 Shakespeare actually is messing up 649 00:30:22,792 --> 00:30:26,334 a lot of standard English in the ways 650 00:30:26,417 --> 00:30:29,834 that actually ask for there to be more freedom 651 00:30:29,918 --> 00:30:33,542 in adaptations of Shakespeare, as opposed to more rigidity. 652 00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:37,083 Yeah, I just-- I've seen so many productions 653 00:30:37,167 --> 00:30:41,250 where Black and brown people-- like, actors are put onstage, 654 00:30:41,334 --> 00:30:44,709 the production team's white, 655 00:30:44,792 --> 00:30:46,667 the lead characters are still white, 656 00:30:46,751 --> 00:30:51,209 and the story is told in a, like, post-racial, 657 00:30:51,292 --> 00:30:53,459 racially blind way, 658 00:30:53,542 --> 00:30:58,250 where those actors are kind of expected to still speak 659 00:30:58,334 --> 00:31:02,500 in a white dialect, still be telling a white story. 660 00:31:03,959 --> 00:31:07,709 And what's really important about this production 661 00:31:07,792 --> 00:31:10,375 is that it's not doing that. 662 00:31:10,459 --> 00:31:12,250 It's telling Black stories. 663 00:31:12,334 --> 00:31:14,834 The production team has so many people of color on it, 664 00:31:14,918 --> 00:31:16,209 so many Black people. 665 00:31:16,292 --> 00:31:18,417 The rehearsal room-- I take for granted so often. 666 00:31:18,500 --> 00:31:19,626 I'm never in a rehearsal room 667 00:31:19,709 --> 00:31:21,000 where everyone around me is Black, 668 00:31:21,083 --> 00:31:24,876 and it feels so different but in a way that I forget 669 00:31:24,959 --> 00:31:27,626 how rare it is, because it feels so right. 670 00:31:28,834 --> 00:31:29,959 - Is it the one that has, like-- 671 00:31:30,042 --> 00:31:31,542 that stayed up longer? 672 00:31:31,626 --> 00:31:32,626 - A little bit. - Okay. 673 00:31:32,709 --> 00:31:34,834 - It had at this cannon. 674 00:31:34,918 --> 00:31:36,792 - Yeah, this is the one that stayed up the longest. 675 00:31:36,876 --> 00:31:38,918 - Yes. 676 00:31:39,000 --> 00:31:40,751 - Square cut. Ah. 677 00:31:40,834 --> 00:31:42,209 Ooh. - I know. 678 00:31:42,292 --> 00:31:44,751 - Oh! - [laughs] 679 00:31:44,834 --> 00:31:47,083 - I love how it stays up. 680 00:31:47,167 --> 00:31:49,918 Okay. Let's go with this one. - Okay. 681 00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:51,209 - You're tall, too! - Yep, yes. 682 00:31:51,292 --> 00:31:54,292 [laughter, chatter] 683 00:31:58,167 --> 00:31:59,334 - Hi. It's a pleasure. 684 00:31:59,417 --> 00:32:01,042 - Yas! [laughter] 685 00:32:01,125 --> 00:32:04,417 [cheers] 686 00:32:04,500 --> 00:32:06,542 - Whoo! - I know! 687 00:32:06,626 --> 00:32:08,667 - I can't even believe it. 688 00:32:08,751 --> 00:32:10,667 [laughter] 689 00:32:10,751 --> 00:32:12,250 - Yay! 690 00:32:13,751 --> 00:32:15,250 - Air hug, air hug. 691 00:32:15,334 --> 00:32:17,209 - Nuts. - I know! 692 00:32:17,292 --> 00:32:18,834 I know. - I'm like... 693 00:32:20,250 --> 00:32:22,500 15 months... - [laughs] 694 00:32:22,584 --> 00:32:25,125 - Since I've last been in a rehearsal room. 695 00:32:25,209 --> 00:32:26,459 - Oh, my God. - And it wasn't even 696 00:32:26,542 --> 00:32:27,626 for this play. 697 00:32:27,709 --> 00:32:30,042 - No, I know. 698 00:32:30,125 --> 00:32:33,834 - Exactly! You know, we manifested it. 699 00:32:36,584 --> 00:32:39,167 - This is, like, a first-class... 700 00:32:40,500 --> 00:32:42,417 Little-- you know? 701 00:32:42,500 --> 00:32:43,500 - Very cute. - It's-- 702 00:32:43,584 --> 00:32:44,792 And some lotion. That's how you know 703 00:32:44,876 --> 00:32:46,375 we working on a Black show. 704 00:32:46,459 --> 00:32:48,626 We in the big leagues now, baby. 705 00:32:49,959 --> 00:32:51,584 - Hey! - Hey! 706 00:32:51,667 --> 00:32:53,250 - We are here. We are here, we are here. 707 00:32:53,334 --> 00:32:56,292 [cheers and applause] 708 00:33:14,459 --> 00:33:17,334 This is wild. Wild, wild, wild, wild. 709 00:33:17,417 --> 00:33:19,667 Incredible, incredible. Welcome, welcome, welcome. 710 00:33:19,751 --> 00:33:22,292 We're gonna-- we're gonna just, like, begin. 711 00:33:22,375 --> 00:33:24,250 We're going to dive into something 712 00:33:24,334 --> 00:33:26,083 that is familiar yet new. 713 00:33:26,167 --> 00:33:27,334 Oskar, you want to say anything 714 00:33:27,417 --> 00:33:29,959 before we start to introduce folks? 715 00:33:30,042 --> 00:33:31,959 - The only real thing I want to say, guys, 716 00:33:32,042 --> 00:33:36,334 is we're inaugurating this entire complex 717 00:33:36,417 --> 00:33:38,918 of rehearsal studios today, 718 00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:42,250 as well as bringing New York back to the theater. 719 00:33:42,334 --> 00:33:46,626 This is... [cheers and applause] 720 00:33:46,709 --> 00:33:49,417 The power of people gathering together, 721 00:33:49,500 --> 00:33:50,417 it's gonna be great, 722 00:33:50,500 --> 00:33:51,959 and I'm just so, so grateful you're here. 723 00:33:52,042 --> 00:33:54,834 Welcome, guys. - Hey! 724 00:33:54,918 --> 00:33:56,334 - Thank you. 725 00:33:56,417 --> 00:33:58,209 Jocelyn, you want to say something? 726 00:33:58,292 --> 00:34:00,417 - I'm just-- I'm really just in shock. 727 00:34:00,500 --> 00:34:03,334 Honestly, like, that's really it. 728 00:34:03,417 --> 00:34:05,334 And I'm really very, like, emot-- 729 00:34:05,417 --> 00:34:07,542 Like, it's so great what we do. 730 00:34:07,626 --> 00:34:09,834 It's hard what we do. It's crazy what we do. 731 00:34:09,918 --> 00:34:12,500 But it's like, it's a beautiful and an amazing thing, 732 00:34:12,584 --> 00:34:15,876 and for that thing to just be completely yanked from us 733 00:34:15,959 --> 00:34:20,459 for so long feels insane and sad and whatever, 734 00:34:20,542 --> 00:34:23,459 so this is, like-- I am really emotional about it, 735 00:34:23,542 --> 00:34:25,500 because I think what we do is a really beautiful thing, 736 00:34:25,584 --> 00:34:27,584 and to be able to come back again 737 00:34:27,667 --> 00:34:31,500 with this incredible company and doing this show 738 00:34:31,584 --> 00:34:33,918 feels really remarkable. 739 00:34:34,000 --> 00:34:36,792 So I'm just thrilled to be here, yeah. 740 00:34:36,876 --> 00:34:40,626 Yay. [laughter, cheers] 741 00:34:40,709 --> 00:34:43,042 Oh, Lord Jesus. 742 00:34:43,125 --> 00:34:45,918 [laughter] 743 00:34:46,042 --> 00:34:50,500 Cried on the Zoom, crying in the rehearsal. 744 00:34:50,584 --> 00:34:52,334 - Relax, chill. It's all good. 745 00:34:52,417 --> 00:34:54,209 Any questions before we dive in? 746 00:34:54,292 --> 00:34:55,375 - So we can take this off? 747 00:34:55,459 --> 00:34:56,834 - Yes, yes. - You can take off your mask. 748 00:34:56,918 --> 00:34:58,334 - You are in your playing space. 749 00:34:58,417 --> 00:35:01,000 - Whoo-hoo! ♪ Can you feel it? ♪ 750 00:35:01,083 --> 00:35:03,542 - Literally. [laughter] 751 00:35:06,334 --> 00:35:08,209 - I'ma work my way up to the other ear. 752 00:35:08,292 --> 00:35:11,250 [laughter] 753 00:35:13,083 --> 00:35:15,042 - And, Abigail, whenever you're ready. 754 00:35:15,125 --> 00:35:17,626 - "Merry Wives" by William Shakespeare, 755 00:35:17,709 --> 00:35:20,959 adaptation by Jocelyn Bioh. 756 00:35:21,042 --> 00:35:24,167 Act one, scene one-- enter Shallow, Slender, 757 00:35:24,250 --> 00:35:25,500 and Pastor Evans. 758 00:35:25,584 --> 00:35:28,334 - Pastor Evans, persuade me not. 759 00:35:28,417 --> 00:35:31,959 - Robert Shallow, Esquire. 760 00:35:32,042 --> 00:35:33,709 - Hey, I never believe that. 761 00:35:33,792 --> 00:35:35,542 - And neither should you, eh? 762 00:35:35,626 --> 00:35:37,667 [both laugh] 763 00:35:37,751 --> 00:35:39,834 Oh, Madam Page, give me some counsel. 764 00:35:39,918 --> 00:35:41,417 - What's going on? 765 00:35:41,500 --> 00:35:44,542 - If only my husband saw this letter, 766 00:35:44,626 --> 00:35:48,167 it would give him eternal food for his jealousy. 767 00:35:48,250 --> 00:35:50,459 - Right. Look where he comes. 768 00:35:50,542 --> 00:35:52,042 - This chasm that people have created 769 00:35:52,125 --> 00:35:55,167 between people of color and Shakespeare, 770 00:35:55,250 --> 00:35:58,334 it's the most ridiculous thing. 771 00:35:58,417 --> 00:36:01,876 A teacher told me 772 00:36:01,959 --> 00:36:07,375 that Jamaicans didn't do a lot of Shakespeare 773 00:36:07,459 --> 00:36:08,709 in the U.K. or whatever 774 00:36:08,792 --> 00:36:10,459 because they didn't have a grasp 775 00:36:10,542 --> 00:36:13,083 of the language or something like this. 776 00:36:13,167 --> 00:36:16,083 And I remember being like... 777 00:36:16,167 --> 00:36:17,292 "What?" 778 00:36:17,375 --> 00:36:21,250 When you study Shakespeare, as I've had for many years, 779 00:36:21,334 --> 00:36:24,375 like, the language itself is filled with an energy. 780 00:36:24,459 --> 00:36:25,792 Like, you don't just speak words. 781 00:36:25,876 --> 00:36:28,375 Every words has an energy, a drive, and a subte-- 782 00:36:28,459 --> 00:36:30,417 Who speaks like that all the time? 783 00:36:30,500 --> 00:36:31,375 You tell me. 784 00:36:31,459 --> 00:36:34,375 Ah, it's almost time. To the oak, to the oak! 785 00:36:34,459 --> 00:36:36,584 I've never seen a production of Shakespeare 786 00:36:36,667 --> 00:36:38,042 done in this dialect. 787 00:36:38,125 --> 00:36:39,709 That's a beautiful thing. 788 00:36:39,792 --> 00:36:41,876 - I do invite you tomorrow morning to my house 789 00:36:41,959 --> 00:36:43,375 for breakfast. 790 00:36:43,459 --> 00:36:45,542 After, we'll go to the park 791 00:36:45,626 --> 00:36:48,417 for some bird-watching together, ah? 792 00:36:48,500 --> 00:36:51,167 Shall it be so? - Anything. 793 00:36:51,250 --> 00:36:53,417 - I think when you see a theater show, 794 00:36:53,500 --> 00:36:57,459 it really encompasses that idea of, 795 00:36:57,542 --> 00:37:01,209 we are all the same in different ways. 796 00:37:01,292 --> 00:37:02,834 People that come to see it are gonna feel 797 00:37:02,918 --> 00:37:04,751 like they're being invited into a world 798 00:37:04,834 --> 00:37:07,584 that they never would experience. 799 00:37:07,667 --> 00:37:10,042 And I think that is what is so important about it. 800 00:37:10,125 --> 00:37:12,751 - I wish I could knock him in the head just one more time. 801 00:37:12,834 --> 00:37:14,417 How could he do this? 802 00:37:14,500 --> 00:37:17,417 - Marry, sir, the pittie-ward, the park-ward, 803 00:37:17,500 --> 00:37:19,417 every way but the town way. 804 00:37:19,500 --> 00:37:22,417 During the pandemic, my mom had a health scare. 805 00:37:22,500 --> 00:37:24,626 She had a stroke. 806 00:37:24,709 --> 00:37:26,584 She keeps saying in Twi, like-- 807 00:37:26,667 --> 00:37:28,417 [speaking Twi] Which means "I'm gonna come." 808 00:37:28,500 --> 00:37:30,751 Like, she's so excited to come and see it. 809 00:37:30,834 --> 00:37:33,250 But me just talking about it 810 00:37:33,334 --> 00:37:35,459 to her, I'm like, 811 00:37:35,542 --> 00:37:37,751 there's Twi in this play, Mom, 812 00:37:37,834 --> 00:37:40,000 like, we're wearing kente, 813 00:37:40,083 --> 00:37:42,667 we're wearing authentic things, 814 00:37:42,751 --> 00:37:44,626 like, you're gonna love it, 815 00:37:44,709 --> 00:37:45,709 like-- 816 00:37:45,792 --> 00:37:47,834 And she's like, "Oh, wow!" 817 00:37:47,918 --> 00:37:51,834 You know, she's never seen anything like that, so... 818 00:37:51,918 --> 00:37:54,667 This is a story for us. 819 00:37:54,751 --> 00:37:57,667 - All things do lie open. - Money talks. 820 00:37:57,751 --> 00:38:00,709 - Mm. - Always has, always will. 821 00:38:00,792 --> 00:38:02,292 - Truth. Blaow, blaow. 822 00:38:02,375 --> 00:38:03,792 And I have a bag... - [laughter] 823 00:38:03,876 --> 00:38:06,167 - Of money there that troubles me. 824 00:38:07,918 --> 00:38:10,751 My family's Nigerian. My mother's very religious. 825 00:38:10,834 --> 00:38:12,334 My family's very religious. 826 00:38:12,417 --> 00:38:14,667 Grew up loving a white God 827 00:38:14,751 --> 00:38:16,375 in a country that was carved out 828 00:38:16,459 --> 00:38:19,375 by a white colonizing nation. 829 00:38:19,459 --> 00:38:22,709 And that still very much infects what it is 830 00:38:22,792 --> 00:38:24,459 to be Nigerian, 831 00:38:24,542 --> 00:38:26,459 either here or in Nigeria. 832 00:38:26,542 --> 00:38:27,792 - Act two, scene two. 833 00:38:27,876 --> 00:38:30,209 - I think this play can do so much 834 00:38:30,292 --> 00:38:32,125 for so many people as far as finding the power 835 00:38:32,209 --> 00:38:33,375 in their lineage. 836 00:38:33,459 --> 00:38:37,500 - It's been a long, hard year, y'all. 837 00:38:37,584 --> 00:38:42,125 Couldn't go to the clubs, couldn't hit up the bars, 838 00:38:42,209 --> 00:38:45,083 liquor stores was closed all early. 839 00:38:45,167 --> 00:38:49,167 I been stuck in the house just eating snacks, 840 00:38:49,250 --> 00:38:51,584 bored out my goddamn mind. 841 00:38:51,667 --> 00:38:53,167 [laughter] 842 00:38:53,250 --> 00:38:55,542 You know what I'm talking about? 843 00:38:55,626 --> 00:38:59,250 When I was being taught how to perform this writer, 844 00:38:59,334 --> 00:39:03,542 it was always from a place of, this is outside of you. 845 00:39:03,626 --> 00:39:04,918 You're gonna-- and this was said-- 846 00:39:05,000 --> 00:39:07,751 you're gonna have to rise up. 847 00:39:07,834 --> 00:39:10,584 You're gonna have to change and augment yourself 848 00:39:10,667 --> 00:39:15,292 to be able to earn the right to perform this... 849 00:39:15,375 --> 00:39:19,709 to be good enough, to be worthy... 850 00:39:19,792 --> 00:39:23,292 of it, but it's my birthright. 851 00:39:23,375 --> 00:39:25,542 The language doesn't control me. 852 00:39:25,626 --> 00:39:28,375 I'm using it for what I want to use it for. 853 00:39:28,459 --> 00:39:29,542 Oh, pshh! 854 00:39:29,626 --> 00:39:31,334 Please. Pshh, pshh. 855 00:39:31,417 --> 00:39:32,584 Man, off with him. 856 00:39:32,667 --> 00:39:35,209 I will stare him out of his wits. 857 00:39:35,292 --> 00:39:38,292 I will tap-dance like the late, great Gregory Hines 858 00:39:38,375 --> 00:39:40,167 all over his lips. 859 00:39:40,250 --> 00:39:46,000 I shall hang like LeBron James over the cuckold's horns. 860 00:39:46,083 --> 00:39:48,042 - Uh-huh. 861 00:39:48,125 --> 00:39:50,292 - I quit theater because of an experience 862 00:39:50,375 --> 00:39:51,626 I had at the Delacorte. 863 00:39:51,709 --> 00:39:53,542 It really made me go, "I've had enough." 864 00:39:53,626 --> 00:39:56,542 I walked away because of how I was treated. 865 00:39:57,792 --> 00:40:01,042 And the idea of tokenism was going on, 866 00:40:01,125 --> 00:40:05,250 the idea of what kind of Black you are. 867 00:40:05,334 --> 00:40:07,250 I was a different kind of Black. 868 00:40:07,334 --> 00:40:09,083 I'm an urban Black. 869 00:40:09,167 --> 00:40:12,209 So that was less acceptable. What do we do with that? 870 00:40:12,292 --> 00:40:15,083 How much can you give to something 871 00:40:15,167 --> 00:40:17,209 if it keeps slapping you in the face? 872 00:40:18,167 --> 00:40:19,083 - We're gonna come up this way. 873 00:40:19,167 --> 00:40:20,834 We're gonna go around the front of the stage. 874 00:40:20,918 --> 00:40:22,959 - [speaking indistinctly over PA] 875 00:40:23,042 --> 00:40:24,292 - Sorry, just gonna have to go around. 876 00:40:24,375 --> 00:40:25,542 - Come on up, and we're gonna go out 877 00:40:25,626 --> 00:40:27,709 and around this way first. 878 00:40:27,792 --> 00:40:28,792 - Not yet, no. - Yeah! 879 00:40:28,876 --> 00:40:30,125 - Check this out. 880 00:40:30,209 --> 00:40:32,834 - Oh, my goodness! 881 00:40:32,918 --> 00:40:34,667 Falstaff, my man! 882 00:40:34,751 --> 00:40:37,667 [atmospheric music] 883 00:40:37,751 --> 00:40:40,083 - Man, when my bedroom turns around, 884 00:40:40,167 --> 00:40:41,876 and there's my face with the crown on, 885 00:40:41,959 --> 00:40:44,042 it's like, I'm like, yo... 886 00:40:44,959 --> 00:40:47,459 God's got a good sense of humor, bro. 887 00:40:47,542 --> 00:40:49,876 [laughs] You know what I'm saying? 888 00:40:49,959 --> 00:40:51,667 Like, I'm a man of faith, I'm not gonna hide-- 889 00:40:51,751 --> 00:40:54,834 God has a really good sense of humor. 890 00:40:57,375 --> 00:41:02,876 ♪ Have I caught thee, my heavenly jewel? ♪ 891 00:41:02,959 --> 00:41:05,250 Man. 892 00:41:05,334 --> 00:41:07,334 It's such a gift. 893 00:41:09,125 --> 00:41:10,918 If you had-- 894 00:41:11,000 --> 00:41:15,959 ♪ ♪ 895 00:41:16,042 --> 00:41:17,751 [voice breaking] I'm sorry. 896 00:41:20,918 --> 00:41:22,959 If you had told me... 897 00:41:24,918 --> 00:41:26,834 That this would-- I wouldn't have believed you. 898 00:41:26,918 --> 00:41:29,667 [sniffles] 899 00:41:29,751 --> 00:41:31,167 It's a gift. 900 00:41:31,250 --> 00:41:32,709 - Three... 901 00:41:34,292 --> 00:41:36,292 - It's a community 902 00:41:36,375 --> 00:41:40,667 and truly is a play about community. 903 00:41:44,667 --> 00:41:47,959 - Yay! Amazing, genius! 904 00:41:52,751 --> 00:41:54,626 - Then you go, "Ugh!" 905 00:41:54,709 --> 00:41:56,667 And then you go, "Ha!" 906 00:41:56,751 --> 00:41:58,250 - [shouting indistinctly] 907 00:41:58,334 --> 00:42:01,292 [all grunting] 908 00:42:04,292 --> 00:42:06,292 - It's like the way that that thing works 909 00:42:06,375 --> 00:42:08,542 is it hits down on the pipe. The pipe... 910 00:42:08,626 --> 00:42:10,459 - Tip it up a little bit. 911 00:42:10,542 --> 00:42:12,000 Thank you. Next. 912 00:42:12,083 --> 00:42:19,042 ♪ ♪ 913 00:42:23,751 --> 00:42:26,876 - Yeah, that's my mom. Welcome to my family corner. 914 00:42:26,959 --> 00:42:28,792 Um... [clears throat] 915 00:42:28,876 --> 00:42:31,667 My mom's still in Texas, which is where I'm from. 916 00:42:31,751 --> 00:42:33,584 Can't be out here with bad edges. 917 00:42:33,667 --> 00:42:35,876 My barber would kill me. 918 00:42:35,959 --> 00:42:37,459 She was a single parent. 919 00:42:37,542 --> 00:42:38,751 She works for the government. 920 00:42:38,834 --> 00:42:41,250 She does loans for FEMA, which is dope. 921 00:42:41,334 --> 00:42:42,334 She says she really wants to come 922 00:42:42,417 --> 00:42:44,167 to Shakespeare in the Park 923 00:42:44,250 --> 00:42:47,584 'cause that's actually something she... 924 00:42:47,667 --> 00:42:50,125 she just has heard me talk about my whole life, 925 00:42:50,209 --> 00:42:51,167 just being like, 926 00:42:51,250 --> 00:42:53,250 "I want to work at Shakespeare in the Park." 927 00:42:53,334 --> 00:42:54,584 So now that I'm finally doing it, 928 00:42:54,667 --> 00:42:58,542 I think she will be swooping in. 929 00:42:58,626 --> 00:43:00,918 There's some moments where I'm like, this is just a dream, 930 00:43:01,000 --> 00:43:04,250 I'm gonna wake up, and I'm not gonna be in New York working. 931 00:43:04,334 --> 00:43:07,000 'Cause I just moved here, like-- 932 00:43:07,083 --> 00:43:09,000 I moved here August 30th. 933 00:43:09,083 --> 00:43:11,334 I was here for, technically, six months, 934 00:43:11,417 --> 00:43:13,292 and then the pandemic hit. 935 00:43:13,375 --> 00:43:17,375 So I was quite literally just beginning my, like-- 936 00:43:17,459 --> 00:43:20,209 Like, The Public was the first place to hire me. 937 00:43:20,292 --> 00:43:22,334 To be just graduating from college 938 00:43:22,417 --> 00:43:23,918 and to be hired at The Public, 939 00:43:24,000 --> 00:43:27,000 I was extremely blessed, and I still am. 940 00:43:28,167 --> 00:43:30,125 My mom, she's an amazing singer, 941 00:43:30,209 --> 00:43:33,125 so I've actually been in, you know, 942 00:43:33,209 --> 00:43:35,125 the fine arts-- good morning-- 943 00:43:35,209 --> 00:43:38,417 the fine arts and all that stuff for a bit. 944 00:43:38,500 --> 00:43:41,667 And she wanted to go do it, but my grandmother got sick. 945 00:43:41,751 --> 00:43:44,792 My mom's the only daughter she had, so she had to stay. 946 00:43:44,876 --> 00:43:50,209 It's that weird, like, I'm doing this for myself, 947 00:43:50,292 --> 00:43:52,417 but I'm also really doing this for my mom. 948 00:43:54,000 --> 00:43:55,167 Ugh. 949 00:43:56,459 --> 00:43:57,500 Ah, I hear it. 950 00:44:01,292 --> 00:44:02,709 I had a 12-year plan. 951 00:44:02,792 --> 00:44:04,250 I was like, all right, I'ma move to New York, 952 00:44:04,334 --> 00:44:06,876 I'ma work at some off-off-off-Broadway theater, 953 00:44:06,959 --> 00:44:09,542 you know, really, like... 954 00:44:09,626 --> 00:44:12,167 in the gutter, you know, just doing the work 955 00:44:12,250 --> 00:44:14,334 to work my way up. 956 00:44:14,417 --> 00:44:18,250 But The Public Theater, that was the goal. 957 00:44:18,334 --> 00:44:21,334 I'm a Black, queer woman in sound. 958 00:44:21,417 --> 00:44:22,667 You don't see a lot of us. 959 00:44:22,751 --> 00:44:25,876 And to automatically get to the Public, 960 00:44:25,959 --> 00:44:28,250 just as over-hire, like, that was, 961 00:44:28,334 --> 00:44:32,876 like, year 8 in my 12-year plan, right? 962 00:44:32,959 --> 00:44:35,417 Every day there is a part of me-- 963 00:44:35,500 --> 00:44:38,083 and it's a very quiet voice in the back of my head... 964 00:44:38,167 --> 00:44:39,792 [train announcer speaking indistinctly over PA] 965 00:44:39,876 --> 00:44:41,334 But it's so insistent, 966 00:44:41,417 --> 00:44:46,459 that's saying, "The reason why I am where I am right now 967 00:44:46,542 --> 00:44:51,417 "is because I ticked off the diversity and inclusion card 968 00:44:51,500 --> 00:44:53,459 on anything." 969 00:44:53,542 --> 00:44:56,584 It's a very quiet voice, 970 00:44:56,667 --> 00:44:58,375 but it's there, you know? 971 00:44:58,459 --> 00:45:01,042 No, but I'm good. I know I'm good. 972 00:45:01,125 --> 00:45:04,542 And that's the other, louder voice on the other side 973 00:45:04,626 --> 00:45:06,959 that's like, "Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. 974 00:45:07,042 --> 00:45:09,542 Chill the fuck out. You're at The Public." 975 00:45:09,626 --> 00:45:11,709 It's The Public Theater, like, 976 00:45:11,792 --> 00:45:15,459 some of the best works start at The Public, you know? 977 00:45:15,542 --> 00:45:17,500 So, yeah, no, it's still a flex. 978 00:45:17,584 --> 00:45:20,834 It's still a hard flex. I'm like, "I did that." 979 00:45:20,918 --> 00:45:23,792 Well, my mom and everybody that helped me, we did that. 980 00:45:23,876 --> 00:45:26,876 [train announcer speaking indistinctly over PA] 981 00:45:31,042 --> 00:45:33,959 [birds chirping] 982 00:45:40,626 --> 00:45:43,542 [indistinct chatter over radio] 983 00:45:44,709 --> 00:45:46,709 - The colors this year look pretty. 984 00:45:46,792 --> 00:45:49,459 [indistinct chatter] 985 00:45:49,542 --> 00:45:52,292 [cheerful music] 986 00:45:52,375 --> 00:45:54,334 - It's so hot. 987 00:45:54,417 --> 00:45:57,834 On our first day, it's 95 degrees. 988 00:45:57,918 --> 00:45:59,709 Okay, Central Park, here we go. 989 00:45:59,792 --> 00:46:04,667 ♪ ♪ 990 00:46:04,751 --> 00:46:09,167 I don't know. I'm super hyped, 'cause-- 991 00:46:09,250 --> 00:46:11,834 I don't know. It's like, theater's coming back. 992 00:46:11,918 --> 00:46:14,876 I've never done the Park before. 993 00:46:14,959 --> 00:46:17,542 I feel like we have a really great show. 994 00:46:17,626 --> 00:46:20,626 And, like, I don't know. This is, like... 995 00:46:22,417 --> 00:46:25,792 The actor dream, you know, doing Shakespeare in the Park. 996 00:46:28,250 --> 00:46:29,959 Come on, mask. I know you're in here. 997 00:46:30,042 --> 00:46:33,000 I got, like, coconut water. 998 00:46:33,083 --> 00:46:35,167 I got Essentia. 999 00:46:35,250 --> 00:46:37,375 I got bug spray. 1000 00:46:37,459 --> 00:46:39,042 I got sunblock. 1001 00:46:39,125 --> 00:46:40,542 I'm ready for the park, man. 1002 00:46:45,792 --> 00:46:48,876 It's real. Oh, snap. 1003 00:46:48,959 --> 00:46:51,042 Oh, snap. 1004 00:46:51,125 --> 00:46:54,417 [laughing] Oh, wow. 1005 00:46:54,500 --> 00:46:57,500 The Ford's Laundromat... 1006 00:46:57,584 --> 00:46:58,834 hair braiding salon. 1007 00:46:58,918 --> 00:47:01,375 Hello. Hi. 1008 00:47:01,459 --> 00:47:03,667 - Hey. Isn't it amazing? 1009 00:47:03,751 --> 00:47:05,125 - Yeah, yeah. 1010 00:47:05,209 --> 00:47:07,292 [power tools buzzing] 1011 00:47:07,375 --> 00:47:10,876 What are we doing? We're doing a show. 1012 00:47:10,959 --> 00:47:12,417 Look at that. - I know. 1013 00:47:12,500 --> 00:47:15,042 - Oh, not the broken A/C. 1014 00:47:15,125 --> 00:47:17,042 - [laughs] - Authentic. 1015 00:47:17,125 --> 00:47:18,792 Authentic. - All right, listen. 1016 00:47:18,876 --> 00:47:19,792 Listen. - I love it. 1017 00:47:19,876 --> 00:47:21,751 - All the way, all the way. - All the way. 1018 00:47:21,834 --> 00:47:23,584 - Yeah. Isn't it amazing? 1019 00:47:23,667 --> 00:47:25,375 - It's really cool. - It's--it's gonna be glorious. 1020 00:47:25,459 --> 00:47:26,709 - Yeah. 1021 00:47:28,709 --> 00:47:32,417 - Folks, welcome to the first day of tech... 1022 00:47:32,500 --> 00:47:35,584 [cheers and applause] For "Merry Wives." 1023 00:47:35,667 --> 00:47:38,083 We are here. We made it. 1024 00:47:38,167 --> 00:47:40,000 [cheers and applause continue] 1025 00:47:40,083 --> 00:47:42,584 - Most important thing is hydration 1026 00:47:42,667 --> 00:47:45,375 and staying in the shade as much as you're able to. 1027 00:47:45,459 --> 00:47:50,042 Sunscreen is available at the hydration stations here. 1028 00:47:50,125 --> 00:47:52,584 - And the last thing I want to say is, 1029 00:47:52,667 --> 00:47:54,500 in the rehearsal room, the cast knows, 1030 00:47:54,584 --> 00:47:57,709 Saheem and I really tried to make an environment 1031 00:47:57,792 --> 00:48:03,125 where everyone felt heard and seen and welcome, 1032 00:48:03,209 --> 00:48:04,751 which is not to say that 1033 00:48:04,834 --> 00:48:06,876 that means that there's no challenges 1034 00:48:06,959 --> 00:48:09,626 or problems or frustrations. 1035 00:48:09,709 --> 00:48:13,626 There will be challenges and problems and frustrations. 1036 00:48:13,709 --> 00:48:16,959 But what this means is that we are able to actually speak up 1037 00:48:17,042 --> 00:48:19,167 and everybody has agency. 1038 00:48:27,792 --> 00:48:30,083 - I'm from Ghana, born and raised. 1039 00:48:30,167 --> 00:48:31,876 Lived there half my life, and so for me, 1040 00:48:31,959 --> 00:48:33,751 this show has been very rewarding 1041 00:48:33,834 --> 00:48:35,709 in the sense that I could tap into a culture 1042 00:48:35,792 --> 00:48:37,417 that I've been around growing up. 1043 00:48:37,500 --> 00:48:40,125 I've also lived in Harlem. I've been to Senegal. 1044 00:48:40,209 --> 00:48:42,959 So I had a lot of fun just thinking about the differences 1045 00:48:43,042 --> 00:48:45,292 and the nuances that you would find 1046 00:48:45,375 --> 00:48:48,375 within different African cultures. 1047 00:48:48,459 --> 00:48:49,876 The curtain-call look that we have-- 1048 00:48:49,959 --> 00:48:52,375 Abena, who plays Anne Page, which was custom built 1049 00:48:52,459 --> 00:48:55,417 by The Public Theater costume shop. 1050 00:48:55,500 --> 00:48:57,751 And it's out of woven fabric from Ghana, 1051 00:48:57,834 --> 00:48:59,792 and this is traditionally called kente cloth. 1052 00:48:59,876 --> 00:49:00,959 This is a fun one. 1053 00:49:01,042 --> 00:49:04,334 This is for our Pastor Evans, who's played by Phillip. 1054 00:49:04,417 --> 00:49:06,834 And you'll see here, we've custom embroidered 1055 00:49:06,918 --> 00:49:10,459 a patch on here for his ministry. 1056 00:49:10,542 --> 00:49:12,584 So there are little details that we've speckled 1057 00:49:12,667 --> 00:49:15,626 through the entire show just to add more depth and layers 1058 00:49:15,709 --> 00:49:17,292 to who these people are. 1059 00:49:17,375 --> 00:49:20,542 Even before we're onstage, there's a part of theater 1060 00:49:20,626 --> 00:49:23,584 where I'm in the fitting room with an actor, 1061 00:49:23,667 --> 00:49:25,626 and I might put a scarf on them, 1062 00:49:25,709 --> 00:49:28,292 or I might put them in a specific blouse, 1063 00:49:28,375 --> 00:49:30,250 and I see them morph in front of me. 1064 00:49:30,334 --> 00:49:32,209 They automatically, like, shift 1065 00:49:32,292 --> 00:49:34,042 their, like, body movement. 1066 00:49:34,125 --> 00:49:36,042 And we're like, "Yes, we found the character." 1067 00:49:36,125 --> 00:49:38,000 That alone is, like-- 1068 00:49:38,083 --> 00:49:39,542 it's transformation before my eyes. 1069 00:49:39,626 --> 00:49:42,042 - I do look good! - The shoes. 1070 00:49:42,125 --> 00:49:43,709 [laughter] 1071 00:49:43,792 --> 00:49:45,500 You look fabulous. - So do you. 1072 00:49:45,584 --> 00:49:47,626 Oh, beautiful! - Yeah. 1073 00:49:47,709 --> 00:49:49,125 - Yo, this is dope. - Wonderful. 1074 00:49:49,209 --> 00:49:50,626 - Oh, my God. Look at you. 1075 00:49:50,709 --> 00:49:52,626 - Yeah. - Wow. 1076 00:49:52,709 --> 00:49:54,500 - Wow. - You look like a-- 1077 00:49:54,584 --> 00:49:56,000 You look like a floating ghost. 1078 00:49:56,083 --> 00:49:59,167 - Yes, it's like... - [laughs] 1079 00:49:59,250 --> 00:50:01,167 - Except I got to be very careful. 1080 00:50:01,250 --> 00:50:03,167 [all cheering] 1081 00:50:03,250 --> 00:50:05,626 - Hey! - Yay! 1082 00:50:05,709 --> 00:50:07,083 - Yeah! - Hey! 1083 00:50:07,167 --> 00:50:09,667 [laughs] 1084 00:50:09,751 --> 00:50:12,000 - Oh! Are you a blonde? 1085 00:50:12,083 --> 00:50:14,500 - I am a blonde. - Why are you blonde? 1086 00:50:14,584 --> 00:50:16,417 - Oh, okay. - Beyoncé. 1087 00:50:16,500 --> 00:50:17,918 - Beyoncé. 1088 00:50:18,000 --> 00:50:20,918 - Nkechi Beyoncé. Is that your middle name? 1089 00:50:21,000 --> 00:50:23,042 - Madam! - Husband! 1090 00:50:23,125 --> 00:50:25,375 [groans] 1091 00:50:25,459 --> 00:50:27,083 - You guys look beautiful. - Oh, wow. 1092 00:50:27,167 --> 00:50:29,876 - Turns out that I'm the most African representation on here, 1093 00:50:29,959 --> 00:50:32,000 and I'm the most urban looking. 1094 00:50:32,083 --> 00:50:33,375 [chuckles] 1095 00:50:33,459 --> 00:50:36,042 But you see here, like, the way that Dede's designed everybody, 1096 00:50:36,125 --> 00:50:38,209 she's made everyone specific to a region 1097 00:50:38,292 --> 00:50:39,500 and a style as well. 1098 00:50:39,584 --> 00:50:41,375 Not just a region but a style. 1099 00:50:41,459 --> 00:50:43,042 So it's really cool. Shows the diversity. 1100 00:50:43,125 --> 00:50:44,375 And I think that's what makes this show unique, 1101 00:50:44,459 --> 00:50:46,125 'cause we're not just representing one country. 1102 00:50:46,209 --> 00:50:49,292 We're literally representing every African in Harlem, 1103 00:50:49,375 --> 00:50:52,167 which is-- she did a pretty good job. 1104 00:50:52,250 --> 00:50:54,959 - It's fashion! It's a fashion show. 1105 00:50:55,042 --> 00:50:57,626 Fashion, fashion. [indistinct chatter] 1106 00:50:57,709 --> 00:51:00,500 - All right, welcome back, everyone, welcome back. 1107 00:51:00,584 --> 00:51:02,834 You all look amazing. 1108 00:51:02,918 --> 00:51:06,709 Can we give a round of applause to Dede Ayite, please? 1109 00:51:06,792 --> 00:51:09,417 And costume folks. You all look amazing. 1110 00:51:09,500 --> 00:51:10,918 Rodrigo, the whole crew, the whole crew, 1111 00:51:11,000 --> 00:51:13,667 the whole costume crew, thank you. 1112 00:51:13,751 --> 00:51:16,417 All right, so we're gonna go from top of show. 1113 00:51:16,500 --> 00:51:18,584 Ah, Narda, anything? 1114 00:51:18,667 --> 00:51:19,959 - We are teching officially. 1115 00:51:20,042 --> 00:51:21,667 Literally, we're gonna go through 1116 00:51:21,751 --> 00:51:22,918 and setting all of the cues. 1117 00:51:23,000 --> 00:51:25,125 It's very likely that the next time we come back 1118 00:51:25,209 --> 00:51:28,500 to any of this, we will be in a run-through situation. 1119 00:51:30,209 --> 00:51:35,709 So, once again, Farai has been playing and playing, 1120 00:51:35,792 --> 00:51:38,250 and it's just about 8:00. 1121 00:51:39,125 --> 00:51:42,834 Good evening, folks, welcome to the Delacorte Theater. 1122 00:51:42,918 --> 00:51:47,584 Announcement and announcement, and announcement ends. 1123 00:51:51,375 --> 00:51:58,334 ♪ ♪ 1124 00:51:59,876 --> 00:52:02,667 - Critters, they've run riot. 1125 00:52:03,959 --> 00:52:06,751 Free creatures there looking at me... 1126 00:52:06,834 --> 00:52:08,375 trying to come out. 1127 00:52:10,459 --> 00:52:12,209 'Cause you don't know what they're gonna do. 1128 00:52:12,292 --> 00:52:14,250 You think they're gonna go, "Wahh!" 1129 00:52:16,584 --> 00:52:19,042 - Yeah. They're brave, those guys. 1130 00:52:19,125 --> 00:52:20,125 - They're brave. 1131 00:52:20,209 --> 00:52:22,042 - Great, folks, we're ready to try this 1132 00:52:22,125 --> 00:52:23,292 and continue forward. 1133 00:52:23,375 --> 00:52:25,375 Falstaff, we're gonna take it from your out. 1134 00:52:25,459 --> 00:52:26,751 And go, please. 1135 00:52:26,834 --> 00:52:29,042 - Okay, I'll answer it straight. 1136 00:52:29,125 --> 00:52:30,542 I don't have it. 1137 00:52:30,626 --> 00:52:32,834 This is now answered. 1138 00:52:32,918 --> 00:52:33,959 - One moment, I'll give you the go. 1139 00:52:34,042 --> 00:52:35,876 "Okay, I will answer it straight." 1140 00:52:35,959 --> 00:52:39,209 So standby on Paige. Standby, wives. 1141 00:52:39,292 --> 00:52:40,709 - All right. - Hold on, hold on. 1142 00:52:44,083 --> 00:52:45,000 - Good, it feels great. 1143 00:52:45,083 --> 00:52:46,709 It feels like-- - Uh-huh, uh-huh, uh-huh. 1144 00:52:46,792 --> 00:52:48,500 - It feels similar to what's in the rehearsal room. 1145 00:52:48,584 --> 00:52:50,000 - Okay, great. 1146 00:52:55,584 --> 00:52:56,584 - Where the lookout was. 1147 00:52:56,667 --> 00:52:58,792 Are we ready to move on? - Yes. 1148 00:52:58,876 --> 00:53:00,667 - What's very difficult with being in an open-air theater 1149 00:53:00,751 --> 00:53:01,626 is you can only tech-- 1150 00:53:01,709 --> 00:53:02,667 and, you know, and that's looking 1151 00:53:02,751 --> 00:53:03,626 at the lighting, the sound, 1152 00:53:03,709 --> 00:53:05,083 and everything--in the evening, 1153 00:53:05,167 --> 00:53:06,167 because in the afternoons 1154 00:53:06,250 --> 00:53:08,375 when the actors rehearse, it's daylight. 1155 00:53:08,459 --> 00:53:10,250 So you can't really do lighting. 1156 00:53:10,334 --> 00:53:11,918 You can't really do things. 1157 00:53:17,459 --> 00:53:19,375 Anytime that you lose, 1158 00:53:19,459 --> 00:53:22,000 you're really biting into that very precious time 1159 00:53:22,083 --> 00:53:24,334 that there is to get the show on. 1160 00:53:24,417 --> 00:53:29,000 - I have, like, five more microphones I need to prepare, 1161 00:53:29,083 --> 00:53:31,042 listen to. 1162 00:53:31,125 --> 00:53:33,125 - This outdoor theater taught us all 1163 00:53:33,209 --> 00:53:36,167 that rain is like-- "Oh, it's gonna rain? 1164 00:53:36,250 --> 00:53:37,167 Okay, we just stop." 1165 00:53:37,250 --> 00:53:39,667 It teaches you that you have no control. 1166 00:53:39,751 --> 00:53:41,626 It's like, sit down, take a breath, 1167 00:53:41,709 --> 00:53:43,709 and how can you be productive in this rain? 1168 00:53:43,792 --> 00:53:46,417 Get 'em, get 'em, get 'em! 1169 00:53:46,500 --> 00:53:47,667 More! 1170 00:53:49,667 --> 00:53:51,959 [vocalizing drum beat] 1171 00:53:53,584 --> 00:53:55,292 Exactly. [all cheer] 1172 00:53:55,375 --> 00:53:56,417 Yeah. 1173 00:53:58,375 --> 00:54:00,125 Here, here, here, and here. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. 1174 00:54:00,209 --> 00:54:01,125 - In the beginning. 1175 00:54:01,209 --> 00:54:02,959 - "Corrupt, corrupt, tainted in desire." 1176 00:54:03,042 --> 00:54:06,417 I feel like-- one idea is to then get-- 1177 00:54:06,500 --> 00:54:08,125 - I guess many people don't know--some people know, 1178 00:54:08,209 --> 00:54:11,125 my mother passed very recently. 1179 00:54:11,209 --> 00:54:14,459 She passed right before rehearsal started. 1180 00:54:14,542 --> 00:54:17,667 You know, she died from COVID. 1181 00:54:17,751 --> 00:54:19,667 A show like this, she would have loved it 1182 00:54:19,751 --> 00:54:21,459 because she would have seen herself. 1183 00:54:21,542 --> 00:54:25,167 Here we go! Let's go to the top, with Mama Quickly. 1184 00:54:25,250 --> 00:54:26,834 - Spirits, black, gray, green, and white, 1185 00:54:26,918 --> 00:54:29,667 you moonshine revelers and shades of night, 1186 00:54:29,751 --> 00:54:33,500 - Every night in the show, Shola, Mama Quickly-- 1187 00:54:33,584 --> 00:54:36,542 Jocelyn wrote this beautiful speech 1188 00:54:36,626 --> 00:54:40,792 about spirits and ancestors, and we're doing it for you. 1189 00:54:40,876 --> 00:54:43,709 It's everything I need right now every time I hear it. 1190 00:54:43,792 --> 00:54:46,125 - Spirits, I call on you, come about, 1191 00:54:46,209 --> 00:54:48,959 all of you spirits, both within and out, 1192 00:54:49,042 --> 00:54:52,125 for we made it through the great test of storms. 1193 00:54:52,209 --> 00:54:55,709 Now freedom--now days of love, joy, freedom born. 1194 00:54:55,792 --> 00:55:00,250 - "Now many spirits have joined you spirits above, 1195 00:55:00,334 --> 00:55:02,792 "honored forever in dignified love. 1196 00:55:02,876 --> 00:55:06,500 "New meaning to life, we all understand 1197 00:55:06,584 --> 00:55:09,834 "that love is present... 1198 00:55:09,918 --> 00:55:11,834 wherever we land." 1199 00:55:11,918 --> 00:55:13,918 I mean, to see the words is-- 1200 00:55:16,125 --> 00:55:18,334 [voice breaking] That's it. 1201 00:55:18,417 --> 00:55:19,751 Um... 1202 00:55:21,167 --> 00:55:24,292 This is why we live. 1203 00:55:24,375 --> 00:55:27,667 [sniffles] 1204 00:55:27,751 --> 00:55:30,167 How lucky am I to get in a show 1205 00:55:30,250 --> 00:55:33,876 where she wrote this for this show? 1206 00:55:33,959 --> 00:55:37,000 You know? 1207 00:55:37,083 --> 00:55:38,584 I can't-- 1208 00:55:38,667 --> 00:55:41,083 I can't ask for more, you know? 1209 00:55:41,167 --> 00:55:44,209 It's like a blessing. Your steps are ordered. 1210 00:55:44,292 --> 00:55:45,209 You know? 1211 00:55:45,292 --> 00:55:47,876 Lean in. 1212 00:55:47,959 --> 00:55:50,792 So that's gonna go flip. It's gonna go up. 1213 00:55:50,876 --> 00:55:53,334 These actors, this creative team, 1214 00:55:53,417 --> 00:55:57,417 this whole process has been very healing. 1215 00:55:57,500 --> 00:55:58,417 Good. 1216 00:55:58,500 --> 00:56:00,375 Just thanks for all your experimentation 1217 00:56:00,459 --> 00:56:02,584 and just being there with us and your patience. 1218 00:56:02,667 --> 00:56:04,375 Yeah, thank you. all: Thank you. 1219 00:56:04,459 --> 00:56:05,876 - Thank you so much, too, for helping us. 1220 00:56:05,959 --> 00:56:07,459 Farai, hey, thank you. 1221 00:56:07,542 --> 00:56:09,542 [cheers] - Yeah, Farai. 1222 00:56:09,626 --> 00:56:11,250 [indistinct chatter] 1223 00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:18,375 [overlapping speech] 1224 00:56:18,459 --> 00:56:20,042 - Could you come backstage right? 1225 00:56:20,125 --> 00:56:22,542 One of these trees just fell apart. 1226 00:56:22,626 --> 00:56:24,417 - We need a second-- 1227 00:56:24,500 --> 00:56:26,125 [indistinct chatter] 1228 00:56:26,209 --> 00:56:27,834 Did someone lean on it? - No. 1229 00:56:27,918 --> 00:56:30,250 - Fell on its own? - Just on its own. 1230 00:56:30,334 --> 00:56:32,000 - I think it's something about, like, 1231 00:56:32,083 --> 00:56:34,209 if a tree falls on the stage... 1232 00:56:34,292 --> 00:56:35,209 - I'm guessing-- - Does anybody hear it? 1233 00:56:35,292 --> 00:56:36,876 - But an audience isn't in the house-- 1234 00:56:36,959 --> 00:56:38,292 - But no audience is there-- 1235 00:56:38,375 --> 00:56:40,334 - I heard it. 1236 00:56:40,417 --> 00:56:42,083 - What's the rest of that? 1237 00:56:42,167 --> 00:56:43,918 - If a tree falls in the theater 1238 00:56:44,000 --> 00:56:46,417 and no one's around to hear it, is it art? 1239 00:56:46,500 --> 00:56:48,459 - I need a D-ring screwed to this wall right here, 1240 00:56:48,542 --> 00:56:50,209 and I'm gonna safety up this tie. 1241 00:56:50,292 --> 00:56:53,250 [power tools buzzing] 1242 00:56:53,334 --> 00:56:55,250 - Yeah, it looks, like, real, right? 1243 00:56:55,334 --> 00:56:56,751 - Yeah. - It looks intentional. 1244 00:56:56,834 --> 00:56:58,584 - They won't even notice. 1245 00:56:58,667 --> 00:57:00,751 - Today is the last day of tech. 1246 00:57:00,834 --> 00:57:03,751 Ordinarily, we would have run through the show 1247 00:57:03,834 --> 00:57:05,042 on Saturday before the day off, 1248 00:57:05,125 --> 00:57:06,500 and then today's about addressing 1249 00:57:06,584 --> 00:57:07,667 what we learned from there, 1250 00:57:07,751 --> 00:57:10,667 but because we lost so many hours due to the rain, 1251 00:57:10,751 --> 00:57:12,209 we're behind. 1252 00:57:12,292 --> 00:57:14,500 So, yeah. 1253 00:57:14,584 --> 00:57:17,667 We are hopefully gonna run most of the show 1254 00:57:17,751 --> 00:57:18,751 this evening. 1255 00:57:18,834 --> 00:57:20,626 We'll have to stop and tech the rest of it. 1256 00:57:20,709 --> 00:57:22,292 So, at this juncture, it's looking like the first time 1257 00:57:22,375 --> 00:57:24,125 we're gonna get through the show from start to end 1258 00:57:24,209 --> 00:57:27,000 will be with an audience for first preview, 1259 00:57:27,083 --> 00:57:29,000 which happens sometimes, you know? 1260 00:57:29,083 --> 00:57:30,626 You want to be a bit ahead of it, 1261 00:57:30,709 --> 00:57:32,083 but when the elements-- 1262 00:57:32,167 --> 00:57:34,626 when Mother Nature steps in and says-- 1263 00:57:34,709 --> 00:57:37,751 [laughs] Laughs at us, 1264 00:57:37,834 --> 00:57:40,459 then we just got to roll with the punches. 1265 00:57:40,542 --> 00:57:43,500 So we're gonna work tonight with costumes 1266 00:57:43,584 --> 00:57:45,083 and then continue teching the show, 1267 00:57:45,167 --> 00:57:47,292 and then we'll have our first audience tomorrow. 1268 00:57:48,709 --> 00:57:52,292 - ♪ Spirits, I call on you, come about ♪ 1269 00:57:52,375 --> 00:57:55,876 ♪ All of you spirits, both in and out ♪ 1270 00:57:55,959 --> 00:57:59,709 ♪ Now many have joined you spirits above ♪ 1271 00:57:59,792 --> 00:58:03,417 ♪ Honored forever in dignified love ♪ 1272 00:58:05,167 --> 00:58:06,667 - And let's hold right here, please. 1273 00:58:06,751 --> 00:58:09,042 So I believe Darrell may be working with some folks. 1274 00:58:11,209 --> 00:58:13,876 - Just go to your sides. 1275 00:58:13,959 --> 00:58:17,667 Yeah, so let's say Farai is on deck, 1276 00:58:17,751 --> 00:58:20,375 and remember who's after Farai. 1277 00:58:20,459 --> 00:58:23,000 So we're gonna go from "Away. Disperse." 1278 00:58:23,083 --> 00:58:25,334 - Away. Disperse. 1279 00:58:25,417 --> 00:58:27,542 But till 'tis 1:00, folk. 1280 00:58:37,000 --> 00:58:38,792 - Oh, thank you. 1281 00:58:38,876 --> 00:58:41,751 [indistinct chatter] 1282 00:58:41,834 --> 00:58:43,751 - First time is really the worst. 1283 00:58:43,834 --> 00:58:45,542 - [laughs] - But you got this. 1284 00:58:45,626 --> 00:58:47,125 Once you do it, you can do it every day 1285 00:58:47,209 --> 00:58:49,209 for the rest of the summer.. 1286 00:58:49,292 --> 00:58:51,709 - The front-of-house staff has been furloughed 1287 00:58:51,792 --> 00:58:56,375 since March of 2020, 1288 00:58:56,459 --> 00:58:57,542 so it's really emotional 1289 00:58:57,626 --> 00:59:00,417 to have everybody back, and we're all excited 1290 00:59:00,500 --> 00:59:04,751 and nervous and just all the things. 1291 00:59:17,375 --> 00:59:20,459 - And, folks, we will be warming up onstage vocally. 1292 00:59:20,542 --> 00:59:22,792 We will be warming up onstage vocally, thank you. 1293 00:59:22,876 --> 00:59:25,834 [both vocalizing] 1294 00:59:37,542 --> 00:59:38,918 - First preview's always special. 1295 00:59:39,000 --> 00:59:40,083 It's always the first time. 1296 00:59:40,167 --> 00:59:41,918 You've been rehearsing just by yourselves. 1297 00:59:42,000 --> 00:59:43,417 You've been laughing at your own jokes. 1298 00:59:43,500 --> 00:59:46,167 You know, you know what's coming. 1299 00:59:46,250 --> 00:59:49,083 And so you don't have that fresh feeling, 1300 00:59:49,167 --> 00:59:52,459 and especially for a comedy, the first audience is like-- 1301 00:59:52,542 --> 00:59:54,876 they're a barometer, you know. 1302 00:59:54,959 --> 00:59:57,000 I can't wait, I can't wait. We're ready. 1303 00:59:57,083 --> 00:59:59,834 Even though we lost hours of tech, we're ready. 1304 00:59:59,918 --> 01:00:02,876 [mellow percussion] 1305 01:00:02,959 --> 01:00:05,292 ♪ ♪ 1306 01:00:05,375 --> 01:00:08,334 - Actors are just naked people in the dark 1307 01:00:08,417 --> 01:00:09,959 without some tech. 1308 01:00:10,042 --> 01:00:12,125 [laughs] So... 1309 01:00:12,209 --> 01:00:16,667 ♪ ♪ 1310 01:00:16,751 --> 01:00:18,292 - This is a break. This is ten minutes. 1311 01:00:18,375 --> 01:00:20,000 Please take your microphones off. 1312 01:00:20,083 --> 01:00:22,167 - [grunts] - Take your microphones off. 1313 01:00:23,500 --> 01:00:25,459 - Oy vey. - [laughs] 1314 01:00:25,542 --> 01:00:27,500 - It's hot. 1315 01:00:27,584 --> 01:00:29,500 Here we are. - Yeah. 1316 01:00:29,584 --> 01:00:32,417 - First preview! [all cheer] 1317 01:00:32,500 --> 01:00:35,500 Yeah, I'm so excited. I'm so excited. 1318 01:00:35,584 --> 01:00:38,834 You all have worked so, so hard to get to this point. 1319 01:00:38,918 --> 01:00:41,250 It's been an extraordinary journey. 1320 01:00:41,334 --> 01:00:43,375 There was so much that was unknown, 1321 01:00:43,459 --> 01:00:45,500 and we have figured it all out together. 1322 01:00:45,584 --> 01:00:47,876 Oskar was saying that in the 16 years 1323 01:00:47,959 --> 01:00:49,751 he's been at the Delacorte, 1324 01:00:49,834 --> 01:00:52,000 we are the worst-hit tech in 16 years, 1325 01:00:52,083 --> 01:00:55,334 in terms of just the hours that we lost because of weather. 1326 01:00:55,417 --> 01:00:57,834 The spirit is there. The heart is there. 1327 01:00:57,918 --> 01:01:00,000 The soul is there. The generosity's there. 1328 01:01:00,083 --> 01:01:01,959 Everything that makes this show special is there. 1329 01:01:02,042 --> 01:01:04,334 Tonight we get the final piece. 1330 01:01:04,417 --> 01:01:05,834 We invite the audience to us. 1331 01:01:05,918 --> 01:01:08,000 There are folks here who haven't sat in a theater 1332 01:01:08,083 --> 01:01:09,500 for over a year. 1333 01:01:09,584 --> 01:01:11,083 They haven't watched live performance for over-- 1334 01:01:11,167 --> 01:01:13,751 They haven't sat next to strangers for over a year, 1335 01:01:13,834 --> 01:01:19,125 you know, so it's going to be unlike any other first preview 1336 01:01:19,209 --> 01:01:21,584 we might get in our lifetime, you know? 1337 01:01:21,667 --> 01:01:24,042 Thank you. Have a great first preview! 1338 01:01:24,125 --> 01:01:26,584 [cheers and applause] 1339 01:01:26,667 --> 01:01:29,626 [wind gusting loudly] 1340 01:01:34,459 --> 01:01:37,375 - [speaking indistinctly] 1341 01:01:37,459 --> 01:01:39,626 - Back up and then left on the ground, all over it. 1342 01:01:39,709 --> 01:01:41,709 - Stay underground. Go back underground. 1343 01:01:41,792 --> 01:01:43,542 Go back underground. - What are we doing with this? 1344 01:01:43,626 --> 01:01:45,500 - We got to leave this. - Okay. 1345 01:01:45,584 --> 01:01:47,709 [metal clattering] 1346 01:01:47,792 --> 01:01:50,375 [rain pattering] 1347 01:01:50,459 --> 01:01:53,417 [contemplative music] 1348 01:01:53,500 --> 01:02:00,500 ♪ ♪ 1349 01:02:16,417 --> 01:02:17,918 - The real thing that we're waiting for 1350 01:02:18,000 --> 01:02:21,918 is for the lighting to be calm 1351 01:02:22,000 --> 01:02:24,000 within 5 miles for 20 minutes, 1352 01:02:24,083 --> 01:02:26,459 at which point, we can begin some setup 1353 01:02:26,542 --> 01:02:28,334 that can happen in heavier rain. 1354 01:02:56,083 --> 01:02:57,959 - We encourage you to keep wearing your masks 1355 01:02:58,042 --> 01:02:59,167 and stand by. 1356 01:02:59,250 --> 01:03:01,876 We will try to open the house as soon as possible. 1357 01:03:01,959 --> 01:03:05,834 - This is how we show how dedicated we New Yorkers are. 1358 01:03:05,918 --> 01:03:08,834 Nothing could be better than Shakespeare in the Park. 1359 01:03:08,918 --> 01:03:10,959 It's my favorite thing in the world. 1360 01:03:11,042 --> 01:03:13,167 I come for every show. 1361 01:03:13,250 --> 01:03:17,042 I mean, I can't miss this, whatever happens, you know? 1362 01:03:17,125 --> 01:03:18,834 As long as I don't get struck by lightning, 1363 01:03:18,918 --> 01:03:20,751 and even if I do, it'll be worth it. 1364 01:03:20,834 --> 01:03:23,751 [indistinct chatter] 1365 01:03:23,834 --> 01:03:26,042 - I think there's a movement happening right now in theater, 1366 01:03:26,125 --> 01:03:28,209 and I think this is the start of it. 1367 01:03:28,292 --> 01:03:31,375 And we're here in the rain to see the beginning of it, 1368 01:03:31,459 --> 01:03:32,709 if we can see it. 1369 01:03:34,459 --> 01:03:35,959 - Whoo! - We're gonna do it. 1370 01:03:36,042 --> 01:03:37,876 We're gonna do it. Yeah. 1371 01:03:37,959 --> 01:03:39,292 Let's do it. 1372 01:03:46,792 --> 01:03:48,292 We're gonna do it. 1373 01:03:49,626 --> 01:03:51,542 - Are we gonna do it? - We're gonna do it. 1374 01:03:51,626 --> 01:03:53,375 - Come on, come on. Let's go. 1375 01:03:53,459 --> 01:03:55,292 - We're gonna do it, friends. - All right. 1376 01:03:55,375 --> 01:03:58,709 [indistinct chatter] 1377 01:03:58,792 --> 01:04:01,250 - Let's do it. Let's do it. 1378 01:04:01,334 --> 01:04:02,542 All right, now. 1379 01:04:06,667 --> 01:04:08,542 - Let's go. Let's go, let's go. 1380 01:04:11,459 --> 01:04:13,417 [squeals] 1381 01:04:18,334 --> 01:04:19,792 - We have made the decision to proceed 1382 01:04:19,876 --> 01:04:23,500 with tonight's performance. [cheers and applause] 1383 01:04:23,584 --> 01:04:26,083 - [laughing] 1384 01:04:28,792 --> 01:04:30,500 [laughs] 1385 01:04:31,500 --> 01:04:33,459 - What time is it? [thunder booms] 1386 01:04:33,542 --> 01:04:35,042 - Oh, my gosh. - Wow. 1387 01:04:35,125 --> 01:04:37,876 - Nope, we're not going. - Did they call it yet? 1388 01:04:39,292 --> 01:04:42,792 [indistinct chatter] 1389 01:04:42,876 --> 01:04:45,626 - Should've done "The Tempest." 1390 01:04:45,709 --> 01:04:47,709 - May I have your attention-- - They're calling it. 1391 01:04:47,792 --> 01:04:49,250 - We apologize for the inconvenience, 1392 01:04:49,334 --> 01:04:50,626 but we are sadly going to cancel 1393 01:04:50,709 --> 01:04:52,292 this evening's performance of "Merry Wives." 1394 01:04:52,375 --> 01:04:53,667 - No! - We appreciate you 1395 01:04:53,751 --> 01:04:56,125 for hanging out with us so much that we invite you all 1396 01:04:56,209 --> 01:04:58,959 to email info@publictheater.org 1397 01:04:59,042 --> 01:05:01,250 and use the code "merryrain" 1398 01:05:01,334 --> 01:05:03,292 to reschedule your tickets for a future date, 1399 01:05:03,375 --> 01:05:04,959 pending availability. 1400 01:05:06,542 --> 01:05:09,083 [thunder booms] 1401 01:05:09,167 --> 01:05:11,167 - We'll have it tomorrow. 1402 01:05:16,584 --> 01:05:19,751 - [sighs] It's okay. 1403 01:05:19,834 --> 01:05:21,125 I don't know. 1404 01:05:21,209 --> 01:05:24,375 It just feels like, yeah, COVID shut it down again. 1405 01:05:24,459 --> 01:05:25,334 - Mm-hmm. 1406 01:05:25,417 --> 01:05:27,459 - It's that same feeling, you know? 1407 01:05:27,542 --> 01:05:29,834 So... - Yeah. 1408 01:05:29,918 --> 01:05:31,334 - But it is what it is, right? 1409 01:05:31,417 --> 01:05:34,334 I mean, what are we gonna do? - It is what it is, yeah. 1410 01:05:34,417 --> 01:05:36,918 - It's been a really tough... - Yeah. 1411 01:05:37,000 --> 01:05:39,125 - Tough, tough, tough week. 1412 01:05:39,209 --> 01:05:40,709 - Yeah. 1413 01:05:40,792 --> 01:05:42,542 - And it won't stop. - I know. 1414 01:05:42,626 --> 01:05:45,334 It feels like it's, like-- well, it's like-- 1415 01:05:45,417 --> 01:05:47,500 - It's like it's trying to make a point. 1416 01:05:47,584 --> 01:05:49,918 - [laughs] It's like, every time-- 1417 01:05:50,000 --> 01:05:51,918 - But I haven't gotten the point. 1418 01:05:52,000 --> 01:05:53,167 - [laughs] 1419 01:05:53,250 --> 01:05:54,959 It's like, here's something, and here's something... 1420 01:05:55,042 --> 01:05:57,500 - Oh, my God. - And here's something, yeah. 1421 01:05:57,584 --> 01:05:59,292 Yeah. - [sighs] 1422 01:05:59,375 --> 01:06:01,584 - I know. - Okay. 1423 01:06:01,667 --> 01:06:03,167 Okay. - Love you. 1424 01:06:03,250 --> 01:06:05,417 - Love you, too. 1425 01:06:05,500 --> 01:06:07,209 - We will never forget "Merry Wives." 1426 01:06:07,292 --> 01:06:09,709 - No, we won't! [laughter] 1427 01:06:09,792 --> 01:06:12,334 [sighs] We certainly will not. 1428 01:06:12,417 --> 01:06:14,709 - I guess I want to know what happens 1429 01:06:14,792 --> 01:06:16,334 to people who did have tickets. 1430 01:06:16,417 --> 01:06:18,375 - They're getting rebooked. - They'll just get rebooked? 1431 01:06:18,459 --> 01:06:20,876 - Yeah, and it's not a usual policy, 1432 01:06:20,959 --> 01:06:24,209 but I think tonight... - There will be an exception? 1433 01:06:24,292 --> 01:06:26,709 - For people waiting around, they're getting a code. 1434 01:06:26,792 --> 01:06:27,792 - Okay. 1435 01:06:29,918 --> 01:06:31,125 I mean, I counted it back. 1436 01:06:31,209 --> 01:06:32,876 I actually was like, 1437 01:06:32,959 --> 01:06:35,000 "When is the last time I've seen 1438 01:06:35,083 --> 01:06:36,834 a live theater show?" 1439 01:06:36,918 --> 01:06:39,834 So I went back, and it was, like, March 11, 2020, 1440 01:06:39,918 --> 01:06:42,626 which was 482 days ago. 1441 01:06:44,459 --> 01:06:49,250 And as somebody who has 15 binders... 1442 01:06:49,334 --> 01:06:51,876 [laughing] Full of playbills, like, 1443 01:06:51,959 --> 01:06:54,042 who goes to see theater multiple times a week, 1444 01:06:54,125 --> 01:06:55,500 it's not just something that I do, 1445 01:06:55,584 --> 01:06:57,500 it's also something I really enjoy. 1446 01:06:57,584 --> 01:07:01,250 So I was like, "Oh, my God, I'm gonna get to see a play again." 1447 01:07:01,334 --> 01:07:03,042 And it just so happens to be, you know, 1448 01:07:03,125 --> 01:07:05,709 a play that I've been a part of, so... 1449 01:07:08,167 --> 01:07:09,751 But I got to wait another night. 1450 01:07:09,834 --> 01:07:12,709 That's it. That's how this is going. 1451 01:07:12,792 --> 01:07:14,709 all: Hi. 1452 01:07:14,792 --> 01:07:17,751 [indistinct chatter] 1453 01:07:21,334 --> 01:07:24,292 [birds chirping, distant siren wailing] 1454 01:07:25,792 --> 01:07:28,459 - All right, Falstaff, check one, two, two, two. 1455 01:07:28,542 --> 01:07:30,500 Hey, hey. Check one, two, two, two. 1456 01:07:30,584 --> 01:07:32,125 - [over radio] Falstaff is good. 1457 01:07:32,209 --> 01:07:35,292 - Madam Ford, Madam Ford, Ford Madam, Madam Ford, 1458 01:07:35,375 --> 01:07:38,417 Check one, two, Madam Ford. Hey, hey, check one, two. 1459 01:07:38,500 --> 01:07:41,584 Madam, Madam, Ford, Ford. Check one, two, Madam Ford. 1460 01:07:41,667 --> 01:07:42,584 Hey, check one, two-- 1461 01:07:42,667 --> 01:07:43,918 - [over radio] Madam Ford is good. 1462 01:07:44,000 --> 01:07:45,125 - Sweet. 1463 01:07:47,042 --> 01:07:48,709 - Take two. 1464 01:07:48,792 --> 01:07:50,751 Take two. 1465 01:07:50,834 --> 01:07:53,083 - I was just about to check the weather again. 1466 01:07:53,167 --> 01:07:54,626 - [laughs] 1467 01:07:54,709 --> 01:07:56,584 Yeah, they were saying they managed to rebook everyone 1468 01:07:56,667 --> 01:07:57,876 from yesterday, so that's good. 1469 01:07:57,959 --> 01:08:00,042 - Oh. - Wah. 1470 01:08:00,125 --> 01:08:02,125 - Ah... 1471 01:08:02,209 --> 01:08:06,792 [all vocalizing] 1472 01:08:06,876 --> 01:08:09,334 [vocalizing trails off] - Shh. 1473 01:08:09,417 --> 01:08:10,500 - [clears throat] 1474 01:08:13,667 --> 01:08:15,626 - As we've been preparing for this run, 1475 01:08:15,709 --> 01:08:17,751 we have not managed to do the show from start to end 1476 01:08:17,834 --> 01:08:20,459 without stopping, so tonight... [laughter] 1477 01:08:20,542 --> 01:08:22,417 You are going to see this show from start to end 1478 01:08:22,500 --> 01:08:25,167 for the first time along with the rest of us! 1479 01:08:25,250 --> 01:08:28,042 So welcome! [cheers and applause] 1480 01:08:31,876 --> 01:08:34,792 [drums playing] 1481 01:08:34,876 --> 01:08:36,959 ♪ ♪ 1482 01:08:49,250 --> 01:08:50,167 - You two, I see you. 1483 01:08:50,250 --> 01:08:52,209 I see you. You're not slick. 1484 01:08:52,292 --> 01:08:54,292 Go on. Go on. 1485 01:08:56,500 --> 01:08:58,000 [indistinct chatter] 1486 01:08:58,083 --> 01:09:00,876 - Could you actually get to, like, here? 1487 01:09:00,959 --> 01:09:01,918 Yeah. Yes, that seam. 1488 01:09:02,000 --> 01:09:03,542 Perfect. Nice tag. 1489 01:09:03,626 --> 01:09:04,542 Yeah? - Yes. 1490 01:09:04,626 --> 01:09:05,626 - Sweet. 1491 01:09:05,709 --> 01:09:07,375 Thank you. All right. 1492 01:09:07,459 --> 01:09:10,751 - The lift to get "Merry Wives" on has been 1493 01:09:10,834 --> 01:09:11,792 so huge. 1494 01:09:11,876 --> 01:09:14,000 You know, we had the torrential rain. 1495 01:09:14,083 --> 01:09:15,459 We had the killing heat. 1496 01:09:15,542 --> 01:09:19,167 [indistinct chatter] 1497 01:09:19,250 --> 01:09:21,167 The first preview, rained off. 1498 01:09:21,250 --> 01:09:23,125 Second preview, we went up at quarter to 9:00. 1499 01:09:23,209 --> 01:09:24,292 Third preview, I can't remember what time. 1500 01:09:24,375 --> 01:09:26,000 Fourth preview, we went up at 10:00. 1501 01:09:26,083 --> 01:09:28,125 - Big with rich increase. 1502 01:09:28,209 --> 01:09:31,000 Bearing the wanton burden of the crime, 1503 01:09:31,083 --> 01:09:33,083 like widowed wombs. 1504 01:09:33,167 --> 01:09:35,918 - At what point does the show not go on? 1505 01:09:36,000 --> 01:09:38,334 You know, at what point do you say, 1506 01:09:38,417 --> 01:09:41,250 we tried, and we can't do it anymore? 1507 01:09:41,334 --> 01:09:42,959 And that point hasn't arrived yet. 1508 01:09:45,292 --> 01:09:47,792 - Tonight's performance at Shakespeare in the Park 1509 01:09:47,876 --> 01:09:49,417 has been canceled 1510 01:09:49,500 --> 01:09:52,542 because of a cast member testing positive for COVID. 1511 01:09:52,626 --> 01:09:54,292 A spokesperson for The Public Theater says 1512 01:09:54,375 --> 01:09:56,918 that the company learned about that case on Wednesday. 1513 01:09:57,000 --> 01:09:59,375 They canceled tonight's show and last night's show 1514 01:09:59,459 --> 01:10:01,334 out of an abundance of caution. 1515 01:10:01,417 --> 01:10:02,417 The Public Theater does plan 1516 01:10:02,500 --> 01:10:04,918 to resume performances tomorrow. 1517 01:10:05,000 --> 01:10:07,709 ♪ ♪ 1518 01:10:07,792 --> 01:10:10,000 - Tuesday, July 27th... 1519 01:10:10,083 --> 01:10:13,250 It's supposed to be opening night. 1520 01:10:13,334 --> 01:10:15,667 [chuckles] 1521 01:10:15,751 --> 01:10:18,125 We had to put out the press release 1522 01:10:18,209 --> 01:10:20,167 about the COVID case. 1523 01:10:20,250 --> 01:10:22,792 The performance that night and the next day were canceled, 1524 01:10:22,876 --> 01:10:26,834 and then we had to cancel a third performance. 1525 01:10:26,918 --> 01:10:29,626 It's just been odd. It's just been odd. 1526 01:10:29,709 --> 01:10:32,459 Like, even today, it's like... 1527 01:10:32,542 --> 01:10:34,918 you know, it's supposed to be opening night. 1528 01:10:35,000 --> 01:10:38,250 [chuckles] Like... 1529 01:10:38,334 --> 01:10:41,667 you know, I'm supposed to be... 1530 01:10:41,751 --> 01:10:45,876 feverishly finishing cards and, you know... 1531 01:10:48,167 --> 01:10:50,876 Calling the bakery to make sure 1532 01:10:50,959 --> 01:10:55,459 the, like, you know, dozen, two dozen cupcakes 1533 01:10:55,542 --> 01:10:58,125 or whatever I ordered for the crew, you know, 1534 01:10:58,209 --> 01:11:02,167 will be delivered on time kind of thing, like... 1535 01:11:02,250 --> 01:11:04,876 It's just a different-- and now it's just Tuesday. 1536 01:11:04,959 --> 01:11:08,500 [chuckles] So it's just kind of-- 1537 01:11:08,584 --> 01:11:11,000 it's a weird buildup, you know? 1538 01:11:11,083 --> 01:11:14,209 When you, like, make theater, you know, 1539 01:11:14,292 --> 01:11:16,667 you just know that, yeah, these are the-- 1540 01:11:16,751 --> 01:11:17,876 this is the order, you know. 1541 01:11:17,959 --> 01:11:19,584 You have first rehearsal, 1542 01:11:19,667 --> 01:11:22,792 you go through the muckity muck of, you know, rehearsal, 1543 01:11:22,876 --> 01:11:26,834 you forge through... 1544 01:11:26,918 --> 01:11:28,375 tech. 1545 01:11:28,459 --> 01:11:31,125 You know, but then you go through tech-- 1546 01:11:31,209 --> 01:11:32,834 even, like, dress rehearsal-- 1547 01:11:32,918 --> 01:11:34,626 sometimes you have, like, an invited dress rehearsal, 1548 01:11:34,709 --> 01:11:36,751 like, that builds the energy. 1549 01:11:38,834 --> 01:11:40,542 Like, yeah, we've just had none of that. 1550 01:11:40,626 --> 01:11:43,042 [laughs] It's just been like... 1551 01:11:43,125 --> 01:11:45,209 harrowing, harrowing, harrowing, 1552 01:11:45,292 --> 01:11:47,709 the whole way through. 1553 01:11:47,792 --> 01:11:49,500 Trying to bring theater back 1554 01:11:49,584 --> 01:11:51,542 after... 1555 01:11:51,626 --> 01:11:54,209 well, what we thought was coming 1556 01:11:54,292 --> 01:11:56,500 out of the cloud of a pandemic 1557 01:11:56,584 --> 01:11:59,292 and then we got dealt a curveball 1558 01:11:59,375 --> 01:12:01,500 with, you know... 1559 01:12:01,584 --> 01:12:05,042 COVID really just doing the remix, you know? 1560 01:12:05,125 --> 01:12:06,375 [sighs] 1561 01:12:06,459 --> 01:12:09,334 [keyboard clacking] 1562 01:12:15,417 --> 01:12:17,375 - It's been a tough road back. 1563 01:12:19,334 --> 01:12:24,000 I think it's all part of this COVID time. 1564 01:12:24,083 --> 01:12:26,584 You know, what is the next act? 1565 01:12:28,250 --> 01:12:31,918 I mean, I've done this for my whole life. 1566 01:12:32,000 --> 01:12:34,292 I've been at this theater for over 30 years, 1567 01:12:34,375 --> 01:12:36,834 and this may be it. 1568 01:12:39,167 --> 01:12:41,167 And if it is... 1569 01:12:41,250 --> 01:12:43,375 I'm happy it's this one. 1570 01:12:43,459 --> 01:12:44,792 So... 1571 01:12:50,959 --> 01:12:52,542 I don't know. 1572 01:12:52,626 --> 01:12:54,542 A long road, a long... 1573 01:12:54,626 --> 01:12:57,209 It's been a long time, and... 1574 01:12:59,042 --> 01:13:01,292 I'm getting on there, so... 1575 01:13:09,167 --> 01:13:11,792 It's good to pass things on as well 1576 01:13:11,876 --> 01:13:13,667 to people, 1577 01:13:13,751 --> 01:13:15,459 to the next group... 1578 01:13:16,792 --> 01:13:18,751 So that they can... 1579 01:13:20,751 --> 01:13:24,459 Have their own tour of this place. 1580 01:13:33,959 --> 01:13:36,542 - Mm. 1581 01:13:36,626 --> 01:13:38,250 Mm. 1582 01:13:40,000 --> 01:13:42,584 Mm! 1583 01:13:48,751 --> 01:13:50,834 You know, more and more, this process is just-- 1584 01:13:50,918 --> 01:13:53,500 it's not about Shakespeare or is just about Shakespeare-- 1585 01:13:53,584 --> 01:13:56,667 it's not just about Black people doing Shakespeare. 1586 01:13:56,751 --> 01:13:59,209 It's just about the human spirit, 1587 01:13:59,292 --> 01:14:01,500 the will to keep going, you know? 1588 01:14:01,584 --> 01:14:02,876 We got a lot of people out, 1589 01:14:02,959 --> 01:14:05,209 and we're still just finding a way to be here. 1590 01:14:05,292 --> 01:14:07,709 We can't ever admit defeat. 1591 01:14:07,792 --> 01:14:10,792 That's how I'm feeling now, as a group. 1592 01:14:10,876 --> 01:14:14,834 What shall I say more than I've already inferred? 1593 01:14:14,918 --> 01:14:18,292 - We've done so many different versions of this show, 1594 01:14:18,375 --> 01:14:19,959 I feel, over the course of the different weeks. 1595 01:14:20,042 --> 01:14:21,667 It doesn't matter if you're a cover 1596 01:14:21,751 --> 01:14:23,500 or if you were someone who'd already been in the show 1597 01:14:23,584 --> 01:14:25,292 or someone who was in the crew. 1598 01:14:25,375 --> 01:14:26,375 Every single person-- 1599 01:14:26,459 --> 01:14:29,250 Narda, Ben, everyone had to rally for this. 1600 01:14:29,334 --> 01:14:32,292 Change is our constant, you know? 1601 01:14:32,375 --> 01:14:34,167 Because at a certain point, we're gonna say bye to Shola, 1602 01:14:34,250 --> 01:14:35,709 we're gonna say bye to Susan, you know? 1603 01:14:35,792 --> 01:14:37,584 Change is gonna be our constant. 1604 01:14:37,667 --> 01:14:39,083 And other folks are gonna have to step in, 1605 01:14:39,167 --> 01:14:40,542 so, really, truly, 1606 01:14:40,626 --> 01:14:42,584 this thing is bigger than any single one of us. 1607 01:14:42,667 --> 01:14:45,000 We knew that doing a show right now would be an uphill battle. 1608 01:14:45,083 --> 01:14:46,000 We knew that. 1609 01:14:46,083 --> 01:14:47,167 [laughing] But, God almighty, 1610 01:14:47,250 --> 01:14:49,667 we didn't know it would be like this. 1611 01:14:49,751 --> 01:14:50,876 We've made our plans, 1612 01:14:50,959 --> 01:14:52,959 and let's see what the universe brings us. 1613 01:14:53,042 --> 01:14:55,834 [cheerful music] 1614 01:14:55,918 --> 01:14:57,667 ♪ ♪ 1615 01:14:57,751 --> 01:15:00,792 - Shakespeare is returning to Central Park tonight 1616 01:15:00,876 --> 01:15:03,000 for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, 1617 01:15:03,083 --> 01:15:04,167 weather permitting, of course. 1618 01:15:04,250 --> 01:15:06,417 Chopper 2 flew over the Delacorte Theater 1619 01:15:06,500 --> 01:15:08,667 during final preps for the start of performances 1620 01:15:08,751 --> 01:15:10,751 for "Merry Wives." 1621 01:15:10,834 --> 01:15:12,751 - We're just in time. 1622 01:15:18,751 --> 01:15:21,417 - Perfect, thank you. - Thank you very much. 1623 01:15:21,500 --> 01:15:23,417 [chuckling] Happy opening. 1624 01:15:27,209 --> 01:15:28,667 I know I'm here because I'm good. 1625 01:15:28,751 --> 01:15:30,375 And I know I'm here because they want to work with me, 1626 01:15:30,459 --> 01:15:32,542 they want to see me grow. 1627 01:15:32,626 --> 01:15:36,417 I couldn't be more excited looking forward 1628 01:15:36,500 --> 01:15:39,918 to what this moment will bring me in the future. 1629 01:15:40,000 --> 01:15:47,000 ♪ ♪ 1630 01:15:52,125 --> 01:15:53,417 - I mean, it's live theater, 1631 01:15:53,500 --> 01:15:57,542 so although we've done this show now a million times, 1632 01:15:57,626 --> 01:15:59,125 you know, the fact that anything could happen 1633 01:15:59,209 --> 01:16:01,042 always comes into play. 1634 01:16:01,125 --> 01:16:03,125 But that's also why we do it, 'cause anything could happen. 1635 01:16:03,209 --> 01:16:05,709 It's that electricity. 1636 01:16:09,626 --> 01:16:12,751 Theater's such a temporal thing. 1637 01:16:12,834 --> 01:16:15,459 Every night it's just gonna be that night. 1638 01:16:15,542 --> 01:16:17,751 And at one point, there won't be any more nights 1639 01:16:17,834 --> 01:16:19,792 of doing this with those people there. 1640 01:16:22,626 --> 01:16:25,209 It's a practice in being present. 1641 01:16:27,334 --> 01:16:30,334 [lively music] 1642 01:16:30,417 --> 01:16:32,000 ♪ ♪ 1643 01:16:32,083 --> 01:16:33,209 - Hi. 1644 01:16:33,292 --> 01:16:35,167 - You look amazing. - Thank you. 1645 01:16:35,250 --> 01:16:36,667 - Happy opening. - Yeah, you look so good. 1646 01:16:36,751 --> 01:16:38,167 - Thank you. So do you guys. 1647 01:16:38,250 --> 01:16:40,083 - Thank you. 1648 01:16:40,167 --> 01:16:42,834 - Oh, my gosh, you look great. - Thank you. 1649 01:16:42,918 --> 01:16:44,334 Thank you. - Happy opening. 1650 01:16:44,417 --> 01:16:46,417 - Happy opening. 1651 01:16:48,918 --> 01:16:50,167 - Hey, friend. - Hi. 1652 01:16:50,250 --> 01:16:51,792 - [chuckles] 1653 01:16:51,876 --> 01:16:54,459 - Lot of emotions. Lot of, like... 1654 01:16:54,542 --> 01:16:56,709 - Handheld one, handheld one... 1655 01:16:56,792 --> 01:16:59,167 - Anxiety and doubts about the business. 1656 01:16:59,250 --> 01:17:00,959 - Happy opening! - We're here. 1657 01:17:01,042 --> 01:17:02,459 - We're here. Don't say it yet. 1658 01:17:02,542 --> 01:17:04,459 We haven't finished the show today yet, so... 1659 01:17:04,542 --> 01:17:06,000 - You're right. We have to finish the show. 1660 01:17:06,083 --> 01:17:07,792 - Exactly. We'll celebrate at 10:00-- 1661 01:17:07,876 --> 01:17:09,584 10:00, 10:30. 1662 01:17:12,459 --> 01:17:14,542 - Then you reach opening night, 1663 01:17:14,626 --> 01:17:17,083 and then you realize, "Oh, okay, 1664 01:17:17,167 --> 01:17:19,500 "this is why we do it. 1665 01:17:19,584 --> 01:17:20,876 This is why we're here." 1666 01:17:23,918 --> 01:17:26,876 - [trilling lips] 1667 01:17:28,292 --> 01:17:30,209 - The coming in and working until midnight 1668 01:17:30,292 --> 01:17:33,542 or being out in the rain or, you know, 8:00 am 1669 01:17:33,626 --> 01:17:37,209 to how many hours that's six days a week. 1670 01:17:37,292 --> 01:17:40,125 There has to be something that keeps you coming back to it. 1671 01:17:40,209 --> 01:17:41,918 And I think taking those moments 1672 01:17:42,000 --> 01:17:44,334 to acknowledge the beauty and magic of what we create 1673 01:17:44,417 --> 01:17:45,751 is what keeps us here. 1674 01:17:49,918 --> 01:17:51,626 - Very proud of you guys. - Aw. 1675 01:17:51,709 --> 01:17:54,751 [indistinct chatter] 1676 01:17:58,667 --> 01:18:01,083 - Just like that. Enjoy the show. 1677 01:18:02,209 --> 01:18:03,959 Enjoy the show. - Thank you. 1678 01:18:05,709 --> 01:18:08,042 - I am thrilled. 1679 01:18:08,125 --> 01:18:09,959 All the way from Texas to see her. 1680 01:18:12,167 --> 01:18:16,250 This is my first time traveling to New York 1681 01:18:16,334 --> 01:18:18,083 to see something. 1682 01:18:18,167 --> 01:18:20,042 And then with COVID, you know, I didn't get to see her 1683 01:18:20,125 --> 01:18:22,292 for, like, a year and a half, so... 1684 01:18:22,375 --> 01:18:25,834 She said, "Mom, you're gonna like it. 1685 01:18:25,918 --> 01:18:28,083 You're gonna be ecstatic about it." 1686 01:18:28,167 --> 01:18:30,250 And she said, "You won't go to sleep." 1687 01:18:30,334 --> 01:18:31,542 [laughs] 1688 01:18:40,459 --> 01:18:42,792 - What I can say, I think, with honesty 1689 01:18:42,876 --> 01:18:45,626 is that this year and a half 1690 01:18:45,709 --> 01:18:48,459 is a transition point for me, 1691 01:18:48,542 --> 01:18:51,792 where I am clearly recognizing 1692 01:18:51,876 --> 01:18:53,834 that my job right now 1693 01:18:53,918 --> 01:18:56,167 for this last phase of my career 1694 01:18:56,250 --> 01:18:58,375 is about handing over power. 1695 01:19:00,209 --> 01:19:03,751 The institution requires it. The field requires it. 1696 01:19:03,834 --> 01:19:05,834 And it's what I have to offer. 1697 01:19:07,709 --> 01:19:10,751 [applause] - Oh, first lady's coming! 1698 01:19:10,834 --> 01:19:14,584 [indistinct chatter, cheers] 1699 01:19:14,667 --> 01:19:17,000 - Come on in, Pastor, darling. 1700 01:19:17,083 --> 01:19:20,042 [indistinct chatter] 1701 01:19:23,250 --> 01:19:24,709 - It's been a long time coming. 1702 01:19:24,792 --> 01:19:26,584 [cheers] 1703 01:19:26,667 --> 01:19:28,042 - Preach, preacher! 1704 01:19:28,125 --> 01:19:29,709 - This is what we came here for... 1705 01:19:29,792 --> 01:19:30,876 [all humming assent] - That's right. 1706 01:19:30,959 --> 01:19:33,375 - To be revitalized, 1707 01:19:33,459 --> 01:19:35,000 to be changed... 1708 01:19:35,083 --> 01:19:36,709 [hums of assent] To be renewed... 1709 01:19:36,792 --> 01:19:39,500 [hums of assent] To open our hearts, 1710 01:19:39,584 --> 01:19:41,959 that there be a great coming together. 1711 01:19:42,042 --> 01:19:43,792 - Yes. - That this opening 1712 01:19:43,876 --> 01:19:47,792 is not just of a show but of our bodies, 1713 01:19:47,876 --> 01:19:52,000 of our spirits, of our souls, of our minds, of our hearts, 1714 01:19:52,083 --> 01:19:54,500 that everything that we have put into this, oh, God, 1715 01:19:54,584 --> 01:19:57,542 has been opened up and given right back out. 1716 01:19:57,626 --> 01:20:00,542 And it'll be multiplied over and over and over. 1717 01:20:00,626 --> 01:20:02,209 We thank You. 1718 01:20:02,292 --> 01:20:05,250 There is nothing wasted but everything gained. 1719 01:20:05,334 --> 01:20:08,292 - Yes! - All because we are here, 1720 01:20:08,375 --> 01:20:11,542 all because we have been obedient, 1721 01:20:11,626 --> 01:20:15,959 all because we are alive, 1722 01:20:16,042 --> 01:20:18,083 because we are Black, because we are strong... 1723 01:20:18,167 --> 01:20:20,375 [mutters of assent] Because weather can't stop us. 1724 01:20:20,459 --> 01:20:22,542 [shouts of assent] And COVID can't stop us. 1725 01:20:22,626 --> 01:20:24,626 So tonight... 1726 01:20:24,709 --> 01:20:27,209 we open this joint up... 1727 01:20:27,292 --> 01:20:32,167 for all to see, hear, love, and believe. 1728 01:20:32,250 --> 01:20:34,751 "Merry Wives" on three. [all shout] 1729 01:20:34,834 --> 01:20:37,751 all: One, two, three, "Merry Wives!" 1730 01:20:37,834 --> 01:20:40,792 [cheers and applause] 1731 01:20:40,876 --> 01:20:43,709 [lively music] 1732 01:20:43,792 --> 01:20:45,584 - Welcome back to the Delacorte. 1733 01:20:45,667 --> 01:20:48,250 Welcome back to live theater. 1734 01:20:48,334 --> 01:20:50,876 Welcome back to Shakespeare in the Park! 1735 01:20:50,959 --> 01:20:53,083 [cheers and applause] Ah. 1736 01:20:53,167 --> 01:20:54,167 Oh, my goodness. 1737 01:20:54,250 --> 01:20:55,542 It is so, so, so wonderful 1738 01:20:55,626 --> 01:20:57,918 to see you all out here tonight. 1739 01:20:58,000 --> 01:21:00,250 We are going through some difficult times, 1740 01:21:00,334 --> 01:21:01,959 but it is really, really special 1741 01:21:02,042 --> 01:21:03,292 to be out here tonight. 1742 01:21:03,375 --> 01:21:04,709 We don't know what tomorrow will bring, 1743 01:21:04,792 --> 01:21:06,709 but tonight we are here, we are sharing space, 1744 01:21:06,792 --> 01:21:09,209 we have a community, you are a blessing. 1745 01:21:09,292 --> 01:21:12,667 We are so, so, so ready for you, so thank you. 1746 01:21:12,751 --> 01:21:14,250 [cheers and applause] 1747 01:21:14,334 --> 01:21:17,250 [percussion plays] 1748 01:21:17,334 --> 01:21:19,125 ♪ ♪ 1749 01:21:19,209 --> 01:21:22,292 - ♪ Come, let me say Ashe ♪ all: Ashe. 1750 01:21:22,375 --> 01:21:24,500 - ♪ Come, let me say Yevo ♪ all: Yevo. 1751 01:21:24,584 --> 01:21:27,083 -♪ Come, let me say Ame ♪ all: Ame. 1752 01:21:27,167 --> 01:21:30,000 - ♪ Come let me say Ago ♪ all: Ago. 1753 01:21:30,083 --> 01:21:31,709 - What's up, New York? 1754 01:21:31,792 --> 01:21:35,125 [cheers and applause] 1755 01:21:35,209 --> 01:21:37,626 - Where's the money you owe me, Falstaff? 1756 01:21:37,709 --> 01:21:39,459 This shall be answered! 1757 01:21:39,542 --> 01:21:41,459 - Okay, I'll answer it straight. 1758 01:21:41,542 --> 01:21:43,125 I don't have it. 1759 01:21:44,584 --> 01:21:46,167 This is now answered. 1760 01:21:48,167 --> 01:21:51,959 - Opening night has a certain magic to it. 1761 01:21:52,042 --> 01:21:54,918 - Let's consult together against this greasy scoundrel. 1762 01:21:55,000 --> 01:21:56,417 Come, come. - Yes. 1763 01:21:56,500 --> 01:21:58,042 Let's get to the revenge part. 1764 01:21:58,125 --> 01:22:00,000 both: Aha! 1765 01:22:00,083 --> 01:22:01,751 - It has a certain beauty to it. 1766 01:22:01,834 --> 01:22:03,959 - Oof. Odious is the name. 1767 01:22:04,042 --> 01:22:05,834 - What name, sir? - The horn, I say. 1768 01:22:05,918 --> 01:22:07,542 - Hey! Hey, hey. 1769 01:22:09,250 --> 01:22:10,167 - The sum of its parts 1770 01:22:10,250 --> 01:22:11,959 is greater than any individual part. 1771 01:22:12,042 --> 01:22:15,334 And this is such a beautiful manifestation of that. 1772 01:22:15,417 --> 01:22:16,834 That's the gift. 1773 01:22:16,918 --> 01:22:20,167 [lively music] 1774 01:22:20,250 --> 01:22:22,876 - I left this place. Thought I'd never come back. 1775 01:22:22,959 --> 01:22:25,792 And now I have a big picture of my face with a crown on it. 1776 01:22:25,876 --> 01:22:27,792 Life's crazy. 1777 01:22:27,876 --> 01:22:29,167 ♪ Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh... ♪ 1778 01:22:29,250 --> 01:22:33,209 I've come out of this taking ownership for who I am. 1779 01:22:33,292 --> 01:22:37,500 [uplifting music] 1780 01:22:37,584 --> 01:22:40,584 [both grunting] 1781 01:22:42,042 --> 01:22:44,417 - I desire you in friendship. 1782 01:22:44,500 --> 01:22:47,334 - Why did you send that letter? - I just want love to win. 1783 01:22:49,792 --> 01:22:51,751 - Creating an all-Black production 1784 01:22:51,834 --> 01:22:53,876 of a Shakespearean play, 1785 01:22:53,959 --> 01:22:55,751 none of that was new to me. 1786 01:22:55,834 --> 01:22:58,000 I only write for Black people. 1787 01:22:58,083 --> 01:22:59,292 [laughs] 1788 01:22:59,375 --> 01:23:02,250 - Now many have joined you spirits above, 1789 01:23:02,334 --> 01:23:05,375 honored forever in dignified love. 1790 01:23:07,042 --> 01:23:10,209 - It's really about what theaters, what producers, 1791 01:23:10,292 --> 01:23:14,083 what tastemakers are doing to uplift. 1792 01:23:14,167 --> 01:23:15,834 How are you going to support people 1793 01:23:15,918 --> 01:23:18,042 who are creating work like that? 1794 01:23:20,375 --> 01:23:22,375 This is the future. 1795 01:23:22,459 --> 01:23:25,000 [cheers and applause] 1796 01:23:25,083 --> 01:23:32,125 ♪ ♪ 1797 01:23:35,000 --> 01:23:37,959 [indistinct chatter] 1798 01:23:41,667 --> 01:23:44,250 - Happy opening! - Thank you. 1799 01:23:44,334 --> 01:23:46,709 Aw. - Aw. 1800 01:23:50,959 --> 01:23:53,375 - We did it, bro. - Yes, we did it. 1801 01:23:53,459 --> 01:23:54,709 It's done. We're open. 1802 01:23:54,792 --> 01:23:56,834 Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord. 1803 01:23:59,459 --> 01:24:01,209 - I want to drink. I want to dance. 1804 01:24:01,292 --> 01:24:02,209 - Hi! 1805 01:24:02,292 --> 01:24:04,584 - Happy opening. - Happy opening. 1806 01:24:07,000 --> 01:24:09,626 - 16 months without this has been weird. 1807 01:24:09,709 --> 01:24:12,000 But to have it back, this is like a dream today, man. 1808 01:24:15,042 --> 01:24:17,042 - Whoo. - I see you looking. 1809 01:24:17,125 --> 01:24:18,959 - Oh! [laughter] 1810 01:24:19,042 --> 01:24:19,959 - Whoo. 1811 01:24:20,042 --> 01:24:27,000 ♪ ♪ 1812 01:25:24,042 --> 01:25:26,959 [bright tone]