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Rob Lee: Welcome to the Truth in this Art, your source for conversations connecting arts, culture, and community. These are stories that matter and I am your host Rob Lee. Today I'm excited to welcome two returning guests to the program to share insights and stories behind every man theater's production of August Wilson's Pulitzer Prize winning The Piano Lesson. My guests are a critically acclaimed multi-disciplinary artist, celebrated as a performer, choreographer, playwright, and she is the Associate Artistic Director for Every Man and the Director of this production. Please welcome Paige Hernandez. And joining Paige is a talented artist and a brand new resident company of artist member who's performing in this production. Please welcome to the program, Shanae Routa. Welcome Paige and Chinai back on to the Truth in this Art. So welcome you both back to the podcast, Chinai Routte, Paige Hernandez. Welcome back.
Thank you for coming on. So for starters, it's been a very, it's been a shorter time for one of you and a further time for the, so I want to invite both of you to introduce yourselves in your own words and share how you became involved with every man theater. I think that that's a good way to start off. So Paige, if we can start with you.
Paige Hernandez: Sure. Hey Rob, it's so good to be back and so good to be back in the company of your podcast and your amazing patrons. This is so exciting. So my name is Paige Hernandez. I am a multi-disciplinary creative.
That's really exciting. You know, a lot of it out of my curiosity of just the art form, which is theater, which I am mostly under, but a director, a playwright, a choreographer, performer, a little bit of everything. And I came to this production and every man, that's like a whole another podcast in itself because my history with every man goes back to my time in high school at the Baltimore School for the Arts and just having an entry point, an access point to theater in Baltimore.
From there, you know, every man has shown me nothing but love and has really been an incubator for my career. I started out performing there and then became a resident company member and then now an associate artistic director. And a part of that is programming the seasons that patrons get to see.
And some of that is programming August Wilson's The Piano Lesson. And when you're a part of the programming, you get to kind of decide who are the different designers and teams that you get to work with. But without a doubt, I was like, me, please, how do I put my name in the ring?
Chinai Routte: We say thank you.
Paige Hernandez: How do I put my hat in the ring? So we made it happen. So I'll leave it there for now, but I'm ecstatic to be here and to be a part of this show.
Chinai Routte: My turn. Hey now, Vrah. It's good to see you. Thank you so much, Paige. It's good to see you again, Rob. And to be back with you, to be talking about this production of The Piano Lesson, I'm Shanae Routa. I am an artist.
Okay. And, you know, I do a lot of things. I'm mostly proud of being able to reclaim artistry in my life. I'm also a really, really, really proud auntie, wife, and sister.
And some of those things, some of those titles are really dear to me. I came to every man's theater probably in 2012, I think it was. I think that's the year when I did my first show at the Old Space.
You can't take it with you. And then went into hiding for a number of years and had a wonderful, just sort of divine moment in the bathroom with me and the production manager over at Everyman and kind of got back into the loop of the Everyman swing of things last year with POTUS. And this year, now with The Piano Lesson and also as a new company member. So fresh out the gate as doing this show as the newest resident acting company member. So I'm beyond thrilled and excited to be doing this show, but also to be welcomed in with such love and generosity and warmth from the Everyman theater family. It really does feel like a full circle moment.
Rob Lee: That's amazing. It's great to hear it. And again, congratulations actually.
Paige Hernandez: Thank you. Yes, we are so thrilled. This is like the best fall ever. It's so good.
Rob Lee: And it's amazing to hear these, you hear what 2012, you hear even going further back for your page as far as your relationship with Everyman. It's family, it's ties, it's roots. So could you both speak on briefly before we go into the main entrain of today's conversation, but speak briefly on sort of Everyman Theater's mission and sort of how it aligns with your values like personally or as creators, but sort of it has that personal component because it's hard to kind of, you know, sort of fake enthusiasm as I have to job. It's like, it is and it's, you know, an outlet, but also it has like a personal connection as far as the time invested in the time in relation.
Paige Hernandez: Yeah, I'll jump in if that's okay. Everyman's motto is great stories told well. And it's something that I've always liked about the company in that it really allows for creatives, especially again, in the theater industry to sharpen their tools with both the classics, the contemporaries, and the new work. I think Everyman has always just done a fantastic job at being this well-rounded place. And then at its center is the resident company.
You don't see resident company too often anymore in American regional theater. But that's the secret sauce as Vinny Lentzizzi would say, the artistic director, because that's what makes it family. I think you come into this organization and you see this kind of like tight knit and bond amongst the people there.
And they have history. And even for those who are new, it's like, we know how special it is to be able to be someplace and to be championed. And immediately it just has the positive vibes that just feel like what you need to stretch and to grow and to be the best artist you can be. Which is why I'm just so elated to call it home and for all that it's done for me. And just so excited, like with Chenay, and just knowing what it's going to do for her. And this is like, it's not even just the beginning, it's just this moment in time where we get to really lift each other up and say, you are part of something special and we want nothing more than to see you shine and succeed. That's great.
Chinai Routte: Spain, yeah, like, I think, you know, I'm so grateful, Pais, that you defined the mission for everyone because I think about that. But I also think about what lies beneath that. There's something that just exists as a part of every person that works at Everyman. And that's just like this familial nurturing, supportive vibe, right?
And that completely aligns with who I am. Like to be chosen, to be, you know, to have someone excited, have an institution to be excited about you being a part of their storytelling. To be in the space matters so much as an artist coming in there, you know, bearing your soul to tell stories, right? You want to be in a place where you are also wanted in the space. So that absolutely aligns with me fully, which allows me to feel quite at home and to be, you know, quite myself when I'm in the space.
Rob Lee: That's great. That's great. And, you know, it aligns. I think that's what folks look for all the time, like in any collaborations, any connections, anything related to my creative outlet or output. And it has those ties. It's like, does it fit? Do I feel like this makes sense? Because it's work, it's fun, it's enjoyable, but also it's work. When I'm going through, like, how do you edit this?
How does Zoom work again? I'm really looking forward to this. This is the only thing that's going to keep me rocking and rolling. So, yeah, thank you.
Thank you both for sharing that background. And I want to move into, you know, sort of the main topic for today. And it's going to be a little bit of a back and forth, I think, with it, but I want to shift into the piano lesson. I want to talk about that a bit. So, Paige, starting with you, why piano lesson? Why not? Why piano lesson?
Paige Hernandez: Why not? So, yeah, you know, this production falls at a really significant and wonderful intersection in Baltimore, actually. So it's every man's 35th anniversary season. But then this piece is also a part of the inaugural Baltimore August Wilson celebration, which is this huge undertaking where 10 theaters have committed to taking on each of August Wilson's plays from his American Century cycle. His American Century cycle looks at a play for each decade in the 20th century of the African American experience. And what's cool about it is it's in chronological order.
So the shows are literally when they started in the 1900s. Piano lesson is the fourth in the cycle. So there's six more to see after us. And, yeah, this really cool and great thing that you can have a passport and as a patron be able to see all 10 shows.
I know that as theater practitioners, we're like, how many August Wilson's have we seen or have we been in or been a part of? Like, this is our opportunity, even as those who work in the field, to be able to kind of, you know, check those boxes. So, yes, once we knew that this festival and the celebration was happening, and every man could be involved, it was like, which one can we do? Which one can we do? And I immediately again, threw our name in the ring to say, piano lesson, we've got to do it. We've been fortunate enough to do fences and radio golf, which are two of the other plays in the cycle. But piano lessons always been my favorite.
Like, hands down for me. And there's so much that I thought, you know, I wanted to say with it in terms of a point of view, and mostly because there's a strong female lead in the show, which Shanae takes on beautifully. And just what it means in terms of family and all the themes there, there's also this magic and mysticism. So, lucky for us, we got in it early enough, and we were able to be able to get the one that we wanted, which was piano lesson. And yeah, lesson they take away.
Chinai Routte: Paige, I don't think I've heard you say that the piano lesson is your favorite, which that brings me a lot of joy.
Paige Hernandez: I mean, is it not your favorite? I mean, I don't put you on the spot, but...
Chinai Routte: You know, I'll tell you this, I'll tell you this. Seven Depaurs was my very first August Wilson show. That was like, what is happening here? And piano lesson was the second play, and it was the first play that I ran out to go and buy.
I was like, oh, honey, I got to bring this in more. So, I've been chasing Bernice, as I've been saying, for a very long time. Like, when I was too young to be playing for Bernice, too young in terms of, shall I say, life experience, right? Because sometimes we'll walk up to these things, and we think we can do it, and then we get, in my younger mind, self, I would be annoyed if I didn't get something that I really wanted. But today, playing Bernice, I understand some of the experiences that I've had personally that lends itself to constructing the character and, you know, how gentle or how forceful or how griefful or light, you know, Bernice has to be. And, you know, I'm honoring the life experiences that I've had, have had, as well as what Bernice has had in order to tell the story to our audiences.
Paige Hernandez: Yeah, absolutely. I'm so glad you brought that up. Sorry, Rob, because, like, Rue does take the full person to be able to execute the masterpieces that our August Wilson's work. I mean, he is, for us, our Black American Shakespeare when it comes to just language and depth and this kind of, like, dimensionality, like Sinea is saying, that sometimes it can take a whole lifetime to create because it cracks me up because even when I was introduced to August Wilson as a student still, yeah, you're like 17, doing like rows from fences, but it's like, you haven't lived.
We don't know. So to be able to take on these roles as the women that we are now, like, it's just like a dream. I mean, we can't stress that enough to the audiences and to your listeners, like, it's a big deal.
Rob Lee: That's a really good distinction. Like, I think when, especially when it comes to Bernice, that it's sort of like, you see, you watch like a movie or you see a pretty, like, how old are you?
Like, you don't know what your, you're like blues. Oh, okay, sure. Sure.
You at 20? Yeah. All right, cool.
You got it. But, but I'd be remiss if I didn't ask this, this piece, because this is like, since we were kind of in that sort of Bernice territory, we're going to go back a bit too. But how did you specifically, like, how did you prepare to play portray Bernice and what aspects of her character do you find to be the most compelling?
Chinai Routte: Yeah, I am, like I said, I've been walking behind Bernice for a long time, you know, and I would take her monologues and do them in auditions. So I feel a part of Bernice is with me, you know, and, you know, I think one of the things that I do to prepare always is like read the script multiple times.
There are so many, one, the beautiful thing about August Wilson is his pen, right? He writes so you understand and there are clues and things about all of the characters throughout the entire script, right? So you have to trust your playwright, your author, your writers, words to tell you exactly what's lying there.
But then also, as I sit and I meditate on the script and the story and the characters, right, I'm thinking about points of view, like personal points of view, like what are the things that can sort of brighten the story telling, you know, what experiences that I've had that sort of relate and how did I feel in those experiences and what could I layer in with that? You know, Bernice is um heavy in grief as we enter the show, right? And so it's this journey for her emotionally to find places that can be gentle, can be light if she allows herself to be, but also very direct and, you know, firm, um, but also loving. She's a mother and, you know, I do know a lot of moms who are living their lives, you know, sort of like at the margins, trying to keep themselves together, trying to make sure that their children are getting everything that they could possibly give them. And sometimes it comes off a little harsh, right?
But there's still love that is in that. So, you know, I think about all of those things when I think about Bernice and the ride that she takes, you know, in this story. I love her and I feel such an honor to I really do. I'm sorry, getting crying up in here. I really do like to, um, I feel very grateful to be able to tell this story.
Rob Lee: Were there any, because it's striking this balance of the strength and vulnerability and as you were touching on, it's pulling out an emotion. I'm a person that doesn't really deal with emotion. I do, but as a person, I don't really deal with emotion. Were there any particular like scenes or instances, um, maybe in the rehearsal, maybe in in, in, in, in, you know, the production that, you know, were particularly challenging or rewarding from an emotional standpoint to perform?
Chinai Routte: Yeah. Um, there are two moments, you know, one where uh, Bernice has to kind of, um, talk about her daughter. Um, she's talking about her daughter and full of the opportunity she wants to provide for her daughter that she didn't have.
And that one sort of came to me. Um, I was like, oh, wow, there is a moment of openness and vulnerability with someone that she sometimes doesn't want to necessarily
Speaker 4: be so vulnerable
Chinai Routte: with, but, um, but that she's really, um, sharing this moment of what she has not or will not have the opportunity to do or to be. And she wants to give that to her daughter as most as, as much as she can possibly afford her to do. So that's a really, you're like, I really do enjoy that moment. It can be a little, it's touching for me as Shanae, um, because it's a sacrifice that I know my mom had to make.
And I know a lot of moms and other caregivers and, you know, adults who are taking care of other people have to make. And so it's a really touching moment. And another moment that, um, kind of gets, that escalates, that is also a bit emotional, but something that my body is like, oh, we have to do it. We have to do it. I get a little like, who is, um, the confrontation with Boy Willie between Bernice and Boy Willie.
Um, it's tough. It's charged. It's accusatory.
It is, um, fueled from anger, sadness, grief, denial, but it comes, you know, at this clash moment. And my body is always sort of like rocking inside of itself when I have to do it. But I'm like, listen, this has to be done. It has to be said. It has to get out there. Um, so that she declares what her says is on this family heirloom.
Paige Hernandez: And I have to say, like, that's what makes Bernice one of my favorite characters of all times in American theater period, like beyond August Wilson, because the way that this woman is grounded and can navigate through, you know, at one point, Rob, you see Sine on stage with five men. It's just, I mean, it's five men characters, Bernice and her daughter, but we don't get to see the daughter obviously as much, but like, and you watch how Bernice has to convince, use techniques and tactics to get what she needs from all these different men in her life who are multi-generational. And you really just see a reflection of all the women you know, like how does your sister, how does your mom, how does your auntie talk to these different men to be able to navigate what they need at any given moment. Some of them, you know, have different love languages and some of them straight up need physical violence, you know what I mean?
But that's the families we're a part of. And so to be able to see how Bernice does that and isn't swayed easily, and then ultimately to know that the power is all inside of her is just remarkable to watch. It's one of my favorite shows and one of my favorite characters. That's so tight.
Rob Lee: So I want to go back to you, Paige, as far as like balancing sort of honoring the original, like, you know, Wilson texts and then the play in your own directorial, you know, interpretation, your own seasoning. If you, I usually do this with a seasoning piece, but sure, your own seasoning, exactly, fault me in it.
How do you balance sort of, you know, honoring something that just award winning is just a classic with your interpretation and sort of your style and your approach honoring whilst sort of putting your own stamp on it?
Paige Hernandez: Yeah, you know, this is an incredible opportunity for me. So something that you listeners may not know is that for a while, the August Wilson estate did not let women direct his pieces, only until very recently was this allowed, which means I am one of four that I can count or that I've looked up who directed this piece since the 90s.
Wow. Like this piece has been going on more than 30 years and only four women have directed it. And most of them have been, you know, again, in most recent years, Latanya Richardson, Samuel Jackson's wife did it on Broadway, and she was the first black woman on Broadway to ever direct Wilson, which I was like, what, why, and that just happened. That just happened in pandemic.
And then there's the red Scott Daniel Drake took it on recently at first stage, and then there's myself. But what's so exciting about this is for a piece that I've loved for so long since its inception, to be able to then kind of inject the woman's touch, which for me is clarity about Bernice about the different perspectives. But not just that, it's also looking at the men in this piece with full humanity.
I think so often I would see it directed and it had all this machismo and bravado in it. And you just felt like they were archetypes, like, Oh, he's a villain. Oh, he's a good guy. He's a bad guy. But I'm like, what got them there?
Who hurt them? Like, why are they now making these choices? And that interests me so much more than just playing the obvious. So I think and I hope that when people come to see this production, they get to see a piece that's really had a lot of thought and intentionality about the full roundedness of each of these characters and the arc that they take. I also want to type a director, Rob, where I don't like to prescribe what the audience walks out with. We have really in depth conversations and rehearsal about what we want the audience to believe or the questions we want them to ask. But then thinking about our audience is being intelligent enough to form their own opinions and their own interpretations.
So it's my job, I believe, to just put out the story as we know it with all of its components and factors as clear as possible. So that by intermission, you are like getting your drink like, Oh, what you think about? I don't know. Because if I did that, versus like hand feeding you how you should feel about this, it's not this heavy handed approach.
It's one that I think is nuanced. And again, looks at all of the characters in a way where as a fan and having watched it over 30 years, I feel like I've been missing. And I watch this show sometimes and I'm like, why date? How come this is always muddy? How come this is never clear?
How come there's no stance? How come we don't ever see, you know, these moments worked out exactly? And that's just what we charged ourselves to do in this process. To really think about this piece that we love and not necessarily how we could do it differently, but how we could do it clearly to a place where the audience can then decide what they feel is the best outcome. I remember, you know, I watched or I read an article or something and said, when you watch a horror movie, and they don't show you what happens, your imagination is going to think of the worst thing, the bloodiest thing. And that's really what this is about. What can your imagination do with the story that's told well?
Rob Lee: That's really good. I think it's a few things that are popping up as I think about that in process that I think one, it sparks like discourse, it sparks conversation around what's happening and it broadens it versus these are the only possible outcomes and say, oh, we got to stay within these boundaries. Another thing that comes to mind is a director of a sort of documentary that came out probably 15 years ago and he's been such, you know, since deprecated, I'll just put it that way, but he was talking about a film called, it was a documentary he did called Ontario Leather Bar, which was his response to a big chunk of the film cruising cut out. It was like a big chunk of like, this is what happened in this leather bar in this movie and because it's in the early 80s, we're not going to talk about this subculture. So he was like, I think this is what happened and he did a whole documentary. It's like, I think this is what's happening behind the scenes. I'm letting my imagination run wild and the sparking discourse and conversation and all of that stuff.
And I think, you know, when I listen to directors, filmmakers and, and so on, just folks that are in the space that around like telling stories, it's sort of this notion we look for certainty, we look to be spoon said to do something that's counter to that is, is sort of risky, but also when it's fleshing something out and giving sort of weight and clarity to something, that's also very rewarding. That's like, yeah, this is actually what happened. It's nothing here. This is what happened. Now you live with it. You take it and you enjoy and you process and you have dialogue around it. Right.
Paige Hernandez: Because sparking that kind of curiosity for me cultivates audiences. You know, when, when Shanae and I went to go see our first August Wilson pieces, what is that thing that's going to make us have that conversation?
Like you said, that discourse and be like, okay, now I need a passport. I want to see these other shows. I'm interested in this artist's body of work. The other thing is, you know, a lot of the themes and characters in Wilson's Century cycle overlap, but you can get really nerdy.
You can nerd out and be like, who was mentioned in this play that shows up in the other place and, you know, connect all that lineage, like a Marvel universe, but done originally with plays, you know what I mean?
Rob Lee: So absolutely. Yeah. And I think, again, if I can make you excited and engaged about the piece, then I've done my job. It's wonderful.
Rob Lee: I want to move into sort of my last two real questions and, you know, these are for both of you. So now it's like a sort of weird two on one. I'm at a disadvantage here. I don't know if I like that, but it's fine. And then I have a few rapid fire questions at the end because I always have those. So from both of your perspectives, sort of talk about, like, choices regarding settings, setting, music, movement to enhance the storytelling. How do these elements shape the overall sort of experience on stage and perhaps the experience for the audience?
Chinai Routte: Rob, Paige just told you that she had a hand in pulling all these designers together and that she's going to be like, you do it. Come on back to the mic because let me say this. I'm going to say this. Let me reiterate more women directors of August Wilson works.
Okay. Because one thing let me give you a flower stage that not only is Paige a brilliant multi hyphenate, right? But she's really the epitome of collaborator. She understands how to communicate to you so that you can think a little differently about the approach or think broadly about the approach. She understands when it's time to move one way or to pull it back and let it rest. She also understands because she's an artist and a performer, she knows what people need. And she offers that freely and gives us space to speak our minds, to get what we need so that the goal that we're all pursuing is met. So Paige, shout out to you, my sister, for who you are and for creating a space that allows air and breath and curiosity and play.
So I'm personally, I'm going to be on the campaign. But also she put together an incredible cast of designers. Like the things that happen on stage is magic. And it really did scare me the first few times that we were in tech. I was like, wait, I don't do horror.
Paige Hernandez: I actually go to be out here to Bernice.
Chinai Routte: It's going to be Sine. Running for the hills, but just incredibly talented in their own rights. Like just brilliant in what they do, found a set design and lighting and just crafting this incredible world that the Charles is live in. It's just been fascinating. Come on, Paige.
Paige Hernandez: You did best today. Check us in the mail, yo. Thank you. Thank you so much. That means more to me than I can share in this moment, just because a lot of who I am as a director is based on my experiences as a performer and just knowing the type of room I wanted and how I want it to be talked to and all of those things. So thank you.
Thank you so much. Yeah, our team, because again, we got to look at this play and zoom out because we were able to plan it so early in advance. We could get the heavy hitters. Which I never get to get some time. But that includes resident designers like David Burtic on costumes and Daniel Ettinger on set. I have worked with both of them numerous times at every man, just as resident designers. So I had to have them. And then Alberto Cigaras on lights. He and I have worked together in the DC theater scene and then David Remedios is on sound design, who's a brilliant educator and worked with us last on Berda Berda, which is a show that's like kind of a sidebar spin off of the piano lesson and knowing what he was capable of doing on that. We were like, we have to get him back in and kind of go back to the source material. And that's also makes this play so cool. Rob, because of that magic and mysticism, we have a ghost battle and it's not, you know, a spoiler alert, but it's a straight up ghost battle on stage, which is another testament to why you have to experience this. As theater and in person versus Netflix. Because yes, there's a Netflix version. Yes, there's a YouTube version, both of which are great. But in person is nothing like the feeling, the visceral feeling you get, the goose bumps.
We put the subwoofers under the seats. The rumble you'll feel with this ghost battle. And again, that's all intentional. It comes from a year's worth of discussions and talks with the designers as collaborators about what can we do to make this the most impactful production we've seen of this.
And yeah, I can bring my perspective and all of that. But some of the designers were like, well, what if we did this? And what if there's magic that the audience can't see or understand?
Again, that curiosity thing. So the two are in the audience literally like, how did they make that happen? And then it's some old like Bugs Bunny, Water Brother thing where it's like and somebody's like there with a pulley and there's like sound effects happening. But that's also the thing that made me fall in love with this craft. So it was so exciting in tech to be able to like put this together. Shanae, do you remember in tech?
I was like, I must have said, I don't know, throughout our 12 hour day, I was a pointer sister. So excited. To just do this kind of like what felt goofy and fun and young. But again, it's the love of the craft and to pull it off masterfully so that, you know, we can really get something again to excite the audiences.
Chinai Routte: Absolutely. I feel like Paige, the joy. We I would see you bouncing a little bit, you know, around the bouncing a little bit around the stage with excitement. I feel like it was this joy of the magic of bringing it all together. Like even for us as the cast on stage, we didn't, you know, when you're on a flat space in the rehearsal hall, you know what the story you're telling, but you don't understand the elements that are all coming together. And so once we got tech and saw the elements coming together, I was like, oh, you're showing out.
Speaker 4: Yeah. You're showing out.
Paige Hernandez: And I feel bad for y'all because you don't see it. I don't get to say this in its entirety unless you film it or like capture it in some way. I wish y'all could step out and just watch it. I mean, maybe we could do that today in tech where we just let the tech run and watch it because.
Chinai Routte: That would be though. Because I was talking with the teens on Sunday. We have a teens night theater, always our first show of every, every show. And they were telling me, you know, during a particular scene and all of these images that they saw. And I was like, guess what guys? I've never seen it. Have no idea.
Paige Hernandez: I'm just in it. I think it happened.
Chinai Routte: You know, and so they were like, you know, faces were like, and two of the two of the students were in production, like stage production. So they, they, they were like, yeah, we get it.
You know, because they have the, you know, they have the experience. You know, they're at BSA. Yeah. Yeah. So it's, it's, it's, it's a wonderful, but we get to feel it. And I think just as the audience.
Speaker 4: And you're creating it. Yeah. We're creating it. We get to feel it. You know, so it's, it's the beauty. I think that August Wilson intended it for us to see it this particular way. Right. You know, so we have to experience it this way. Just echoing what Paige said about watching it is great, you know, on your TV or in film. But when he wrote this thing out, he intended it to be live on a stage
Chinai Routte: with these people moving in and all of these elements coming in, creating a world right in front of you. So you must, must, must, must come check it out.
Paige Hernandez: Yeah. And I'll say too that, you know, the center of this play is the piano, the heirloom, and it comes to life, Rob. We have some magic and some tricks up our sleeves to make this piano, the actual piano comes to life, which is like, what? And it's not movies and it's not big budget. It is like pure imagination, craft and collaboration.
Rob Lee: I love the tease there. And here's the thing because, you know, like you have two talented folks joining me. I'm just here and just guiding things. It actually like letting, you know, you two cook, you know, kind of like answer the other questions that I had. So shout out to y'all. And the rapid fire ones are coming next, but I definitely want to comment on one thing. And I echo this same sort of sentiment of it hits different when you're at a production, you know, just seeing sort of the creativity, collaboration, the magic, if you will. You know, I've gone to every man several times. Last year was like one of the, and even earlier this year in the last like calendar year or so, just me going to productions in different places.
I was able to see a fellow, you know, as a birthday present for my partner. And I was like, yeah, I've spent a lot on this. And I felt the magic of being there in that space. And, you know, I do a lot of interviews, interview people coming up on 900 interviews for this podcast. And it's one of those things where you kind of like, oh, I've heard this, but this is cool. This is great. And this is, and because I come from this perspective of creativity, artists and all of this stuff, but having that moment where, where can we go with this? How far can we go? So much magic here. I'm feeling like I was awestruck. I'm only really getting that from going to the theater these days.
Paige Hernandez: You better talk about it. I love that. That is good. But like, you know, that's a tagline.
Speaker 4: The tagline means. Let your listeners and your watchers know that theater is the place to be. Like, right? Yeah. It's where I feel like it's when it, when the sauce is really cooked, you know, and then they'll say it, I'm just repeating what he said. Okay. Real actors on the stage.
Paige Hernandez: Hmm. That's what he said. I didn't say that. That's no argument fair.
Rob Lee: So, you know, now that we have that and we're going to, you know, touch on sort of some dates and all towards the end and the shameless plug portion of the, of the these three rapid fire questions and these final moments and these for both of you. And I'm going to start off with this one. Well, before I even go to it, don't ever think these.
That's what I'll just say. It's like, what do you mean? Like, what's almost like, Hey, you know, what's your favorite ice cream?
Hmm. You know, a Thursday's a rocky road, but look, moose tracks on the weekend is great. What's your favorite?
You know, so here's the first one. What is a piece of think like a singular piece of advice you would share with someone aspiring to be in theater, whether it's a an artist of any Ilken theater from, you know, whether it be from a performance standpoint, playwright, director, what have you, what's that? What's the one piece of advice you would just share and impart on, you know, people interested and curious?
Chinai Routte: I'll, I'll start and say from the actor standpoint that who you are is enough. You are worthy and that is enough. Great. Hmm.
Paige Hernandez: Amen. Well, now I would say, you know, stay curious, be willing to do it all. Um, this, this work requires a thirst and a hunger for the unknown and being able to do it all and understand it all only makes you better. So stay hungry, my friends. Eat it up.
Rob Lee: Here's the next one and both of those are very good. Um, here's the next one. Uh, so this is from a going to a stage perspective or even like sort of, um, I guess I'll frame it under sort of that anticipatory anxiety. You know, some people talk about, uh, butterflies, right? Um, how you cope with those nerves or those butterflies. I, you know, some people will say like, I've been doing this for years. I don't get nerves anymore.
So like, I've been doing this for years, almost 20 of this point. It's like, who am I talking to today? Oh, explode in the middle of the conversation because it's nerves. So for you, uh, let's start with you, Paige, uh, like the anticipatory, the sort of butterflies, like how do you cope?
Paige Hernandez: Yeah, you know, I can't remember who I got this from, but it's kind of saved me in this regard, which is that if you switch the perspective of nerves and anxiety into care and excitement, you get nervous because you care about what happens next. And when they told me that it was like, Oh, you always want to be nervous. You always want these butterflies.
You always want to have those pre-show, you know, toilet runs. I hope that doesn't take it too far, but it means that your body is reacting to the fact that you care about what happens next. And if you keep that mentality, then you don't run from it and it's no longer this negative thing.
Um, so as an educator, I share that all the time with my students that stage fright means your care and that you're excited about what happens next. So good. Isn't that good?
Yeah. It just rewired me. So now I embrace it. Even when I'm watching like Shanae on stage and this wonderful cast every night, I've seen the show now 50, 11 times watching them do it. I still am like, Oh, here comes that part. Oh, will they do it?
Will they execute it? I see them like take off on the ramp and I'm like, Oh, they fly in. They fly in when they come in for the landing. I don't know, but it's because I care and I want them to do well and I want to see them succeed. So I've got all the bubblegum. Mama, mama worried about her baby. Oh my gosh. I've heard you can see me sitting in the audience every night today. Rob, you're listening to them see, but I just be shifting and just trying to find me looking like this sometime.
Rob Lee: It's almost like a big part of me. He's like, Oh, no, is it working?
Paige Hernandez: Is it working? I don't know. But yeah, it's because I care. That's so good.
Speaker 4: Yeah. I don't have that in my head now. It's page all right out there.
Paige Hernandez: Goodness, put me in the back. I won't distract nobody.
Rob Lee: Yeah, like in those instances where I used to do, and it's probably coming back, but I would do screenings and like talks with movies and so on. And I would have folks ask me, like, why are you not watching the movie with us? I'm like, I can't take anyone looking at this. And if someone, if the movie skips or there's a scene that's goofy in it, it's like, no, I'm going to take this on personally because this matters to me. So I'm just like, I'll be upstairs in a room with no lights on and I'll come down when it's call time for me.
Paige Hernandez: And that too, however you want to process it works. Right. If it's like being absent from it, you know, and there's so many directors that just watch it from like the green room or somewhere else. I can't be in the audience. But yeah, I hear that. I feel that.
Rob Lee: Any anything from that bubblegum bottle flies, butterflies. I'll fly.
Chinai Routte: Listen, I have, I have a really funny story when I first started acting as an intern at a theater during children's theater. My group, we would all have some process. Of nervousness at the top of the show. And, you know, there were, you know, as they said, the bathroom runs or pacing or crying, you know, talking in the corner to yourself. We were all beginning this journey of like, we're going to be okay.
I'll be doing this. But I think what Paige has offered is really, really brilliant. I've also tell people to breathe. Oftentimes when we are completely nervous on the verge of like passing out, it's because we're forgetting to breathe and breath can always help. And there are moments on stage in this show where I'm taking a deep breath in the middle of my line because my brain is moving so fast.
The emotions are switching from one way to the next. And I might be thinking, what is that thing that I stepped on or that fell or something and I have to rebalance myself so that we're continuing to tell the story and breathing. When we off stage, we think about it, none. But when we're on stage, sometimes we are holding our breath until the end and we have to remember to breathe. So that's what I would offer. Fantastic.
Rob Lee: So here's the last one. And I always try to just bring it home with something on the, and the more obscure, but maybe a little bit more on the personal side of things. And I always go to food for some reason.
I always go to food. So, you mentioned 12 hours for some of these days, what have you. And there's an emotional component on both sides of observing and actually performing. So with all of that taxing that's happening, what have you been like eating a lot of during this production? That's, that's actually the question. Cause I feel like we have something. Me, it's just protein shakes and pistachios at this point. That's all I'm doing. Goodness.
Paige Hernandez: It's tough because that is like the secret that theater artists know, which is that tech and get that ramp to opening. It's so incredibly frantic and stressful and urgent. There's this timeline. You got to do so much and so little time, which is why we have those long days.
But everybody's just in there stressing. And we're across the Lexington market. My goodness.
Like everybody's just grabbing the like, you know, three for four dollar doughnuts chicken and waffles and it's terrible. There are some who are really great. Like, she's pretty good about staying, you know, would seem to be healthy and on track cause I'll be in there with, um, gummy bears. You know, that's my thing right now.
I just shall Lord. Uh, and my favorite food is crab and crab cakes. So when I get real stressed out, then I'm going right across to the market and grabbing that. But yeah, it's so hard. It's just one of those incredibly intense moments in our, in our work that is so hard to be disciplined and I'd be like, no, you know what? Instead of that cigarette, I'm going to eat this gummy bear. Yeah. So, but today that's good. I see today. Do great.
Chinai Routte: Thank you, Paige. Cause you know, I have a laundry list of things that I can't eat and I'm really trying to stay straight. So I'm not, um, uh, off, you know, during the show, but I think I create protein during the show. And when we were in the rehearsal space, um, I don't know who would generously bring
Speaker 4: those peanut butter cups, that big cup of peanut butter cups into the rehearsal hall.
Chinai Routte: And we would, we would eat them like men, you know? Um, so I think that was a collective, you know, craving of everyone. And, um, and then we all, we all like a little sweet tree, you know, we all love us a little sweet, sweet, sweet cast.
Very much so. So any sweet treats you put in front of us, we're going to have it. So those of us, there are quite a few of us that have some kind of dietary restriction. So we try to, you know, stay within those parameters, but I'm craving protein because if your girl doesn't get it, I don't want you to meet the person. You know what I'm saying?
Paige Hernandez: All seriousness aside, you know, what actors do is very athletic. They are athletes. I mean, we're talking shows Tuesday through Sunday, three hours at a time. Um, you know, what they need to do and what they need to eat to sustain their endurance and just their ability to do this job is not to be looked at lightly.
Speaker 4: So I'm like, do you do what you need to do to get through, get your protein? Because Lord knows it's the stamina, you know, that you need.
Chinai Routte: Sorry, we didn't have ice cream or, um, kind of a down cake on the list for you, Rob, but I
Rob Lee: mean, he has me thinking about like pulling out my old smoked crab cake recipe. That's what I'm.
Paige Hernandez: You coming through smoked crab cake. You coming through, you know, I'm sorry.
Rob Lee: It's Japanese elements with it.
Rob Lee: We'll talk off my goodbye.
Paige Hernandez: I'm all ears.
Rob Lee: So, um, you know, let's, let's close out here. Um, it went on to the, the main conversation and, you know, I think both for you for coming on and like sharing just some insight and some background, it really just gives so much more texture and I'm looking forward to, to seeing the production, but so much more texture and just background and insight for, for the audience.
I find that when there's the production out and then you hear from the, the makers, the cast, the folks behind it, it's just, I don't know, gives you a like a more holistic POV on it. That's really great. And I'm really fortunate to have this conversation with the two of you. And, um, and secondly, I want to invite and encourage you to share with the listeners any shameless plugs, closing thoughts, anything that you would like to share as we close out this, this podcast, this conversation, the floor is yours. Yeah.
Paige Hernandez: Just come see this show, y'all. I think the best way to get to know Shanay and I both is to see our work. Um, and it's such a special time again. Shanay is a new company member and come see her in all her glory. She does such a fantastic job with this.
And I don't think you'll see a production like this, of this show in a long time with the woman's perspective and all the magic and all of the kind of mastery and craftsmanship that's happening in the room. We are on stage through September 28th shows Tuesday through Sunday with Matt and A's on the weekend and a couple of weekday, Matt and A's, but you can visit everymantheatre.org to get all those dates. We also have some very reasonably priced tickets, but y'all, you got to jump on them because they're going to go soon, but they're pay what you choose tickets for every show, but you got to get them because they go fast.
They're the first to go. So if you're listening to this now, make sure you jump on that. Um, but, um, we would love to see you there. And Rob, just thank you so much for having us to be able to talk about this. It's also really great. And we don't get to do often.
Chinai Routte: Thank you so much, Rob. And thank you to your listeners too. We look forward to seeing everybody in at the theater, at the theater.
Rob Lee: And they have it folks. I want to again thank Chinai Routa and Paige Hernandez for coming back on to the truth in this art and telling us a bit about the piano lesson, which is now on stage at every man and for Shanay and for Paige. I am Rob Lee saying that there's art, culture and community in and around your neck of the woods. You just have to look for it