Grace Aki (4:29)

Yeah, I felt like that went on a little long. I was like, kieran, no, we don't. We don't pressure women to have babies for us. Not in this day and age. Not in 2025.

Matt Tammanini (4:39)

I mean, he is getting ready to do a David Mamet play. So, you know, maybe stop it.

Grace Aki (4:43)

But no, I'm excited for him to. To win this award. And I Just, I really loved his performance. I know a lot of, there were a lot of articles that were like, he's playing himself. And I'm like, don't be so reductive of somebody, you guys, you know, let certain actors phone it in and play themselves all the time. So I don't know. But I really love his performance here. I also really like Jesse eisenberg's very independent $3 million budget film. Like, I really liked. There was a lot of notoriety here because they're both, you know, heavy hitters. But also, you know, Jennifer Gray is in this movie. There's, there's a couple of great actors and I, and I think that this one is well deserved and I'm hopeful for even more respect on his name as an actor throughout the years that some of us have had since we were too young. Too young.

Matt Tammanini (5:31)

Yeah, there was a lot of interesting takes coming out of the Oscars, but one of the things that was pretty much universally praised was the opening of the show which featured a medley of Oz related songs. It started with Ariana Grande singing Over the Rainbow and then Cynthia Erivo came out and sang Home from the Wiz and then Cynthia, with a little help from Ariana, saying Defying Gravity. Not only was that a tribute to the fact that Wicked was such a major film this year, but it was also as a way to recognize and honor Los Angeles, which has obviously had a really tough three, four months with all of the fires that have ravaged not only the wildlife in la, but homes and businesses and all of that kind of thing. So that was a really touching moment. I know I cried openly with especially when Cynthia was singing Defying Gravity. And also later in the show too, Queen Latifah sang He's on down the Road as part of the Quincy Jones tribute. So there was a lot of Oz related things in the broadcast last night. So Grace, beyond those theater related winners, obviously a ton of other theater related nominees. Colman, Domingo, Timothee Chalamet, Sebastian Sand, Jeremy Strong, Ralph Fiennes, all of those people. What was the best moment for you outside of Kieran or Paul winning or the odds related tributes?

Grace Aki (6:59)

I thought that the opening was one of the most powerful Oscar openings that I can remember in a long time. I really loved the shoes sticking out of Ariana's back. I loved the rainbow light that went over Cynthia, as she said. It was just stunning. It was a really, really gorgeous. And I love that it was a tribute to all of the people that helped save and a lot of the homes and People that were lost in the Los Angeles fires. That was not, you know, lost on me at home or the audience. And I think it was gorgeous. I also want to shout out the fact that Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan came together and he reminded us of one of the most iconic lines in film history by Nora Ephron. So there were a lot of really beautiful moments. I think this is what happens when you get a comedian who is a host and his writers to, to do it. They came in under time. There was a really, it was just really good. It was an excellent version of an awards ceremony that I think we've missed for some time. You know, we think about it and he even referenced it. You know, Billy Crystal, Robin Williams, Whoopi, like there, there's so many hosts and, and comedians of a time that used to host the Oscars was such you would, you would look forward to it. Now this is something that I genuinely look forward to besides loving film, but also as a person who enjoys entertainment.

Matt Tammanini (8:20)

Well, I will say they did not actually come in under under time. It was scheduled for three and a half hours, which is why people who are watching the stream on Hulu did not see the last two awards. The Hulu broadcast, which was the first time it had ever been streamed on a subscription video on demand platform in the United States, it was only scheduled for 3:30 and Hulu did not for some reason think that it could go over that time. And they did not see the win for Best Actress or Best Picture. So that was a little bit of a mess. I also, I love Conan O'Brien. I didn't find him that funny. I know I'm in the minority here, Grace, but like, I did not enjoy Conan a whole lot on Sunday night, which is wild because he's probably my favorite late night host ever.

Grace Aki (9:04)

You know what? I felt like there was a lot of sincerity though. He was genuinely talking about a lot of things which I feel like not a lot of people can pass off with genuine earnestness. And I think that he balanced comedy and empathy really, really well. But I understand your point.

Matt Tammanini (9:25)

There were some good bits. I enjoyed the Adam Sandler callback referencing the Nikki Glaser Timothee Chalamet joke from the Golden Globes that the Ben Stiller bit was really funny. I think my favorite presenting pair though Grace, aside from Billy and Meg, might have been Scarlett Johansson and June Squibb. That was really fun. I really liked them together. So that was great. But anyway, if you want to see a of where you can stream all of the Oscar winners. I did that late on Sunday night for my day job. I will have a link to that in the show notes and we'll have a little bit more about Cynthia and Ariana at the end of the show. All right, Grace, this is kind of a full circle moment because when we originally were going to have Love Life as part of City center encores back in 2020, Brian Stokes Mitchell was going to star in the show as Sam Cooper, but it was canceled obviously because of the pandemic. And now it is coming back. It'll begin performances on March 26. However, when the cast was initially announced, Stokes was not going to be a part of it because he was going to be doing Three Summers of Lincoln out at the La Jolla Playhouse. Then eventually it was announced that he was not going to be continuing with that production. Now he is back in City Center Encore's production of Love Life starring opposite Kate Baldwin. The reason for that is Nicholas Christopher, who had originally been cast in this production as Sam Cooper, is no longer available due to personal conflicts. So Stokes is stepping back in to star opposite Kate Baldwin, as I said, under the direction of two time Tony winner Victoria Clark. So not the way that we thought we were going to get those three people working together on this show, but we are getting it nonetheless. They're going to be joined by John Edwards, Sarah Jean Ford, Clark Therrell, Andrea Rosa Guzman and Christopher Jordan, as well as an entire ensemble of some folks that you will likely know the names of. People like Robin Masella, Kristin Pirro, Heath Saunders and many, many more. So this is great. I hope that everything's okay with Nick Christopher. As we've talked about, he's one of the absolute best in the business right now, but really happy to see Stokes be a part of this considering he was so intimately involved with it the first time around. One other little show and casting thing here. Real quick, Grace. One of the most talked about shows that I've heard in the last couple of weeks is Best Walls Liberation, which just opened last week Off Broadway from the Roundabout Theatre Company. It has now officially extended. It had previously been scheduled to run through March 30th. It will now play through April 6th. I'm hoping that I have the opportunity to check this one out when I'm in town at the end of the month. All right, Grace, before we wrap up the show with the rest of the news and some recommendations, let's take a second real quick to talk about our sponsor for this week. Fact, we are now into March and if you have not yet been focusing on those resolutions that you made at the beginning of the year. There's still time. You don't have to wait until January. You don't even have to wait until the beginning of the month. But we are early in March, so now is the time to get back on those goals that you set for yourself. And Factor is a great way to make sure that you have all of the nutrition and all of the energy that you need to live a healthy and productive life. Factor has chef made gourmet meals that are dietitian approved and you can heat them up and be eating them in a matter of just two minutes so you can be fueled up, right, and feel great no matter what life throws at you.

Grace Aki (12:44)

That's the thing is like, Factor always arrives fresh, fully prepared. Like, I don't have to do anything else, especially with, you know, how busy I am. I just need to be able to stab my little fork into that top plastic and then pop it in the microwave. And that's what I'm able to do. I pop it in for two minutes and then it comes out and listen like. There are over, like 40 options across eight dietary preferences. There are times when I want to do keto or protein plus or calorie smart, and I have all of the opportunity in the world to select those things. On top of that, I also get my grab and go snacks. I get my breakfast, I get my smoothies, I get my juices. I'm still working on a beet juice that is sitting in my fridge as we speak, which I should do later today. So I'm just saying it's not just the meals that we're looking at. We're also looking at all the snacks and all the ways to not only curb that appetite, but get something really.

Matt Tammanini (13:29)

Nutritional in Eat Smart with Factors. Get started@factor meals.com factorpodcast and use code factor podcast to get 50% off your first box, plus free shipping. That's code factor podcast@factormeals.com factor podcast to get 50% off, plus free shipping on your first box. All right, Greg, this is always really exciting. We talk a lot about multi hyphenate in the theater community. You are one. You are a multi hyphenate. But there is a new theater company that is getting ready to launch in New York City that is made up of a ton of multi hyphenates. This new theater company is going to be called the New York Theater Company. Seems appropriate. It is being led by Chelina Kennedy, Catherine Winter and Michael Scott. All of them who will be doing multiple things. Chelina Kennedy will serve as a creative director. Catherine Winter will serve as the founder and creative producer, and Scott will serve as the executive producer. Julian Lokash is going to be the artistic coordinat. There is a whole bunch of names, some of whom you might know, some of them you might not, that are going to be a part of the inaugural company of performers, writers, directors, designers, producers who are all going to work together on whatever this company does. I think that's a really exciting way to see people flex some muscles, as we've talked about on yesterday's show, that might not have the opportunity if they just kind of stayed in their lane, as the industry often likes to tell them to do. And then Grace, this is a. This is very exciting. We have talked about Maestro events a lot. We talked about the Alicia Keys one last week. But this next one that is coming up on March 31st at Sony Hall. It is called Amplify 2025 and it is going to be a benefit concert for Maestra. And what is so cool about this is that Sara Bareilles will not only be there, but she will perform the song Enough, which is from her new musical, the Interestings, which she is co writing with Sarah Rule. Look, I love me some waitress and I am dying for another Sara Bareilles musical. So to have the opportunity to hear this first song from that new show is very exciting. She will also be joined by Joy Huerta, who is the composer behind Real Women have Curves on Broadway. This one is going to be very, very exciting. Kate Baldwin will be there. Elle Morgan Lee is going to be hosting the event. A ton of other people will be featured. Aziza Miller, Lilly Ling, Keisha Lewis, all from Hell's Kitchen. Julia Madison from Death Becomes Her. Kayla Wilcoxon from Redwood. Jordan Fisher will be there. Just a great opportunity to see a bunch of really talented people and to support a incredibly important organization. And for me, most importantly, Grace, to hear a new song from an upcoming Sara Bareilles musical before you can really hear it anywhere else.

Grace Aki (16:22)

I mean, what else are we doing? This is the type of thing that you and I live for. So yes, the more we can have that, the better.

Matt Tammanini (16:29)

I will say. I am going to be in town that night, so we'll see. Maybe I end up there, maybe I don't. There's one Broadway show that I need to see that is happening on that Monday night. So if I don't get into that show, it might be a little too early in previews. I might end up over at Sony hall checking this out. Speaking of concerts, Grace, that you might end up being at. I have a feeling there is a note, not 0% chance that you might be at the Bowery Ballroom on April 28. Your day job might. I don't know what's opening that day, so you might not be able to. But the men of Swept Away are going to have a one night reunion concert. And I feel like if you can be there, you will probably be there. The original cast led by John Gallagher Jr. Stark Sands, Adrian Blake Ensco and Wayne Duvall will all be there. Tickets are on sale now. And all those ensemble members that you love, Josh Breckenridge, Matt DeAngelis, Orville Mendoza, Chase Peacock and many, many others will be there. So what do you think, Gracie? Is that. Is that the Tony eligibility deadline? So maybe you can't.

Grace Aki (17:32)

It sure is. It sure is. No, I just. I thought it was a good selection of a date. If you're gonna do it, do it in terms of, you know, Tony stuff. But this sold out already. It's gone. I can't go. Yeah, it's already sold out. It sold out an hour ago.

Matt Tammanini (17:48)

We've like, it's. It hasn't even been on sale for five and a half hours yet.

Grace Aki (17:52)

That's correct. That's correct. It's already sold out, Matt.

Matt Tammanini (17:56)

Oh, my God. Well, maybe they're gonna have to add another night. See. Okay, here's the thing, Grace. We talked so much about this show when like, you know, it announced closing. People rallied and they extended for another couple weeks. And now we've got something like this. There's obviously passion for this show and I hope that maybe someday we'll have a deep dive into why this show wasn't as embraced by the larger community as it. As it was with this really passionate fan base. We see this a lot with shows that just don't make it, but they have these lives that live on because the people who did find it and did love it really champion it and shows like, you know, even like my beloved Legally Blonde didn't. Had a slightly better run that swept away, but not tremendously. And it still is like a. Has a super passionate fan base. So obviously there are people that love it. You are one of them. And I'm glad that everybody who is going to be there at the Bowery ballroom on the 28th got their tickets. All right, I will wrap up. We mentioned it earlier in the episode, Grace, but we do have the video from the opening segment from the Academy Awards on Sunday night where Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo really wowed the audiences. We're also going to throw in the Queen Latifah Quincy Jones tribute. And I do want to mention too, like, this is not really theater related. And I'm not really sure that we needed a James Bond segment in the Oscars, considering there hasn't been a Bond film in like five or six years. And I understand why they did it with the Amazon thing. It was a big middle finger to Amazon. I get it. But I knew that Margaret Qualley was a dancer growing up, but to have her be the featured dancer in that. In. In that segment and for her to be, like, incredible was. I was. I was even surprised despite knowing that she grew up as a dancer and her mom, Andie MacDowell, you know, was in the arts. So, like, she, you know, I know she's great and she. I've been a fan of hers since the leftovers, but, like, I was really impressed with her dancing. Like, I don't know if she can sing or not, but let's get her. Let's get her on stage.

Grace Aki (19:55)

I mean, it's not about that. It's the fact that she's going to be Ginger Rogers in the Fred and Ginger biopic that's coming up, so.

Matt Tammanini (20:02)

Wait, really?

Grace Aki (20:03)

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Matt Tammanini (20:04)

Oh, I forgot all about that.

Grace Aki (20:05)

Yeah, they announced it forever ago. So that was them seating Jamie Bell as Fred Astaire. Margaret Qualley is set to play Ginger Rogers in that film. So this was a brilliant way to get that out in the open ahead of time.

Matt Tammanini (20:18)

I completely forgot. And that was Jamie Bell dancing with her.

Grace Aki (20:21)

No, no, no, no. It's that he is attached.

Matt Tammanini (20:24)

Yeah, yeah. Okay.

Grace Aki (20:25)

Against my wishes. Yeah, exactly. Yeah.

Matt Tammanini (20:30)

What are your wishes?

Grace Aki (20:31)

I mean, Tom Holland's right there.

Matt Tammanini (20:33)

Oh, yeah, yeah, that makes sense. He does. He does kind of look like Fred Astaire. Yeah.

Grace Aki (20:38)

Actually, it's not hard, you guys.

Matt Tammanini (20:40)

No, that's a good point. That's a good point. But I mean, both are Billy Elliot's, so that's. That completely makes sense. Just one is the OG Billy Elliot, and one's a young millennial Billy Elliot. But. But anyway, I completely forgot that she was going to do that, so. Yeah. Very exciting. Very exciting. All right, everybody, that's all that we have for today. Thanks for listening to today on Broadway. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at Broadway Reading. You can follow me on Instagram www.Matt. grace. Where can people find you?

Grace Aki (21:02)

You can find me at. It's Grace Hockey.

Matt Tammanini (21:04)

All right, everybody. Have a wonderful Tuesday, and we'll be back to talk to you tomorrow.