New 42 President & CEO Russell Granet Visits Backstage LIVE with Richard Ridge

Welcome to Backstage with Richard Ridge. My guest is the president and CEO of The New 42

He is an internationally known leader in arts education and most recently served as acting

president of Lincoln Center, where he was the longtime head of education and community engagement

Please say hello to Russell Granite. Hi, how are you, Richard? Good to see you

It's so great to see you. It has been too long. All right. So first off, how are you and where are you

Well, knock on wood, I'm healthy. My family's healthy. We were out of the city. We actually

were about an hour north of the city for about 18 months. We took our daughter out of school

and she did all remote learning last year. And I think everyone is very thankful to be back. So

today we're talking and I'm on the Upper West Side of New York

Wonderful. You know, congratulations on all the wonderful programming that you have done throughout the pandemic. Are you able to put into perspective what the past 18 months have been to you and to the new 42

I think that's a process. I think it'll something that will unfold in the months, if not years and decades ahead. I don't think we know exactly what we've been through. But short term, absolutely. You know, I think, you know, all along, it was important to me that we came out of this smarter. And that I it was important that we not hold our breath for whatever length of time. And I did see some of my colleagues do that, you know, there was

And I think it was, you know, fear, they were paralyzed. I mean, who knew, you know, the world was turned upside down. But I do think those of us who kind of, you know, attempted the unknown will probably fare a little bit better. I just think it was important to just kind of keep going and not pause hoping that this was going to go away

because I actually don't think it's ever going to go. I think that we are redefining the workplace

We're redefining art, how art is made, how it's engaged with. So I think there's a lot of learning

And, you know, as it has been said many times, you know, you don't want to miss the opportunity of a good tragedy or a good, you know, crisis

And so we're trying to learn from it. So how did you pivot the New 42 during the pandemic

We did, you know, I will say, you know, early on, you know, it was probably late February, very early March

We thought this, you know, we're like, we might be working remotely

What does that mean? So we did a trial run and we all sort of went home and figured out what Zoom was and if we had the, you know, what kind of Internet speed we needed

So we actually kind of, you know, figured it out before we actually shut down

So on March 13th, we shut down like the rest of the world did. And many of us on staff are artists, administrators and parents. And I think the concern was, what was Monday going to look like? Were our kids going to be running around in the background

And so we took that very seriously. And we turned to our artists, and we have an incredible roster of teaching artists

And we turned to our staff and said, all right, come Monday, what are we doing

And we sent people home with iPhones and had this idea for something called Arts Break

And we're online in that you can get resources about the shows

Teachers can get resources. Parents can get resources. But we're not the Khan Academy. We're not an organization that people go to for deep, consistent, continuous learning

And we created this program called Arts Break that Monday. So by the 16th, we launched

And it started on every Monday with a particular art form. So it could be drumming, or it could be tap dance, or it could be any kind of art making

And then for the rest of the week, we built off that thematically. So in the morning, on Monday, it could be about percussion

And then each day, we did something else related to percussion. And the next week, it was something else

In that first week, we had something like 25,000 people participating. 18 months later, we're now over a million people

And what's crazy about this is in a non-COVID year, we see in person about 100,000 people

which is, because our tickets are so heavily subsidized, Ticket sales are not necessarily a huge problem for us

So if we're at 90, 95, 98 capacity, we're at 100,000 people

We've shut everything down, and now we're going to serve over a million. So I would never have thought that

And we'll continue that work. As much as we are thrilled that the theater is opening on November 5th

we will continue the online work as well. Well, let's talk about that Broadway and the theater is back

The new 42 studios are booked. Talk about life back in the studios again

Yeah. There was nothing worse than being in that studio building and being in the elevator and not hearing anything

I mean, one of my favorite things to do is when I get in in the morning and it stops on every floor and you hear the cast singing from all of these amazing musicals and play

And having that just all dark for so long was just heartbreaking. But now we are book solid

You know, unfortunately, I wish we could serve, you know, everyone who every request that came in

But we are at capacity. We are we have very strict COVID guidelines

So if you're renting at the studio building, you're renting the entire floor

So it's you know, there are a lot of studios on the floors, but, you know, just to be safe, you know, we're not co-mingling casts

So but yeah, we are we are up and there, you know, music and rehearsals going on on every floor, which is so exciting

You know, the theater was the last to come back due to the government shutdowns and everything else

But they figured out so early a safe way to come back, which they continue to do

I mean, this is what I'm trying to let everybody know out there, like audience members who may be still be a little worrisome about buying a ticket to a show

I've been back to about seven shows already. I think the safety protocols, they're all there

You have to be vaccinated. I mean, I go to press events. I have PCR tests done every other day. You wear a mask, you wash your hands. I mean

it's the safest environment right now to be in a theater or in a rehearsal studio because

theater artists have figured out a way to make us safe during however long this will continue

happening. Won't you agree? That's right. Absolutely. And I support that statement 100%

And in our case, we're solely dedicated to families and kids. And we are, a number of

organizations have said very politely, you know, 12 and under are not really welcome here

We are embracing that. You know, we are throwing the doors open and saying we will figure this out

So in addition to PCR testing, you know, if you're eligible, proof of vaccine and a mask

we are still social distancing within the theater. So we are only at, whereas Broadway houses are at

capacity, we're at 50% capacity so we can ensure that kids who are not vaccinated are safe within

our theater. I love it. Now, the opening date of your theater of the new victory is what

November 5th. That date must be stuck in your head like a banner date for you

Well, I want confetti cannons, you know, up and down 42nd Street in a marching band. You know

I just, I can't wait to be in the theater again, in our theater. I mean, I've been obviously

supporting Broadway shows, but just to be in our theater again with an audience is, you know

It's a long time coming. And as you know, we did this month at a time. Nobody thought it was going to be, you know, it'll be two years

It's crazy. So yes, thrilled, thrilled, thrilled. It's Generation Rise. We're in partnership with Ping Chong

It's going to be a fantastic show, followed by our holiday show

which will be Emmett Otter's Jug Band Christmas with, you know, great puppets

I mean, it's going to, it'll be just a fantastic fall and winter. Oh, I'm going to be there

I've spent, I've had so many joyous occasions at the new Victory

just sitting there watching these kids, some who were there for the very first time

experiencing live theater and just watching their faces saying oh my gosh this has changed my life You look at the schools that come back over and over like oh my God we back

We're back going to see a show. They behave so beautifully. There isn't a bad seat at the new victory

There's so much history in that theater. And it's just so joyous what you've all done

I mean, it's just, I'm so glad. November 5th, I can't. November 5th, yeah

Well, I'm sure like you, I was that kid. I was the kid who went to the theater and it was life-changing for me

and we not only have kids who have never been to a live performance before we've had kids who've

never been to Manhattan never been to Times Square and they live two subway stops away you know in

and so it just to know that that's back is you know so exciting I just love the excitement of

watching the buses pull up outside the theater and these kids are looking at the window and they see

oh my god this is a theater like oh my gosh what is this experience we're going to get so it's it's

something that never changes you know speaking of this past summer you had a once in a lifetime

outdoor celebration on 42nd Street called Let's Get This Show on the Street. The New 42 celebrates

arch education on 42nd Street. How exciting was that event? And tell us what it meant to the New

42 and to arts educators. Well, thank you for asking. I love when we have these ideas like

well, could we just close 42nd Street? Why not? Why not? A main artery of New York City

And I reached out to the deputy mayor, Vicki Bean, and it was just a yes from beginning to end

You know, the city was a great, great partner. We worked very closely with Times Square Alliance

I mean, you can't close down a major street without lots of partners

And we could not have done it with extraordinary help from the mayor's office, from Times Square Alliance, from the police department

It was an extraordinary event. Sara Borales was our sort of headliner and was just pitch perfect and just a perfect way to open the street

But it was very important for us that we honor arts teachers

As you can imagine, with schools last year, because of class sizes needing to be much smaller, teachers were being pulled out of their subject area

And, you know, if you're a theater teacher, you were most likely teaching second grade. Or if you're a dance teacher, you were teaching a math

You know, this was, art teachers were pulled out of their classrooms to understand, I mean, I, you know, I'm not, there's no judgment there, but if that's not what you have been taught to teach, it's a challenge

And I just thought we needed to honor sort of the unsung heroes of the art teachers

And, you know, much like September 11th, art really got kids through September 11th, and art is now getting kids through this very isolating, challenging time

So it was very important to us that we honor arts teachers

And it was a great event, just the spirit to be back on 42nd Street

And I love such great New Yorkers. We had the people who, it was a free event

So you just had to register through your vaccination card. But I love the people who are just walking on the side

And it's such a great New York moment when you've got people who are not at the event like screaming and hooting and hollering about how excited they are that theater's back

So it really was a tremendous event and a huge undertaking. And I hope we can do it again

I hope we will have the ability to close the street again because it was important to mark the day

This is a day that we're honoring dance, music, theater, and visual arts teachers

and that we're marking the importance of Times Square and 42nd Street. I see that as your summer gala every year

You tell that to the team. Well, you set the precedent already

It's like it was such a fabulous day. So that's just another thing you could put together

Just go back to the blueprints. But it was it was glorious. Again, back to arts

You know, the arts got everybody through this pandemic. This is the other thing. Everybody was like there was no money for the arts, yet the arts got everybody through this

Everybody watched concerts or plays or readings or went to the new 42 and the new victory sites to learn with their kids

I mean, it's just masterful how the arts community always comes together

But I think that's really great about being a creative. You know, when a creative person never knows where they're going to make art, in a garage, in a small black box, in an arena, in a Broadway house

So you're like, oh, I can do a show on the street. I can do a show in my closet

I can turn my living room into a theater, you know. And they did, right

Yeah. And that's why it always surprises me when the arts are backburnered

And you think about all of these corporations, the number one thing they're always looking for is that sort of entrepreneurial spirit, the person who's going to understand that there are multiple solutions to a problem, that they're going to see something that no one sees before

It's like, I'm sorry, don't we do that every day in the work that we do and why we're always having to defend the importance of it, yet it is what drives our sort of the economics of the city

It just makes no sense to me. Yeah, it's an ongoing struggle that we have to show the importance of what we do, because everybody wants it and everybody loves it

But nobody really wants to pay for it. And nobody, you know, it just I long for the day when there's a budget cut and the arts are not touched or equally touched

Like just, you know, cut everything equally, but don't just wipe out sports, arts, foreign language

And it tends to be it tends to be what happens. Beautifully put. But, you know, what were some of the amazing summer programs that you offered, including what was Dance Jams

So dance, you know, every summer we have something called, you know, Victory Dance, which is completely underwritten and free

And we get these amazing companies from around the world. We obviously couldn't do that this year

But there are lots of kids in summer camps and in summer programs that we wanted to experience dance

So Dance Jams were a combination of our teaching artists and professional dancers

So it was traditionally mostly three. So you'd have two dancers and a teaching artist to really translate and engage the audience

And we did those throughout the city. And for some of these kids, it was their first exposure to live theater in 18, you know

they hadn't seen anything. And so we were going to them. So we were in the five boroughs doing dance jams, as well as partnering with Little Island

So we were the family youth partner for Little Island all summer

We were there, you know, and through September. And that was a tremendous partnership. And, you know, you know, our goal is to be back

I think all the outdoor programming will continue as well as Victory Dance back in the theater next summer

Love that. You know, New 42 is the largest provider of performing arts for the New York Public School systems

With major cuts to the arts, where does your major support come from

Like we were talking about, you know, the arts being cut. I mean, you fund all these things are free or subsidized

Where do you get your support from? Well, it's a range. So we have very supportive individuals

who support us. Oftentimes these are individuals with kids themselves who understand that

they have access to the arts. And can you imagine growing up in what is considered the cultural

capital of the world, and you just don't have the resources. You have three jobs. You don't maybe

speak the language. You don't know how to access a box office. You don't have the money to do it

So we have very philanthropic individuals who get that and understand that a $2 ticket price is meaningful to a lot of people

And we've had a $2 ticket price since the day New Victory opened. And we want to keep that

So there are a lot of very generous individuals who understand the importance of that, mostly stemming from a very personal connection to either being a parent themselves or wanting kids to have access to great art

We have a tremendous amount of support from the city, and we have a tremendous amount of support from foundations and corporations

So we're chugging away. I would like those gifts to be larger so we could do more

But it is direct service to the kids. So the reality is if we raise $50,000, we can say that that money is going directly to direct service

So it's an easy story to tell. We just need more support always, but very thankful for the support we have

So if somebody wants to donate, where can people go to donate for you for the new 42 and the new Victory

Just go right to new42 or you can go to New Victory There a donate trust me there a donate button on every page No because like I said you subsidize tickets These tickets are

There's no such thing as a $2 ticket. You can't buy anything for $2

And yet you get this joyous theatrical experience for $2. That must make you feel like so great that you're able to keep it that way

Well, it's not a $2 ticket. And I think that's what we need to remind people

It's like a $78 ticket when you put in, like all theaters do, all the costs

But we subsidize each of those tickets because we think ticket price is a barrier

You can't tell me theaters for everyone when you charge $300 for a ticket. It's not

And so subsidy is hugely important to us. See, I love that, that it's actually a $78 ticket that you're subsidizing for students to pay $2 beautifully

Thank you for that. This year, you're also offering something very special

How do you work with teachers who want their students to participate with the shows and the programs offered by New 42 and the New Victory, but don't have the school budgets to do it

So this last year actually was the first year we did this. We were always a low ticket price

You know, there was an administrative fee to work with us and then a $2 ticket. We were concerned that that was even going to be too much given the tremendous cuts to the schools and tremendous cuts to the arts education

So I went to the board and we all agreed that last year we would fully underwrite all of the programming. So any teacher that reached out to us who wanted to participate did so free of charge. We're doing that again this year as well

because it's just important to, the importance of the work is so great

that we will find the funding to underwrite it. But it is interesting. It's not a free program

I mean, much like a $2 ticket. When I say it's a free program, people are like, oh, it must not cost anything

No, it costs a fortune, but we're putting it in, our goal is to fundraise against that budget

in order to offer it free of charge. I just love that you offer that

because like you said, the arts programs in school budgets That's the first thing that gets cut everywhere

Yeah. Yeah. And we're all products of that. You know, and when I talk to principals about their budgets, what's interesting, it's not

really research that changes a principal's mind. It's their own personal experience

If you're a principal who was an artist or have children who are in the arts, that school

will have arts. If you're a principal who doesn't really understand or didn't participate in the arts, oftentimes

you don't. You know, it's not a priority. And we need to shift that. Yeah

Beautiful. I also love that the new victory and the new 42 is run by young people. This is something

I noticed from the very first day I got there. These joyous people you meet on every floor of

the rehearsal studios or the Duke or the new victory. This was something that was set upon

very early on, wasn't it? Yeah, it was right when the victory opened. So the new 42 is 30 years old

The victory is 25 years old. Obviously the victory is 100 years old, but in its current state

And then the studio building is 20 years. So we're celebrating 20, 25, 30. And right from the start, and again, this happened long before I arrived, was the idea that young people should run the theater. What a great professional development for someone to understand ushering, concessions, front of house

I mean, these are things that will, even if they don't go on to be an artist, A, they know it's an option that some of these kids never realized the arts were a possible option for them

But it's a skill set that they will have with them for the rest of their lives. And so we have between 70, 75 young people, ages 18 to 21, running all of our theaters

And they're phenomenal youth. And it's also important that if you're an audience member, you want to come in and see yourself in the theater

And for many of our families, they see themselves in the ushers and they see themselves with what's on stage

And there's a big difference between feeling like you're welcome somewhere and feeling like you belong somewhere

And I think belonging speaks to seeing yourself in the audience and seeing yourself on stage and seeing yourself with people who are working there

And that's what we strive for. But what I also like it, you know, they may not go into acting, but they're like, oh, my gosh, someone designs the sound

Someone designs sets. You know, someone designs costumes. Someone is a stage manager

I mean, you know, being there, I'm sure they learn all these things saying, wow, I may not have the talent to be on stage, but I have the talent to be backstage to help a show run because it takes a village, as we all know, to put a show on

And you offer that to a lot of these kids, too. That's right. Well, there are way more people backstage than there are on stage, right

So it's a career, absolutely, it's a career development for young people

Love it. Talk about your focus on the importance of commissioning new works and using the new 42 studios in the Duke to stage these works

Because I know that commissioning new works was something you were very big on when you took over this job

Yeah, there was a study done that showed that work being developed for young people and families

is it's in the, I think it's 93%, the creative teams were all white. It doesn't mean that the

actors on stage weren't BIPOC actors. That could very possibly be true. But the creative teams

the writers, the playwrights, the dramaturgs, the choreographers, they were largely white

And we wanted to change that. I mean, you want to tell everyone's story. And we've had a program

called LabWorks for years now. But last year, we decided to focus that program working with just

BIPOC artists to tell their story and to tell stories for kids and families. It's a very specific

sort of niche that we're in. I feel very strongly that we have to reach young people at a very young

age. And we know just from our own research that the younger a child is exposed to the arts, the

more sort of lifelong relationship they have with the arts. But if you're a kid and you don't see

your story or you don't see yourself on, it's a very different experience. So by commissioning work

we're not only helping what's on the stages of the new victory and the Duke, but we're also

helping the field because there are way more artists than we could produce on our stages

but there are hundreds of regional theaters that could produce this work as well

So it's, and I would encourage, there are a lot of playwriting programs that that's not unique

What's unique is the idea that we're focused totally on kids and families because kids are

they're much smarter and savvier audience than some adults, quite honestly, and certainly much

savvier than people give them credit for. I love it. It'd be nice for them to say, oh my gosh, I look like that person. That's my story up there. That's right. Well, it's true for

us, right? When I see my story up there, I have a very different relationship with that theatrical

experience. Yeah. You were one of the honorees this year for the WNET Group's Education is

Everything Gala. What did that honor mean to you and to the New 42? Well, it was, you know

to be honored for the work that we had done during the, you know, I think collectively for all of our

work, but also acknowledging that we did this quick pivot to online content that was, you know

wildly successful that we did not predict. It was incredible to be acknowledged for that. And I think

for the entire staff at New 42 to have an entity like WNET, which is a significant, important part

of our cultural community, to say that New 42 should be recognized during this year in particular

was really, I think, quite honestly, very moving for the staff. I'm just the person who gets to

pick up the award. There are hundreds of people who have made all this possible. So it was an

incredible honor. And we also now are aired on PBS and WNET. So our arts break, certainly on our

own platforms, like our website, but they're also part of Camp TV, which is a part of WNET. So it's

a very nice relationship we have with WNET. I love that. Now, I understand that your daughter's

first introduction to the theater was a show with a new victory. Yes, which people did not love when

I was at Lincoln Center. They were like, no, why didn't Sadie go to the first show

and you know, so yeah, no, it's where you go. It where you know it was a show called White It was this amazing beautifully done did you see it I loved it Yeah stunning I grew White four times I loved that show Go on I didn mean to interrupt you No no but I don

you know, you, you, you're the, you're a better advertisement than I am. You know, I had no real

connection to, you know, New Victory other than I had a child and, um, she loved it and hooked

And now she's a musical theater kid. So, you know, what, what could be wrong with that

Okay. So do you remember growing up, what was the first theater piece you saw? Do you remember

and how life-changing it was for you, or one of the first? Yeah, it was definitely Oliver

Oliver was on Broadway when I was probably, I don't know, six or seven

And I lived here in New York and my parents were big supporters of the theater

and thought we should, and I'm the youngest. So, you know, when you're the youngest of a big family

you get dragged to things that maybe you're not so appropriate because they don't want to find a sitter

But Oliver, and again, it was, there was a kid my age on stage

It wasn't necessarily my story, but it was, you know, me up there, you know, and so that

changed it. You know, I was a theater kid. I studied theater. I went on to conservatory

And this path was just much better for me. I was a teacher

I started my career as a teaching artist. And that really put me on a whole nother trajectory, which I'm so thankful for

I, you know, I wouldn't turn those days away ever. I mean, I loved my time

I worked for five years full time in the Department of Ed in their special ed division

doing theater and loved it. So, but it was that show. I mean, and every kid

you know, what I always say is I don't want a barrier to keep someone

from coming to the theater. If you don't want to, if you've gone once

and you don't want to go back, that's fine. Like, I'm not going to try it. My job is not to try

and convince you otherwise. But if you're not given the opportunity, that's where I think that's the problem

And that's what we have to fix is everyone needs access to it. And then what they do with it

is totally their own. In my case, I became, sort of fanatical, you know, you know, like, you know

we're all sort of cut from the same cloth, right? Yeah, we are. I listened to your story

You walked through the Imperial Theater. That's where you saw Oliver. You walked at that long, narrow corridor to those doors

It took you and then you got to see the theater. I'm like, and it's life changing. Absolutely. Absolutely

That's really great. Talk about what you just did all this, the importance of arts on children

I love that you want to start them at a very early age because the earlier, the better, when they can enter that world

I think it's fascinating. And that's what I love about the stuff that the New Victory does, because I've seen so many shows of the New Victory with puppets and dance and white and all of this, you know, miming and all this stuff

There's something for all ages of every child at the show. There's nothing like it in the U.S

I mean, it is really a very special place. So what are some of the wonderful programs and shows that you'll be offering live and virtually this fall and winter

because you're going to still stay virtual, aren't you, a little bit? We are. So we have a full season of six shows

which you can find at the New Victory website. And at the same time

we will be running an on-demand series of shows that have been captured

So if a family... Truthfully, so everything that you're going to see live

you can see digitally. And I know from my own child, when they see something they like

they will say it six times in a row. There's no sense of like, maybe we should move on to

something else. So the idea that a family could come see something and then go to our on-demand

and have their child watch it 10 times, that's how we're moving forward. So everything that we

are presenting will also be presented on our on-demand line as well. And I love your website

because the new Victory and the new 4-2, they're such easy websites to maneuver through. And I think

that's something you probably worked very hard on too. Cause you go to somebody's website

you're like, as an adult, I'm like, well, how do I order the ticket? What do I do? You make it very accessible for people

Cause you say this is live. This is also virtual. I mean, you present it really beautifully

Great. That's good to hear. But I agree with you. If it gets too complicated, unfortunately I just leave, you know

and you don't want that as a potential patron. What gives you the greatest joy

I mean, you're the CEO and president of New 42. You have taken this to a whole other level

I mean, Cora Khan did such a beautiful job. You're following the footstep. We have to give a big homage to her

I mean, she not only created all of this, she turned 42nd Street back into what it should have been

So big kudos to Cora. But what are you the proudest of the job that you have

I want to echo what you're saying about Cora. I mean, I would not be in this position if it weren't for her

And, you know, on the shoulders, you know, I stand. I mean, and to see what, you know

and to remind everyone what she did to the benefit of new 42 to 42nd Street for Times Square is

unparalleled. I think the, you know, I was only in the job six or seven months before we shut down

So, you know, I was still learning people's names, you know, and, and what I'm, what I'm proudest of

now is, is coming out of a very challenging time, not only that we had a, you know, a global health

pandemic, but really owning up and looking at our work around anti-racism work and, you know

how many voices are we really representing? How are, you know, how are staff treated? How are we

hiring? How are we, and, you know, we haven't figured it out. We're not perfect, but we certainly

haven't shied away from it. And I've been very proud of the fact that everyone has stepped up

at a time when, you know, people were isolated and, you know, I was worried about staff who

lived alone. I was worried about, you know, what happened to, you know, 18 months is a long time

to work out of your apartment. And if you're by, you know, so there were a lot of things that were at play and I

I I'm very proud of the fact that we stepped up. Like I said, I looked back and I knew what you did during the pandemic

but just researching again, to talk to you, I said, my gosh, they did everything right. I mean, it's just, you know

they were like, we're going to work our way through this because the theater never ended

through any pandemic or whatever through, you know, the Greek wars, through everything. The arts were always there through all of this. Yeah. And it will continue

to be. And it's, you know, it's how we remember history. It's through artifacts. And we will

and what, you know, I say this to my daughter all the time, you are living through one of the

historic moments, you know, certainly within our generation, but, you know, throughout the world

I mean, this is, you know, September 11th happened in New York. There were obviously

huge reverberations around the world when that happened, but not like this. I mean

this affected every individual around the globe. And it's a fascinating time to be

thankfully, healthy, to have made it through. What are you looking forward to the most about

November 5th? I just want to be in the audience with people, just seeing people. I'm thankful for

Zoom. I'm thankful for all of my Netflix binging, but I want to, you know, I'm a theater person

because I want to sit next to someone I don't know and have this experience with them. You know, I just, I love being in the theater. I love the way theater smells. I like, you know, the energy

when the lights go, you know, it's as if it were yesterday I was at Oliver, you know, it doesn't

change for me. And, and just the buildup of walking into that theater with an audience

that excitement when the lights go down, you know, I can't wait. It's funny that you mentioned, like, Oliver was yesterday

My first show was Fiddler with the Majestic. And I remember everything about that day, everything as if it was yesterday

Yeah. Stays with you. And that's what, you know, we're fortunate enough to have found a path to get us to where we are

I just want to make sure every kid has that option. Every kid who wants that option should have that option

And that's what we're trying to do. Well, the new 42, the new victory continues to do that

Russell, thank you so much for dropping by at Broadway World and talking to me today

My pleasure. It's always so fun to see you. And I always am so thankful for how enthusiastic you are for the work. So thank you

Well, I love what creatives do. I mean, all the artists, they make magic eight times a week or whatever

And it's like, you know, I just love to capture all of that. Well, great. Well, stay healthy and safe

And I'll see you at the new Victory. Everybody stay safe and for all your theater coverage, look no further than roadwayworld.com

Take care, everyone