0:00
It's a reminder of wanting to fight for my voice
0:09
It's a reminder of wanting the world to fight for its voice. It's a constant reminder of this beautiful artist who is no longer with us
0:17
but that holds this timeless piece because it's about freedom. Personally, it just reflects everything that I am, and it's love
0:24
I've always been, you know, I was raised in a house of love. I had great parents that, you know, taught me that there were no, you know
0:29
you know, everybody's equals, whether race, gender, whatever. I think that's why I fell in love with it for the first time in 2006
0:36
is because it just was a reflection of my friendships and my family
0:39
and, you know, what I already believed in my moral compass. I've gotten the opportunity to do it, but in really random circumstances
0:46
but they've been really of the most valuable to me in my entire professional career
0:50
So it just means a great deal of me to be a part of it again and to be able to be a part of this kind of new creation and a new generation falling in love with it
0:58
You know, rent changed my life. you know, it was my first professional job. So to come back to it later in having had a bit of a career
1:07
getting to do musicals and make musicals and rediscover this material it just overwhelming and it been an incredibly emotional
1:18
and beautiful homecoming for me. To do it with people who were a part of the original creative team
1:26
in a part of a show that was so groundbreaking and uniting, I think, for a country is just so special
1:35
and something that I feel will hopefully translate and be the same for the audiences today
1:41
The major themes and topics in the show are still relevant to the climate in America right now
1:47
We're all discovering and having issues with whether it's our race, our sexuality, our gender identification
1:53
everything that we talk about in this show is something that affects me personally
1:58
Just knowing the legacy that this musical has and knowing hopefully the legacy that we can help leave is a really big deal
2:07
It's a huge honor and I just am thrilled. What it reminds us is how alike we all are
2:13
And that in that unity there's so much power, even if we don't agree with each other
2:19
we can still learn something from one another
