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It's Frank. My goodness, it's Frank being Frank right where the only way to be is Frank. Hello everyone, and welcome to being Frank. We're the only way to be is Frank. I'm your host, Franklebono, and i'd like to thank you for joining us on what we like to call the Intelligent Conversation Podcast, where no conversation is out of bounds and all points of view are welcome. As you know, we record live to tape and I give you the date so you have some relevance and context.
It is the twenty sixth of August. I appreciate you, folks. We were on vacation a bit for two weeks, but we're back with a very strong program for you today. I know you're going to enjoy it, and we appreciate you staying with us. You know. The new play Castling, currently in production at the Penguin Rep, is a comedy that uses the setting of an auto shop as its backdrop and the metaphor of chess to deal with the
serious issues many black Americans are facing today. In a certain sense, the place characters act as chess pieces as they deal with themes like gentrification, legacy, and community. In a recent review in Broadway World, critic and Niac's own Peter Danish said this about Castling, this delightful comedy, penned by Anthony T. Goss and skillfully helmed by Daniel Besrond'
exudes a gentle ambition. While the script possesses a few rough edges, the casts captivating synergy and undeniable charisma elevate the piece, transforming any minor imperfections into charming idiosyncrasies. Joining us now for some intelligent conversation are some of the gentlemen that make Castling go. Please welcome playwright Anthony Gohos and actors David Roberts and Lamar k Chest And gentlemen, welcome to the program. We appreciate you being here, Thank you.
For having us well, thank you appreciating Thank you.
Guys, like, let's go one at a time. Anthony, I guess again mentioned you first, So why don't we begin there? Tell us a little bit about yourself. What brought you here? How did you get here to where you are currently in your position as a playwright.
It's been a journey starting I'm an actor, so I segued into playwriting just for my love of plays writing and poetry throughout my life. And I took this passion half of the theater, and I just continue to develop my craft and work quietly and really just love what the theater could do, it what it could bring, and I love the format of theater and what it can do for society and just continuing value. So as a actor,
I really wanted to go to play writing. In the last few years, I've been focusing on writing plays and thank you with things for the stage.
You know, and you mentioned you you you had a desire from from an early age. Was there an epiphany? Was there a moment? You know, sometimes for a lot of people something if someone wants to be an athlete, they they they are in the presence of their favorite player and realize that's where they wanted to be. Was there something a play that particularly moved you, a performance, or something that clicked in you and said that's what I want to do.
Not earlier on. Earlier on, my focus was manly sports athletics.
Uh.
I played college basketball, and everybody, like you know, grew up in the city. You have like a whole dream or some type of athletic aspiration, So I wasn't introduced to the artists fairly later Actually, after graduating, I got a corporate gig and I kind of wanted to work in a team environment in sports. So I took like an acting class randomly and I just progress and then I just moved to New York. So it kind of this kind of came upon me. I always like movies
growing up. I always love writing. I always love reading books. I read all the time, so I guess it was dormant. But after graduation, I just wanted to pursue acting in artis and that's what let me hear.
Yeah, it's it's interesting. I have a very similar background. Do you see any similar What similarities might you see between athletics and artistic performance? Do you do you see any there? What's the connection? If any?
Almost definitely, honestly, I think I link it did the same to me. They wanted to stay in the preparation. The discipline, what it takes to to be a good actor or a good writer. I think it's a lot of discipline. I think it's a lot of doing things when you know you don't want to the teamwork, the lotterie. We all have a similar goal on stage, like the sports, you want to put up a good performance. Work together, and I think it's to me, it's the same, It's
one and the same. It's the same preparation, it's the same mindset, and I love it. I love the team aspect of it. I love working with great people, and so I think it was a natural transition from athletics into the theater woman articular.
Excellently to be with you the second ltle more same same question. How did you get to this point where you are today?
Yeah, I started out dancing with my first like performance performance days, just growing up in New York City. Of course, you know, I always loved baseball with my with my sport,
everybody plays basketball, but I grew up playing baseball. Then I went into the PO the Police Athletic League, you know, and then I got when when I went there, they had baseball, they had basketball, they had ping pong, they had all these all these different you know, athletic activities that I didn't even know, you know, I could I could really take up take a part of. And they also had they all of those kids who were doing who were then who was playing those various sports but
also performing in the end of the year's show. So they were also dancing and acting and singing as in addition to playing sports and things like that. So that just that was at thirteen. I was dancing for about three or four years. And then the guy who was it was over our our I guess dance team who wanted to challenge us with the play. And many some people had acted before, but I was one of them.
I was sixteen, and we had the audition. Even though we all knew each other, we knew we were going to be a part of it, but that was a part of the you know, the process. I didn't know it then.
I know it now.
That is a part of the process. Your auditioned to get the role. And then so it was a fellow and that was at sixteen and from then on, man, I just you know, I really try to get into as many you know, artistic activities as I could. So I danced, I stepped, sang everything anything I could really get with.
But acting stuck. What is it that grabbed you? What if you could describe it, what is it that that that provides that real motivation that you need? I mean, people can say a lot of people I want to be an actor, I want to be an athlete, but it takes a great deal of dedication. What fires you, what makes you have that dedication?
You know?
I always always say that knowing that you know, the things that the blessings that I have and aren't for me, So to guard on the stage and to give a great performance and then see see people crying, hear people talk about, you know, their experiences, relating it to what they saw on stage, and just having the human experience in a real way.
I believe that theater does that.
You know.
It really makes people that the actors on stage and the audience vulnerable and at the end of the show and now we can have a real conversation, so you know, and it's just it grows in every it's been blessed, and I've been blessed in my life for it to grow in every realm that I've performed in. So it's like just having those human experiences after the show and living outside of acting and bringing those living experiences to it,
it just makes it. It's really like refreshing man to just be able to talk to people in a in an authentic way.
We're going to develop that theme as our as our conversation goes along. But David, you're up, what's what's important for people to know about you? And what what got you here? Uh?
Yeah, My my journey is a real it's pretty pretty long and it's a big segue.
So I graduated graduate. Yeah, I graduated with accounting.
Good microbiology figure that one out, Wow.
Brother, Yeah, so you know it was it was just you know, practicality above all. So I stayed with that maybe like a good nine months, and I just realized that that's not what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. So I started thinking about the classes that I liked in school, and it turned out that I really liked the arts.
I loved my speech class. I remember running to my speech class.
I love British authors, American authors, our religion in history. So at the end of the day, it turned out I was more interested in the arts more so than the business classes. Business classes will get your job, but it's not what I love to do. So I started thinking about going down the realm of acting, but I was still kind of scared to do that.
So I went down the road of modeling first, and that was also short lived.
So with the so with the cop card that I had, I remember I went to this play and I fell in love with the play, and I walked up to the to the director.
She's no longer, she's no longer what is right now?
But I remember walking up to and I said, I don't have a lot of experience, but I'm ready to work and I'm willing to learn. And she decided to hire me as an actor in one of her plays. And for about a good five years, off and on, I was her assistant. And along with acting, we also conducted the rehearsals. I called people in for auditions, and I was pretty much her pa, you know, for a number of years, and her really really enjoyed it, not only but also the conversations that we would have as
a collective. And along with acting, then I started writing because I didn't want to sit down waiting for producers and writers to have to hire.
Me in order me to work.
So then I started creating like a I guess, I guess an alter ego which I call de Black. And with that and with that, I write and create my own pieces as well.
You know, I've noticed a common thread through all three and police feel free all to jump in. That's a love of communication. Your communicators talk a little bit about the importance of communication in your work. If you haven't said it directly, and I think you mostly have, you've certainly employed implied that you know, the art of communication is very important to all of you, anyone I know.
I mean generally you need communication period.
I think a lot of times when you look at mishaps and most understandings that people have a lot of it used to usually has to do with either miscommunication or communication.
I wasn't had at all.
So I think in everyday life, communication is very, very key, whether it be personal relationships, romantic relationships, platonic business.
At the end of the day, all all important, effective communication is key.
Lamar, Yeah, I agree with you said personal relationships. The first thing I'm married, first thing I thought about was my wife. So I'm like, you know what, I and I always and I always talk to her. I feel like if there's any if there's ever any issue, it always stems back to communication. If I could have just said if I could have said this better, or you could have said that in a different way, you know, we wouldn't even be here, you know, but I mean so much. So I love I love words. I love
like I love the breaking like I wouldn't. I remember in college I took an etymology class just to you know, be around and see the breakdown and the origin of words. I'm really and when I spoke about my first play, my first play was a fellow, so that that was a totally different language for me. So that opened up my mind at sixteen years old, like, man, what is this?
You know?
So now I'm like, I just ended up loving words?
Man.
So communications, I didn't even get that common thing. And I know these brothers, you know, if I have a long communication is.
Key, right, as they say, a great segue to our writer, our playwright, Anthony, your thoughts? Communication, What does it mean to you? Why is it important? How is it important?
Yeah?
I guess you know, all the brothers say, they all touched on great things. And I think from artistic standpoint, I think when you grow up and you don't have your you don't have a voice, and you don't know how to use your voice right. And I think we young black fans sometimes we use it at sports or or things that football, right, we want to express ourselves.
But I think what I found was sometimes I had I.
Didn't know how to communicate well, and I would either use it and over compensate or work hard or try to please. And I find that through poetry and arts, I'm able to communicate things that I feel deep believe that I don't say. So arts helped me become a better communicator in life just in general, because sometimes like you might have a miscommunication with your family or your friend,
and you know how to communicate. But by doing praise and like Lamara saying at the monagory of the words and characters, you start to realize.
How important communication is.
And when you go and stay so often or a film, you develop a confidence in the way you communicate and start to know who you are.
And as a writer, I'm trying to communicate.
Those things that I see and feel often and I don't I don't say so as key.
It's it's just how It's one of the things that I use with my writing a.
Lot of Yeah, I want to share with you, you know, because I teach it for the University at Lincoln Center and we're starting soon. And the very first thing I say to my students is I am here to help you find your voice, not my voice, your voice. So I hear you all, and I agree with you one hundred percent. I answer you like, let's talk specifics this play, Okay, this method of communication, what you're trying to communicate, et cetera. But first, unusual title Castling. Tell us more about the
title and the and the germ of that. Where did that come from in your mind? Castling?
So I started writing Castling with Liberation Theater, a great theater company in New York City that kind of gave me my starting to play writing about two years ago.
So this is my first real play.
So Castling was just came out this idea of I wanted to see. First of all, I always wanted to see more people who look like me on stage. And I wanted to talk about the people who I grew up with in my community, the people who were like og so to speak, or people in my neighborhood who helped raise me, because you know, growing up without a father.
Or anything like that, you kind of you kind of get a little piece of everybody you know.
And one of the people I got a piece was from a guy who was at a local library, taught and how to play chess.
And I used to walk by the library to go play basketball. Every day. I'll go and get some water. He'll be in there.
He'll taught me this move and the move was castling, and I realized he taught me because it was the coolest thing. It was like, oh, he can move these pieces right here. So that stuck with me as I went through middle school, high school, the move castling, And as I started writing this piece, I knew I wanted to talk about the things that are going on in my neighborhood all around me, but I wanted to do it in a different way, and I wanted to combine
my love of chess with this piece as well. And then it just started formulating coming together about using the chess pieces as like a metaphor for like the castles that they build all around us to displace us, castling as the moves that we as typically as African American men or people in inner cities as well, have to do. I ain't pivot at any time, so I wanted to combine combine those two themes, and I wanted to just
see more diverse storytelling on stage. And that's how the idea of Castling came about just the meaning of tentrification and the moves that we have to make the dividually collectively to kind of offset some of the challenges becase every day.
A place in setting is important in every play, and you chose an order repair shop, but.
One because there was an auto repair shop growing up that was actually brought out and replace. It was like a tire shop near ashmout in Boston, Massachusetts. It was brought out, but it used to be an auto shop and now it's condominius. So when thinking about the setting of the play, I didn't want to have too many different settings. This is my first play, my first endeavor.
I wanted to focus on characters. And I was thinking about this shop, and I was thinking about where I grew up, and I said, it would be great to have it here. And another reason is because the auto shop there's so many There's a.
Lot of group called workers.
We know the auto shop, but there's a lot of customers, there's a lot of relationships. There's a lot of depth that could happen there that we could mind. So I wanted to keep it. I wanted to honor the auto shop that I grew up in and I wanted to see.
Some blue collar, every day people on stage.
Lamar and David, let's move. Let Lamar Flich start with you talk a little bit about your character in the play. Who do you play and who are they and what do you bring to that role.
I played the character of Justin's he's a young dreamer soon to be an entrepreneur, and I was thinking, I was thinking about it today. I'm like the I think he and this is no slight to anybody. I think he had because he's the youngest, has like the the most upside.
The guy right above him, who.
You learn about later, he's like in the in the thick of life, you know, and then you got the eldest statesman, the og suggesting he has kind of, like you know, the the most to want to do and to dream to do and actually be able to to realize it. And funny story man, I started, well, I did a reading with Anthony. I looked at the picture the other day, the very first reading of Display when it was in development, like you said, with Liberation Theater Group,
December eleventh, twenty twenty three. We were all in a small room and in the city and just reading, just reading his words. And I didn't even play Justin. I played David's part because I think there was a scheduled conflict and David couldn't make it, so they had to switch stuff around this And now it's like seeing all
of this, seeing the worlds the characters. How I've literally seen Anthony developed characters in real time, you know, I've never like we would come to rehearsal on a Monday Wednesday.
We got all new pages and even more fleshed out.
So it's like it's it's been amazing to see the journey of Anthony of Justin, you know, of the characters, and yeah, man, I'm having so much fun with him because he's he's relatable, you know to everyone knows that Justin. And I think that that's a that's a that's a skill that is that shouldn't be lost on the writer because everyone knows they will leave that that that the shows I know, someone like you on my nephew and my son in law. Whatever it is that there's there's
there's one of those. But that's just the testament to how how intricate and and and greatly woven the characters are together by by Anthony.
Excellent David, please tell us a little bit about the character you play. What should we know about him? What do you bring to the role there?
Yeah, I play the role of Byron, and when you look at chess pieces, he takes on the role of a knight. He's not he's not the king, but he's on his He's he's on his journey and taking his steps to get there.
Uh.
He has a son that he that he loves very much. Uh. He's at odds with, you know, with the with the mother of his son.
But he's trying to do the best that he can to to put himself in a more stable a position to h to co parent, you know, with with the mother. He's he's he's seen some downstroddedness in his life and he's trying to make sure that he doesn't go down that road again. He's trying to stay focused in being
the good man that he know that he is. But at the same time, he knows that the environment has its own has its own clock, and it runs on its own scale, and he's trying to do what he can to fight against that while still staying above water and keeping his head above water with all those eyes as well. What I try to bring is some some some edge because I think that that it's just something that a type of person like Byron would have.
I don't want to give it all the.
Way, but when you see more of his history, you will understand where the way he speaks, the way he walks, the combativeness that that may come out of him, is his passion for things to go the way that he would like for them to go generally comes from. And but at the end of the day, he does have a brought and he and he always means what and he always means well for self definitely is some but also as fellow man and his brethren.
It's an open question for all three of you. And it's billed as a comedy. Okay, yet you were talking a tackle serious subjects here. People can't see us, but you all have kind of smiles on your faces while you're not. And again it's an open question anyone take it. But what are the challenges of doing quote unquote serious comedy. I guess that's an oxymoron, but that that makes certain level of of sense. I guess can you describe that? That's gotta be some kind of real challenge.
You know what?
I laugh because we we do talk about We've talked about that it's a comedy and they are very fun I mean, it's a funny place. But but there's also so much great drama in it as well. I'm like, I don't know, it's it's just it's just a good play man, But it the challenges Arena are navigating and and and living and living truthfully in those moments when it's funny. It's funny, you know that, don't you know?
Don't you don't tell a joke and then uh bait the audience to laugh by laughing or just over tell it. That really living that thing truthfully. And also when it's something, when something hits you that you know, tears come out.
Here.
We're working with some great actors up there. I'm working with some great actors up there. So man, I'm laughing. It's a little bit of lamar might be laughing too. And or if they're if they're going through something and then and they're talking through through their their journey, I mean,
I'm I'm there with them as well. So I just think that as long as you live truthfully in the moment, man, you could leave saying it was one of the funniest things you ever short, you ever seen, you've ever seen, but you'll get the comedic element as well.
Anthony looks like you want to you want to jump in here? What do you I want?
I want?
I want to know is it a comedy?
I want to know what we call it?
Being frank you can't.
Know too.
I want to know who put the spin on it instead of.
But uh, I think it's it's a few things, a testament to the actors being able to mine it right.
But I think I've known these guys for a while and I think our.
Banters naturally, which I think that's as black men in general, we have like everything serious, right, We got so many things we gotta deal with a lot of times I've seen shows and it's always dealing with our drama, our pain, our conflict. But it doesn't resolve it without joy. And I want to see like black joy or just joy on the stage as well, because even though I'm going through something now, I'm still laughing with my brothers, like I'm still playing ball, I'm still having a good time.
So we can go from one moment like yo man, my girls, and the next moment he cracked a joke and we laughing, and I wanted to experience that on stage, Like Lamar was saying, let's just be truthful out there, like we can celebrate our joy within our pain, like we go through we know what's going on in the world, but that doesn't mean we're not having fun at home. That doesn't mean we're not playing cards, that doesn't mean we're not playing ball when I being good fathers, good friends.
So for me, I wanted to see that, and these guys just kind of elevated it, so they naturally gifted at it. So it seems like a comedy because they can elevate what's on on the page, but those drama moments are there too. So we were hoping to give the audience a little bit of everything, just so they can be the understanding of our experiences on the stage and as a human experience overall, not just as Black American men or women, but a human experience because we all go through it.
David, you want to add please, Yeah.
I think I've always I've come to the conclusion that you really need one with the other. I don't know of too many comedies that don't have a touch of drama. I don't know how many dramas that don't have a touch of comedy. It's just it's just the balance of things, and it's you know, once again, Piggyback and Over said, in the human experience, we need those things sometimes you need that comedy to to let that drama.
We need that comedy to let that drama land. We need that drama to.
Let that comedy really, you know, really really hit that nerve. So I think it's just a I think it's just one of those things that just go hand in hand. If you're gonna cry, there may be a time that you're gonna laugh. If you're gonna laugh that there may be a time that you're gonna cry. And I really think that it's just one of those things that go hand in hand. It's it's it's called balance, and it's all part of the human experience.
Great point, gentlemen, there's a method behind my madness there. I think it's fair to say it's kind of a male dominated most of the characters, but not all. One of the main characters, Hope is kind of and you mentioned as a chess game, she's kind of the queen, and we know the queen can rule can rule the chess board. Speak a little to that where where again kind of male dominated, but one of the most important characters is a woman. Speak to that, Anthony, why don't you take it first?
That's just how my life is built, honestly, Like have a great mother, great aunts. I had great female influences in my life and in the community. They kind of hold it down and they might not be present in this play. There's one female character and Hope, but there's so many references to strong women, you know, Justin's mom or David's girlfriend or mister d or women in general.
I kind of determine our moves when we're in the shop or when we're in life, and because we're working, we're doing our things as men.
And Hope as a queen, I think.
She wants to provide a little bit of old but she also is just a representation of all the women I've noticed in my community growing up, who are smart, who are like around the way, girls, who are go getters, who are you know, fierce, who are tenacious, who are emotional and vulnerable, And I kind of wanted to highlight a woman who had all those qualities but who was still learning about herself who's still growing.
And that's what's fascinating to me about Hope.
And even though she's the only female character I like, she represents a lot of the women that I grew up in hiring and being inspired by.
Lamar of your thoughts please, Yeah, Hope.
Is played in this show beautifully by Kashane and Johnson Man and and I just I have to make sure I said that because that that's my road dog right there. But what I will say is that I've seen, like just just being a part of the process, what people will see now in the full production of it. If they would have been there two years ago, they wouldn't they wouldn't have seen. Not no pun intended this much Hope, you know in the show literally because I think she
might have. I think when the first reading of it, she might have had two scenes or maybe a scene.
And a half.
I can't remember.
But but over over, every over the course of all of the readings, all of the feedback was people wanting more of this character. And it was a reason it was like to see that Anthony planted with the character, but it had so many legs to grow, and people saw it. And I've seen him develop it and now hope is she she They were waiting on every word that she says, you know, when she's in the shop, and now she feels like another not not, she feels like she's part of the culture of the shop and
this rendition of the show. But I've just I loved that she's been developed by Anthony and how she's being played now she's just amazing. So yeah, but she holds it. She holds it down for all women. There needs to be one. There was more.
I don't know.
I don't know if you couldn't have one of them because she.
She's on fire. Indeed, I live with one. One. Oh yeah, I hate you one. But it's plenty. Thank you, thank you.
We love it.
We love it, David your perspective.
Yeah, so before we got into rehearsals, I had to own him to the fact that I really didn't know how to play chess. So every day for about a good two weeks, I was playing chess, trying to just get familiar to that way. When we get to that part that doesn't feel as acted as it as it, I don't'm not pretending that much. So one of the things that I love about the queen, and I think our director he had shown us a documentary about the history of chess, and I didn't even know that a
queen piece was kind of added later. I think it was like a missionary first and then after a missionary it was changed into a queen. And it's just really good because it's it's it goes back to the balance. At least that's my belief.
The queen can move anywhere she wants to.
She can.
She can she can go straight and go diagonal. She can, she can guide up to the top, she can got up to the bottom. But she's always at the end of the day, at the end of the day, protecting that king. The game is only over once the king is check made it. Now, when the queen is check made it, the queen can be removed. But at the
end of the day she's still the most powerful. So I think it's just a it's just a necessity going back to the to the laughter and the tears and the comedy with the drama, it's a it's an added necessity.
Well, guys, you know, we've talked a little bit about the message to the play and some of the themes, but I also I hear a broader message and and and some of you have mentioned it, for example of seeing people who look like yourselves having more diversity in theater. I'd like each of you to talk to the to the importance of that. What is the what is the broader message not only of the play, but of your your work in general. David, why why don't you start
with you? And we'll work in the opposite direction. David, why don't you begin with it?
Yeah?
I think that one of the things that that theater does, or acting in general does is it gets us back to that just that human message, that the fact that there are many things that you may think you're alone on but you're really not. Somebody else has experienced it may mean a different form, maybe in the same form. When you see it in theater, it reminds you that, oh, yeah, there are people who have had similar experience, and it can be showcased, it could be shared, it can be embraced,
and it can be felt. And one of the things with art is that it allows us to be in touch with so many different people, ranging across the world in so many different ways, but yet in a similar emotion.
Yeah, man, I think I was talking about I was talking to Anthony recently about funding that just got cut from something that we had that I met the director of this show, you know, in the past, I met Daniel Boyce Ron and.
Who masterfully crafted, you know, directed this piece.
But and it's things like that that I wanted to participate in it this year, just to find out that we're not having.
It because of cut funding.
I've known, I've known people that have gone to Broadway from certain opportunities like this, you know, or going on to just do do you know, commit great feats and we need to keep telling these stories. I recently did a production and that I knew as Lamar there was something, and Anthony spoke to it earlier. There was there were things that I couldn't say, couldn't get off my chains as Lamar or didn't not couldn't didn't know how to
communicate it. But I knew through this show, by having seen it and having read it, if I was able to do it the right way, a lot, a lot of what I was dealing with as a man would just be relieved. And it was exactly what I needed. Sometimes theatre just does that I had. There was no there was no other way for me to communicate and get these feelings off of me in front of people, if it wasn't for this experience, you know, and I don't think there's any other place in the world you
can get that. And then every night or six nights a week for having many weeks, it's like it's an experience that you'll never get the next day ever again, Anthony, your thoughts, Yeah, I.
Mean, I just I agree with the fellas I think there is like it's like nothing else you get to.
Is just important because people need to see themselves and save you know, a lot of the work that I want to do work inspire to do this before the next generation. It's for some young kid to come in there at thirteen fourteen who doesn't mess with it there to go in there and see themselves.
So when they just see Lamar, when they goes to David, it's like, yo, I can do this.
It's like the same feeling they did when I watched August Wilson or when I watch other places. It's not about me. It's like who out in the audience needs to hear this story today? Who needs to be inspired? And about me just going on the stage being being able to act on stage, I get to affect somebody else.
So for me, I always think about the next generation or.
Somebody who's coming up who wants to see themselves, or who's going through difficult times, or for a fun fact like Justin is named after my cousin, and my cousin, you know, as a young kid growing up Boston who's having some tough times and his brother is great as
a mechanic. So for me, I wanted him to be able to see this place he can see himself going through life and overcoming and having So that's that's kind of what I what I loved about theater because it can change your life any day you sit down and we have actors like these guys on the stage and for a great experience.
So that's what I hope for.
Guys. We're gonna take a quick break. We mentioned it. We have to talk a little bit about the current environment with a very hostile administration. DEI has become a dirty word term, et cetera, threats of funding cuts, et cetera. You know how, we got to find a way to make it work. And I want to get your thoughts about how you're preparing to be able to deal with that,
because your perspective certainly is a valuable one. From the new play Castling, we have the playwright Anthony T. Goss and actors Lamar kay Cheston and David Roberts also known as d Black Gentlemen. This has been absolutely terrific. I appreciate your time. We don't want our audience to go anywhere. We still got more time, more discussion, more important topics to discuss here on Being Frank, I'm your host, Frank Lebona. Will be back with more Being Frank right after these
brief commercial messages. Please don't go anywhere yet. Hudson Riverradio dot com.
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Welcome back to Being Frank, the Intelligent Conversation Podcast. Thanks for sticking with us. Of course, I'm your host, Frank Lebono and as always, our engineer is the mailman because he always delivers. Mister Neil Richter. Guys. Before we left, we were talking about how the importance of community theater and good solid professional community, of which Penguin rep is one tell us a little bit about your involvement, why it's important, where it is, so people know a little
bit more about it, you know. Again, even though we originated at Hudson River Radio, and you know, we bring our audience a fresh topic every week, and we stream from Hudson River Radio which is in Stony Point, New York. And you can catch Being Frank anywhere you get your favorite podcasts, Apple, Spotify, High Heart Radio and all the others. And it's archives, you know, so you can listen to any program anytime you like. Nice part of it is that streams all over the world, believe it or not.
We have listeners in Italy, I have as listeners in Australia, so we give them a little bit of context. So let's tell people a little bit about Penguin Rep where it is and why it's important.
I'll start.
You got your hand up first, you're I just I have I have a long.
Love affair with community theater and the real affinity for it because it's where it's where I started, and I believe that it's it's it's where you a lot of times find the most passionate artists, you know, because.
They're not doing it for the money.
Rarely are you ever doing theater for the money, even no matter where you're doing it. But it sounds like podcasting, podcasting right right right, but specifically in community theater. I remember getting out of college and it was a community theater, black spectrum theater, growing up in Queens, New York. And I it was walking distance. Whatever was in thirty minutes, walking was walking distance to me. If I could walk, then a half hour I did it, and I would walk,
I would I would go up to there. I went up there after graduating college. I have a headsho on resume. I don't have any experience, but I'm here because I want to.
I want to act.
They had me intern for like five or five or six months. But in that in that interning, I learned so much about the business. I saw performances, I saw auditions. I built a mobile stage and put it back down, Like all of these elements of the theater told me a lot as an artist, but also a lot as a man, as a human responsibility. Getting out of college, you know, and I wasn't getting paid.
For these things.
It was just out of the love man, so you know. And to be back working at Penguin Rep right now and working with Joe Broncatto. We did a reading of this show up in at Penguin a couple I think it's back in October, and everyone loved it. And you know, it's just every audience that we've had has had great things to say, but they.
Just love the story.
And imagine, I can't imagine what Stony Point, New York would be like without Penguin Rep as an outlet for its residents, you know, or even the Bronx or you know, City Island where my mother went after she saw the show. They went to get some food, like you know, you go see food after you I mean go see food, go get food after you know, see a show. So there's so much that can come out of community theater,
and it's sad to see funding cuts. It's sad to see one show seasons because of funding cuts, you know, and then the actors can't work tech tech people can't work stay chanced. Man, It's just so many things that come out of community theater that we see now every day we don't know.
Those stories that linears.
So you know, I always be a proponent of it because it's something that I think teaches you a lot as an artist, but definitely as a human.
You know, David, would you like to add to that, please?
Honestly, what I really hope that the people who come to see this show. I hope that they spread the word. Now I'm kind of seeing it from a completely different angle. I hope they spread the word, or if they don't spread the word, I hope that we plan to the seed of them seeing black men in a certain light. I think a lot of times when you look at the news social media reels, there's a lot of negative images of us that are just being like pushed out
on a regular basis at heinous levels. Whether you want to see it in your feed, whether you do want to see it in your feed, it's there. But when you go to see a play and you see the richness of these men telling these stories that are probably foreign to you, or maybe you've heard just a pinnacle of it, but now you're getting it flushed out in
four different you know, from four different bodies. You get to see these people who are probably not living next door to you, but maybe you are living next door to you, but you get to see the richness of them as human beings. As human beings in ways that you probably never saw before.
Anthony, your thoughts.
Yeah, first off, just a thing of the red.
You know, Joe having met Joe when we did the reading with these guys who did are reading about a year ago. And Joe, really I have to champion him for allowing us to first come up to being rep the barn and present this play, and then not only to present the play, the response. I remember the initial response we got from just a reading alone and watching everybody you know, sharing and being happy and watching these guys say the words it scripts it in. I'm just
watching it and I was just amazed. And Joe has his post on that theater. I will say, he knows his audience, he knows what he wants, and he's made this process for me as a I'm literally a beginner playwright and this is my first time getting to play with these first player I'd written. So I'm learning as I go about this process and what works, what rights do we have a playwrights? And Joe, you know, has helped me during this process. He's given us a platform,
He's allowed us to perform here. You know, we don't take these things for granted. As artists, because, like you were saying, the funding is being cut and our opportunity to act and the technicians to work is a jeopardy. And when you get a chance to perform, when you get a chance to work with the other companies like Penguin Rep. Who hasn't established audience, is a great reputation
and a great team leading it. It's it's always a blessing to me, no matter what, nobody has to do anything, and it's a privilege and it's a testament to us as well from the work that we're continuing to do. And so Penguin Rep. I'm I'm indebted to I'm grateful for them, and I just want the audience. So David said to come and to see these men and this woman hoping just to be inspired and watch with my guy, the director, Daniel did a fantastic job working there and
doing this thing. And I think when people come to Penguin Rep. We want to give them more than what they're expected. And and I'm and I'm I'm just grateful for the experience. I'm grateful for Joe Broncado and his mission with Finger and Rep and producing new plays and for this opportunity and just seeing these brothers up there and working with Hope and it's it's it's it's amazing to see.
So I'm looking forward to to continue to go.
Forward, all right, not to you know, not to be a downer, but it should this all go away? What do we lose? What do we lose?
Do you want to No?
No, I mean it kind it kind of we kind of been talking about it. I guess the whole conversation with the first word that our director said to us that we were doing our tablework was community.
That's it.
I mean we and in that community, we lose connection, you know, like after every show, after every show, And I didn't know that this was a practice that my brother David Roberts has started himself personally. I just hopped on the train and then now we've been doing it for twelve thirteen years. But after every show, we come out and greet the audience, say hi to them, shake their hands, talk to them, like, have a real experience
with them. If there's no show, there's no chance for us to meet that one person that we may have been doing the show for anyway, that one person, you know, So we lose community and we lose connection.
Final thoughts, David, you any guys you see is yielding to you? Your final thoughts on what is lost if we lose uh plays like this in theater?
I think I think that in general, you use a piece of yourself. Not to sound so so heavy, but I really think that you do. I think that the arts specifically right now, theater is is that venue and that means of us being able to express ourselves. So without having that, I think we're kind of just left with thoughts on our own, trying to find means or
avenues or vehicles of finding that expression. But when you have theater, and when it's this good and it's this rich, it's given us a voice that we can hopefully impact others to do the same.
Anthony final thoughts on that, Yeah, I think they hit it on the head.
Com unity. Next, we lose a piece of ourselves. But I will say one thing that we have with the is has always survived. We look back before and now, no matter what was going on in the world, did it was that place where people came to see themselves
they hope be inspired. So no matter what I know, we go through tough times, I think the theater when it's done and we're doing it will always have a place even though it's been threatened and things are being cut, and there are some positives and moments where you can say, Okay, well, this is what's happening.
How do we pivot, you know, how do we castle to use the title?
How do we make sure that this is something that we can be better at next year, the next five years, the next ten years. So for me, I'm always thinking like, all right, if this is how it's going, how can I position myself and how can we position the community and other actors so we can be better have a better chance of with standing in the future.
And people like, uh, just a shout out like Window Pierce.
I've heard that he was like creating some fun for black theaters to thrive, Like Black Spectrum, I think is on the list. So when there's challenges, that's when the people who really want to make a difference and step up. And I hope that we're all a part of that, people who want to make a difference in the theater. And this is one way we're making a difference by you know, doing this play, being with Joe and being with Penguin.
Rep and working with these guys and watching them perform.
I think this is this is a testament to what we can do when we when we have community in connection.
Okay, the good news is the play is on. It's currently at the Penguin Rep uh and plays through this Saturday. If you were watching, we are recording on a Tuesday. The play airs through the actually weeks to seven, so you got two weeks to go at Penguin Web. Guys, how can people find out show times, locations, et cetera. What are websites who can give us that? Lamar, are you you can?
You? Ye?
I got you covered. See, I'm I'm all, I'm handy. I'm handy, but.
Somebody no.
Before I even get to that, I do want to give a major shout out to Junie Smith. He is playing mister d in this show and then he is is a four person cast and we need all four of them, so I would wanted to make sure I get director.
Please not everyone could come today. We should say that and yes, yes they are all appreciated of course.
Directed Daniel boys Ron, but you can you can. Penguin Rep Theater, seven Cricket Town Road in Stony Point, New York. You can go to www dot Penguinrep dot org. We have ten shows left. If we're going to September seventh, one on Thursday, one on Friday, two on Saturday, one on Sunday for two for the next two weekends. If you want to call listen, you can call eight four five seven eight six two eight seven three. I will tell you one more time. It is eight four five
seven eight six two eight seven three. And tickets are limited because those four people on stage are do you know, and Joe he knows how to sell it, So tickets and limited. Please get your tickets www dot Penguin Rep dot or we hope to see you at the data.
This has been absolutely terrific. I really want to thank you for being frank, you know, and forget the trite. I got to get those little talks wherever and whenever I can really informative, really interesting. I know you're busy or you know you're working, you're working actors, so I really appreciate the time. I really do.
Guys, Yes, sir, we appreciate you, thank you, thank you.
You know.
Of course, we offer special thanks to our listeners who take time to give us a voice in their lives. We offer fresh topic just about every week, of course, unless we do take a little break now and again. But remember you can get to any of our podcasts because they're archived anytime you like, and that includes Apple, Spotify, iHeartRadio, Speaker and more. Check us out on the Hudson River Radio Facebook page. We asked that you like us and
leave a meant to you. Always leave you with a couple of last little things, a slogan that I think is appropriate. Some great music and this comes from the great Lorraine Hansberry, who wrote a Raisin in the Sun, one of the classic plays of all time, and she said, there's always something left to love. And if you ain't learned that, you ain't learned nothing. You gotta love that. I certainly do. All right, We've got some great music from my friend David Snyder, and.
This is be cool.
And I'm telling you you listen to this and you will be cool. For our engineer, the mailman, mister Neil Richter, I'm your host, Frank Lobono. We hope to have you join us on the next being Frank, We're the only way to be is Frank. Thanks. Everyone, be.
Be cool, They.
Be good my son.
Good.
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Video do do pet?
Do you do?
Instead thinking.
Think do do do?
Do?
We adn't.
Say they don't mating.
Come on, what you're looking at?
Look at so me?
Don't you make a move to break my goods?
Get out of my way a bust the move, Say something nice and nothing at all, because together we stand the body with falling with mutual.
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