# Broadway's Buena Vista Social Club | Talks at Google

## Метаданные

- **Канал:** Talks at Google
- **YouTube:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwkEL0QAFFc
- **Источник:** https://ekstraktznaniy.ru/video/24810

## Транскрипт

### Segment 1 (00:00 - 05:00) []

Hello everyone. Welcome, welcome to talks at Google. I am Patricia Parahaden. I am the senior director of global growth marketing in our subscription and customer growth team here in New York City. Um, it is the tail end of Hispanic Heritage Month and this year our theme at Google is Fortalesa. Courage and resilience is something that we all want to celebrate and I cannot think of a better way than to host the cast of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical social club. It is inspired by true events and it tells the origin story of the iconic Cuban band of the same name and it centers on these legendary artists who created the Grammy award-winning uh album in 1997. So, quickly, show of hands. How many of you have already seen it, are planning on seeing it? Okay, quite a few of you. Great. So, for those who haven't yet, it is a musicfilled journey. It's with worldclass Afrouban band. It's a sensational cast and what's so interesting is it transports you to Havana, Cuba. It takes place in two timelines, 1950s before the Cuban Revolution and then the '9s during the recording session. The show highlights the musicians personal journeys, their cultural heritage, and the enduring love and power of music. I actually had the privilege of seeing the band perform in 1999 when they were actually touring the United States. So, this is a full circle moment for me. Okay, so before we get started, a couple reminders. One, we are going to take audience questions. We have a Dory, but we also have live mics. So, get your questions ready. And then in just a few minutes, we're going to sit down with a few of the cast including Mel who plays Ibrahim, Hinardo Batista Sterling, who plays Reuben, Isai, the young Omara, Devonte Moody, young, and Wesley Ray, young Ibrahim. Before we sit down with the cast, we have a treat for you guys. First, Mel and Wesley are going to perform Murmusho from the musical, and then immediately after, we're going to get a sneak peek of the award-winning choreography from Gabo La. Take it away. They will not say Oh, most real love. Gy oh Thank you so much. — Thank you. day. My love ah my love. Ah aha.

### Segment 2 (05:00 - 10:00) [5:00]

I love foreign. coming up. Uh-huh. I don't know if you saw when you were performing the little like beat in the audience. Everyone was swaying. I got to say I saw this. I saw you guys perform two weeks ago. You got three standing ovations. two during the performance and one after. And I don't know if that's normal for most performances, but everyone was trying their best not to stand up and dance. It was pure joy. Um, so I'd love to get started because music is such a central obviously theme uh of this musical. How did this kind how did this Cuban music play a role in your upbringing? Um, just talk a little bit about the importance of this type of music. Um, and we can start with Issa and go around. So, I grew up with Hispanic music, with Latino music. It was in my bones since the moment I was born because my father, he directs um a band in like for where I grew up and my mom used to sing with it. He plays the piano and that band consists of all of my family if not in there. Um so I was I've been surrounded with this music for a very long time. — Amazing. So I actually didn't grow up with this Cuban music. Um my mom is my repro. I um heard that. Um but I mean it was always there was always music of all kinds you know and we listen to mostly like salsa that salsa and kumbia. Um but it was never like a lot of the Cuban stuff. So I didn't come to it until later when I actually auditioned way back a couple years ago for one of the workshops. And then I was just like enraptured. It was like, "Okay, I'm obsessed. I learned everything. " — It has a way of doing that, right? — Yeah. It just makes you happy and embraces you warmly and so openly. So that's how I came to this. — Yes. Uh I could say that um in a way Thank you. In a way, I'm in existence because of Cuban music. because of the fact that my grandfather even if we all from Puerto Rico he will say that I'm Puerto Rican but in music I'm Cuban and uh there's a specific song the sub bolero called comprehensia and that's the bolero that my grandfather made my grandmother fall in love with. — Ah — so that's why I say because of Cuban music probably I'm here — because it wasn't for my grandfather probably I wouldn't be here — for me. So I am not Latino. Um I'm Jamaican, Bohemian, AfroCaribbean, but I grew up in Miami. — Miami shout out. — So that alone just you know Yeah. close enough you know right across the road. So um but just yeah I was always engulfed in the culture and you know the similarities in culture and music between like reaton and dance hall and rea. Um, just the similarities between that just made me instantly fall in love with the music when I was growing up and then reintroduced to it with this show. Um, and I've been a part of it since January. We started rehearsals and from that point on I just, you know, couldn't stop listening to it. I'm always listening to some good old Cuban Latin music. Latin jazz. — It's in your blood. — Yeah. Um, so happy to be here. Thank you

### Segment 3 (10:00 - 15:00) [10:00]

for being here. um born and raised in Cuba and uh so yeah, it's kind of like in my genes. Um I wasn't really aware of how ingrained this music was in my system until it started to become popular in the 2000s — and um I uh was kind of like I walked away from the music for a while and I coming back to it. I just realized how much it's part of me. I knew all the songs before I even came into the be a part of the musical. So yeah, it's pretty much the music that I grew up listening to. — Great. So let's stay with you, Mel, if you don't mind. How did you guys come to this project? Um because as I mentioned in my introduction, it's, you know, back in the 40s and 50s was the actual Buita Club. Then in the '9s, it was the Grammy award-winning record and now obviously the musical. So, at what point were you introduced to it or was it just auditioning for this project? — I actually received a very weird email through my website once — and um cuz I haven't been playing Cuba music in a while and I uh met some guys from California and we put together a pretty cool band, the folk electronic music band. we play a lot of like festivals and um we tour a lot and uh so my Cuban music was a little bit in my back pocket for a while. So, when I got this email, when I visited the club in New York musical, I gotta say I'm not uh probably culturally I'm not a big fan of musicals. I've never seen one. And so, when I saw the musical attached to it, I've only seen the movies, you know, like La Land and stuff like that. And I'm like, what does that how does that relate to Buenav Vista, which is something so authentic and so grassroot? And I felt a little bit I don't know. I wasn't sure. and I showed it to my wife and they wanted me to send them a video and I'm like I don't know I got this email and she's like let's just send them the video right now and then that was kind of like this when the seed was planted they you know answered right away they invited me for a workshop and then I meet you know I met all the people who were part of — you were skeptical because you being from Cuba you knew this was like an iconic legendary club and you're like how is it going to translate — what are these New Yorkers are going to — what are they going to do with this — with my things right I was very kind of like curious. I don't want to be a part of it if they're just going to do some La Land with this. — Yeah. — And so, but uh lucky for us it's, you know, they have, you know, they were working on it for, you know, for years. I think like for six, seven years prior to — um contacting me and, you know, there have been so much research and, you know, when I met them personally and I met the people who were going to be part of the thing, I'm like, this is incredible. I think this is great. I need to put everything aside and be a part of this. — Great. Oh, for me, um, yeah, I was brought up, um, for the Broadway run. I didn't know too much about it. I was, um, summer of last year and I was just chilling at home and I got a DM from Terra Rubin casting and they just asked me to audition and I was like, uh, yeah. I didn't know what for. They were just like, come audition for an original Broadway show. And I said, absolutely. And uh it turned out to be this musical and I saw it was in Spanish. I was like, "Oh, okay. " Um — Yeah. But growing up in Miami, you kind of like just — Exactly. But I'm not even going to lie to you. I am not as proficient as I want to, but you know, I can get around. — So, um like I just grew up around Cubans everywhere I looked. Um I went to school in South Miami. So, um, yeah, I feel like I'm Cuban by association with that. — Yes, it's in my blood. But yeah, I, um, I was basically all it took was a DM for me. So, — amazing. — Yeah, I got, uh, somebody already got in touch with me. Um, I think it was through email or through text, one of those two or both. So I saw and I was like, uh, we would like to know if you're interested to be part of Broadway Bonava Social Club musical. And I was like, that sounds like my ground. Yeah. Sign me in, man. Sign me in. Whatever. Yeah, absolutely. And it has been, like I always say, every day, it has been the best job I ever had. — But you knew about it before, right? Having — Oh, yeah. Yeah. I know about it because uh — well I'm a musician myself and when the CD when the actual CD came out — in 97 and I saw it and I turn around and I looked the name of the songs — a year before I was already starting as a musician — and when I saw dea there oh I know that song — and um and then I didn't know how big this

### Segment 4 (15:00 - 20:00) [15:00]

record will will get you know and it reached to so many people — worldwide and here we are now 30 something years after — later — and I'm in a musical but see that I was looking in the back and I was like oh I know that song — and now you're singing it — the one I want to hear — so I got an off uh an audition request through my agent 20 in like 2022 for one of the workshops um that I was like unavailable for and then got one in 2023, spring of 23 um to do just one of the workshops which is R&D. It's like research and development for you know a musical. So then I booked one of them actually as a different character and so I helped kind of like develop it at one of the earlier stages and then they wanted me to do another workshop and then like off Broadway but I was also unavailable and then came back around and for a different character and they're like yeah like and this character I was like oh I kind of you know this one seems a little right. more like something I can do. So, uh, and then had an audition, went in, and it was just, it felt like a little bit of a formality. I'm not going to lie. I saw them. They're just sitting there like, "Hey, good to see you. " And I was so nervous. I was like the most nervous I had ever been cuz I kind of felt like it was like mine to lose a little bit. So, uh, I'm just like, "Guys, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. " They're like, "It's okay. It's okay. " And then the music supervisor is like, "We have to get something on. We down, but like, you know, just you'll get it. " And I was like, "Why you why you talking in the future tense, Dean? " Right? And then they after that my agent was like an hour later they're like you're on a stronghold next day they're like congratulations you're going to Broadway. — I like the playing unav I like the unavailable. You play a little hard to get — and then they come after you. I love it. — um so I mean I've been every like everyone else here well mostly everyone else here that I've been just auditioning for things in my life and that's just how the grind works. Um, and so I was actually in college and I last year and last summer and I was just um, auditioning for things and then this had come up and I sent in a tape as most people do now and I, you know, just put it on the back burner and was just like, okay, that's that's done. like I enjoyed singing in Spanish like um and then the next week it was I was going out of the country and they were like we want to see you in and I was like also kind of this unavailable thing where I was like oo I really want to do this but I'm like can we make something work they made something work with me and then again went out of the country enjoyed a little summer vacation and then I came back and they were like okay we're doing inerson auditions and they had and they were I was grateful enough that they could fly me out to New York. Um, and I did the auditions for two days and just like the final just for this one character, the final auditions. And then the next day I got in at 2:00 a. m. back to home and I was sleeping and I woke up at 10:00 a. m. to a call from my manager saying, "Hi, you don't have to do that other audition that we had um that we have you doing because you got this one. " And I was likeing slay. It was amazing. It was like I woke up like jewel drool everywhere. — So, a lot of you, this is your Broadway debut. The majority of you. — All of you. I've done a lot of homework. Yes. Broadway debut. Amazing. Um, so just talk a little bit about kind of what you thought it was going to be like and what it's really like now that you guys are all I see your face, Wes. Anyone can kick us off. I um I was reluctant to do it because I I'm not American. So Broadway has always been something that sounds more like Steve Jobs, like Hollywood, like something that is familiar but foreign. — And so you know I was touring I would do — you mean Sundar, right? Sundar Pai foreign, right? And so uh um when I got the when I kind of like you know did the when they called me for broader because we did a of Broadway run that was like three months at the Atlantic Theater close to here and uh it was amazing but it was like I've never done theater before. So I did that and it was cool and I'm like this is great. I'm back to touring. And so then they called me for the Broadway opportunity and I called my bandmates. They're all from California and like I have this Broadway thing. Um just — but actually something really cool happened to us. We were able to license one of our songs for Grace Anatomy and so this year — was like uh it was going to be like a cool year for us and I'm like I got this call to go to Broadway but you know next

### Segment 5 (20:00 - 25:00) [20:00]

year looks so great for us and they you know the three of them called me back. They're like you're out of your mind if you — take it take it. — Like what are you talking about? Like we have so many things planned out. I'm not I'm not, you know, I'm not doing you're doing it. So my, you know, my one of my bandmates's dad called me. He's a judge in California. He's like, "Mel, I don't know how much they're going to pay you. You have to do it. " So, — um, I was reluctant a little bit because I already kind of like saw like how the theater was, but then when I came to the Broadway thing, I'm so grateful they pushed me to do it because I've learned so much and my whole life has changed completely. — I bet. Anyone else expectations of what you thought it was going to be versus what it is? — It's exhausting. I can imagine. — Well, I relate a little bit to what he said before. — I just was hoping that it will not become a like you said like — um but it has been a magnificent experience in my opinion. I mean this it has gone beyond my expectations working in it and the way how it has been you know like the final product you — and it's just great to see the reaction of people when they see it they come like with this light in their face and their eyes and people crying and you know it's a very good it's a very great — how can I say it it's a very great Um, is that satisfaction — to see people like that? — Yep. — Yeah. Just actually piggybacking off of that, I thought it was going to be just like growing up. Growing up, it was always Broadway is like you do your job and you go. So, I didn't think it would be as fulfilling as um and I didn't know that similar to M. I didn't think it would be an authentic thing cuz I'm like they got me. I'm not even Latino. Why they got me in here? Like they probably got a bunch of like fake like people that look at. So, I'm like I had all of these preconceived notions of like it's not going to be what it is. And um again, I met the people and then I was like, "Oh, all these people are insanely talented, very nice people. " And then the people that come to see the show, Latino or not, they just love the show. So, it's just so fulfilling to see that and meeting them at Stage Door and some people have such a deep connection to this story. And whether it's them that left or their family that left and I've had people that danced with Omar and her sister at the Tropicana, it's really cool to meet — these people. And — the woman sitting next to me was crying the entire time. And she looked I looked at her and I kept giving her Kleenex cuz I'm a mom so I have Kleenex in my bags. And she was like, "These are tears of joy. " — And I was like, "Oh, it was it really it touches so many people because it's part of their history and their heritage. " Mhm. You all or do you want to move on? — Okay, let's move on. Um, so for those who haven't seen it, there's a really interesting tension um because it takes place as I mentioned in these two timelines and in the 50s you have this backdrop of this um leading up to this the Cuban Revolution, but you also have this vibrancy of the music. So for those of you who played the young characters, that's Isa, Devon, and Wesley. Um, knowing that your characters were going through or living in this period, how did you go about preparing for it? Did you want to learn more about the context of the 50s in Cuba? Um, what was your process of figuring out kind of their state of mind? — I think it was very helpful to have people who lived and live in Cuba um with us in this experience. I'm specifically thinking of David Oendo. He is um he's our like one of our featured guitarists. Like he's but he's so much more than that. He's um amazing. He's worked with the act like with the real comp um and he I mean I remember being in rehearsals um and we would just sit with the music and because this is an original Broadway show like we're like a new one. we're making, you know, changes to the songs that to make it more theater, to make it whatever, just to make it more authentic to us and to our voices. and he was explaining um specifically for me Omara and just how she's got this like she's known as the queen of feeling and she has got this deep like deep umness to her voice and that he was like take that with you wherever like wherever you can in any place of the song like try and find that and that was important to me because I was like that is at like at the end of the day that is why she stayed like this music is and the people that she loved like this is why she stayed in Kuba. And so it was nice to hear from him about what was going on

### Segment 6 (25:00 - 30:00) [25:00]

from like an actual like one-on-one experience compared to, you know, doing as much re research as I can. And I feel like that's I was grateful to have him still in this exper. I want to stay. Amazing. — Uh yeah. So it's it was a combination of watching every single YouTube video that exists about the history of Cuba and revolution. — Well done. — Yeah. And also like you know going down the Wikipedia rabbit holes and all the articles just reading watching videos watching interviews and then you know having the confirmation and also the access to the people in the room who are actually there and you know who have this connection like David Kendo lived around the corner from Kai Seo and so not only were was he instrumental um in orchestrating the music, like orchestrating the show, but also, you know, kind of giving us personal anecdotes. But because he had such a relationship with the person that I'm portraying, you know, it was getting that confirmation. He's like, you know, he's like, "No, that good job. Good job. " And I'm like, "Okay, you're just getting that confirmation at the same time. " Uh, and you know, as we're learning the music, it's kind of I'm like indirectly learning from the person that I'm portraying, — which was like kind of cool, but also kind of like meta and and just like really cool and really special. So, so it was just a combination of all those things, you know, just the in person and literally I could I'm an expert on the Cuban revolution at this point. — Yeah. So all of those things and just we during the rehearsal process we had the 90s um cast would have their table work and table sessions and talking about the history and how we're going to convey all of these crazy things of like the Cuban regime and like how we're going to melt that into this twohour show. So the 90s uh the '9s cast had one and the 50s cast also did. Um, and we talked a lot about specifically for me how we're going to convey like, you know, the elements of racial discrimination in Cuba, like how it um plays not even just here, but also in Cuba in the 50s at that when, you know, the revolution was going on and um expressing those beautiful themes of, you know, Afroubanism that um Ibraim very strongly stood for like um Braniwa talks about, you know, um the slaves that came through and the trans during the transatlantic slave trade and all these crazy themes and just um so I did a lot of research on what it was and talked to Saheim and talked to Davided um and then also a beautiful part too in the show is I do a bat section which is like for um oon which is like an African god and we do a lot of we did a lot of research on that and a lot of the musicians are initiated into that um religion and I got to learn a lot I also studied a lot of it um being in Miami and a which is probably I think a question for later but yeah I did a lot of research on that and got to work a lot of my artistic expression I think in this show is with the music and the dancing specifically the dancing so we did a lot of research to — talk a little bit about that you're right it is a follow-up question but talk a little bit about your dance your extensive kind of training and how choreography kind of played a story element in this in the musical — yeah absolutely um so uh my background in dance was um in AfroCaribbean movements. I studied um that in Miami with a guy named Peter London. He is my pretty much my dance teacher from when I was 15 years old. Um and he was Martha Graham, principal dancer, Alvin A. He's from Trinidad and Tobago. And um I learned a lot about um the deities and African gods and how that was expressed through dance. like we would have um they would have different parties and things to celebrating um the gods and thanking the gods. So, a lot of it was based around that. And then two years ago in the summer, I studied at a school and it was kind of the technical side of it and it really helped because yes, it's great to have the technique, but also with this um authentic and grounded type of dance, you really have to just be connected in any way possible. So um a lot of it was just sitting down and and uh learning from Peter and just you know he was very big on the divine center and connecting yourself and connecting your chakras to the higher power whatever it is. Um and it goes far beyond like belief. It's

### Segment 7 (30:00 - 35:00) [30:00]

it's really cool and belief in spirituality, but it's really cool to connect the dancing to it's almost like you're being, for lack of a better word, possessed by this um you know, this beautiful art. So, it was really cool to tap that into on a Broadway commercial stage. — Yeah. — So, moving to the um the folks who portrayed your characters in the 90s. Um I don't like to say the older versions because it's not it's you're not — less young — the less young versions. Um the rebirth of the Wowista social club it really did become a global phenomenon. You both even on this panel spoke about the um responsibility and the weight of making sure that it was authentic making sure that you were representing the legends appropriately. Did you feel that weight and how did you do that day in and day out? Um you know knowing your history and talk a little bit about the importance of where you come from and your history. — You're going to caught me off guard like that. — You guys, we sent you these questions. Yeah. — And I think — these aren't gotas. — Go ahead. — Yeah. I think um it's a responsibility because for some people this is part of their lives, — right? — Um and um it's also part of my life. Like this character used to be my childhood musical hero, Ibra. And um I've been in touch with his son and uh at first it felt a little bit like a weight on my shoulder because I'm not an actor. — So I felt like I had to uh fake something. I had to impersonate something that I am not. — But this is your Broadway debut and your acting debut. Yes. — That is incredible. You guys wait till you see him on stage. That's incredible. And so uh something that really helped me was that I'm so lucky that my life resembles a little bit or have like points of contact with the Ibraher's life. — So I grew up in Cuba. I graduated from music university. I started playing in symphonic orchestras and jazz groups. And I was kind of like in the chick uh environment of music, you know, musicians where you're like, "All right, you're going to be performing and whatever. " Um anyway, I ended up uh working in Switzerland for a bit and then in Denmark I went to Spain on holidays and my working visa was about to expire. So I went to the Cuban consulate and they took my passport and they banned my entrance to Cuba for 5 years. And so, uh, in order to survive, I had to busk and I had to, you know, play in bars for food and, you know, um, and then, you know, fast forward in time, here I am on Broadway. And I feel like Ira Fer lives was a little bit like that in the 50s. He was like playing and performing like in these different places. And then the revolution happened, all of that changed. He was busking and shoe shining in the street. And then there was a rebirth of his — um musicianship and his life through the Bavista in the n in the '9s. And so what I realized and what my coaches helped me realize was like I didn't have to fake anything. uh impersonate anything. I could just like use my experiences and the things that I've gone through as the support for the script. Mh. — And so that really made it so much more valuable for me to pay homage to their memory and to what they did to the world because their lives are basically an inspiration or um a resemblance of my what my own life has been. — Hi Neo, do you want to talk a little bit about you have an extensive jazz background and you are like an ambassadorship. You go around and teach uh and play jazz. Is it similar in that now you're like the ambassador for this cultural movement that is Cuban music? — Yeah. Not necessarily jazz ambassador, but I well to be specific, I — I was a member of a of Lincoln Center ambassador. — So I did like a trip twice — with them. The first was um the first was in Latin America and the Caribbean and the second one was North Africa, Central Africa. So uh last ambassador u let me see I feel like uh right now in this show we are being ambassadors ourselves. — Exactly. — Even if we don't have to travel people

### Segment 8 (35:00 - 40:00) [35:00]

are come to us — to see us. Uh the other thing is that well uh there are also plans of having this show for next uh as a tour next year. — Is that right? Well, that was one of the questions. So you are planning on taking this — I don't know if we're going but the — the tour is going okay. So that's another way of being basically uh ambassadors of this story — if we can put it like that, you know, — Spread the joy. So you guys all we had a chance to hang out uh backstage and there was clearly a connection with all of you and it sounds like you just started working together in January. What and the the representation the Wavita Social Club also has this deep rooted friendship. What do you guys do backstage? What's your kind of like routine? I see some smiles. Like, how do you have this connection? It seems very organic, very natural. Do you guys hang out outside? I mean, it's so grueling the hours that you have to maintain. So, you spend a lot of time together, I would imagine. — I know many of the musicians. Sorry. musicians cuz I'm a musician myself. So, each time they bring another musician, a how you doing? and all that and most of the time they can tell you me and some of them be driving crazy people you know practicing on stage because we be practicing also with the drones and all of that. So that's one of the things that you know some people be doing exercise or calling or or warming up on stage you know things like that you do when you're on a stage you were saying — well when you do a show like this your time is vastly compounded with each other and so yes you say only since January but like the mileage that comes from the hours and hours that you spend with each other having to be vulnerable to like multiple extents that it really just comp compounds the time and it compresses the time. And so you kind of get the same like if you think about a regular friendship that you have, right? If you were really to put in the number of hours, 100 hours over maybe like several months, right? We could do 100 hours in two weeks. — Yeah. you know, and so that alone is just it gives you the opportunity to really connect and also see when somebody's frustrated, when somebody's but it all happens very very quickly. Um, at the same time, I think throughout our entire building and just what the show is, we all kind of understand that like there's very very very like minuscule drama, at least that I'm privy to, in the building. And I think we all just kind of come to it with a respect and a humility that this is so much bigger than all of us and that we really are making history as the first Afro Latino show on Broadway — in the first — Yes. — This is the first year that two Latino shows have been on Broadway at the same time ever. — And so this is the first time a show has been on Broadway where all of the music is exclusively in Spanish. And so there's a legacy that we're kind of building and a history that we're making that kind of garers this respect from all of us. And at the same time, it's so much fun. — Like it's just fun. The music make you makes you happy. And so even when we're waking up early and it's cold outside and we're going into rehearsal, you know, we walk in and there the music is playing. There's like smiles going and like you're like you still got crust in your eyes just trying to get the coffee to hit your cerebellum as fast as possible. But and you're just like, "Oh man, it is just there's just a warmth that just melts you and defrosts you and opens you to that camaraderie and the it's a social club. — It's a social it opens you to just that experience of building this beautiful thing together and appreciating everybody else's gifts that they have to bring to it. And it's just a celebration at the end of the day. It's a celebration every day. And even when you're not having the best day, we're on stage and it's, you know, you're those first moments where you go — so good. — And it kind of like it just kicks up this d kicks up the kicks up this dust, you know, from the ground and it's like ah and then we're just like breathing in it and we're there together. — It's amazing. I love that. — It's great to love your job. — Yeah. You guys are lucky. We are going to open up uh to the audience questions. There's two mics if you want to line up. And while we're getting folks to line up, we have something called Adori. So, we're also streaming this. So, those because as you know, we have offices all over — all over the world. Um and so people submit their questions. So, I'll read the first one before we go to our live audience. Uh the show is the most vibrant and beautiful Broadway show I've ever seen. Any plans to tour nationally? Thank you for blessing us with so much Latin greatness. So, you mentioned there's there's uh a plan to tour nationally.

### Segment 9 (40:00 - 45:00) [40:00]

— Yeah, there's a plan to tour I think uh next fall and uh we'll see what happens because uh it's going really well on Broadway right now. So, maybe we'll have to clone the companies so that we can send a company out and still be able to perform here on Broadway. — That's usually what happens like when it's successful. like okay then you have another company and then you know like Hamilton had like 15 tours going on at the same time you know they did it too fast but you know a lot of these shows like MJ has like five companies out right now North American Germany London London's about to close Australia but a lot Australia is going to be the you know so you kind of just you build this thing and it's it becomes a machine unfortunately but then you and unfortunately Uh, and then yeah, you just kind of like plug it and you re you kind of recreate this thing and it becomes another extension of the show, but you know, they still want to make that Broadway money — the original. You guys come see it — as well as a touring company. So, you know, — great. We have a question over here. — Yeah. Um, I was able to see it in the Atlantic and then I've seen it a couple times on Broadway. And so as an audience member, it's been interesting to see like there's a pivotal scene that used to be a dance and now it's a conversation. So it was interesting to see all of those changes. Um, — tell me so many times. — Yeah. Well, I'm Cuban, so it's kind of like a requisite whenever our family's in town. Um, but would love to hear from the perspective of the two folks who were in The Atlantic, what is it like transferring from off Broadway to on Broadway with all of these changes to something you did day in and day out for three months? Yeah, it was interesting because actually uh The Atlantic was it felt like a complete show and so when it transferred to Broadway and uh Broadway needs to be really compact and in terms of like the production in itself the dimension of this it was 200 seats in the Atlantic is 1,200 seats on Broadway and so um yeah there was some adjustment there was a little bit of a something that felt a little bit like a grind because we were attached I mean, maybe me personally because I'm not really a theater person and there were some moments in the Atlantic version that were so, oh my god, is that going to go? But then, you know, when the thing was complete and we started trying it in front of the audiences and everything felt so in a flow and beautiful, um, I think it grew, it became a more complex and compact um, kind of uh, art form. — Awesome. Thank you. And then one more question from the Dory. I love the performance. I understand that this is an amalgam of true of a true and embellished stories. What is true and what is embellished? I really want to know. — This is actually kind of fun. Um I So from what I know of um we like a lot of the ages are, you know, are kind of are different. Like we've got the like 50s cast and you assume they're around the same age and in real life they're not. Likeundo is — he was 50. He was born in 1902 — when I think he met Omara as like as someone who was like in her like younger like 20s or something. And so like that's something that when I think about it I'm like oh like you know it just it takes me out cuz I have to just like remember. where I'm like, okay, we're like this is the this is like this is embellished at the end of the day. And then one of my favorite things is that the romance between Ibraim and Omara is not real. So it I mean I'm sure there's like there's love there of course, but like I would hope so, but it's like it's not as emotional as that and as um as you know as real as like we're making it. like there's I don't think there was any kiss, you know, during in the real life. So that's I think that's very fun because I'm like this is something that I get to like make true in my story as this character. — Reuben and Kai didn't meet until they made the album. — Like in the show we're kind of portrayed as like you know bestie besties but like when we they didn't meet until they made the album. That was like the first time that they had met. Um I don't think did like a didn't die. I also she they took a picture like Om posted a picture like a couple months ago of like them together. I think she recently passed. No — no I did. — Oh I did. — I didn't they weren't estranged. — Yeah they were — they weren't estranged and they were together like they post she posted a picture of her and her sister before she passed. — Attention for Broadway. Yeah, you know, they have to theatric and Omara is also — like very very warm and flirty and like so soft. So that is like Yeah, very

### Segment 10 (45:00 - 50:00) [45:00]

different as well. — Very different. I love it. One more question over here. — Hi, my name is Maya. I had the privilege of bringing my dad to see this show in February and he loved it and apparently I've gave him cool credit or because he told all of his friends about it and was before it got even bigger so I got that cool credit. So my question is so I have only recently become a theater fan and from an outside observer it just seems like it's an art form that is deeply collaborative and require so much trust and vulnerability and I'm so curious if you can provide like a peak behind the curtain on what that process looks like and what learnings could be applied to other work types where you're building trust. So are there any like exercises or things that really helped you bond as a unit and that could be applied to — Great question for Googlers here. Great question. I guess it's like uh kind of like when you go on your first day of school that you don't know anyone — and you start slowly knowing people and — knowing the clicks here and then — anybody else like to add — I remember during rehearsals we had a lot of um time set aside to just sit in a circle and um do little cute little um bonding exercises of like um we had a couple of questions and um we all put it on we put our answers on this little card and then we threw it in the hat and um we would get um we would guess somebody would go in the middle and pick a random one up and be like who's is this and then — all the way until everybody was done. Um so we had stuff like that set aside to um you know connect us and we also very early on um we established that while this is a very intimate and beautiful story this is also at the end of the day we are work family cuz family you know if y'all get in a tussle whatever you make up and it's fine but like we were like hey if I don't get my check on Thursday you know what I'm saying? So we established that very early on and there was a lot of I guess a lot opened up in that like I say that to say um so we established the um relationship very early on and we all understood what it was and we also obviously do care about one another. Um, so we set a lot of time aside to get to know each other and, you know, establish that relationship of like, hey, we're cool, but this is a work thing, a work family. And, you know what I'm saying? And but we come we come above that in a sense when we establish that. And it's all in good fun. So, — yeah. — I think Oh, sorry, dude. I don't I um I was like checking behind me to see if you were gonna answer. I think along with that, like yes, there are those group exercises that can help you like especially establish that trust or just get to know people a lot easier. Like I think that at the end of the day, who you put out there, like into the world is, you know, what you're going to try and receive back. And I feel like if you don't there's no need to like be an open book to share. Like if that's your thing, that's my thing, then please do like do that and like just be confident in that because I feel like the more that I have like shared something with someone that I feel comfortable to share, I find that they feel a little bit more open and inclined to do the same thing. And I know we learned that, but like in this process, you're going to be spending so much time with these people. Like it's so like it's sometimes easy to let that guard down to like trust that they'll take care of you and you'll take care of them on stage, offstage and of course there are boundaries and when that happens you get there. But if you're putting that good energy out yourself, — it's not to sound, you know, but like if you're putting that out there yourself like it is you're bound to find that. And so to have that trust in yourself at the end of the day that you're going to that you're confident in yourself and that you're going to make the friends that you know you want then I feel like that's what's created that for me in this my like inner circle if you will. — Theater is a very vulnerable thing. Acting Um being human is a very vulnerable thing. And so I think I every show process is different. Um, I think I I've done a little more experience with like just a bunch of different shows and it's you have to be very intentional about creating a space where people feel like they are allowed to be vulnerable and you're allowed to also be closed, you know, but I think what happens is and what Saheim was so good about and what I've had other directors Yes, the exercises is there are ways to kind of put play into what it how you're approaching that experience because you know you we have this standardized these

### Segment 11 (50:00 - 55:00) [50:00]

formalized things okay we're going to do this and this thing but I think a lot of time play is vulnerable but play is fun and play is how you learn quicker that's how you are more open you know the brain scans that show how the quickest way to learn is through play — because it's not a formalized thing and it's not compartmentalized and so what happens I find that could translate to many different workspaces is fostering a space where people feel like they can be vulnerable, but they also feel like they don't have to be and they feel like they can come to it where they are and people respect what that space is and say, you know what, I'll see you when you're ready for me or like I got you as well, you know, and like whatever you're doing, we're doing this together and we got it. — I love that. And that's in life. That's in life, right? We're gonna take one more question. Are we at time? We're gonna take two more questions. Great. Go ahead. — Hi. Uh, thanks for coming today. Uh, love the show. I saw it right before I went to Cuba for the first time this year. So, you guys got me in the mood. — The whole party scene and all that on stage is — wonderful. Uh, my question for you is that uh I noticed that this production has the band on stage uh and performing with all the actors, right? It's all kind of mixed in. It's a little bit different from some of the other shows where uh the band is in it's in an orchestra pit hidden. Um how is the experience different uh as far as like as a performer on stage? — It's perfect. — I love having them on the stage with me. Although sometimes I feel like I can't break the break character and look at them, but sometimes they'll do like there's they'll do something amazing in their solo or something like that and I'll be like that's amaz like you know but I can't do that on stage. So like just to have that like that authenticity every night it's perfect for me. Like I couldn't ask for anything better especially for my Broadway debut. — Yeah. Yeah, I think uh once is what's one of the things that's very special about this show is that it's a mix between an actual play and a concert is because there's no like musical dialogues. I was waiting for you and Right. So, so I really love the fact that the band is there for you guys to experience that concert and then the play has all the weight and the drama and the you know the fun funny parts and all of that. So I feel it's a very beautiful uh combination of those two things. — Show is about the music. — Yeah. — So they really were intentional about highlighting that and we are just Yeah. There's like story in between it but the show is about the music at the end of the day and so that was integral and also these are not like you know regular union musicians. These are like Cuban musicians. That's not like you know Jeremy from De Moine who is like you know — but sorry no offense to any Ians out there but no like it's it's real like they're like some of them would be like I would never done this if I was in a pit you know they're honestly and they're also part they're characters in the story as well so it's I think the most integral part of the show. — Do you guys know actually the question before was exactly that. Do you know the story of how they assembled the musicians on the stage? — I don't think that's a question for us, but because we're not uh I mean, like I said before, I'm a musician myself and uh Davido is the one that I have to say thanks because he also recommended me for this and he recommended me as a singer and musician. Somehow I end up acting. I did it before when I was a teenager. So getting the band together, — I guess that was a process of all the people that are not in this group. — W Marcos was Marcos Marcos. Exactly. Handpicked everybody. — He called it between him and David Kendo and Chacho. But they he handpicked everybody. He called them and was like, — "Yeah. " — Yeah. I mean, — but Juan De Marcos is the original producer of the Wavista Social Club — album from the 90s, the Grammy Award album. — That makes sense. That — so he's like a little bit of a godfather of the show. — Yeah. And he like and he is the reason why a lot of all of this Cuban Latin jazz music is still prominent today because he is the like safekeeper of it all and he's the reason why it's still going. And yeah, the fact that he like — you guys are also the reason why it's still going. This is the whole It's true. It's you are sharing this to the rest of the world. We're going to take one more question and we're going to wrap. — Hi. So, first of all, thank you so much for coming to our company. Um, I'm Karen and I'm a dancer, not an actor. And today, I've heard a lot about vulnerability on the theater stage or backstage. And unfortunately or fortunately, I'm only familiar with vulnerability in a dance company. So my question is for those who have experience in both, how does that vulnerability differ if any between a theater company and a dance company?

### Segment 12 (55:00 - 58:00) [55:00]

— I think yeah um for theater um I think it's a little less on the nose and I think that dance does something that theater cannot and vice versa. I think dance is a very physical thing. So a lot of things like when you're mad it's more here and you're like you know and you can obviously implement that in your dance like whatever the emotion is whatever the feeling is for the dance and like dance company it's um yeah but there's just a certain there's a certain breath a different breath and a different uh vibe that comes with theater um a lot of it is more internalized whereas um I think confrontational versus internal uh dance is more confrontational and it speaks on so many. Yeah. And so does theater, but I just think that they have different um they have different I guess um alleyways into the same deal. Like I kind of equate it with I kind of talked about this in class the other day. Um I equate dance with like Malcolm X and theater with Martin Luther King. like Martin Luther King like used his words and like uplifted the community with his speeches and with his words and Malcolm X was a lot more about physical force and like getting what um getting what he wanted. So I guess like dance kind of has that effect. It's all for the same cause but just different uh just different um — avenues. Thank you. That's the word. I like that. Yeah. — I hope that helped. — The last story question is not a question. It's a statement, but I do want to read it out loud. I just want to say that I was in attendance of your performance in July and it felt so magical to be in a room with so many of the Latin community of all generation dancing to the happy songs, wiping away tears to the heartfelt songs. It did not feel like just a Broadway musical. It felt like a cultural connector and celebration. So, thank you for this beautiful performance. I want to encourage every single one of you to go see this, to go see it again, again. It is um a joyous event. I want to thank Issa and Devon and Hinardo and Wes and Mel for visiting us here in our Google offices um and sharing your talent with the world. And I lastly just want to say representation matters especially for this generation that can see themselves in you on the stage. So thank you for what you do. We celebrate you. We are so grateful for you. — Thank you. Thank you guys. Thank you for doing — having this conversation in a place like Google which in so many people's eyes and people who want a better world and all that see like these huge corporations as the devil. It's so great to plant a seed of conversations like this about inclusive inclusiveness and art and vulnerability. I think this is something great that you guys are doing here. So we appreciate that. — Thank you. — Thank you guys.