the color purple cell curious about the title and about how you will relate
absolutely but the few I know I read somewhere that when you were living in
San Francisco you actually a purple walls in your apartment and I think I
saw on Twitter yesterday Jennifer that you we're kicking up purple cutting your
dressing room I've also done that you there's intentionally no purple in the
senate design and Austin's 10 we start with you what does purple knew I do not
have any purple purple purple but I know that in this culture people will do
anything to do till it and so I thought I don't want to have to sacrifice is
kinda love because people just over using a modular buildings killing me
was very much in nature I was starting to notice how much purple day is and how
we didn't think of purple is a rare color and it is really just as you would
think of what happens with the community might think that's where I didn't he
said you have to look and you see it all over which is let's talk a little about
sexuality in this show and again
house when we start with you i think i read
that you were initially disappointed with the way the movie ended the
relationship between Syrian should talk a little about that and what the concern
I knew they weren't gonna do much with it when Quincy Jones came to tell me
don't worry Alice doing that you know that kiss team is gonna make it very
tasteful oh ok where they were and I you know I understand I think but when the
musical came around I was very clear that I wanted it to be a real
relationship needs of each other and they show it you alluded to this a few
moments ago but when the book was first released was sort of controversial in
the black community that was a fair amount of criticism about the portrayal
of black men at the same time when the musical first came out I think the
secrets of told me it's still has drawn the most significant black audiences of
any musical on Broadway you think that the way we think about how black men are
portrayed in the book has changed over time or how do you explain the sort of
differing reactions the black men who were complaining hadn't read the book
understood that there was no problem that'll do it
so
reputation here as
called a minimalistic guy who wheels down killers are so that all that's left
is the very essence somehow this morning that emerges as a result I think my
colleague Ben Brantley called you behold two meet diet guru for happy musical I
wish so how does this even make sense in musical theater by definition spectacle
don't think about dance numbers and costumes and sets essential elements of
why we go to broadway people call me a minimalistic that's gone on since we
need to be up frank with you because I go into the room and try to kind of
honest as I can be any different
interesting yesterday
Allison me to watch a bit of rehearsal and i watch you I heard you tell the
ensemble to change the way they were moving because you said I don't want it
to look like a musical what does that mean will system I think I would be
right in saying that the people who are inhabiting the community of Putnam
County Georgia particular time would not have seen the musical mystery movies but
but but so much musical theatre I like hello dolly is just as much as the next
ones that don't get me wrong you know everybody thinks I'm some kind of guy
this is not the truth but has to come from character that's why I love doing
sometimes work so much attention planet and you have to ask yourself these
people know they recognize they do know about bob fosse he needs as he was but
we do know those cases we call them so how do we did something because I was
doing and I just changed some stuff
to tell the story and that brings out the dance in its own choreography but
its stock that belongs to those people not imposed upon them dance I hope but
it's coming from the words