Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
[ Grunting ]
What do you think?
Oh, Christ, Oliver.
You just scared the *** out of me!
Well, that's the desired effect, isn't it?
The ghost of Banquo should be terrifying.
Please! I need sleep!
-She kicked you out, eh? -[ Groans ]
Well, I can't say I'm surprised.
She's getting too old to find crazy people attractive.
[ Sighs ] Please shut up and go away.
You'll survive.
Look on the bright side. We're roomies now.
We can stay up all night, eat pizza, play euchre.
Oh, God, you're killing me.
Why are you so cruel?
I'm here for you. No one else can say that.
[ Laughs ] You're here for me?
-Metaphysically speaking, yes. -What about yesterday afternoon?
Oh, you were in danger of making a big mistake.
I raised a question.
Should we perhaps consider humanizing Macbeth,
have Lady Macbeth wash the blood of battle
off of her husband's body?
Geoffrey, trust me.
I know this play, and I know what I'm talking about.
You're a bully, Oliver. You have always been a bully.
As soon as someone dares to disagree with you --
Aah!
Oh.
-It's you. -Yes.
Um, sorry. I, uh...
I just needed to get away for a few days.
Most people, when they go away, they go to a lake.
Yes. Well, um...
This is my lake.
Okay.
Well, you're up now.
I'll make eggs.
[ Piano plays intro to "Mackers" ]
♫ Call me superstitious or cowardly or weak ♫
♫ But I'll never play a character ♫
♫ Whose name one dare not speak ♫
♫ I'll play Hamlet in doublet and hose ♫
♫ Or either of the Dromios ♫
♫ But, sorry, I won't play Mackers ♫
♫ I'll play Richard III with a hump and a wig ♫
♫ Or Henry VIII, that selfish pig ♫
♫ But, sorry, I don't do Mackers ♫
♫ Every soul that plays this role ♫
♫ Risks injury or death ♫
♫ I'd rather sweep the bloody stage ♫
♫ Than ever do Mac-you-know-who ♫
♫ So give me King Lear, Cleopatra ♫
♫ Romeo, Juliet -- doesn't "mattra" ♫
♫ I'll play them all for free ♫
♫ But I'd be crackers to take on Mackers ♫
♫ You see, I'm skittish about the Scottish tragedy ♫
♫ Och, aye ♫
[ Cheers and applause ]
Subtitling made possible by RLJ Entertainment
I want to cancel my booking!
Have you people gone out of your mind?
Sir, I'm happy to refund your tickets.
-Fine. -What is the last name?
-Gilchrist, Gavin. -All right.
Pay attention, you two.
Refunds. God, I hope they haven't changed this.
I want you to watch carefully so you can do this on your own.
Here we are. Two tickets. $140.
No. That's my personal order. You can cancel that as well.
I am canceling my class visit.
I'm from St. Michael's in Toronto.
We have a number of a bookings through the season.
Okay. Well, you can, uh...
Oh, I didn't... Here they are.
Didn't see the rest of the file. It's a big file. Oh, my.
You want to cancel all of these?
Yes.
-It's just a rebranding. -Cancel them!
I've changed the syllabus to the study of George Bernard Shaw.
Okay.
Well, cancel all the Grade 5s through 12s
and the overnight packages.
So you key in code 349, press enter like that.
And there's your refund of $33,540.
[ Slaps desk ]
-Got that? -Right on.
[ Sighs ]
Sorry, but why are you doing this to me?
The computer identified some red flags in your last return.
Red flags? I don't remember any red flags.
-You're self-employed. -Yes.
But you don't have a GST number.
No?
And your claimed business expenses were quite high,
considering your reported earnings.
Also your T slips didn't match up
with the T slips submitted by your employers.
T slips? I have no idea what you're saying.
T slips.
T4s, T4As, T5s.
Speak English, for God's sake.
-Miss Fanshaw -- -Ellen, please.
If you haven't done anything wrong,
then you really don't have anything to worry about.
What is that, a threat?
Look, I'm not like you.
I'm not some soulless bureaucrat
sitting in an ivory tower judging everyone.
I'm an actor. I'm not from your world.
I don't know anything about money.
I plead ignorance.
Okay?
Is there a way I can plead that?
Officially, I mean?
Do you know anyone who could help you through this process?
An accountant friend?
An accountant friend? Are you kidding?
Is there anyone you normally go to for advice?
GEOFFREY: And the worst of it is,
she's gone over to the dark side, to his side.
-Whose side? -Henry's.
How can she have gone over to his side
when she was on his side to begin with?
What are you talking about?
She's an actor. He's an actor.
Yeah, but we had a relationship.
It doesn't matter. You're her director.
Worse than that, you're her artistic director.
You're management. That's the ugly truth.
We were living together, Oliver.
And that failed, didn't it?
You see, you laughed at my video,
but I was telling the truth.
It's lonely at the top.
Why do you think I couldn't sustain a relationship?
Because you were a bitter, sarcastic prick
and you hated everybody.
Yes. But that was only part of it.
RICHARD: Okay.
Okay.
-This is good. -It seems pretty bad.
No. No. It's good, Anna.
Uh, the campaign is obviously striking a chord.
-Bad chord. -No. No, it's good.
I expect this.
The campaign is perceived emotionally first
and then is processed by the intellect.
Anna, you can't change the way that someone thinks
without making them feel something first.
No. No. This is good.
Uh, and I have the latest numbers.
[ Gasping ]
Jesus Christ.
Oh, Jesus.
Most of those are group cancelations, not individuals.
What, I'm supposed to feel better
because they're canceling en masse?
Anna, we're going into previews without an audience.
This is a nightmare!
-And the workshop. -What -- What workshop?
Lionel Train's workshop. It starts in a few days.
Okay. Anna, look.
You tell me honestly --
What do you think of the campaign?
I don't know. It's...
...horrible.
-Get me Sanjay on the phone. -Richard...
Anna, don't lecture me about your human rights!
I've got enough on my plate!
Sorry.
Yes, I'm a terrible sister. Yes, I never call.
Well, now I am calling.
I'm being audited, and I need your help.
And if you don't help me, then who's the terrible sister, huh?
Look, Bob's an account--
Sorry, Ed. Ed's an accountant.
Couldn't he speak -- m-meet with me?
Please?
Oh, thank you.
Look, I-I've got to go.
Give my love to Annie.
Really?
Well, kiss both of them for me, then.
My main focus in this production
will be to examine the signifiers
with regard to gender in this text.
The characters of Juliet, Ladies Capulet and Montague,
and the nurse, for instance,
would have been played, as the law required,
by men in Shakespeare's time,
even though it was quite common
for women to play female characters
in the European theater of the same era.
And so one might ask, "Why?"
Was it a misogynistic or paternally motivated
paradigmatic transformation?
Having been a misogynist once myself,
I'm inclined to answer yes.
And what kind of statement would we be making today
if we were to emulate such a paradigmatic transformation?
Exactly.
Now, rest assured
that I'm not interested in answering questions
that we are not qualified,
in a syntagmatic sense, to answer.
I'm interested instead in asking questions
for which there is no specific answer, okay?
-What's happening? -I have no idea.
We will be doing a series of exercises throughout the process
that will help us deconstruct the signifiers in the play.
Maria, please.
The first is a simple commutation test, if you will.
The meaning will be immediately apparent
to anyone with even passing familiarity with Roland Barthes.
-Ellen, please. -I'm not late.
Actually you are, but I don't care about that.
I had some personal business I had to take care of.
-I don't want to talk about it. -Okay.
It was the audit. It was horrible and demeaning.
So you're living in the storage room now?
-Yes. -How's that working for you?
I like it. It's an easy commute.
Listen, I'm gonna say something,
and I don't want you to get all defensive.
-What do you mean by that? -Please.
We have to try and keep our personal life out of rehearsal.
Excuse me?
You know what I'm talking about.
You are the one who can't compartmentalize.
You said so yourself the day you attacked me in your office.
What I am trying to say is, we both have to make an effort.
Don't worry about me, Geoffrey.
I'm a pro. I'm a professional.
Why is it that I have to justify my existence to everyone?
Revenue Canada, my sister, and now you!
Ellen, you're late.
I'm gonna have to put it in the show report.
I'm not late. I'm talking to the director.
She's always late. Have you noticed?
[ Door closes ]
Just for the record, Emily, this is a rehearsal.
There is no show report because there is no show.
Oh.
Okay.
Our fears in Banquo stick deep;
and in the royalty of his nature
reigns that which would be feared:
'tis much he dares.
It's ***.
Geoffrey, must I stand on this damn thrust at this moment?
I mean, don't you think
that I should be a little further upstage
so that I can meet the murderers when they enter?
OLIVER: I agree, Geoffrey.
He'll have to turn and march back upstage.
That's a good three seconds of his *** to the audience.
Geoffrey?
EMILY: Geoffrey?
Yes, Emily?
Do you want to deal with this now or break first?
If we don't solve it now...
Let's break.
EMILY: Okay. Thank you, everyone.
HENRY: Ellen, coming for a drink?
God, I can't. I've got so much paperwork to do.
Oh, come on. What's the harm?
Just a couple. Maximum three or four.
OLIVER: Is this how it's going to be --
"I'll deal with it later"?
Well, we're rapidly running out of later, Geoffrey.
Come on. We can talk about the staging over dinner.
Come on!
There was bound to be a backlash, Richard.
I know. But people are really upset.
They're canceling their subscriptions.
I'm getting terrible, insulting e-mails.
Excellent.
That means we're having an impact.
People are responding emotionally.
The numbers are really low.
As expected. But they will pick up.
Richard, the next few weeks are gonna be very difficult for you
if you don't have faith.
-You know what you should do? -What?
Go crazy!
I was really hoping you'd say something constructive.
I am. The train has left the station.
There's nothing you can do to stop it, so why bother?
Use this time to embrace your right-brain self.
What?
You are a very linear, detail-oriented,
logical, left-brain person.
Embrace your intuitive, illogical,
random, creative self.
Wear different-color socks.
Have watermelon for breakfast. Play the clarinet.
I don't know how to play the clarinet!
Have you ever tried? Then how do you know?
I know I'm not a pilot even though I've never flown a plane!
Richard.
Richard!
You are a prisoner of your own rationality,
and it's making you miserable.
You're stunting your own growth, Richard.
Set your mind free!
-What is wrong with you? -Nothing.
You know, a broken heart is not a luxury
we can afford right now, Geoffrey.
No, it's not that. It's...
I just feel... [ Clears throat ]
I'm completely cut off from my instincts, that's all.
You don't need instincts. You have me.
I've done all the work for you!
-Just stage my damn play. -It's not that simple.
This is incredibly frustrating for me, Geoffrey.
I'd direct the play myself if I could.
-I know. -But I can't because I'm dead.
-I know. -I try!
I shout at the actors, but they can't hear me.
So I shout at the one person who can hear me,
but you don't do anything!
-I'm sorry. -No, I'm in hell.
This is my hell -- not being able to give notes.
Look, I would like to be able to help you, Oliver, but, ohh...
What?
I just don't like it!
Don't like what?
Your play.
I mean, I see it, I understand it,
but I don't like it.
I just don't like your play.
[ Sighs ]
ELLEN: Thank you for this, Ed.
Don't thank me.
Thank your sister for making me come over here during tax time.
She's a saint, Diane. A real saint.
Yeah.
This couldn't come at a worse time for me.
Well, there's never a good time to be audited.
You should see this woman, Ed.
She's like a Nazi. She treats me like a criminal.
I don't understand anything she says.
It's this horrible Nazi gibberish.
Where are your RRSP statements?
That's exactly it -- "Where are your RRSP statements?"
No. Where are they?
You contribute through your union.
You must have been sent quarterly statements.
I don't know!
God.
-God! -Okay, okay. Relax.
[ Sighs ]
What can they do to me?
Well, they could deny your claims.
I mean, I would.
$900 for lipstick?
And if they deny my claims?
Then your taxable income goes up.
And?
And you have to pay back taxes.
Could I go to jail?
I doubt that.
You doubt that. So it's a possibility.
Look, I can't say anything until I've gone over this mess.
Jesus, it's gonna take a while.
I've got until 10:00, and then I have to go to rehearsal.
Ellen, there's three years' worth of material here.
This is gonna take days.
Days?
Oh, this is a nightmare!
What did I do?!
What did you do? What did you do?
You kept *** records.
You probably lied on your returns.
You definitely added wrong.
Why me?
Everybody has to pay taxes, Ellen.
It's why we have highways and hospitals and parks.
I'm not a child, Ed. I know why we have to pay taxes.
Although I don't know why I should have to pay for highways.
I don't have a car.
Write that down.
"She doesn't have a car."
SARAH: Wandering eyes of mortals
that fall back to gaze on him
when he bestrides the lazy-pacing clouds
and sails upon the *** of the air.
Oh, Romeo, Romeo.
Wherefore art thou, Romeo?
[ Laughing ]
Why are you laughing, Sarah?
I don't know. This exercise just feels silly.
Patrick, how do you feel playing Juliet?
This is my *** fantasy.
[ Laughter ]
Sarah, you find it ridiculous because you're mired down
in your own preconceptions of heterosexual love,
as was I pre-Berlin.
Okay.
But Patrick understands
that gender identity is more complicated --
one might say dynamic.
Definitely.
Okay, but why can't I look at him?
You don't feel the power of this blocking,
what it's saying about gender and status?
Do you feel it?
-Mm-hmm. -Oh, yeah.
I find it exciting. Very exciting.
Let's try another scene.
I do get to play Juliet eventually --
It's an exercise!
You know, Sarah, one of the most significant productions
in the history of this play involved a female Romeo.
Charlotte Cushman's so-called Sapphic Romeo.
Some people laughed then.
They were Victorian and so could be forgiven.
But you, you live in a postmodern world!
You should know better!
Let's move on.
I'm so angry I could kill someone.
This is a ridiculous schedule.
Be careful what you say. Lionel's very sensitive.
If he thinks you don't like the play,
he'll change the whole thing.
Oh, thank you, everyone. It's, uh, 10:00.
We're just waiting for our playwright,
and then we can begin.
Uh, I'm here.
Oh! Oh, that's so great.
Uh, Lionel Train, everyone.
Lionel, do you want to say something before we begin?
Oh, uh, yes.
-Oh, it's heavy. -[ Laughter ]
Good morning.
Well, uh, some of you may have heard that I have a reputation
for, uh, floundering around in a mess of my own making.
However, I think that this process will be different.
I've worked and -- and reworked this material.
And, uh, though it feels strange for me to say this, uh...
...I like it.
It's a pretty solid first draft.
So let's just dive right in, shall we?
Okay. Without further ado --
Oh.
Oh, yes. Uh, you all know Emily.
Emily will be reading the stage directions.
Emily.
EMILY: [ Clears throat ]
Act one, scene one. A farmhouse.
Hillary, a farm wife, is making a pie at the kitchen table.
I don't understand it, Frederick.
Why would he behave that way?
Sorry, I-I didn't -- I didn't read all the directions.
Hillary's voice trembles as she speaks.
I can't expect you to understand.
You didn't grow up with him.
But what was he like as a child? He's so impenetrable.
I can't imagine your brother being young.
It's hard to remember for me too.
Frederick looks thoughtfully at Hillary.
JERRY: He was bigger than me.
But more than just older, I mean.
All the neighborhood kids treated him,
well, not with respect but differently.
Maybe he was born a man.
Sound effect. Grandfather clock chimes 6:00.
6:00? I hadn't noticed the time.
-Hillary looks up, startled. -His dinner!
You know he won't eat it if it's late.
-He used to do that with -- -Frederick's face clouds over.
He used to do that with Mom. Drove her mad.
Can I help?
There is a long pause.
Yes. I was doing that.
Sorry.
You don't have to read all the stage directions.
Okay.
The adverbs, for example.
-Don't read the adverbs. -Don't read them.
If it says "angrily," don't read it. We can act it.
***!
Sorry, Lionel. Let's just go on.
LIONEL: No, no. I'm sorry.
It's the, uh -- the opening.
It's slow.
Well, we can do it without the pauses.
No. Fast garbage is still garbage.
You know what? We have the time. Why don't I fix it?
Okay? Come back Thursday. It'll all be fine.
[ Sobbing ]
LIONEL: Uh, lovely read, everyone.
It'll all be fixed. By Thursday.
Somebody slap her.
[ Plays dissonantly ]
He doesn't have a clue what he's doing.
So some guy says, "Yeah, but when's the dog gonna sit?"
[ Laughter ]
He's throwing names around. Meyerhold, Kristeva, Stein.
Biomechanics?
What do they have to do with each other?
What do they have to do with this play?
Okay, that's the deal, right?
I mean, you -- you do what the director says.
It's his vision.
Well, I hate it. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it.
Patrick, when are we ever gonna get another chance, huh,
to play these parts?
I never thought I'd get a first chance.
That's right. That's right.
And that's why we have to go talk to Geoffrey
first thing in the morning, okay?
You're really passionate about this, huh?
Yeah. I'm -- I'm passionate about a lot of things.
So will you come with me?
WOMAN: Professional gifts.
ELLEN: Yes. I've listed them there.
Very clearly and accurately right there.
$3,231 worth.
That's right.
A professional gift is something you give to a client
to promote your business.
I know.
When do you give these presents?
Different times. Different occasions.
Many of these receipts are from late December.
So?
So these are, in fact, Christmas gifts.
Yes.
All right, Miss Marples, yes, they are Christmas gifts.
So Christmas is illegal now, is it?
I'm not the only one who does this.
There are people at the festival who are much worse than me.
-Much, much worse. -Who, exactly?
-What? -Who is much worse than you?
Um...
[ Knock on door ]
Hi.
Could we speak to you for -- for a minute?
Come on in. Close that behind you.
[ Clears throat ] I feel really awkward about this.
You're here to complain about Darren Nichols.
How'd you know?
I've been peeking in on your rehearsals.
Well, he's -- he's not doing the play.
He's just doing all these exercises.
We were kind of hoping that maybe you could coach us.
Or something.
I mean, anything -- anything would be...
Would be something that we're not getting.
You know, I appreciate your situation. I do.
But I'm, uh...
I am not in a, uh, place right now where I can be of much help.
Geoffrey, please. I -- I love this play.
I've seen it millions of times,
and finally I get to say these beautiful words.
But without character or story, these words are just --
They're air.
And it's killing me.
Him too. It's killing both of us.
B-Both of us.
All right. We'll have to keep it secret.
[ Gasps ] We won't tell anyone.
Meet me tomorrow before rehearsal.
-Bring some running shoes. -Thank you.
Okay.
My son isn't perfect, but who is?
I'm not blaming you.
Well, you don't have children,
so you can't know what it's like.
-I suppose I'm to blame. -No.
Well, what's happening to this family?
This house is crumbling around me.
Oh, I see!
It's like the house built of straw.
In "The Three Little Pigs"?
Okay, you know what? Throw away the scripts.
No, I'm -- I'm not criticizing it.
I-I-I know. I know. Throw them away.
Emily, can you get the...
Okay, this is the problem --
The problem is I don't know who these people are,
these characters.
I-I-I don't know who they are.
And because of that, I don't trust them.
You people have to bring these characters to life.
Show me who they are.
Yeah, I-I want you to improvise your lines.
Well, y-you know the story.
Just -- Just improvise the dialogue.
But -- But make it real.
Make me believe you're real.
Go.
M-My son isn't perfect, but who is?
I'm not blaming you.
Well, you don't have any children,
so you don't understand.
I suppose I'm to blame.
No.
Okay, um... You're just saying the lines.
I'm sorry, but they're in my head.
I'm -- I'm a quick study.
Just forget them. Just get rid of them.
I hate those lines.
Never want to hear them again, okay?
Just make the part your own.
Tell the story but in your own words, okay?
Okay? Go.
My...son h-has problems.
But who doesn't h-have problems?
It's not your fault... that he has problems.
Well, you don't have a son. Or any sons.
So you don't know what I'm talking about.
Now, I suppose you're going to say that, uh, it's because of me
that my son is the way that he is?
Not necessarily.
Okay. You're paraphrasing.
That's not what I want you to do.
I want you to tell the story as written but in your own words.
That's what paraphrasing is -- what you just said.
Okay, look. It's very simple.
I don't want to hear the words that I wrote
or any variation of those words.
I want you to tell the story -- you people -- in your own words.
Go!
[ Sighs ]
M-My son has things wrong with him.
[ Stifled laughter ]
But having said that,
I don't think that having
a certain amount of things wrong with you
is entirely o-out of the ordinary.
Emily.
15 minutes, everybody.
[ Banging ]
[ Clarinet playing dissonantly ]
I can help you with that.
Thank you.
Ah, it's just these pages.
Actually, just page three.
Do you have a shredder?
Is it not going well?
Well, it's, um...
There are problems with the story
on a very, very basic level.
And the actors are idiots.
Well, that's not fair. Some of the actors are idiots.
It's not easy making up a play from nothing.
I know you're just trying to say something bland and supportive,
but you're exactly right.
It is hard to create something out of nothing.
I mean, that's the dilemma.
And the process, it just takes its toll on me.
I-I've become a horrible person.
I mean, just -- just horrible to be around.
[ Breathes deeply ]
Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?
Sure.
Were the graced person of our Banquo present,
who may I rather challenge for unkindness...
Here it comes.
...than pity for mischance!
-Please your highness... -[ Rips ]
...to grace us with your royal company.
The table's full.
Oh, here's a place reserved, sir.
-MACBETH: Where? -Here, my lord.
What moves my lord?
-[ Chair scraping loudly ] -Which of you have done this?!
[ Stifled laughter ]
What is he doing?
MACBETH: Thou canst not say I did it!
[ Laughing ] Never shake thy gory locks at me.
Stop them, Geoffrey, for God's sake!
Okay, let's stop.
[ Laughter ]
Sorry. The cape gets stuck under the...
-[ Rip ] -Oh, ***.
Don't move! You're tearing it to pieces!
HENRY: But it looks fantastic!
-Have we stopped? -Yes.
Geoffrey, do you think we could make it a little bit shorter?
No! We'd see the feet!
-You'd see my feet. -You'd see his feet, Geoffrey!
Yes, I realize we'd see his feet.
But do you think we could carry on and maybe fix it later?
Fix it now!
The whole effect will be ruined unless you get it right!
I don't want to spend any more time on this!
Geoffrey, the appearance of Banquo's ghost is key!
You know, you have turned this entire play
into a parade of special effects!
OLIVER: The effects give context for the performances.
The effects are coming at the expense of the performances.
And look at Henry! He's huge!
No, he's acting terrified
because he's looking at a scary actor acting scary!
There's nothing emotional to connect with up there!
-Geoffrey? -What?!
Geoffrey, stop it, please.
Stop...what?
You have no idea how frightening it is
to watch you talking to an empty chair.
Thank you, everyone! See you tomorrow!
-You can't cut the ghost! -I'm cutting the ghost.
You don't know what you're doing!
Oh, I know exactly what I'm doing.
This is not a horror movie.
It's a story about one man's guilt.
It's a story about one man's journey into madness.
You're just trying to make it about you!
And you're trying to make it about you!
You can't cut the ghost!
-Oliver... -I won't let you.
Oliver, remember what Ellen said.
The real horror is in what we don't see.
The real horror is in our imagination.
If you cut the ghost, I'll quit.
-Go ahead. -All right!
Why are you still here?
-I'm going! -So go!
Is everything all right, Geoffrey?
Yeah. Terrific.
Just here. All alone.
On my lake.
Ah.
Lake. [ Chuckles ]
I mean, it's all about editing.
Words are cheap, right, and you can talk all day
or describe something in excruciating detail,
but in the end, you know, that's just what it would be.
What?
Excruciating.
Right.
So tell me about you.
You know, who -- who are you?
Me? I'm nobody.
[ Laughing ] No, no. Come on.
Well, uh, I grew up in Winkler, Manitoba.
That's a town of about 8,000 people
two hours south of Winnipeg.
And what do they do in, uh, Winkler?
They -- They mostly farm.
For fun what do they do?
Oh, well, there's a...
There's an aquatic playground.
And there's, uh, the harvest festival in August.
And the Threshermen's Museum. That's kind of fun.
You get to see how they lived in the olden days.
Oh, wow!
I've never met anyone from the prairies before.
Seriously?
No. What are they like? Prairie folk.
I mean, are they real? Are they, you know, real people?
Yes. I'd say they were real people.
I don't know any real people.
I mean, everyone around me is -- is --
is pretending to be someone they're not.
-Well, they're actors. -Right.
But you're not.
No. [ Laughs ]
God, no.
[ Laughs ]
And I love that about you. I...
I love that you're real.
Oh.
Let's get drunk out of our minds.
Okay.
So...
How are the kids?
They're good.
Noah's finally sleeping through the night now.
And Annie told her mother the other day
that she wants to be an actress when she grows up.
[ Laughs ]
What's so funny about that?
Well, it's not exactly the lifestyle choice
you'd make for your daughter, is it?
You make it sound like prostitution.
Ellen, I'm just...
Forget it. I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that.
So, what's this for -- $120?
Oh. A bra for work. A work bra.
Nobody sees it.
Okay.
You know, my lifestyle is a bit unusual, I admit that,
but you have no right to judge me.
I'm sorry.
You're like my auditor. She treats me like a criminal.
You're not a criminal. It's not a crime to be stupid.
Excuse me?
I'm talking about your limited understanding
of your own financial situation.
Your inability to add two numbers together.
-Shut up, Ed. I am not stupid. -I'm just saying...
It's bad enough being called a liar by the government.
Now I'm being called stupid by a beer-swilling clerk?
Hey! I'm doing you a favor here.
If insulting someone is your idea of a favor,
then you are the idiot, not me.
Nobody who spends $120 on a bra and then tries to claim it
has the right to call me an idiot.
That bra is a legitimate business expense.
I have to go onstage every night
and convince people that I am a strong, sexy woman
in control of her life.
And you're saying that a bra --
Yes, that's right. The bra helps me do that.
I need the bra for my job.
It's like office supplies.
Like office supplies?
You think I'm a fake, don't you?
Yes.
Well, I think you're a fake.
-Really? -Yes.
I think that you don't believe for one second
in your regular life.
I think you want to have big adventures like me,
poor little me, the *** actress in the $120 bra.
-Is that right? -Yes. That's right.
[ Laughs ]
Okay. Don't wait. Straight into the text.
"How camest thou hither." Go.
How camest thou hither, tell me, and wherefore?
The orchard walls are high and hard to climb,
and the place death, considering who thou art,
if any of my kinsmen...
No, no. You're thinking. Don't think. Instinct. Go.
Oh, with love's light wings did I o'er-perch these walls.
Ah, for stony limits cannot hold love out,
and what love can do that --
-What love can do -- -That dares love attempt...
What love can do that dares love attempt.
Therefore thy kinsmen are no let to me.
Okay. On the ground. Two push-ups, one each. Go.
Okay.
If they do see thee, they will *** thee.
Alack, there lies more peril in thine eye
than 20 of their swords:
Look thou but sweet, and I am proof against their enmity.
Good, good. Keep the breath going.
More text, you guys. Jump in anywhere.
It's very good.
O gentle Romeo, if thou dost love,
pronounce it faithfully:
Or if thou think'st I am too quickly won,
I'll frown and be perverse and say thee nay so thou wilt woo;
but else, not for the world.
Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear
that tips with silver all these fruit-tree tops --
O, swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon,
that monthly changes in her circled orb,
lest that thy love prove likewise variable.
ROMEO: What shall I swear by?
JULIET: Do not swear at all;
or, if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self,
which is the god of my idolatry, and I'll believe thee.
W-Wow. It's just passionate.
It's...
It's really poetic, but it -- it's really, um, *** too.
[ Laughs ]
GEOFFREY: [ Laughs ]
Okay, you two. Run around again.
Patrick, you go first this time. Sarah, you catch up.
Thank you, Geoffrey.
No. Thank you.
I thought he was gay.
Oh, h-hi, Diane. It's Ellen.
Is everything good with you?
A-And Ed?
Good.
No, no. I-I'm just phoning to say I'm sorry.
Sorry for keeping him so late.
No. Nothing more. Just a friendly sorry.
Yeah.
Okay. Well, I've got to go to rehearsal.
So, sorry again to you,
and, um, say sorry to the children for me.
Oh, Anna, do you have those pay stubs for me?
Oh, yes. Where are they? Gosh, I'm sorry.
I got here a bit late this morning,
and everything's a bit topsy-turvy.
Yeah.
Actually slept in. I had a late evening.
I went to Yong's.
The lemon chicken there is really good.
Did you go out with someone?
Yes, as a matter of fact. It's kind of a secret.
Nothing happened yet, but it might,
and I don't want to jinx it.
It's someone who works here.
I can't tell you who. Not Richard.
That's great. Good for you.
Thanks for this.
Ellen? It's okay. It's okay.
I have another preview tonight.
Oh!
-It'll be okay. -Yeah, I -- It...
[ Clarinet playing dissonantly ]
Richard!
Oh. Anna. Come on in.
I want to show you something.
[ "Danny Boy" plays dissonantly ]
"Danny Boy," right?
Yes!
-It's great. -Really?
Considering you've only had it a few days, it's...
Oh, well, thank you.
Sorry, you want something?
Uh, do you know anything about what's happening in rehearsal?
Ellen was here, and she's quite upset.
Uh, I don't know.
It's that time of year, Anna. Come on. It's previews.
Okay. Well, I'll leave you to your practicing.
Wait, wait. Wait, wait.
Here's the chorus.
[ "Danny Boy" plays dissonantly ]
Okay, everybody. Here's the game plan.
We're gonna streamline this production
so we can focus more on the acting and less on the effects.
Ah, Ellen. Not late again.
Now, most of these changes will be subtle.
But one big change -- We are cutting the ghost of Banquo.
Now, I know, Henry, that seems drastic,
but I think it will help the audience appreciate
that Macbeth is losing his grip on reality.
I also want to pick up the pace in most scenes.
In particular, those scenes involving the two Macbeths.
I would like them to be breathless,
feel they are acting impulsively,
that they don't have time to think.
And one other thing.
Act one, scene five.
We're gonna return to an old idea.
This is the first time we see Mr. and Mrs. Macbeth alone,
and Lady Macbeth will wash the blood off her husband's body.
There will be a basin and a rag upstage left.
Any questions?
-[ Clears throat loudly ] -Terrific.
We have a lot to do before preview,
so let's get to work.
Maria, call it.
MARIA: All right, everyone.
Shall we start with the banquet scene?
Do you want to do this again?
Go. Go again. Where do you want to go from?
Uh, from -- from -- from, um -- "Wilt thou be gone?"
Okay. Aaah!
Wilt thou be gone?
It is not yet near day.
It -- It was -- It was the lark, and not the nightingale,
that pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear.
LADY MACBETH: Come, thick night,
and pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell,
that my keen knife see not the wound it makes,
nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,
to cry "Hold, hold!"
Great Glamis!
Worthy Cawdor!
Greater than both, by the all-hail hereafter!
Thy letters have transported me beyond this ignorant present,
and I feel now the future in the instant.
My dearest love, Duncan comes here tonight.
LADY MACBETH: And when goes hence?
MACBETH: Tomorrow, as he purposes.
Nightly she sings on yon pomegranate tree.
Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.
It was the lark,
the herald of the morn, no nightingale:
Look, love --
Look what envious streaks do lace the severing clouds
in yonder east.
Night's candles are burnt out,
and jocund day stands tiptoe
on the misty mountaintops.
Oh, my God, this is hot.
[ Cheers and applause ]
-Oh, Henry. -What are you doing here?
Just a quick note before you go.
-Yeah, what is it? -You're fired.
What?
Oh, I think you heard me. You're fired.
On what basis?
Well, I could just say that I don't like you,
but that's not really specific enough,
and this is all about specifics, isn't it?
So the truth is, I don't like you,
and I don't like your acting.
I don't like the fact that you ignore my direction.
I don't like the fact you play everything to the audience.
I don't like your complete lack of theatrical courage.
And I really don't like that you have turned Ellen against me,
but that's subtext.
In any event, I'm putting Jerry in tomorrow night.
You are insane.
Not at this moment.
Your fans await.
[ Cheers and applause intensify ]
Subtitling made possible by RLJ Entertainment
[ Piano plays intro to "Call the Understudy" ]
♫ Call the understudy, I can't go on tonight ♫
♫ I'm drinking with my buddy, I'm getting good and tight ♫
♫ Before they raise the curtain, I'll be higher than a kite ♫
♫ So, call the understudy, I can't go on tonight ♫
♫ Tell the cast and crew to break a leg ♫
♫ Break a leg ♫
♫ Roll me out another bloody keg ♫
♫ Bloody keg ♫
♫ I need to ease the pain that life can bring ♫
♫ Life can bring ♫
♫ And liquor is what will hit the spot ♫
♫ The play is not the thing ♫
♫ So, call the understudy, I think it's only right ♫
♫ My diction will be muddy, I'll never find my light ♫
♫ Before the intermission, I'll be *** on a sprite ♫
♫ So, call the understudy ♫
-♫ I can't go on ♫ -♫ He can't go on ♫
-♫ I won't go on ♫ -♫ He shan't go on ♫
♫ I can't go on tonight ♫
♫ Damn right ♫