I have always been interested in the themes of forgiveness, reconciliation, and second chances found in the plays Shakespeare wrote at the end of his career – Pericles, Cymbeline, The Tempest, and The Winter’s Tale.
When Randy Weiner and I began working on our musical adaptation of The Winter’s Tale, we turned to the worlds of R&B and gospel as a means of expressing the majesty of Shakespeare’s characters and the redemptive power of forgiveness at the end of the play. We reimagined Shakespeare’s kings as two R&B stars who wield tremendous power and influence over the people in their kingdoms. As in Shakespeare’s play, one of these kings makes a terrible mistake and destroys what he loves the most.
The end of The Winter’s Tale is one of the most famous and beautiful scenes Shakespeare wrote. After sixteen years of mourning and repentance, King Leontes is rewarded with the restoration of what he thought he had lost forever and is given a second chance at life. It is a thrilling moment where the theatrical meets the miraculous.
Randy and I have always loved gospel and the power of music to heal and move the soul. And as a director, I am always interested in the audience’s role in the theater, and the ways an audience can experience community and become an active witness to a theatrical event. Ever since we began working on Best of Both Worlds, Randy and I dreamed of staging the end of the show as a huge gospel miracle that would allow the audience to experience the queen’s incredible restoration through the power of music.
I am honored to be collaborating once more with Diedre Murray, a composer whose musical range and depth continue to amaze me. It has also been a tremendous honor to work with such extraordinary performers, who have poured their hearts and souls into this production. Finally, I would especially like to thank the choirs from the community who have joined us and helped to complete this theatrical adventure.
