Speaker 1: I'm a homegirl that knows a little bit about everything
Speaker 1: and everybody.
Speaker 2: You don't know if you don't lie about that.
Speaker 1: Right, All right, y'all, we're gonna get back into part two.
Speaker 3: I'm Laura the Rosa.
Speaker 1: This is the Latest with Laura Rosa, which is your
Speaker 1: daily dig on all things pop culture, entertainment, news, and
Speaker 1: all of the conversations that shake the room. We've been
Speaker 1: having a conversation with creator, storyteller, actor, director and writer
Speaker 1: Marcus Callender. He played Oliver Power Grant or you may
Speaker 1: remember him if you've watched Ghost Power Book two. He
Speaker 1: played real Ray. Y'all, remember we lost Raina, Baby Raina
Speaker 1: because of ray Y. Now tap in as we get
Speaker 1: into the final part of our conversation about how he.
Speaker 3: Stuck it out good, bad, ugly.
Speaker 1: They say the power actors don't get more jobs, but
Speaker 1: he stuck it out and now he is bringing Spades
Speaker 1: to play to life on stage here in New York,
Speaker 1: and you guys get an exclusive listen of what the
Speaker 1: inspiration was. So talk to us about why Spades, Like,
Speaker 1: I know you said you walked into a place one
Speaker 1: time in LA and people were playing space check. I
Speaker 1: gotta get back to it, but originally like why write
Speaker 1: a play about space? Like why is that? This is
Speaker 1: like your passion project? And also tell us about us,
Speaker 1: you know, briefly, what what is the story? What is
Speaker 1: the log line of the play?
Speaker 4: Okay, before I tell you that, here's another thing too
Speaker 4: for people to know. When I was putting that reading
Speaker 4: together last year, my agent drop.
Speaker 2: That, also, how does it? So?
Speaker 3: What happened when you say they robbed you?
Speaker 2: Like? How?
Speaker 1: Because I'll be watching my money like I mean, but
Speaker 1: I'm also I mean, I'm not a regular series on
Speaker 1: a network show or a streaming platform show, so my
Speaker 1: checks maybe not like yours, but I be no, I'm
Speaker 1: in all of it, Like, yo, what's up?
Speaker 4: So while I'm while I was getting ready to put
Speaker 4: this reading together, I woke up from a nap and
Speaker 4: my agent calls me. I'm thinking I booked something, because
Speaker 4: that's the only time they call you. She's like, yeah,
Speaker 4: you know, Unfortunately, we're gonna have to let you go
Speaker 4: because due to the writers strike, a lot of things
Speaker 4: were cut Agired.
Speaker 2: Agents are being fired there.
Speaker 4: You know, the rosters are getting smaller, and I was
Speaker 4: with a big agency, so I knew it was going
Speaker 4: to happen.
Speaker 2: I was like, if I don't book something.
Speaker 4: They probably gonna drop me, which is really fucked up
Speaker 4: because I just did three seasons of a show where.
Speaker 2: Y'all getting that money.
Speaker 4: Yeah, y'all so quick to drive me, you know, because
Speaker 4: I'm not working off of a writer strike.
Speaker 2: That's crazy.
Speaker 4: But at the same time, I didn't even I didn't
Speaker 4: even react crazy. I didn't ask questions. I just said, okay, cool,
Speaker 4: because I knew it was all a part of the plan,
Speaker 4: all a part of Guy's plan. Because I knew that
Speaker 4: that had to be cleared away in order for me
Speaker 4: to really dive in because now I don't have an agent.
Speaker 4: Now I don't have any reps, so I'm not auditioning
Speaker 4: for anything. So I have no choice but to focus.
Speaker 3: On this, right.
Speaker 4: So it was it was a blessing in disguise, you
Speaker 4: know what I mean. But it was also my first
Speaker 4: time not having reps.
Speaker 3: Well, you said they robbed you?
Speaker 2: What, like what the no?
Speaker 3: No?
Speaker 1: No? No?
Speaker 2: The drop?
Speaker 3: Oh dropped You said they rob no no? What did
Speaker 3: they take? Like, we're with them? Okay, they dropped you?
Speaker 1: Okay, I mean yes, but I also feel like too,
Speaker 1: and this is just like twenty twenty five, Lauren speaking,
Speaker 1: I feel like unless your agent is like moving mountains
Speaker 1: for you, you can kind of low key figured the
Speaker 1: shit out with a good manager, G lawyer honestly just
Speaker 1: good lawyer, a manager if they really whit you with you.
Speaker 1: But I don't think you need like that's where I'm
Speaker 1: at right now too, us like talent that is.
Speaker 3: Learning to build a team.
Speaker 1: I'm like, I don't need all these people, all these
Speaker 1: noises and all these decisions and blah blah blahlah like splits. No,
Speaker 1: Like I just need one to two good people. That's like, yo,
Speaker 1: we out where we gotta be, what we gotta do.
Speaker 1: Like so it was a blessing in disguise, and I
Speaker 1: think the world and the industry changed. Where agent, you know,
Speaker 1: for you as a playwriter and creator and also talent
Speaker 1: would be amazing. We want to speak that into existence,
Speaker 1: but you could do.
Speaker 4: It without exactly but because I think what it not,
Speaker 4: I think I know what it allowed me to do
Speaker 4: was like really tap into all of these talents that
Speaker 4: I have because I don't consider myself just an actor.
Speaker 4: When people ask me what I do, I tell I'm
Speaker 4: a storyteller. Whether that's acting, directing.
Speaker 2: And writing, you know. So it allowed me to like
Speaker 2: really dive into that and really own.
Speaker 4: It, you know what I mean, Because for a long
Speaker 4: time it was like yeah, right, but you know, but
Speaker 4: now I'm owning it, you know what I'm saying. No,
Speaker 4: I'm a playwright, I'm a writer, I'm a director, I'm
Speaker 4: a producer, and I'm an actor. I do all of
Speaker 4: these things and I think I do it pretty well.
Speaker 4: So it's like a multi a multi hyphen it as
Speaker 4: they call it.
Speaker 2: So it gave me.
Speaker 4: All this time to dive in, and I fucking I
Speaker 4: committed to it, you know what I mean. I put
Speaker 4: all my money into it because I know, you know,
Speaker 4: for me, I'm like sitting on this story because it's
Speaker 4: bigger than the play. So let's get into that.
Speaker 2: Yes, So what inspired me to write this play.
Speaker 4: I was learning how to play Space at the time
Speaker 4: with some friends and what I thought was interesting was
Speaker 4: I was like, Yo, I feel like watching the game
Speaker 4: is more interesting than the game because.
Speaker 2: It's just so much drama. It's all this other shit.
Speaker 2: I said, Yo, this would be a dope.
Speaker 1: Play in anybody house and anybody you know what's crazy?
Speaker 1: I was before I left TMZ. We were piloting a
Speaker 1: podcast for me, and now Nick Cannon has me playing spades.
Speaker 1: But I said to them, I'm like, we should do it,
Speaker 1: like let's just sit down and play space with people. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean, of course they didn't really understand it. And
Speaker 1: my co host shout out to Tawanna. She's still there
Speaker 1: at TMZ. She don't know how to play spades. I
Speaker 1: don't think she got to beat because she's never been
Speaker 1: at the spades table. But so when I the name
Speaker 1: of your play grabbed me. But also when I saw
Speaker 1: Nick Cannon doing we playing spades to sit down in conversation,
Speaker 1: I'm like, this is like Genians for any black person
Speaker 1: to live off of or thrive off off, because it
Speaker 1: is entertaining just watching and hearing.
Speaker 4: The game exactly. So I'm like, Yo, this will make
Speaker 4: a dope play. And I knew that, you know, I
Speaker 4: was at the time. I was starting to dab in
Speaker 4: writing and stuff like that. So I was like, yo,
Speaker 4: let me start writing this. And as I said, it
Speaker 4: just kind of poured out of me. The characters, because
Speaker 4: all of the characters in the player are based off
Speaker 4: of people that I know.
Speaker 1: So let's talk about the story, So give us the
Speaker 1: It's very simple.
Speaker 4: Yes, it's about a group of friends that get together
Speaker 4: on a Friday night in Harlem to play some spades.
Speaker 4: But on this particular Friday, things go a little left,
Speaker 4: as they typically go in a space game. You got
Speaker 4: the liquor flowing, you got the we going, Things kind
Speaker 4: of go a little left. The main character, we got
Speaker 4: Gil Who's house. They're at Corey and Andre. These are
Speaker 4: the core. This is the core friend group. But then
Speaker 4: Gil invites a new friend to come play who can't play,
Speaker 4: and she kind of stirs the pot a little bit.
Speaker 3: The girl is the girl.
Speaker 1: Okay, So the first time I came to see the
Speaker 1: play in Dumbo House, I thought that she was Gael
Speaker 1: Bean it was Gil.
Speaker 3: Oh, so it was Gail. Gil was okay, all right?
Speaker 1: Because then when I came in Harlem, I'm like, wait,
Speaker 1: that wasn't Gail.
Speaker 3: Am I tripping? But because they look they resemble each other.
Speaker 1: Actually, okay, so thanks for answering that for me, because
Speaker 1: I thought I was tripping. I'm like, yo, I had
Speaker 1: just interviewed Gail for BT Talks, and I'm like, I
Speaker 1: know Gail.
Speaker 3: I've been watching her. And then I come and I'm like.
Speaker 2: You tribab Me interviewed her while she was in rehearsal I.
Speaker 1: Did, which was so crazy. Yeah, which was so crazy
Speaker 1: because I didn't I didn't know.
Speaker 3: I came to the.
Speaker 1: Play because Taylor shout out to Taylor made it, who
Speaker 1: is our one of the producers here on the podcast
Speaker 1: for the latest with Long the Roads, which is how
Speaker 1: we met. She just was like, Yo, my friend has
Speaker 1: this play? Come with me? And then and I told
Speaker 1: her yes because I love plays. And then I didn't
Speaker 1: make it to that. She was like still just go,
Speaker 1: like just pull up and I was like, okay, cool.
Speaker 1: So I came and when I got there and I
Speaker 1: saw Gail, I was like, oh shoot. But then when
Speaker 1: I came to the second time, I'm like, did I
Speaker 1: not seek.
Speaker 2: No. Yeah, Gail is doing a play right now in LA.
Speaker 4: But I had her for that reading, which was which
Speaker 4: was great because she came in last minute.
Speaker 2: She came in last minute out.
Speaker 3: She was reading from the script.
Speaker 4: Yeah, okay, so that was another stage reading. And that's
Speaker 4: another thing too. I'm realizing through this process, like there's
Speaker 4: a lot of like theater things that some people don't
Speaker 4: know about, especially in our communities particularly, And you know,
Speaker 4: that's kind of a part of why I'm doing what
Speaker 4: I'm doing, because I feel like theater is becoming a
Speaker 4: lost art form in our community particularly. I feel like
Speaker 4: everybody wants to be on TV, everybody wants you know,
Speaker 4: the social media stuff. But it's like, yo, let's take
Speaker 4: it back to the stage. Let's take it back to
Speaker 4: the purest form, you know what I mean. Like, for me,
Speaker 4: all my favorite actors coming up a theater act.
Speaker 1: And I think people too don't understand that, like stage
Speaker 1: live anything, theater plays, that's where you get instinct from.
Speaker 4: That's where you get your instant That's where you learn
Speaker 4: how to act on stage. But not only is it
Speaker 4: getting lost in our community, but I think a part
Speaker 4: of that has to do with the material that's being produced.
Speaker 2: You know what I mean.
Speaker 4: I feel like not enough of us are being inspired
Speaker 4: to say, like, hey, I'm gonna write a play.
Speaker 2: You know.
Speaker 4: Everyone's like, yeah, you know, I wrote this movie, I
Speaker 4: wrote the screenplay, but very rarely are you here, No,
Speaker 4: I wrote this play, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2: And to me, you know, I'm gonna be real.
Speaker 4: I feel like a lot of plays right now I'm
Speaker 4: going to the theater. Everything fucking sucks. I'm like falling asleep, you.
Speaker 2: Know what i mean.
Speaker 4: I'm sitting here for two hours and what you know
Speaker 4: what I mean? I want to I want to have
Speaker 4: an experience, you know what I mean. That's the whole
Speaker 4: point of theater. That was what made it different going
Speaker 4: to go see a play as supposed to going to
Speaker 4: see a movie, because you knew you were gonna get.
Speaker 3: An experience in experience, remember when people.
Speaker 4: Were excited to see the actor spit on stage, like yo,
Speaker 4: Like I could see the actors spit and like yo,
Speaker 4: they they really in it, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4: So for me, I was like, yo, I want to
Speaker 4: I want to bring that essence back. So that's a
Speaker 4: part of what I'm doing with the play. I mean,
Speaker 4: you were there, like the audience is right there, you
Speaker 4: know what I mean?
Speaker 1: Because our actors played to the audience too, like when
Speaker 1: they're toast when they chairs which, to be honest with you,
Speaker 1: if you are at a family get together and space
Speaker 1: is going down and they get a little crazy, everybody
Speaker 1: joining in, everybody they talking about the renigga and they
Speaker 1: talking about that. You know what I'm saying, so it
Speaker 1: felt like that like family get together environment, which was.
Speaker 3: Great question for you.
Speaker 1: So you say every character in the play reminds you
Speaker 1: of someone or based off of someone that you know.
Speaker 2: Right.
Speaker 1: I thought it was interesting because Spain is very synonymous almost.
Speaker 3: I mean, I don't know if white people the white
Speaker 3: people play Spades. Sophie.
Speaker 2: I've met one white person.
Speaker 1: Okay, you know what space is, Okay, I've never I
Speaker 1: just thought about this right now and forming this question.
Speaker 3: I've never even heard the white person even talk about space.
Speaker 3: Never heard of space in your life? Okay.
Speaker 1: She just left at Landa Okay, Okay, yes, so it's
Speaker 1: oh girl, dang, we gotta bring Sophie to the play.
Speaker 3: It would freak her out. Okay.
Speaker 1: So okay, So Spades is it's it's a black thing.
Speaker 1: The lead character Guild that you talked about is a
Speaker 1: gay man in the play. I thought that that was
Speaker 1: as a creator and a person that writes. I was like,
Speaker 1: I don't know, because I didn't make it to the
Speaker 1: end of the play. I was like, I don't know
Speaker 1: if he did this on purpose, but that instantly drew
Speaker 1: me in because I was wondering what role or what
Speaker 1: conversations do you want people to leave the play having
Speaker 1: becau because our community sometimes shies away from anybody in
Speaker 1: any type of community that sexuality wise, they don't accept.
Speaker 1: So a gay male as the lead of the play,
Speaker 1: he's very openly gay the first not to get the
Speaker 1: story away, but he's dibbling and dabbling into you know,
Speaker 1: the DL conversation right off writ off the rint and
Speaker 1: I'm okay, I didn't get to that part.
Speaker 2: Oh yea yea yea yeah, yeah, yeah, yah yaha.
Speaker 3: Oh okay. So but see even with that, I did
Speaker 3: see that part.
Speaker 1: I didn't think that because so in the play basically,
Speaker 1: for those who didn't hear the off came off camera
Speaker 1: voice in the play, there's a point where he's talking
Speaker 1: about his homegirl's mom.
Speaker 3: But my gay guy friends will compliment you.
Speaker 2: Up and down.
Speaker 1: They don't want you though, but they the gay men
Speaker 1: are you know they're not. There's so much personality and
Speaker 1: characteristic there that those compliments. In the way he was
Speaker 1: talking about her mother, I just thought it was her
Speaker 1: homeboy just complimenting her mom because she's fine.
Speaker 4: I mean, the nuance of that character is that like,
Speaker 4: yes he is gay, but like he doesn't consider himself
Speaker 4: that to him, he just likes what he likes, you
Speaker 4: know what I mean.
Speaker 2: It just happens to be men all the time.
Speaker 4: Yeah, but he just likes what he likes. So for him,
Speaker 4: it's like I could pull whoever the fuck I want
Speaker 4: to pull, right, you know.
Speaker 2: What I'm saying.
Speaker 4: So that's what also gives his character that that nuance
Speaker 4: and you know, that kind of special energy, and it
Speaker 4: makes his character more specific and not so general, you
Speaker 4: know what I mean.
Speaker 3: Because Yeah, and he's a very strong likes person like you.
Speaker 1: He resonates very well, like you feel like you know him,
Speaker 1: you have a friend like him as a straight man.
Speaker 1: Writing for his part though, because that was another thing too,
Speaker 1: I'm sitting there and I'm like, you know this, I'm like,
Speaker 1: hold on, wait, I didn't know your sexual preference at
Speaker 1: the time, and talking to you right now, I still
Speaker 1: don't know fully all of your sexual per Okay.
Speaker 3: Thanks for clearing that up.
Speaker 1: But yeah, now I'm sitting here and I'm thinking, I'm like,
Speaker 1: as a writer, nailing that character the way that you
Speaker 1: did as far as like what you wrote for him
Speaker 1: was so on point as well too, and that.
Speaker 4: Character is based off of one of my best friends
Speaker 4: to this day. So you know, this is somebody I
Speaker 4: hung out with. So the characters in the player about
Speaker 4: twenty three years old, rush out of college, you know,
Speaker 4: trying to figure it out. So during that time in
Speaker 4: my life, you know, him and I will hang out
Speaker 4: pretty much every day Aaron Harlem. The play where the
Speaker 4: play takes place is five blocks from the theater gotch,
Speaker 4: so we would.
Speaker 2: Hang out all the time and just you know, all
Speaker 2: kinds of shit that went down.
Speaker 4: And he's just an interesting person. He actually lives in
Speaker 4: London now, so but yeah, he's just this interesting person
Speaker 4: to me, like Gay or I. He was just interesting
Speaker 4: and I just and his philosophies were interesting. So, you know,
Speaker 4: to write, I was able to write that character because
Speaker 4: I've just spent so much time with him, and I
Speaker 4: was able to.
Speaker 3: Find why was it important for you to make him
Speaker 3: the main Like he is the glue to the whole spade.
Speaker 2: I consider that like the ring master, like when you
Speaker 2: got a circus. Yeah, I consider him the ring master.
Speaker 4: Because I just think I think I think he's just
Speaker 4: I think he's interesting, you know what I'm saying. I
Speaker 4: think he and I feel like you know, he may
Speaker 4: make some people uncomfortable, which I like, but that's what
Speaker 4: we want when we go to the theater.
Speaker 2: We want to feel something.
Speaker 3: But that's why I thought it was genius. That's literally
Speaker 3: why I'm like.
Speaker 4: When people see the first the first thing that happens
Speaker 4: in the play throws people.
Speaker 3: Off, like, yes, he is very much okay, living his
Speaker 3: best life.
Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying, He is and and but
Speaker 1: and but That's what I'm saying by because the first
Speaker 1: I swear, the first thing I thought of is like, ooh,
Speaker 1: the auntie is gonna have a field day with this
Speaker 1: one when they come, because they love to play spades.
Speaker 1: But certain conversations you just not having with your aunties
Speaker 1: and uncles if you are black male. Honestly, not even
Speaker 1: just a male. I have female cousins who are also
Speaker 1: gay that have had a hard time to explain any
Speaker 1: things to our family exactly.
Speaker 3: You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4: And I think the beautiful thing about his character is
Speaker 4: that I honestly feel like it for people to come
Speaker 4: see it who aren't used to like maybe hanging out
Speaker 4: with people in that crowd or whatever, I think it
Speaker 4: kind of gives them a different perspective that could be
Speaker 4: or what that could look like.
Speaker 2: Because his character's hilarious. He's fucking hilarious, you know.
Speaker 1: What I mean.
Speaker 4: So to have that and then to have the character Corey,
Speaker 4: who you know, is a best friend of his. They
Speaker 4: grew up in DC together, so they have that rapport,
Speaker 4: and you got Andre, Andre is.
Speaker 3: You know, is God blessing. Andre is one of the
Speaker 3: characters in the play, y'all.
Speaker 1: I was sitting there and I'm like, I'm so glad
Speaker 1: that I met people like Andre when I was sixteen
Speaker 1: and not at thirty three, because he is just out here,
Speaker 1: just doing whatever comes his way.
Speaker 2: So Andre is based off of me.
Speaker 3: Oh god, lord, you got yourself together there.
Speaker 4: Yeah, this is my younger days. Okay, this is me
Speaker 4: or my younger days. But yeah, the character is based
Speaker 4: off of me, you know, yeah, the characters based off
Speaker 4: of me. The character Corey is based off of an
Speaker 4: X of mine, a couple of exes of mine, kind.
Speaker 2: Of in one.
Speaker 4: The character net for Titty, who's the friend that comes
Speaker 4: in and stirs the possion, is based off of somebody who.
Speaker 2: I used to date.
Speaker 3: Is the situation.
Speaker 1: I can't I don't even know how to ask this?
Speaker 1: How are the situations based off of real situations too?
Speaker 2: Yes? I really in the play? Yeah, virginity thing, we
Speaker 2: can take that out. You take that out. I don't
Speaker 2: want to give away.
Speaker 3: To I can't get we can't. Y'all gotta go see
Speaker 3: the play.
Speaker 1: So, knowing that this is all based off of like
Speaker 1: real life things, I mean, it felt real, but it
Speaker 1: adds to it. Have any of these people seen the play,
Speaker 1: like the people that you've based it off of. Have
Speaker 1: they seen the play? And reactions? Especially the ex girlfriends?
Speaker 2: My ex girlfriend has not seen the play?
Speaker 3: Is this the ex girlfriend that's also on TV right now?
Speaker 2: No?
Speaker 4: Okay, no, but I'm sure she'd be triggered by it
Speaker 4: if she saw it too. But no, they have not
Speaker 4: seen the play. Nor do I think they want to
Speaker 4: see the play. I mean the X that is based
Speaker 4: off of She still still does not.
Speaker 2: Fuck with me to this day.
Speaker 4: Wow, So you know, I don't think she's gonna see
Speaker 4: the player, at least not this production.
Speaker 2: Maybe another production.
Speaker 1: The show your exison isn't Belair because Belair is only
Speaker 1: a season four. I've been trying to figure this out.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna keep thinking, why you talking. I had to
Speaker 1: look that up, like, how do I Seasons a bel Air?
Speaker 2: Sure you probably watch it.
Speaker 4: You seem like you might watch it, so yeah, yeah,
Speaker 4: Andrews based off of myself. NEFFERTITTI is based off of
Speaker 4: someone I met in La. That's another thing too, And
Speaker 4: that's another that's a part of like the journey in
Speaker 4: writing it. When I first wrote neffer Titty, I didn't
Speaker 4: spend that much time in La, so I wasn't as
Speaker 4: familiar with La culture and people like that. So when
Speaker 4: I was living in La, I was able to develop
Speaker 4: that character more, you know.
Speaker 2: What I mean. I remember meeting somebody out in La
Speaker 2: and I was like as soon as I saw her,
Speaker 2: I was like, that's.
Speaker 4: That's right there, so you know that kind of date
Speaker 4: and her kind of added some details and stuff like that.
Speaker 3: And why is the drink of choice? Do you can? I? Yeah, Hennessy,
Speaker 3: it's too it's Hennessy and his tailor.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Because we didn't have a run with cosmigos in the community.
Speaker 1: Patron had us in the cold sorak. But maybe you
Speaker 1: can't do with boys you're not allowed to beat them
Speaker 1: no more? Like is there a creative answer to that? Question,
Speaker 1: or did you just pick those because that's what niggas
Speaker 1: be doing.
Speaker 2: I feel like Hennessy is such a staple in the
Speaker 2: black community.
Speaker 4: Yeah, when you pull that handy out, you know what
Speaker 4: time it is? Yeah, I'm saying, like, you know what
Speaker 4: time it is? And then tailorport. I feel like there's
Speaker 4: another staple in our community.
Speaker 1: It's having a run right now with really yeah. Oh
Speaker 1: all summer they've been doing teleports.
Speaker 3: Yo.
Speaker 4: But it's you know, it's known to be this cheap,
Speaker 4: delicious wine. It tastes like juice, but that shit'll fuck
Speaker 4: you up, you know what I'm saying. So, and I
Speaker 4: think it also plays I use that because it plays
Speaker 4: to like her age. She's young, you don't know any
Speaker 4: refined wines or anything like that, but she's boozy enough
Speaker 4: to be like, I don't drink any okay, you know
Speaker 4: what I'm saying, Like, it's.
Speaker 3: A certain type of girl.
Speaker 1: So in the play, without giving it away, in the
Speaker 1: Spades game, you know, you have your drinks going, your
Speaker 1: food going, and those were the drinks of choice.
Speaker 3: Which they leaned a lot on as tools in the play.
Speaker 1: So I was wondering, like, is that a creative thing
Speaker 1: or just because that's what we've been doing, so you know,
Speaker 1: thinks for that.
Speaker 4: In earlier versions it was Moscato because that's I feel
Speaker 4: like Moscato's another.
Speaker 2: Like the chink, Yeah yeah, you know wine.
Speaker 4: But I was like, let me do the tailorport because
Speaker 4: I've had tail report and I know that thing that
Speaker 4: should fuck you up.
Speaker 3: Well, people go ahead. No good when people come and
Speaker 3: see the play.
Speaker 1: When it's done and it's over, and they walk away
Speaker 1: and in their cars and they lick because they didn't
Speaker 1: had a good time there, right, y'all a good time?
Speaker 3: What conversation do you want them to have?
Speaker 4: I mean one, I want them, you know, I want
Speaker 4: the experience of being there and seeing the show. I
Speaker 4: want that to kind of resonate with them because to me,
Speaker 4: I feel like I'm bringing back what theater used to
Speaker 4: feel like.
Speaker 2: They used to feel like going to.
Speaker 4: The theater, you know what I mean, you got an
Speaker 4: experience and like I remember back in the day, like
Speaker 4: going to like something underground or like off Broadway was
Speaker 4: like that's where the real work and the magic was happening.
Speaker 4: So for me, it's like I'm bringing people up to Hallow,
Speaker 4: you know what I mean? Yo, We're not even on
Speaker 4: Broadway with it. We up on one hundred and twenty
Speaker 4: fifth right in the heart of it.
Speaker 2: And it's not like a tradition.
Speaker 4: It's not a theater technically, it's just this really dope space,
Speaker 4: the spot that we use and create and created this
Speaker 4: story out of, you know what I'm saying. So like
Speaker 4: people come in and like the play's happening here. Yes
Speaker 4: it is, you know what I'm saying. So to me,
Speaker 4: it's like I want them to leave with that experience.
Speaker 4: I hope that, you know, they could relate to somebody
Speaker 4: in this play. I feel like there's at least one
Speaker 4: character in this play you can relate.
Speaker 2: To, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4: And yeah, and I hope it inspires people to want
Speaker 4: to write their own plays. I want people to be inspired,
Speaker 4: you know what I'm saying. I want people to realize.
Speaker 4: And I also want people black people specifically to understand, like, Yo,
Speaker 4: we don't have to wait on them to make stuff.
Speaker 2: We can make the shit ourselves.
Speaker 3: Based off of things we literally just do all day
Speaker 3: long in real life anyway.
Speaker 4: Exactly, you know what I mean, Like shout out to
Speaker 4: my team and like everybody that's working with me on this,
Speaker 4: Like these are all people I love, all people that
Speaker 4: you know, Like I couldn't do this without.
Speaker 2: Them, you know what I'm saying. And it takes a village.
Speaker 2: As they say, teamwork makes the dream work.
Speaker 3: And then talk about you know, just you're talking about
Speaker 3: taking a village.
Speaker 1: So we did all of the kind of like the
Speaker 1: context of your backstory, how has everything that you've been through,
Speaker 1: the people that you've met come into this moment of
Speaker 1: spades right now, because like I said, I walked in
Speaker 1: the first one and I'm like, that's gal Bean, Like
Speaker 1: you know what I'm saying, And that's a big name
Speaker 1: to have attached to a slag. You're a big name
Speaker 1: as well, but you know it was I mean face
Speaker 1: recognition you instantly, like you know, and that helps to
Speaker 1: put your project in certain conversations because she has fans.
Speaker 4: Exactly, I mean shout out to Gail, thank you. I
Speaker 4: mean the story about how that she wasn't who I
Speaker 4: had originally for that reading, the girl I had originally
Speaker 4: had to pull out, and she kind of pulled.
Speaker 2: Out last minute, So I was at it. I was
Speaker 2: in a pit goal, but.
Speaker 4: You know, I hit up a friend of mine in
Speaker 4: the industry who has worked with Gail. I said, look,
Speaker 4: I think Gail would be good for this role. I
Speaker 4: think she lives in New York from what I see
Speaker 4: on Instagram. You mind reaching out to her and you
Speaker 4: know what I'm saying, And she reached out. I mean
Speaker 4: the person I called to reach out to her. She
Speaker 4: makes things happens because people have a lot of respect
Speaker 4: for her as to why. So I knew hitting her
Speaker 4: up to hit up Gail was just gonna expedite Tasha Smith.
Speaker 2: Tasha need to come see the play. I met Tasha
Speaker 2: a few months ago. She needed to come see the play.
Speaker 2: She would love it.
Speaker 1: Tasha Smith was, which is so random because like we
Speaker 1: didn't even really know each other like that. It was
Speaker 1: just like, you know, you meet good people in passing.
Speaker 1: When I was trying to figure out leaving LA, I
Speaker 1: randomly called her. She couldn't She didn't answer, but she
Speaker 1: texted me and was like, Hey, everything okay. And I
Speaker 1: texted her and said, I'm about to quit my job
Speaker 1: and move from LA. I just wanted to get some
Speaker 1: advice from somebody that's actually working and doing all the
Speaker 1: things I want to do. And she sent me a
Speaker 1: voice no, and that voice note had me crying And
Speaker 1: the next day I quit my job and moved her.
Speaker 2: You see, but you took the leak. Yeah, but the league.
Speaker 1: But I'm saying she's the person that, like I mentioned
Speaker 1: that because I know that like Gail did Harlem, and
Speaker 1: you know Tasha Smith is working on well was working
Speaker 1: with Harlem and all the things.
Speaker 3: But you talk about getting her.
Speaker 1: To that play like, she's the type that will come
Speaker 1: out to that play, talk about that play like, and
Speaker 1: that's one of the things that I love about what
Speaker 1: you're doing and the reason why I'm like, all right,
Speaker 1: I might can only come for like thirty forty minutes,
Speaker 1: but I'm gonna come it. Text me an hour to
Speaker 1: get there, but I'm gonna come because I want to
Speaker 1: support it. Is because I understand that if what we're
Speaker 1: doing right now, that's how people find out about it,
Speaker 1: that's how your play gets to wherever theaters you want
Speaker 1: it to go. Just the eyes gets the financial support
Speaker 1: all it does take community and had your resources. But
Speaker 1: we gotta be like the Tasha Smith's of the world,
Speaker 1: who we will pick up the phone and call, will
Speaker 1: come out. We'll talk about it like that's like so
Speaker 1: big for me, and I think what you do, y'all
Speaker 1: need it because theater is it's not the thing that
Speaker 1: people like run and yell about exactly.
Speaker 4: I mean because also too, it's like, as I said,
Speaker 4: I think it's another example of like people are more
Speaker 4: concerned with the glitz and the glam. You know, folks
Speaker 4: want to be on Broadway and all this other shit.
Speaker 4: That's cool, but what's the work that's being produced. I'm
Speaker 4: sitting in these plays and I'm like, Yo, this is whack.
Speaker 4: On top of that, I'm tired of seeing the same
Speaker 4: actors all the time.
Speaker 2: Why can't we get new faces? You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2: There's other people who are just as hungry, who are
Speaker 2: just as talented, if not more. They just need the opportunity,
Speaker 2: you know what I'm saying. That was something I did.
Speaker 4: That was something I was very conscious about in casting this.
Speaker 4: I wanted brand new faces. I don't want to see
Speaker 4: the same all the time. These are all people I
Speaker 4: know because I'm in the industry with them. I'm tired
Speaker 4: of seeing, y'all. I want new faces to help bring
Speaker 4: this story to life, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2: Because instead of people coming and be like, oh that's
Speaker 2: so and so. I want people. Oh that's guilt.
Speaker 4: Oh that's core, you know what I mean, Like I
Speaker 4: want because to me, I feel like that helps the
Speaker 4: character resonate even more, you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2: So you know, for me, it's just kind of like
Speaker 2: we just need, like we need to shake things up
Speaker 2: a bit right now because it's too stale. It's too stale.
Speaker 4: Everybody just wants the accolade. But what's the product? What's
Speaker 4: the story that you're telling? What's the experience that we're getting,
Speaker 4: you know what I mean? Besides, hey, I was there,
Speaker 4: and so and so from so and so was in it,
Speaker 4: and I took a picture with them.
Speaker 2: But what's the story. What was the play about? I
Speaker 2: don't remember. I fell asleep, you know what.
Speaker 4: I'm saying, Like I want to if I'm coming to
Speaker 4: the theater, I will tell you a story like move me,
Speaker 4: you know what I mean. Something So I'm I want
Speaker 4: to bring that back. And I want to travel with this,
Speaker 4: like New York is not the one and the only stop.
Speaker 4: I want to take this all over the country.
Speaker 3: I know, Atlanta, Sophie said, Atlanta.
Speaker 2: Oh, I know they're gonna eat it up Atlanta.
Speaker 3: Look, Sophie told us, Oh, oh, they're gonna eat it up.
Speaker 3: Oh no, Sophie, we know I had some.
Speaker 2: People auditioned from Atlanta, send audition tapes from Atlanta.
Speaker 1: I mean, but that's a black mecca. So that's like
Speaker 1: a duve, you know what I'm saying. Atlanta, DC, Chocolate City,
Speaker 1: Chicago would do well.
Speaker 2: Icago eat it up to that.
Speaker 3: I went to Chicago recently and I was like, this
Speaker 3: is Atlanta, Like it's so black.
Speaker 1: I was in the Soho House in Chicago and it
Speaker 1: was black people, and like I was, I was because
Speaker 1: you hear the complete like not that you don't hear
Speaker 1: that black people are in Chicago, but you only hear
Speaker 1: about the bad things happening with black people when it
Speaker 1: comes to Chicago, at least on a media level for
Speaker 1: me and what I do. So when I went there
Speaker 1: and I'm seeing all these black people in the Soho
Speaker 1: House and you know, it's just vibes and people are
Speaker 1: happy and you know they're I was just like, yes,
Speaker 1: like it felt like I was in Atlanta. It felt
Speaker 1: like I was in Atlanta where you walk outside and
Speaker 1: like black is royalty.
Speaker 2: I'll tell you what my dream city is Oh, yes,
Speaker 2: New Orleans is my favorite city in the world. Yes,
Speaker 2: I would love New Orleans.
Speaker 4: I think it'll happen because you know, New Orleans doesn't
Speaker 4: have a theater scene like that, which is which is.
Speaker 3: Crazy to me.
Speaker 1: Yeah, all of their like the band like front line
Speaker 1: stuff that they do is music and the costuming.
Speaker 4: And you know what it is, It's because New Orleans
Speaker 4: is a theatric is a theatrical experience in itself, just
Speaker 4: being in the city, the food. So New Orleans is
Speaker 4: my dream city because you know, as I said, like
Speaker 4: they don't have a theater scene out there, and I
Speaker 4: think this place specifically they would, oh they would eat
Speaker 4: it up. On top of that, what you know, what
Speaker 4: we want to do is like every city we go to,
Speaker 4: we want to like cater to like that city, you
Speaker 4: know what I mean. So like you know how we
Speaker 4: have the Sunday brunches here, Yeah, you know, we'll do
Speaker 4: that in New Orleans and say, like we'll have you know,
Speaker 4: we'll bring in a band, you know, because they're big
Speaker 4: on that second line and all that type of stuff.
Speaker 2: And imagine the food in New Orleans. Imagine the food
Speaker 2: in New Orleans. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 3: So what do you need to make that happen? Like money?
Speaker 3: Exactly simple?
Speaker 1: As well, how can the people, you know, our community
Speaker 1: here at the Ladies with one of the rosa it
Speaker 1: is called the Low Riders. On the audio side, we
Speaker 1: have five million people. That was like a few months ago,
Speaker 1: so we probably will well over that. The visual side,
Speaker 1: we're here, this is new our home in our studio.
Speaker 1: So to all the people listening, anyone watching, how what.
Speaker 2: Do you mean?
Speaker 4: For one, if you're in New York, if you if
Speaker 4: you if you are in New York City, come see
Speaker 4: the play. Just first and foremost, just come see the play,
Speaker 4: come experience it, so that at least you know what
Speaker 4: you're putting your dollars into and you know now and
Speaker 4: then you can relate to what we're talking about. We have,
Speaker 4: you know, we have a donation link if people want
Speaker 4: to donate. But I think first and foremost, I just
Speaker 4: want people to come see it. Come see it, come
Speaker 4: experience it, you know what I mean, Because I think
Speaker 4: that will help with moving people to want to do it.
Speaker 4: Because then also to I get it, the economy is
Speaker 4: real fed up, right, it's up, But we need joy too,
Speaker 4: that we need the great do you need you? That's
Speaker 4: why Sunday brunches are my favorite days because it's just pure.
Speaker 2: Family, you know what I mean. You come in.
Speaker 4: We have a different DJ every week. His on has
Speaker 4: been our food. Ok to her, she's been killing it
Speaker 4: with the food.
Speaker 2: People do they eat?
Speaker 3: They eat in the space that we were in. Yeah,
Speaker 3: and what there's on tables.
Speaker 2: On the second floor. We got table set up and
Speaker 2: everything you eat.
Speaker 4: It's a it's a four to twenty friendly space, so
Speaker 4: you know, you get your smoke on too, you know
Speaker 4: what I'm saying. We have drinks, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4: Everything is everything that you need to have a good time.
Speaker 4: It's provided for you. Shout out to our whost Sarah. Sarah,
Speaker 4: you know, kind of keeps the vibs going. She's really
Speaker 4: dope and it's just a good time. And then you
Speaker 4: get us to watch a play after, you know what
Speaker 4: I mean. And then after the play, if you want
Speaker 4: to chill and play space some more, you can do
Speaker 4: that too, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2: It's just a good time where you could just come
Speaker 2: and commune and.
Speaker 4: Just you know, it's it could be a nice little
Speaker 4: date night, little situation or a nice little yo.
Speaker 2: Come find you, you know, come find a little you know.
Speaker 1: They need a website, they need a website, they need
Speaker 1: an Instagram. So how can they come to Where do
Speaker 1: they get the tickets to come see the play?
Speaker 2: Go to our Instagram at space to play.
Speaker 3: All common spelling, huh, all regular spellings.
Speaker 4: It is. Our ticket link is in the bio and
Speaker 4: they can find it there. And yeah, you know, we're
Speaker 4: still building. We're still building. We we are in the
Speaker 4: beginning stages. But this is gonna grow. You know what
Speaker 4: I'm saying, I think because also to another beautiful thing
Speaker 4: is that this is literally the only thing of its kind.
Speaker 2: There's no other play that revolves around the game.
Speaker 3: I love this for you.
Speaker 1: I'm trying to look up your ticket link so you
Speaker 1: can share it because on the audio side, you got
Speaker 1: people that might not be Instagram savvy, okay, so I
Speaker 1: want to make sure that can get to you.
Speaker 4: We're selling our tickets through posh. It's an app for
Speaker 4: like events and stuff like that. So if you have
Speaker 4: the app Posh, you can find us their space to play.
Speaker 2: Same way.
Speaker 1: Nothing else got you, got you, and we'll in the
Speaker 1: so for everybody. Uh, you know, listening, watching whatever. We'll
Speaker 1: have the link visually if you're watching, but if you're listening,
Speaker 1: we'll make sure that we put the link.
Speaker 3: I'll have it on my like Instagram, and then we'll
Speaker 3: also try and make sure that we put it in
Speaker 3: a description.
Speaker 1: I don't know if it's clickable there from that though,
Speaker 1: but if it is, I don't mind doing that for
Speaker 1: you either, so that people can be able to But
Speaker 1: if you're listening, just I'm gonna do this just in
Speaker 1: case we can't link it if you're listening, Spade to
Speaker 1: play on Instagram all common spelling, but you guys follow
Speaker 1: me on Instagram as well. I'm Laura le Rosa everywhere,
Speaker 1: and y'all know I'll be posting this and tagging and
Speaker 1: all the things so that you guys can find this play.
Speaker 1: Definitely go out and see it. Definitely bring a friend.
Speaker 1: Definitely tell a friend. I've enjoyed the conversation.
Speaker 4: I know.
Speaker 1: One of my favorite things to do, as you know,
Speaker 1: a podcaster, because we're podcasters now, y'all, it's have conversations
Speaker 1: that I enjoy, and like I've been able to do
Speaker 1: that through this show.
Speaker 3: I've been blessed to be able to do that.
Speaker 1: And I thoroughly enjoyed this conversation and hearing your journey,
Speaker 1: and I'm proud that you kept going.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 3: Are you happy now?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 4: I mean yeah, I mean it's look, but there's been
Speaker 4: a lot of moments where it was like, Yo, what
Speaker 4: am I doing?
Speaker 2: What am I doing? You know? God? Like what you
Speaker 2: do to me right now?
Speaker 4: But you know, it's just that it's that resilience to
Speaker 4: like keep going no matter what, cause you know you're
Speaker 4: gonna be faced with obstacles.
Speaker 2: That's life. But that's the test. Yes, can you make it?
Speaker 2: You know what I mean? Like, are you gonna let
Speaker 2: so and so stop you from making it happen? You
Speaker 2: know what I mean?
Speaker 4: And every time I persevered, it's come through for me,
Speaker 4: you know what I'm saying. So I already know big
Speaker 4: things are gonna happen from this. I don't know what,
Speaker 4: but I just know this is this is something that
Speaker 4: I was put here to do, you know what I mean.
Speaker 4: And that's another thing too, that in that journey I
Speaker 4: told you about, I find it.
Speaker 2: Allowed me to discover my purpose. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 4: Okay, I'm not just Marcus the actor anymore. Telling people
Speaker 4: I'm an actor is so boring to me because it's like,
Speaker 4: I do way more than that. Yeah, acting is my
Speaker 4: you know, my first love and all of that, and
Speaker 4: I could do that, it ain't going nowhere.
Speaker 2: But I also do these other things and I have
Speaker 2: a lot to offer. But sometimes you have to.
Speaker 4: Put yourself out on front street in order for people
Speaker 4: to realize that, as opposed to waiting for someone to
Speaker 4: tell you that, because these folks ain't gonna tell you that,
Speaker 4: they're just worried about Hey, can you audition for this thing?
Speaker 4: You know we want to ten percent? You know what
Speaker 4: I mean exactly yourself. You gotta bet on yourself. If
Speaker 4: you know that you have more to offer to the world,
Speaker 4: you have to bet on yourself because no one's gonna
Speaker 4: want it more than you.
Speaker 3: Yes, I agree.
Speaker 1: Well, look, low riders, I tell you guys, every single episode,
Speaker 1: y'all could be anywhere with anybody having these conversations and listen,
Speaker 1: y'all choose to be here every single episode. So I
Speaker 1: am extremely excited that you guys got to experience what
Speaker 1: I've been able to experience in seeing space to play
Speaker 1: and hearing from the creator Marcus calendar.
Speaker 2: Oh so too.
Speaker 4: I'm an ambassador of this company called you a full
Speaker 4: rolls its rolling paper company. And what makes their product
Speaker 4: unique as well is that the rolling paper kids.
Speaker 2: Come with a builting grinder. Come on, now, I think
Speaker 2: it's in here.
Speaker 3: I don't know nothing about much, but he's very excited
Speaker 3: about it.
Speaker 2: So so this is so, this is the paper right here.
Speaker 2: You know, you got your you got your papers, you
Speaker 2: got your filters. But then on the inside, let me
Speaker 2: see the ground. It's like there's a little mini grinder
Speaker 2: right there. So on the go you can take your
Speaker 2: we oh.
Speaker 3: You still gotta do it, like yeah, okay, but like
Speaker 3: let's get under your nails though.
Speaker 2: But but look, it's better than nothing.
Speaker 3: Oh it's a greater Okay, because I know grinders, you
Speaker 3: normally like twist them.
Speaker 2: Sometimes you'll be out You're like, damn my god.
Speaker 3: Yeah you know what I'm saying. What's your carry?
Speaker 2: And it comes with that, and then we have a grinder.
Speaker 2: We do have a ground one. Okay, that's pretty special too,
Speaker 2: got you. It's shaped like a U of fo got you. Okay,
Speaker 2: this is our grinder.
Speaker 3: I love that.
Speaker 4: Got it like a little U fold shaped to it
Speaker 4: so for all my marijuana kind of seers out there
Speaker 4: looking at the UFO role.
Speaker 1: You can copy your product and then you can come
Speaker 1: and watch your play because it's for twenty friendly and
Speaker 1: you can use the product with it.
Speaker 2: We got we got product goal lord at the show.
Speaker 1: Yes, well, y'all, make sure y'all pull up check out
Speaker 1: Space to play. Created directed by Marcus Calendar. Thank you
Speaker 1: so much for joining us. This has been an amazing conversation.
Speaker 1: And congratulations and when you are winning all of the
Speaker 1: awards and all the things. Okay, don't forget us over here.
Speaker 2: I ain't gonna forget.
Speaker 3: They gonna call y'all back for another interview. Don't forget sure.
Speaker 1: I know I'm a little all over the place, but
Speaker 1: we knew, but we hear. It's the latest with Lorna
Speaker 1: Rosa the Podcast. I'll see you guys in our next episode.
Speaker 3: Thank y'all for joining me.
Speaker 1: This has been a live conversation with act your storyteller
Speaker 1: creative Marcus Calendar.
Speaker 3: I'm Lorna Rosa. This is the latest with Laura Rosa.
Speaker 3: Signing out