Mariana van Zeller

So this is a day that no matter what happens, we go and see his performance.

It's an important day for him and for us.

It's my favorite day of the year, quite frankly.

I love it.

And that was happening.

So we were going to go to Niger, be there for four days, get out and come back to L.A.

and then fly to New York and do the performing arts camp.

And then we get stuck.

And so I'm seeing the days go by and realizing, shit, I'm not going to be able to make it.

And I'm the worst mother in the world.

Plus, I have this incredible team around me whose families are suffering right now.

We might all be kidnapped and die.

So all of that was going through my head.

And one of the first days of the coup, I went to the airport because I wanted to see if there was any planes flying in or out, even though I knew the airspace was closed.

And I met this amazing guy.

He was the manager of the airport.

His name was Kader.

And I asked Kader, I'm asking, are there planes going in?

Do you think there's anything coming out?

He says, nothing, nothing.