LEMON DROP | Brian Anthony Moreland on Othello, Denzel Washington, & Representation in Theater
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Who is Brian Anthony Moreland and why is his Broadway role significant?
Let's talk with someone who's not only making waves on Broadway, he is redefining what stories get told and who gets to tell them, which I think is very important. Brian Anthony Moreland is a visionary creative producer for theater, film, and television whose work has captivated audiences and broken boundaries. He has been named by Ebony Magazine in its Power 100 list and Variety's Top 10 on Broadway to watch. And with two Tony nominations under his belt, it is clear that why he is one of the most important producers around. This season, he's behind one of the most anticipated revivals of Broadway's Othello, where he stands as the only Black lead producer on Broadway right now. From The Wiz to The Piano Lesson to Thoughts of a Colored Man, his projects speak to the power of storytelling, empathy, and artistic excellence.
Brian Anthony Moreland is here. Brian, thank you for joining us. How are you doing? I'm doing great. Thank you for having me. I got to tell you, I saw Othello and it was good. How do you feel? It's good.
I feel great. I feel great. I'm so happy you came. I feel great. This show has been a wonderful experience, top to bottom, backstage, on stage, in the office. Great.
Yeah. Look, it's interesting because we were sitting there and I was, Tim is my husband, we were together. We saw you, right? Weren't you out in the, didn't I see you and say hello to you? Yes. And Tim's like, oh my gosh, because we go to Broadway all the time. And we said, it's not usually this diverse. And we thought it was great. And so you're the only black lead producer on Broadway. You have Denzel Washington, but I thought it was fascinating how you got, I mean, there's more of an interest. And obviously when you have diversity, it shows you that diversity is good for business. And you brought black folks to the theater, man.
Thanks so much. I believe in Black folks coming to theater. You know, I think when all people are included, it just makes a better conversation. It's better business. It's better theater. It's a better experience when we have all people of all cultural backgrounds together. We're very, very lucky that Denzel appeals to a wide-based audience, culturally, age, race, religion, gender, all of it. And Jake does as well, top to bottom.
Jake Gyllenhaal. And Denzel Washington. And it doesn't happen a lot for me when you go to a Broadway play and an actor walks out and they are in their role. And so Jake Gyllenhaal walks out and the crowd goes crazy, right? And then Denzel walks out and the crowd goes even crazier. It's almost a standing ovation before they even get a word out of their mouths.
It's incredible. It's incredible. It's like the power. You really see the magnitude and their impact of their craft. The audience responds to them like that every single time. And most of the time, it's even in the darkness when Jake first walks out and the silhouette before the light goes up and people are already plotting. And you see Denzel upstage just walking in the dark and people start going crazy. It's amazing. It's absolutely amazing.
Is it a little thing between them? Because they sort of broke character a little bit, and Denzel did the little thing with his hand, and then he tapped Jake on the stomach. You know what I mean? So is that like a little thing for them? Do they say who's going to get the biggest applause tonight, or what? How does that work?
No. I don't know if they say who's going to get the biggest applause tonight, but there's definitely a lot of love between them, and there's a lot of playfulness between them when they're up there together.
Yeah. Okay, a couple things. First... It is, what I find interesting is that you have to get used to the rhythm and the language, right? Because at first I was like, what is he saying? I can't understand. What is Jake saying? And so you have to pay close attention. And then all of a sudden you sort of get used to the rhythm of the language and their sort of vocabulary or vernacular, however you want to say it. And then you start to understand the entire play, right?
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