Video: Stars Come Out to Celebrate Opening Night of PRAYER FOR THE FRENCH REPUBLIC

Hi, Broadway World. It's me, Katie Lynch, here on a rainy night in New York City

but happy to be celebrating the opening night of Manhattan Theater Club's production of Prayer for the French Republic

And we are going to chat with some of our favorite celebrities as they walk the rainy carpet

How are you feeling tonight being here on a big evening? Yeah, I'm excited for Tony, my husband, Anthony Edwards

I'm excited to see the play a third time, fourth time, if you count the time we saw it when it was over at MTC

I just think it's a glorious piece of writing. I can't believe what it accomplishes in three fast hours

And I just think the world of Josh Harmon and David Gromer is one in a million

I've been lucky to work with him before. And then this cast

I'm so happy for Tony to kick off his Broadway gig here at MTC with this play

Well, you know, it's a very timely play. And I think that it's important

I think everyone's going to feel differently about this play at this time than we have in the past

It's beautiful. But I think we're going to leave feeling some sort of catharsis

I think it's going to move people in a way that it hasn't so far. So I'm glad to be in the audience tonight

I'm really happy to be in the audience today. Yeah, a little known fact, Joshua Harmon and I went to school together

So I have seen many iterations of this play and it really special to kind of see it finally get the treatment it deserves I so happy to be here That what I was going to say What do you think the importance is of it being here on Broadway now

Well, I think, you know, Josh is among all many of my colleagues, one of the most, like, insightful

And I think someone who's interested in and really does speak to, like, the world we live in today

I think he's, you know, he's entertaining, but he's not about entertainment. He's about thought. He's about kind of reflecting a community's values back to itself

just really admire that in the artist. Yeah. And what about the significance of timing in this world right now

It's kind of wild, right? I mean, you know, that just proves that you just never know

I mean, I think a good writer, that's what we call something timeless. This is kind of what we mean, right

A good writer is always going to speak to the moment. Every time we account that play, we're going to think it's speaking to us now

And that's just a testament to his gifts, this amazing cast. I mean, David Kromer, some of my favorite directors out here

So it's a testament to the work that this group of artists is done

Betsy Atom is a great friend of mine and she invited me and I was like

rocking. I want to see her kill it again. She tears it to shreds

It's a wonderful part for her and she's an amazing actress who's been working

as long as I have 40 years. I don't want to say she's much, much younger than I am

Just make sure you say that. And so I just want to see the play again

I so excited to see what I you know the show I hadn seen it before when it was off Broadway And so I very excited and I heard wonderful things about it I looking forward to just supporting the culture of excellence in theater that MTC always brings

What makes MTC so special? Well, the range of what they do and how they nurture new works, you know

and there's such a commitment to that. And here is a perfect example of a play that was done, you know, in one venue and for off-Broadway audiences, and then continuing to give it a journey, you know, and broaden its audiences

And I've done shows there. Everything I've done there has been a new show, whether I've been doing readings of it or workshops of it or a production like we did with Love Music, which was a piece I did about Kurt Weil and La Delenia

Hi, Daryl. So I just love the way they nurture new work

And they don't just give it one step. They love process and they support process

And then you get to have a night like tonight, you know, bringing this beautiful story and timely story to all of us

We're excited. I can't wait to see this. I have no idea

I have no clue what it's about or anything. I'm coming in completely fresh eyes

But David Kramer's a good friend. And if he's directed it. in it

But if he directed it I want to see it That all there is to it And we heard it was good It a great cast We here What the miss Absolutely And what keeps bringing you back specifically here

We love MTC. We both have worked for MTC a bunch, and they always choose amazing pieces

You always know you're going to see something terrific. I think my first job at MTC was back in the late 80s, and Lynn Meadow is always, like, steers

wonderful writers and produced their work, and wonderful directors and wonderful actors

And we love that. We always support that. And we both worked at this theater and it was a great time

What is that feeling going back into a theater where you worked? Like, is it a different feeling sitting in the audience

It actually is. I always remember where the, what dressing room I was in

who my roommate was. My roommate was Renee Goldsbury the last time I was here

which, yeah, that was fun. And Fran McDormann won a Tony for the play

It was good people. So, yeah, you always remember, you know, exactly where you are

And my roommate was Bobby Conavali, and he was nominated for Tony for it

And he was thrilled because it was really big. And then he did Mother with a hat

And so he was very excited to be back on Broadway again. So yeah, this theater has great memories for us