Original subtitles

I'll be asked to make this personal.

So I shall.

You are always looking at her.

You look at her too much.

Something terrible may happen.

Hi, I'm Clea.

I work in the props department here at the opera company.

I'm going to be showing you how I make the head

of John the Baptist,

uh, who, for those of you who might not know the story,

he is the biblical prophet that gets beheaded

by a woman called Salome.

We welcome back

the wonderful Ambur Dione.

So great to have you back home, Ambur.

And welcome to our company

for his first appearance with us,

Johan Mueller.

We're very excited to have

these two amazing singers with us

and both are fresh from a very,

shall we say,

controversial production of Salome in Stuttgart.

Sometime before my husband passed away last year

he made a very specific request.

Charles wanted one of his former students

to direct this remount of Salome.

I know that Charles worked very closely with Jeanine

on the original production and so

I'll let Jeanine let us know

what she plans to do in the weeks ahead.

Jeanine, would you like to come forward

and say a few words?

Working on this production so many years ago

changed my life.

It was a huge gift.

Just like being invited to stage this remount is a...

another...

huge gift.

Charles meant the world to me.

Charles meant a lot to many people.

This morning, I-I...

I took a moment

to find his-his favorite spot in the theatre,

which is this rehearsal bridge

that connects the stage to the audience

just above the orchestra. It's this...

It's between these two spaces.

And he lo... he loved being there.

He... he loved being in the heart of the action.

And, now, we are here to...

to honor his heart

and his spirit

in the best way that we can.

So, I will leave you with

with the costume designs and some images

from the original show and the maquette.

The changes that I will be making

for this production will be small but meaningful.

And if anybody has any questions

I'd be happy to answer.

Thank you.

That was a crazy production - Yeah.

Do you remember all those long talks

that we had about the role?

Ye-yeah, I remember those talks.

You had a huge impact on me.

Really?

And after that, I-I-I went to study

with this amazing teacher in London,

but they were really expensive so I ran outta money really fast

- and I came back. - And you kept working.

I've done a lot of understudy roles.

And I've done some small things.

- I'm here now. - Covering John the Baptist.

And I'm covering Salome.

- Hi. - Rachel.

Rachel. Jeanine. It's so nice to meet you.

- You too. - My two understudies.

This'll be fun.

So, here's the basic plot of the opera:

Salome wants John the Baptist to pay attention to her.

She's crazy about him, but he refuses.

He won't even look at her because he thinks

that Salome's mother is a whore.

So, then, Salome's stepfather, King Herod,

he asks her to do this sexy dance for him

and he offers Salome

anything that she wants in return.

So, Salome asks for

the head of John the Baptist,

which is what I'm working on here.

She demands that her stepfather

chop off John's head and offer it up to her

so that she may finally kiss his lips.

I guess you can see it's a pretty weird love story.

Who is this woman who is looking at me

I will not have her look at me

Wherefore doth she look at me with her golden eyes

under her golden eyelids

I know not who she is

Bid her be gone

It is not to her that I would speak

I am Salome daughter of Herodias

Princess of Judea

Back daughter of Babylon!

Come not near the chosen...

Johan! Johan, Johan.

It's important that you never look at Salome.

From the moment you take your blindfold off your eyes

you never turn to look at her.

That feels strange.

Well, you're demanding that-that she repent

and, in order to get her to do that,

she needs to feel frightened of you.

You need to let her understand that you know

the terrible things that she's done.

The cries of her sinning are heard by God.

You say that, right?

You need her to beg for forgiveness

and you're not prepared to look at her until she does.

But isn't it her mother's cries and sinning

I'm talking about?

I think she's a whore.

They're one and the same as far as you're concerned.

Like mother, like daughter.

Okay, let's continue.

How beautiful is the Princess Salome tonight

Look at the moon

How strange the moon seems

She is like a woman rising from a tomb

You have to blow them out, Granny.

Where's Daddy?

Daddy, come. Granny wants to blow out her candles.

Where'd you find those candles, Lizzie?

Daddy brought it.

They're a little big, aren't they?

We were gonna use sparklers, remember?

Let's take this back and put them on.

Shouldn't she blow this out first?

Then what's the point of the sparklers?

We need to sing Happy Birthday as we bring in the cake. Right?

Can't she just blow these out?

Okay, now, help me put sparklers on the cake

and we can do this properly. Okay?

- Come on. - It's okay, honey.

Yeah.

Sparklers.

- That was weird. - You think?

How's the place you're staying?

It's nice.

- Some rich opera patron? - Yeah, they're away.

- Weren't you gonna arrange... - What were you doing upstairs?

I was showing Dimitra your old CD collection.

- Why? - Where's Harold?

Harold died last year, Margot.

Get ready. Three, two, one.

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday, dear Margot...

I really appreciate you coming here

and doing this. I know how busy things are.

No problem.

So, this is the props room.

This is, like, one of my favorite places.

You can see pretty much all the props

from every show the opera company's ever done.

It's crazy.

And, uh, yeah, we've got a bit of a collection going

of severed heads here from other productions.

Cute.

So, uh, like I said, the company's asked me

to do this thing about the head kind of to market the show.

I get it.

And, uh, yeah,

I thought it might be cool to get a few words from you

about what this prop means now after so many years.

Okay.

Okay.

So, uh, tell me about working on this production

all those years ago.

Well, I was more of an observer.

Like a, like an intern.

Like an observer... to the director.

Yeah, I mean, we had a lot of conversations.

Uh, but I was still very much Charles' student back then.

I gather that he was a pretty big presence.

Yes, he was a very big presence.

Yes, Charles was a very big presence.

What can you tell me about him?

Uh, why do you think Salome asks for the head

of John the Baptist?

Well, she says it in the opera.

She just wanted to...

to kiss his lips and he wouldn't let her.

Do you think that's a little extreme?

Yes, it's extreme.

But I guess you need to see it as

the first recorded sex crime in biblical history.

Rejoice not thou land of Palestine

Because the rod of him

Who struck thee is broken

So, Ambur, at this moment

this is when you can just collapse onto the swing.

Just two hands, slowly, gently just collapsing

because his voice is like a drug.

His voice makes you feel safe.

Yeah. Good. And, Johan,

can you check the monitor next to the camera, please?

Uh... why is this my issue?

Well, you have to position yourself back there,

and we need to see your mouth in the centre of the frame.

And when you're singing, you kind of, we lose you.

But can't the camera move with me?

It's on a tripod.

Is that my problem?

Yeah, I'm... I, uh, I'm-I'm, I'm sorry, it is.

No! My problem, my job is to sing, right?

You can amplify my voice or project my lips

but these technical issues are your problem, not mine!

He's an asshole.

Did you hear about him in that production in Stuttgart?

It...

Hi, it's Paul. Leave a message after the beep.

Does Paul come to visit you often, Mom?

Yes. It's nice.

He likes Dimitra.

- Are they up there now? - Let's see.

Dimitra?

Dimitra?

I thought you guys were finished.

Uh, no. I-I called, I called back.

Is my husband there?

Uh, I don't think so. Let me check upstairs.

Okay.

You think they're fooling around?

I am amorous of thy body, John the Baptist.

Thy body is white,

like the snows that lie on the mountains of Judea

and come down into the valleys.

There is nothing in the world so white as thy body.

Suffer me to touch thy body.

Back, daughter of Babylon.

By woman came evil into the world.

Speak not to me.

I will not listen to thee.

I listen but to the voice of the Lord God.

It's great to get back to the text.

The music makes a big difference.

But the words. The words of Oscar Wilde.

Thy body is white like lilies in a valley.

Thy body is white

like snows on the mountains of Judea.

Suffer me to touch thy body.

It's so beautiful.

Beautiful. Beautiful.

Just let the peel fall away. Just let it fall away like that.

Perfect. Okay, break it up.

And, now, I want you to taste one.

I want you to really taste it.

Feel how heightened it is with your eyesight gone.

Feel how, how powerful the flavor is.

Take away one sense,

all the others become heightened.

More real. More intense.

Remember that.

That's your responsibility as an artist.

Salome is overwhelmed by her wakening desire.

But what is she being wakened from?

What's at the root of her crazed enchantment?

Crazed enchantment. That's my new favorite line.

What?

Thanks. What do you think it means, Lizzie?

I don't know. I don't know where you came up with that.

- You don't? - No.

- When do you find out. - In a day or two.

I mean, it's a small thing.

It's not a small thing, Mom. You're directing a show.

Yeah, I'm remounting it, baby.

Hello? Yeah, did you hear what she said?

It'd be great if they, if they publish it.

- Did you read the new draft? - Not, no, not the whole thing.

But I loved that line about crazed enchantment.

That's the part I just rewrote.

That's the one I just read to you.

Yeah. No. No, no. Like, no. The line from the play.

The one, um...

that Salome's father says how he-he loves her too much.

You're always looking at her.

You look at her too much.

Well, that's not my essay. I didn't write that.

Yeah, but... Yeah, but it's in the play.

I mean, you want me to read... I read the whole thing.

- It's in Oscar Wilde's play. - Yeah.

It is dangerous to look at people

in such a fashion.

Something terrible may happen.

Have you...

mentioned anything to Lizzie about this being a separation?

No, I guess I'm just scared.

I, I just...

I told her that it's... it's different this time.

- Different in what way? - Just you going off

to do the show, and...

How we're just gonna see how it feels

to be apart for this long.

It...

Don't you think that's a talk that we should've had together?

- We've had that conversation - No, the three of us?

Yeah. I'll see you tomorrow.

I think you need to insist on this, Jeanine.

The-they they have to

put your director's notes in the program.

I mean, so many ideas from the show

were inspired by you. Right?

Crazed enchantment. All that.

Thy hair is like a cluster of grapes

like the cluster of black grapes

that hang from the vines of Edom

Let's pause real quick.

So, as Salome is going on in detail

about how she wants to touch John the Baptist's body

and, and his hair and his lips, there is

an entirely separate dynamic that's happening right here.

Uh, could you sing the second line about how...

how beautiful Salome is?

- Yep. - At rehearsal six.

How beautiful is the Princess Salome this evening

Thank you. It's all this pain and-and-and yearning.

It's what... It's what leads you

to eventually...

- ...kill yourself, right? - Yep.

Because you can't have her.

Those are the same exact ways she can't have John the Baptist.

And you have this secret crush on Narraboth.

And he pays no attention to you. He doesn't...

You, you don't exist. It's...

It's her, and-and-and to hear...

For somebody to hear a sound like that...

Can you sing it again, please?

How beautiful is the Princess Salome this evening

To hear a sound like that and, and know that he...

he's capable of this passion, but it's not directed at you.

It's not for you, it's for her.

- Mm-hm. - It's maddening.

It's just this crazy mess of-of-of...

This crazy mess of feeling. Right?

And so as... while Salome is singing

about how wonderful it would be to, to, to touch

just touch John the Baptist's hair,

it-it ignites something in you.

It inspires you to touch Narraboth's hair.

Okay. Okay, let's, uh, let's go back to one-oh-one.

It is thy hair that I am enamored

Jokanaan

Thy hair is like a cluster of grapes

like the cluster of black grapes

that hang from the vines of Edom.

We really like the piece. We just don't think it serves

the purpose, the function of a director's statement.

The function? I'm sorry...

So, you're gonna use Charles's notes from before?

- Yeah, it's still pertinent. - Okay, seriously?

Nancy, Charles, don't you think he would want me to have

my director's notes published?

He's the one who invited me to remount this.

It's Beatrice's decision.

Oh, so, it's what his wife wants.

So, as part of her final wishes for her husband.

Yes, like I said, what Beatrice wants.

Look, even though we're not gonna publish

in the program officially as a director's statement

I thought it might have other outlets.

- Like what? - Like sharing in interviews.

I've already had a request. This, um, podcast...

Okay, sure.

I also had this idea that you might wanna create a journal

that we could post on the site like a, like a diary

of what it means to you to be working on this

so many years later. You can shoot it on your phone.

We can help you edit it. You can even...

make it more personal if that's what you want.

- More personal than what? - Than what you've written here.

You think this is personal?

Isn't it?

One more thing.

We were a little concerned about what you said the other day

at the presentation, wanting to make changes

to the original production.

As I said, small changes.

Small, but meaningful.

That's right.

I've been asked to make this personal.

So I will.

That's the whole point. That he never looks at me.

This is for you, Charles.

That's what Salome is begging him to do

that he never sees me.

The person who wanted me here.

Right, 'cause if he did, then he would love her.

Exactly. But do you ever get the sense that he would?

Now I'm back.

Without you.

Alone.

Alone to watch the understudies for Salome and John the Baptist

discuss roles they may never get to play.

Alone to watch an empty orchestra pit

from your favorite place in the house.

A bridge between two different worlds.

Alone to watch someone try out a swing

that came from somewhere in my childhood.

Later that night I watch a clip from the production

you directed so many years ago.

How perfectly her white dress

flowed into the unfurling screen.

Like they were both one piece of magical fabric.

How perfectly the shadow of my father

was discovered on the projected home movie

of the girl.

You asked me about so many details, Charles.

And I willingly provided them

because you made me feel so loved.

A girl walking blindfolded through the forest.

And in the shadow of her father,

my father,

who you directed with such meticulous detail

to reach for her.

Keep following that.

There's a bog coming up in a little bit.

When I say big step, you take a big step.

No hesitation. Keep coming. Big step.

Big step. There you go.

The moon has a strange look tonight.

The moon has a strange look tonight.

She is like a madwoman.

- She's like a madwoman. - Seeking everywhere.

Seeking.

My father's words to me, Charles.

From the play that haunted you both.

At first I wanted to try making the head as a sculpture

as opposed to the more traditional method

which would just be to make a cast of the singer's head.

I studied sculpture in art school

and I really enjoy this kind of slower method.

Uh, so to start...

I asked Johan to send me

a few photos from Germany of his face

just to gimme an idea of the shape of his features.

And I got this started and, um...

I think it's pretty good.

So, the next step will be to have Johan come into the studio

and I'll work on getting the finer details of his face.

This is really strange.

You know, usually, they make a cast.

Yeah, I know.

Uh, but the guy who'd normally be doing that, my boss,

he's sick.

But I find that this is less invasive for you.

Sometimes singers get a little freaked out

when there's all this stuff on their head.

Hm. So, you are going old school.

I mean, I can make a cast. I know how to, but...

Definitely, this sculpture should work.

And, uh, these pictures that you sent me,

these were really helpful. Kind of gave me a head start.

A head start on my head.

Exactly.

You're so serious suddenly.

What has Ambur told you about me?

Why do you think she'd tell me anything about you?

Mm, I've heard you two know each other.

Yeah, we were, we were friends a while ago.

Here?

Yep. Before she went off.

"And conquered the world."

Yeah, right.

Yeah, that's Ambur. Conquer the world.

I think she has a pretty high opinion

of herself, yes?

Well, she's super-confident. Yeah, she always has been.

Hm.

She did tell me about the last production

that you did in Europe.

Stuttgart, hm?

Sounds like it was pretty intense.

Did she go into details?

Just that it was a different interpretation.

It was very physical.

Very naked.

She probably told you that I crossed some lines.

- Well, she, she... - I know that's what she thinks,

but I was just following direction.

Doing my job.

Oh.

Oh, I love this part.

- Hm. - When I first heard this...

- Hi. - Hey.

- Jeanine. - Charlie. Nice to meet you.

- Nice to meet you. - I'll leave you two alone.

- Thanks, Nancy. - Thank you.

Thank you for doing this.

I've really been looking forward to speaking with you.

Well, I hear very good things about your podcast.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

Singers like to post their interviews,

helps the fans get to know them.

- Sure, sure. - To be honest, I, uh...

don't usually speak with directors.

Oh, well, that's understandable. Right?

Right.

Can I first grab you a cup of tea?

Oh, uh... No, thank you.

I'm okay. I'm good.

Glass of water?

Yes. Sure.

- Nice setup. - Thanks, yeah.

I'll just be a jiff. It might be a little dirty, actually.

Ah, thanks. You don't have to... Mm, okay.

You're a...

You're a little bit overdressed for this.

I-I didn't know, I didn't know what to expect

or what you needed from me, so...

Oh, did you think we'd have cameras?

- I don't know. - Hoping to get filmed?

I asked for this interview because, um...

I'm a little bit obsessed with this production.

- Oh. - I find it so interesting

that you've come back to remount it.

I mean, you must have been so young back then.

Well, I'm-I'm probably older than I look.

Yeah. Okay, but also...

uh...

you don't direct opera. I mean, I looked you up, uh...

you do regional theatre, right? A lot of trade shows?

Should we start? I just don't wanna lose...

any time with you 'cuz things are a little hectic.

Oh, uh, we've already started.

Oh.

We're rolling.

- Okay, great. - Oh!

Sorry. Almost forgot.

I brought you... some cookies.

Just careful not to chomp on 'em.

Okay. Thank you so much.

No crunching while we roll.

- Good? - Yeah.

All right.

It sounds like this totally insane production.

So, John the Baptist is all over Salome,

like, the entire time.

Like he's some kind of sex-starved monster

or cult leader or something.

And the words that are coming out of his mouth

have nothing to do with the way he's behaving,

which is, basically,

groping her naked body as she's going on and on

about how beautiful his hair and his skin and his lips are.

What?

You didn't know that?

About the production.

No. No, 'cause it was in Germany, right?

- Mm. - Stuttgart.

So, had nothing to do with our show.

Yeah, but don't you stay in touch?

- With Ambur? - Mm-hm.

No, of course not.

So, you don't follow her.

No.

We broke up a long time ago.

When she went off and conquered the world.

That is so weird that you would say that.

But that's the exact same expression

that Johann used except he said it in German

and then he had to translate it back to me.

And he pronounced it concord the world

Rachel...

Ambur got very lucky.

There is nothing, like, nothing...

that I would love more than to see you on that stage.

It'll happen.

Just watch.

That's tough.

Covering a role can be frustrating.

And-and part of her is grateful for the work.

And, I mean, now she knows the role.

- It's in her repertoire. - Right.

And, who knows, if Rachel's lucky,

she might even get to sing it.

Like, if something happens to me.

- Yeah, like, if I kill you. - Nice.

I mean, it would be her dream come true.

That you murdered me?

That she would get a chance.

Well, I'm here to do six performances,

remain healthy... and not die.

Of course.

You're not actually asking me to give up a performance?

Even if I wanted to...

as a favor, it's not so simple.

I'd have to get a doctor's note...

Of course.

And this is how I make my living, Clea.

I don't sing, I don't get paid.

The understudy would get my fee.

Ambur, of course.

Jeanine, you hate that house.

And everything that happened to you there,

you cringe every time you set foot in the place.

But that's not how Lizzie feels.

We're not talking about Lizzie.

I know, we're talking about your imagination.

What happened in that house was not my imagination.

I know, I know. But...

But what you think is happening with me and Dimitra is.

So, you're not, you're not sleeping with her?

Not in the house, no.

Oh, because, 'cause you have boundaries.

We talked about this. I-I...

I mean, we're supposed to be honest with one another.

Yeah, okay, yeah, not sleep with each other's friends.

Well, she's not a friend. She's a nurse.

She's my mother's caregiver and we pay her.

I know, but this thing with me and her can end at any time.

And I love you.

And you know that.

We're supposed to be exploring.

Isn't that what you're doing? Exploring?

We agreed on this. Uh, uh...

What you said before about my mother's house

and all the things that he did to me... there...

Do... Uh...

What does that have to do with you and Dimitra?

No, I wasn't talking about Dimitra.

I was talking about Lizzie.

Okay, but we're talking about Dimitra now.

Well, she's the person who takes care of your mother.

Uh-huh?

I told you...

that this might not be the best idea

to-to-to be doing this right now.

You can't go back into that world,

the opera and your, your history with Charles

and expect it to not have effect on you.

And the stuff with your mom

and your dad dying like that just last year.

The stuff with my mom...

Which part?

Do you love your mother, Jeanine?

Isn't she special?

This is my love letter to you, Margot, my beautiful wife,

who's given me our beautiful angel daughter.

So perfect, so intelligent.

So talented.

Hey, do we have a machete?

Yeah. Uh, for what?

For Salome's mother to use.

- To do what? - To cut off the head.

Uh, okay, isn't the guard going to do that with,

um, with the axe?

Right, well, I want him to go first with the axe

and then have her mother follow with the machete.

So, she beheads John the Baptist.

No, that's not clear. We nev... we never know.

I just had this idea that she's going to be presenting

John the Baptist's head to her daughter.

Okay, and she'll do that on the platter.

Um... No.

I think...

Not-not on a platter. I think in a bowl.

Right? I think in a...

in a clear plastic bowl that's that size.

And you know what? I also just want...

I want real tangerines 'cause I want to use them.

- Mm-hm. - I want them to...

I want there to be action.

Okay, yeah, so

we're gonna have a clear plastic bowl

with tangerines in it and the head in there.

No, no, the tangerines are gonna...

So, we're gonna establish the clear plastic-plastic bowl

on the set,

and then we're gonna use it later for the head.

Got it. Okay, uh, yeah, I can...

find a machete and a bowl

and we'll pick up some tangerines.

Great. And I need that all by tomorrow rehearsal.

- I'll have something. - Thank you.

Great. Um, hey, what do you think of this?

Is that a cast?

No, I sculpted it.

Why?

I just, I wasn't sure

that we needed to do it that way.

You might wanna rethink this

because, um...

it's just, if we're recording this,

this isn't gonna work because of the closeup.

Right.

So, can you just look at it and kind of describe

what your concerns are with it?

Well, I think this is...

You've done really good work, but it-it's not feeling right.

Okay. And why is that?

Because it's, um, well, it's a sculpture

and a sculpture changes over time.

It evolves as you're working on it.

But a cast... is-is like a photo.

It's a snapshot of somebody's face

while it's being set in mold, like a death mask.

Okay, so, then...

should I give him any kind of direction

as I'm, as I'm making the mask?

About what?

Like his expression as I'm putting this stuff on his face.

That's a good question. Um...

He's at peace with the idea.

Of having his head chopped off?

Of knowing that he needs to be sacrificed.

- Okay, I gotta go. You good? - Yeah. Thank you.

Thank you.

Uh, I think it would make sense if-if, Ambur, you...

scrambled around trying to pick these up.

I'd rather stay here and watch.

Uh, Jeanine, you can't just have tangerines

rolling into the orchestra pit.

- Okay. - I'm sorry.

I don't understand what my wife is doing.

Who's chopping the head off?

Well, that's not clear. Maybe both of you.

But...

It doesn't take two people to chop a head off.

Normally there's an axe, now there's a machete.

They've just sent down a guard who's been told to do that.

And now the both of you

have to take full responsibility for what you're doing.

I'm sorry, I don't understand.

You don't have to understand. You just have to trust

that this is what you have to do.

Salome danced because she had something to say.

Not because she had to prove anything to anybody.

Not the least of all to you.

The winter storm has taken down a tree

at the house I'm staying in.

No major damage done.

But the owners will come back to find it broken.

I send them a picture to lessen the blow.

It's so strange to be surrounded

by photos of somebody else's family.

Especially when I'm thinking about

the family that you promised me.

Did you ever believe in that family, Charles?

I try to speak with you, Charles.

Were you... really prepared to leave her for me?

As though you're beside me.

I've been asked to make this personal.

So I am.

Pretending that you can hear my words.

I feel my hair

as a singer you directed so long ago feels his hair.

I watch how possessed she became

and remember how possessed I became.

The crazed enchantment.

How do I bring you back?

Bring what we had back?

I brought the book of pictures you made.

I hold it as something sacred.

A faint and lingering fragrance.

The inhalation of you.

Blurred traces of your spirit, Charles.

The beautiful dance of her fingers

as they draw energy from his lips.

Your lips.

The moon has a strange look tonight.

She is like a madwoman

seeking everywhere for lovers.

I can feel you beside me as I watch.

The way your fingers ran over my skin.

The electric shock of your touch.

Having you inside me.

I wanted you so much.

And thou did'st fill my veins with fire.

Wherefore dids't thou not look at me?

If thou hast looked at me,

thou hast loved me.

Well, I know that thou would'st have loved me.

I shoot the new singers in their costumes

for the first time.

They look just like their counterparts from back then.

You look amazing, Carolyn.

They laugh nervously as I tell them

how good they look.

But I know that they'll never achieve the crazy rapture

you got with your singers back then.

- Where's my mark? - Oh, mark there.

What more can I do to inspire them, Charles...

to get the same performance as you did?

Never!

I will kiss thy mouth, Jokanaan

I will kiss thy mouth

Princess, thou art like a garden of myrrh

Thou art the dove of all doves

Look not at this man

Do not speak such words to him

I cannot suffer them

I will kiss...

Carolyn?

Is there any way you can move your head up and down?

Because I-I just really wanna... I want it to...

be very clear as to what...

what you're doing.

And-and if you look at what Ambur's doing,

I can-I can, I can feel her desperation

in her entire body.

She's just, and I-and I, I just wanna feel like, um,

like you have that exact same need.

So I guess if you just, like, a little bit more...

movement

in the moment.

- You want me to look at Ambur. - No, no, no, no, no.

Just you stay with Narraboth.

And with the... more...

- Okay. - I think we should

maybe... take it back to the rehearsal room.

We'll have to get the intimacy coordinator for this.

She should be around for this kind of thing.

The intimacy coordinator.

- Yeah. - Yeah.

Was it important to you back then? And...

is it important to you now?

I'm sorry, what? Was what important?

That it feels like they're actually having sex on stage.

Right.

Well, I'm trying to...

- fulfill the original concept. - Yeah, but it's your show now.

- In some ways. - And whatever erotic energy

existed back then, it's not necessarily

what we're dealing with now. Right?

I mean, you're not the same person that you were

and he's not the same person that he was.

Charles is dead.

Hm.

Of course.

So he's definitely not the same person. Hm.

So, we're gonna go all the way down.

Long, flat back and then roll up... Great.

And then do a real, um, do a really thorough, like,

back bend, like a roll-through. Kind of like cat cow in...

Where is he?

Uh, he just messaged. He's running late 15 minutes.

Okay, I don't think we can do this without him.

And this intimacy coordinator's not working for me.

- Feels like a waste of time. - But we have no choice.

We need an intimacy coordinator for these scenes.

Mmm... Do we?

Yes, it's a requirement.

Okay, Ambur, stop.

Luke, could you come with me for a second please?

It's good. It's so good. The physicality...

working on physicality's great but it has to be

driven from something, right?

You have to be inspired by what is happening.

There has to be something moving you

that's more in your body and your soul.

So, as she is singing,

about how beautiful John the Baptist's hair is,

you are using that as permission

as an opportunity that the music is also giving you

to then touch him. Right? So, you...

From the part where she says his hair is amazing.

So, it's like you suddenly have this ability

to express through your fingers

everything that Salome can only sing about.

It is... in thy hair...

that I am enamored.

Let me touch thy hair.

Thank you.

And then there's this crazy thing happening downstage.

And, so, everything that you're doing is unleashed then.

Think of Salome.

She is using everything in her power

to have this crazy man beheaded.

So, what is the point of all this sacrifice

that ends in the most gruesome thing

that you've ever seen on stage?

Is it passion? Is it punishment? What is it?

But whatever it is, that emotion that you're getting from it,

that emotion is filtering through you.

It's painful and it's beautiful

and-and-and-and-and, so, you're not just sucking him off,

you are fully consuming him so much so that he has...

he has nothing else to do but pick up the gun,

point it to his head and shoot himself dead

just as he's about to come.

Explosion.

And then Salome picks up the gun

that he just used to kill himself

and she walks downstage, she puts the gun to her head

just like she's going to shoot herself.

I don't understand. Are you... Are you spying on me?

Of course not.

I'm here to support you in any way I can.

Okay, so, I don't understand what you're saying.

That management is a little concerned

about some of the ideas that you had at the presentation.

- Beatrice. - About making changes.

I said they are small changes.

Right, but then you had this idea about Salome

shooting herself.

What?

He shoots himself. Narraboth.

But then she picks up his gun and...

And contemplates it.

She doesn't kill herself.

If, if she killed herself, then the opera

would end right there and it doesn't. Right?

If she died,

then there wouldn't be anybody to sing her role.

Like, what, what's with the head, then?

I mean, what is this all for? That is ridiculous.

But now you have this idea about her mother

and the machete...

I-I have to tell them. I'm just letting you know that.

So, you are spying on me.

Look, we all understand that you must

feel very conflicted about all of this, but...

No, I'm not. I'm-I'm really not.

Really, when I chose...

When I accepted this job,

I told myself that I was gonna make the most of it. Okay?

So, you know, you can tell management

that it was an odd choice on their part to remount this.

Okay, considering that everybody

thought that Charles was difficult, to say the least.

Even though management happened to be married to him

for 30 years.

It was Beatrice's decision. It's a successful show.

Okay, but she didn't have to fulfill his stupid wish.

Nobody had to, to take that request seriously.

It's not like somebody was gonna sue them if I didn't remount it.

No one needed to know. I didn't need to know.

We wouldn't even be having this conversation, Kathy.

Look, I should head back.

Everybody's getting off break now and...

Yeah. It's fine.

Your daughter is going to dance for me.

Will you not dance for me, Salome?

That is really enlightening.

If you dance for me,

you may ask of me whatever you wish

and I will give it to thee.

But that leads me to my next question.

I hear you're making a diary about the whole experience.

Is that like, um...

like a last letter to Charles?

A journal, uh, yeah, I was thinking about that.

I was. I think it's a... It would be nice to...

To-to, um, to write about my...

my experience as I'm taking on this production.

Um, I am shooting some footage

behind the scenes with my iPhone.

I think that's gonna... turn into something.

I don't know what yet, but it's important to me to, to...

to have that footage.

Okay, that sounds really interesting. And, um...

Can we talk about the relationship between you two

during the original production?

What do you mean?

I mean your relationship with Charles.

Our working relationship.

I mean, didn't it go beyond that? It's...

kind of common knowledge around here.

I-I don't feel comfortable talking about that.

Okay, if-if we can not discuss that.

Of course.

How about I share something with you?

I knew Charles.

Charles told me his story once

about how the whole dance section in the opera

is, um...

based on something that happened with your father.

In real life.

And I-I had the absolute privilege

to see the essay that you wanted to print in the program.

I thought it was incredibly disrespectful

they didn't want to use it.

But, um...

I was interested in your fascination

in Herod's line to Salome, you know?

About loving her too much.

Charles told me that your dad used to make these crazy videos

about you and you both would go into the forest when were little

and he would tape you while you made these bizarre dances.

I mean, how do you feel about how that has inspired,

...very clearly...

a major part of this whole show?

I...

think I need a break.

Excuse me.

Something wrong?

Beatrice wants to have a word with you.

Do you feel the wind on your skin?

Yeah.

Yes? It's more sensitive now, isn't it?

- It is true, Salome. - Take away one sense,

all the others become heightened.

Your beauty has troubled me.

More intense. Remember that.

Your beauty has grievously troubled me.

That's your responsibility as an artist.

And I have looked at you too much.

It may be that I have loved you too much.

She's had a good day.

Is that right, Mom?

If that's what she says.

Oh.

Do you know where I am?

Doing your work.

And what is that?

Making plays.

You've always liked plays.

You like making things up.

Are you proud of your daughter?

Oh, yes.

See?

Proud of the things I make up?

Do you know how long I'm gonna be gone, Mom?

I'm not sure.

Ask Dimitra. She knows.

Down to the hour.

- 'Til the end of the month. - Oh.

Yeah. Exactly. Just enough time.

She wonders if I know.

This is probably almost exactly how Beatrice imagined me.

Your wife.

Just a silly little threat. Another passing fling.

What does she really know about what has gone on in this house?

I imagine her swinging around to glance at the family portrat

suddenly frightened by the story it tells.

How my father read me so many plays

and made me act out so many scenes.

His artistic aspirations for me

somehow always as frustrated as his aspirations for himself.

Now that we've abandoned the sculpture idea,

we're going to try for the more traditional method.

So the first step in the process that you're going to see

is I will put a layer of petroleum jelly on Johan's face,

and then, on top of that, I'll use a soft alginate gel

which will pick up the details of his skin.

And for that phase I'm gonna work really quickly

because it dries super-fast,

like, it's gonna set in less than ten minutes.

So...

I end up being your guinea pig after all.

Yeah, I just realized that

there needed to be a lot more detail in the head.

It's really gotta be lifelike, especially for the broadcast.

No worries. I'm used to this.

It's the way it's usually done.

I'm sorry to have wasted your time.

Not at all.

I enjoy watching you work.

Can I keep it? I mean... the sculpture?

Yeah, I guess.

I'll give it to the national gallery back home.

Okay, I'm gonna put some on your lips now

so you might want to stop talking.

My lips will be sealed.

Uh, no, no.

- Stop it? - No, just... Stop!

Stop!

This was unexpected.

A singer playing John the Baptist

makes a pass at me.

What's that thing in the Bible about judge not?

Things became...

really complicated.

Like, when you and I were working on that thing in school

things were...

really intense.

With Charles and you.

Mmm.

And...

And other things.

I sensed something was going on.

No you didn't.

No.

How?

I was watching you...

the whole time.

I couldn't take my eyes off you.

Um, I could tell you were in a crazy place.

I wanted to help you find a way out.

Somewhere.

Here...

there's an awful sense of vagueness.

Uncertainty between what I remember

and what actually took place.

The girl takes off her blindfod

and stares ahead as he scurries away.

She feels the blindfold in her hand

rubbing it as other shadows appear.

Ravenous men

watching as she dances for her father.

And for them.

I never agreed with the way you staged

these dark monsters, Charles.

How you made Salome look like a stripper in a club

performing for a bunch of leering customers.

It was never like that.

Not from what I remembered.

Not from what I told you.

They touched her.

They stroked her.

Did she give them permission?

You never made that clear.

This dark doppelganger.

No, it was never like that.

That's not how it felt.

I remember dark fangs and talos

and their terrible wings as they beat the air around me.

I remember feeling trapped.

But there was nowhere to escape to.

Now, this time...

I try something different.

And then, now, I kind of wanna feel the trees.

I wanna feel like we're in the forest.

Not deep into it but I just wanna sense she's in the forest.

I want the trees and branches to come alive

with a sense of the horror they are witnessing.

I really wanna feel...

Like their spirits are being tortured

as Salome performs her nightmarish

dance of the seven veils.

And can you make the body feel like

you're almost getting younger?

From a woman into a little girl.

And then I want a scream. I want a, I want a, just a...

Amazing. Yeah. Okay, perf... And then she's bigger.

You can get even bigger and bigger.

I am Salome.

Daughter of Herodias.

Princess of Judea.

What does Ambur really think of the ballerinas?

I wanna break them.

- Are you serious? - Mm, very.

Just cover my eyes.

Let me kiss thy mouth, Jokanaan

Cursed be thou...

Daughter of an incestuous mother

be thou accursed

Let me kiss thy mouth, Jokanaan

I will not look at thee

Thou art accursed, Salome, thou are accursed

Thou art accursed

Thou art accursed

Thou art accursed

It is thy mouth that I desire.

It is like a pomegranate cut in twain

with a knife.

Suffer me to kiss thy mouth.

No...

Stop! Stop!

I don't understand. Was this staged?

Uh, what do you mean?

Did you ask him to do this?

No. No, of course not. I told him to stop.

- Okay, but... - And he didn't.

And why are you thinking of sending this out now?

Didn't this happen a few days ago?

Last week as I was making the cast.

And you finished making the cast,

let's be clear on that.

This thing happened

then you went ahead and finished making the cast.

It took me a while to fully absorb it.

You asked me to document everything

that went into making the head of John the Baptist.

And this is everything.

Okay.

But this is also a recording of, uh,

of an attack. Uh...

A sexual attack.

And you're making that public.

That's right.

Just before we open this production.

Why?

I am...

just completing the job that I was told to do.

I have an email from the marketing team that says

I can, I can do this any way that I want to.

That I should make it personal.

And this just got very personal.

I feel that I have a responsibility

to make it known.

We're not obliged to give our approval.

Really?

You're not gonna give me your approval?

Is that the message that the opera company

wants to put out there

when I decide to show this anyway?

I just-I don't-I don't think that is a great idea

to try and ban me from making this public.

Does he know?

Johan. That you're planning to do this?

Not yet.

Okay.

What can we do to get you to reconsider?

I know this must have been very traumatic for you, Clea.

I'm not trying to diminish that.

Is there any way we can find a solution?

I would that they presently bring me

on a silver platter

Surely yes, on a silver platter

What is she doing?

- What do you mean? - Ambur, what is she doing?

What is it you would have on a silver platter

Salome, you are who are fairer

than all the daughters of Judea

Why is she in a different opera right now?

Uh, is it the performance?

Whatsoever it may be, they shall give it to you

I... I...

I don't understand. I thought...

Can we, like, pause for one second?

Uh, what is it that you're not happy with?

What is it, Salome?

Put your hand to your face.

Yeah, perfect. Just like that.

It's sensual. You know that word.

Some people have a problem with that word.

But it sounds good. It's not bad.

I'm sorry, what is she doing? What is she doing?

Why is your hand to your face like that?

Are you playful?

The head of Jokanaan No!

It's... Stop. Stop. Sorry.

Ah! That is well said my daughter

That is well said

Stop. Stop, stop. Sorry.

I'm sorry. I have one...

- It's my rehearsal. Excuse me. - I just need a moment.

- It's ridiculous. - It's very important, okay?

Ambur, there's nothing mischievous

- ...or sly or playful - Go back into the dance.

- ...about any of this. - Please go back to letter Q.

- You're not a sex kitten. - Big letter Q with upbeat.

You're not happy about this decision.

We take it with an upbeat.

This is not something that you're taking pleasure from.

You did not dance naked for your father

and allow yourself to be raped by a gang of strangers

for some petulant little game.

You agreed to do this crazy dance

because you desperately needed to show John the Baptist

that you love him.

Right? And this monster is taking advantage of that.

And your mother is just standing there, watching.

You are taking this action because you want to, somehow,

liberate yourself from your father

and everything that he represents.

You need John the Baptist's head because you need to prove

that you are worthy of being loved.

You're not just a plaything for your father's dark need

that he has to fulfill.

This is something that you now need to do for yourself.

Right?

Is it, is it gonna make you feel better?

Is it gonna change anything?

You have no idea

what is going to come of your actions.

Nothing is clear to you

right now except your pain.

Dance for me.

Dance for me.

Suffer me to touch thy body.

The moon has a strange look tonight.

Hasn't she a strange look?

Keep following me.

Keep following my voice.

Keep coming, keep coming, keep coming.

Slowly, slowly you start to collapse.

And as you're doing that, you hear my words

and you remember these words. They make you feel safe.

Why would you ask Dimitra to do that?

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have to explain that to you, Paul.

It's always haunted me. Okay?

- Okay. It's just so... - It's what? Is it unnerving?

- It's-it's crazy. - Yeah, it is crazy.

You know what's even crazier? I told Dimitra

that I was okay with what you guys were doing

as long as she did this one thing for me.

And you were sincere about that?

That if-if she does that to the painting, then...

then you're cool with what's happening between us.

Okay. Um...

Okay.

Can you see that, Margot?

Wh... Oh, dear.

What's happened to Harold's face?

Your daughter asked me to do that.

Why?

Not sure, Margot. She didn't explain.

So, why did you do it?

Because.

She doesn't want to see his face anymore when she comes to visit.

So, um...

can you think of a reason why?

Jeanie thinks that Harold was a bad man.

Why?

He loved her.

What's wrong with that?

He loved her too much.

What does that mean?

What does that mean?

You can leave the painting like that if you want.

I hurt you.

How can you expect me to agree?

Because, Rachel, you're gonna get to sing

with a real orchestra.

This is what you always dreamed of. Shit.

It's blackmail, Clea. You've blackmailed the company

into letting me perform.

I've discussed it with Ambur

and she's agreed to it.

- Well, that's even worse. - Why?

- Is she still getting paid? - Well, I mean...

normally it would go to you, but, in this case...

But, we'll, just, uh, pay her something.

No, we didn't get into to those details.

- Like a kickback? - No, it's not like that.

Or go back and extort more.

Okay, why are you looking at this

as though I've done something, like, criminal?

Because it's really the only way to see it, Clea.

Maybe you even planned it from the beginning.

Rachel, how could you say that to me?

He made a pass at me.

I didn't plan that. I said stop and he didn't.

- And you taped it all. - Yes, because the opera company

told me to.

And he knew that the camera was on him?

Yes.

He was aware that he was being taped?

Yes. I just told you that.

Oh, my God. You sound just like them.

Rachel...

I am doing this... for you.

It's not about me.

Clea...

It's because I love you.

How can you say that?

He attacked you.

You-you don't feel

- ...anything about that? - Of course I do.

You knew the camera was on him.

You knew that you could use his actions

to frame him and, then,

the whole time it's happening you-you have a plan?

No, the plan didn't occur to me until

after it happened.

Clea...

what you are proposing to do is wrong.

What are you going to do?

With the recording?

I don't know.

Shouldn't we go back to the opening?

It's only a five-minute walk. We can head out really soon.

Right, you have to take a bow.

Yeah, I have to take my big bow.

I just want to take a moment to celebrate with you.

Just the two of us.

I had a dream last night that I got to play the part.

Like one of those anxiety dreams?

What do you mean?

Like when you open your mouth and nothing comes out

or you're late for an exam or you don't know

...the answers to stuff.

Ooh. Incredible.

No, I, uh, I sang well.

It's not my house. Well, that's unsurprising.

Good for you.

Even after I lost my head, I kept singing.

Really? That's handy.

It was strange.

Yeah, I bet. Cheers.

It's the toughest part of the opera.

What?

She sings at the head way too long

before she kisses it.

Well, there's nothing we can really do about that now.

I wanna kiss thy lips, John the Baptist.

I will not look at thee.

Thou art accursed.

Okay.

It is of thy hair that I am enamored.

There is nothing in the world

like your hair.

When the moon hides her face.

When the stars are afraid.

Let me touch thy hair.

The head of Jokanaan

No!

Ah! That is well said, my daughter.

Can you fill this?

What is it?

Who has taken my ring?

There was a ring in my right hand

Who has drunk my wine?

There was wine in my cup

It was full of wine Someone has drunk it

I thought we had an understanding.

- We did. - What, she went ahead anyway?

- Obviously. - Is this already online?

Yeah, that's how I saw it.

I am sure some misfortune will happen

There is no sound.

I hear nothing

Why does he not cry out, this man?

Ah! If any man sought to kill me,

I would cry out, I would struggle.

I would not suffer...

Strike, Naaman, strike, I tell you...

I apologized after this

and I don't know what else to do, I-I-I...

Stop, please stop. Enough.

But, uh...

do I still take the curtain call?

Ah! Thou wouldst not suffer me to kiss...

thy mouth, Jokanaan!

Well, I will kiss it now.

I will bite it with my teeth...

An enraged princess who would extract her price.

With my teeth

as one bites a ripe fruit.

Her stepfather begs her to change her mind.

I know I have sworn an oath, he says.

I have always loved.

Perhaps I have loved you too much.

The conductor leaves his podium and finds his way to the stage.

As the curtain rises, Salome is there.

Her dress splattered in blood.

She waves her red-stained hands to the cheering crowd.

She expresses her gratitude to the musicians

in the pit below.

I'm taping this all

fully aware that I'm supposed to be

backstage now as well.

I pan my camera back to the stage

and see Salome gesturing

for the conductor to take his applause.

This is where I'm supposed to now be.

Taking my bow.

But they realize that I'm a no-show.

They're still applauding for you, Charles.

Even with all the changes I've made.

Will mine be ready in time?

No.

We'll have to use his head tonight.

That's a bit of a stretch.

Well, we don't have a choice.

We're gonna work on yours, but it'll take a while.

We should have it ready for the recording, though.

The recording?

So, I'll be doing the broadcast?

Wow.

You're very lucky.

What if I'm terrible?

What if I can't see the conductor?

You know, the whole thing with the blindfold.

The blindfold's see-through.

No, you'll be amazing.

I know how seriously you and Rachel were preparing.

I'd prefer to do it with her.

With Rachel.

Well, that's not an option.

I'm sorry.

- I didn't mean to... - No, it's okay.

I can imagine how brilliant

you and Rachel would've been together.

And she's gonna get her chance too.

One day.

From our conversation

she knew that a sculpture wouldn't do.

That a cast was more accurate.

- Ready? - Even if it was more invasive.

Okay, keep your eyes closed. Just keep 'em closed.

- Don't open them. - Why not?

Because some of the plaster

might have stuck to your eyelashes

and you don't want it to hurt.

No, I don't.

Little bit more.

Okay.

Now, open them slowly.

Mmm.

She stares at his face with a sense of accomplishment.

Proud of how she's created this...

most magical of mirrors.

My daughter has done well

Herodias sings that Salome has made the right choice.

Finally, after years of witnessing her husband

abuse her daughter, she's ready to inflict

some crazy justice.

This is my interpretation, Charles.

I have no idea what you would've made of it.

As the empty bowl is presented,

she has no more than a minute to fill it with the fake blood.

The tricky part comes next.

She takes the prop, places it under her arm.

Then, like a proud mother nursing her child

she feeds the special formula that looks so real

into the gaping wound of the severed head.

She needs to fill the cavity to capacity

so there's enough blood to drip onto Salome's white dress

for the entire length of her final aria.

He was so beautiful to her...

that if he had only looked at her,

he would've loved her too.

That the mystery of love

is greater than the mystery of death.

She is monstrous, thy daughter.

She is altogether monstrous!

I approve of what my daughter has done.

And I will stay here now.

Ah, there speaks the incestuous wife!

Come! I will not stay here

Come! I tell thee.

Surely some terrible thing will befall.

Hi. How'd it go?

It's still going.

I would've loved to have been there.

I'm in the dressing room now. She's kissing my lips.

She just said that the mystery of love

is greater than the mystery of death.

She's about to say that love has a bitter taste.

They're calling me to go.

I have kissed thy mouth, John the Baptist.

I have kissed thy mouth.