SEE HOLIDAY CLASSIC IS RETURNING TO MILWAUKEE. THIS IS VIDEO FROM LAST YEAR’S PRODUCTION OF THE MUSICAL BLACK NATIVITY. THIS YEAR, THE PRODUCTION IS CELEBRATING ITS EIGHTH ANNUAL SHOWCASE IN MILWAUKEE. AND I’M HERE WITH THE ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF BLACK NATIVITY, WAGNER FRAZIER, GOOD TO SEE YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. OF COURSE. THANKS FOR BEING HERE. I’M SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS. I LOVE THIS PRODUCTION. HAVE THE CHANCE TO SEE IT. THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS IN MILWAUKEE. BUT THIS YEAR THERE’S SOME THINGS THAT ARE GOING TO BE DIFFERENT. THERE’S A NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF THE SHOW. SO WHAT ARE YOU DOING DIFFERENTLY THIS YEAR? SO THIS YEAR WE’RE KIND OF TAKING IT BACK A LITTLE BIT AND WE EXPLORED SOME OF THE ORIGINS OF THE PLAY. AND ONE OF THE FUN THINGS THAT WE KIND OF LEARNED IN OUR RESEARCH IS THAT ALVIN AILEY WAS A PART OF CHOREOGRAPHY AND THE INITIAL PRODUCTION. AND SO WHAT WE’VE DONE IS WE’VE BROUGHT BACK SOME OF THOSE AILEY ELEMENTS WITH CONTEMPORARY DANCE WITH CHOREOGRAPHER DEBRA GRAY. AND SO WE HAVE A COUPLE DIFFERENT DUETS AND SOME REALLY LIKE POWERFUL MOMENTS AND SOME LIFTS AND VERY LONG, ELEGANT LINES AND JUST SOME REALLY COOL MOVEMENT THAT WE HAVEN’T NECESSARILY SEEN WITH THE SHOW BEFORE, AT LEAST IN A LONG TIME. THAT’LL BE A REALLY A DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE IN TERMS OF THE STORY THAT IT TELLS ON STAGE. SO THIS IS THE EIGHTH YEAR THAT YOU GUYS HAVE SHOWCASED THIS OR THAT. BLACK NATIVITY HAS BEEN SHOWCASED IN MILWAUKEE FOR FOLKS WHO HAVE BEEN THERE SINCE EIGHT YEARS AGO WHO GO EVERY SINGLE YEAR AROUND THE HOLIDAYS, WHAT ARE THEY GOING TO NOTICE DIFFERENTLY? SO THEY’LL NOTICE SOME OF THE SONGS ARE GOING TO SOUND A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. THERE WILL STILL BE SOME OF THOSE MAINSTAYS, THOSE LIKE FAMILY AND AND THOSE SONGS THAT DIRECTLY CONNECT TO CHURCHGOERS AND PEOPLE WHO ARE FAMILIAR WITH THE STORYLINE. BUT YOU’LL ALSO HEAR SOME SOME DIFFERENT INTERPRETATIONS OF THE MUSIC THAT’S GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT MORE FLOWY, A LITTLE BIT MORE STORY DRIVEN. AND THEN YOU’LL ALSO SEE JUST A DIFFERENT INTERPRETATION OF HOW WE SHOWCASE THE FAMILY, THE IDEA OF A FAMILY, AND THIS IDEA OF FAMILY MOVING THROUGH BLACK NATIVITY AND WHAT IT REPRESENTS. THE CONNECTION BETWEEN MARY AND JOSEPH AND THE BIRTH. BUT THEN ALSO WE BROUGHT BACK A FAMILY. SENATOR AND THE CURRENT TIMES AND HOW WE CAN CONNECT THE STORY, THE MORALS THAT ARE THERE TO WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW AND TALK ABOUT THE CAST AND CREW OF THIS PRODUCTION, BECAUSE I THINK ONE THING THAT I LOVE ABOUT BLACK NATIVITY IS THAT IT REALLY FEATURES LOCAL TALENT A LOT. EVERY SINGLE YEAR. AND TALK ABOUT YOU GUYS HAVE A LOT OF NEW CAST MEMBERS AND CREW MEMBERS THIS YEAR. YES. SO WE HAVE, I THINK MAYBE 3 OR 4 THAT ARE RETURNING MEMBERS TO THE CAST. BUT FOR THE MOST PART, IT’S ENTIRELY NEW. SO WE’RE LOOKING AT A NEW FACES, A NEW INTERPRETATION OF THE MUSIC. EVERYTHING SOUNDS DIFFERENT WHEN YOU HAVE DIFFERENT VOCALISTS. THAT’S BEEN A REALLY FUN PROCESS OF PLAYING WITH NEW VOICES AND HOW THEY KIND OF SHAPE THE STORY THAT WE TELL, HOW THEY SHAPE THE PRESENCE ON STAGE. AND IT’S REALLY, I THINK, BROADEN THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE DIFFERENCE PLACES IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WE DON’T ALWAYS SEE ARTISTS COME FROM AND THAT THEY’RE THERE AND WAITING FOR US. YEAH, THAT’S SO AWESOME. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE PART OF THE SHOW? MY FAVORITE PART OF THE SHOW IS GOING TO BE A CONTEMPORARY DUET BETWEEN DANCER KIMMY, EVELYN AND ELLA LAKEY, TOO. SWEET BABY JESUS. AND IT’S THIS MOMENT WHERE IT JUST FEELS AIRY. THE STAGE IS GOING TO LIGHTEN A LITTLE BIT, AND THERE’S JUST THESE MOMENTS WHERE YOU SEE THESE TWO PEOPLE TELLING TWO VERY UNIQUE STORIES AND KIND OF COME TOGETHER AND JUST FORM THIS COHESIVE, GIVE BEAUTIFUL MOMENT OF JUST, I THINK, LIKE AN AUTHENTIC MOMENT OF THIS IS JUST BLACKNESS, RIGHT? THAT I’M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO KIND OF SEE SHAPE ON STAGE AND ON A BIGGER STAGE AND LET PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THAT MOMENT. THAT’S AWESOME. I ONLY HAVE ABOUT 20S LEFT WITH YOU. WHAT DO YOU WANT FOLKS TO WALK AWAY FROM AFTER SEEING THIS PRODUCTION THAT WE CAN DO ANYTHING. ANYTHING WE TOUCH IS A REPRESENTATION OF BLACKNESS. AND SO AS WE KIND OF MOVE OUT AND TOUCH DIFFERENT SPACES, IT CAN ALL BE A REPRESENTATION OF US. I LOVE THAT. JUANITA FRAZIER THE NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF BLACK NATIVITY, BLACK NATIVITY FIRST SHOW IS NEXT THURSDAY AT THE MARCUS FOR PERFORMING ARTS. AND I CAN’T BELIEVE NEXT THURSDAY IS ALREADY DECEMBER 7TH. I SENT THAT THIS MORNING. IT’S ALL NEAR WATER STREET IN MILWAUKEE, WATER IN STATE. WE DO HAVE A LINK ON OUR 12 NEWS MOBILE APP AND OUR WEBSITE UNDER