The New York City Landscapes in Begin Again

Director Lorin Latarro shares how these NYC spots will come to life on stage. 

By Leo Angulo

The West 4th Street Basketball Courts

These iconic basketball courts are in the heart of Lower Manhattan just steps from the famous Washington Square Park. They first opened in 1935 and over the 20th century became a proving ground for New Yorkers playing pickup basketball. They are also referred to as The Cage, due to the high chainlink fence that surrounds the courts and their smaller than regulation size court, leading to a cramped, closed-in feeling.

I walk by the basketball courts daily to get to my subway stop. They are teeming with life. Basketball players, young kids, music, and always a group of New Yorkers voyeuristically watching it all. A great place for discovery. –Lorin Latarro

TIMES SQUARE

Times Square is the most visited part of New York City with an average of 250,000 pedestrians walking through it every single day. Though it’s a mecca for NYC tourists, it’s also a transit hub for New Yorkers riding the subway with 10 distinct subway lines passing through and service from all five boroughs. Times Square is also in the heart of the theatre district which is home to almost all of the 41 Broadway houses in New York. 

Times Square felt like the perfect setting for Gretta to be faced with a devastating new reality; a place so big and bright that you can’t help but feel small. We needed our main character to feel insignificant in this moment, so we used large-scale projection (by David Bengali) and lighting (by Amanda Zieve) to simulate the chaos of Times Square and create the illusion of size. –Lorin Latarro