American Classic (2026) s01e05 Episode Script

[Jon] Previously
on "American Classic".
I'm producing and directing
Thornton Wilder's Our Town.
We do not have the money
for original productions.
What would it take to finance
this whole endeavor myself?
Uh, a miracle?
You are an artist and you need
your own restaurant.
You come to see me
and I will make this happen.
Polly's going to oversee
the whole design.
Mom wants me to go to Penn.
-What do you want?
-I want to act.
-Holy shit, you got into Penn!
-Do not tell my mom, okay?
[with Russian accent]
It's been the dream of life
to see Paris in France.
How much would it cost
to get her into the show?
Can we just keep this
between the two of us?
[classical music]
-[Nadia] Hello.
-Hi.
-Nadia.
-I'm Pat.
-Pat. Nice to meet you.
-You too.
-Hi.
-Nadia.
-Pat.
-Pat?
Pat and Pat.
-[Mr. Pat] Yes.
-Hm.
-Do it.
-Talk soon.
[actors chattering]
[woman] Oh, the little guy.
Good for you.
What--what is this?
Oh, Jon!
This is Hugo, my right hand.
Yes, the, uh, the one
who doesn't always know
what the left hand is doing.
Richard, the proper espresso
machine arrives tomorrow.
Bigger one, and it'll need
to be plumbed in.
Okay, not a problem.
Whatever that is,
we can afford it.
We can afford artisans
of every stripe,
painters, carpenters.
I told Kristen it was only
a phone call away.
Who's paying for this?
This is a--
this is the result
of a very delicate
back-channel operation
with the Nederlanders.
I'm sorry. Which Nederlanders
are we talking about?
Richard Bean,
I'm meeting your dad!
He's like old you.
Hello!
-Huh.
-Yes.
He went that way after all.
[whispering]
She's got hidden resources.
[chattering continues]
Our Town.
What is it?
-Randall?
-It's a play.
Exactly. It's a play
-Good job.
-Thanks.
set in Grover's Corners,
New Hampshire,
at the turn of the last century.
It is a moving portrait
of what it means
to be human.
Now, traditionally,
productions adhere
to the first stage direction
in the text.
No curtains, no scenery.
No, the audience arrives
and sees an empty stage.
Well, that, my friends,
is the past.
Hugo?
I have a vision.
For another town.
I see it as full
of sensuous detail.
[Nadia] Richard Bean.
Um, are these people
in this photo naked?
[Richard] What?
No, they're not--
they're not na--
What the--?
Hugo?
It's--it's sex workers
in a bordello in Boston, 1905.
So you will ask us
maybe all to be naked.
[Richard]
No, no, no, no, no, no.
These are called "mood boards."
Because you are
great artist, Richard Bean.
I will be naked for this art!
Now who is with me?
-Uh
-[overlapping chatter]
No one is naked in my vision.
No.
But what I do see
are sunflowers
and heliotropes
and mud, real mud
in the cemetery.
I see a real working
soda fountain.
I see a horse.
I see real rain.
I--Yes?
Is this rehearsal deal
gonna be during the daytime?
But--Hugo?
-Uh, yes, ten till six.
-Yeah.
I can't quit my job
for play practice.
What?
I can't quit my job
for play practice.
But I would remind you
that you're going
to be paid for it.
Hugo, what is the current
Broadway minimum?
Just now, it's $2,439
U.S. dollars per week.
-[man] Yeah!
-[excited chatter]
Oh, that's what
you'll be paid.
This is my new job.
This is the magic ball.
What makes it magic
is that you can only speak
when you hold it in your hand.
You will tell us your name,
the role that you play
in the show,
your astrological sign,
and, uh--
-Something about you.
-And something about me.
No, no, no.
Something about themselves.
-And something--
-Something about them.
-Something about yourselves.
-Yeah.
So, I have the ball,
so I might as well begin.
Richard Bean.
-[cheering]
-So cool.
I am the director.
I am a Scorpio.
I've been praised
as an actor my whole life,
but I really just consider
myself a humble
storyteller.
I'm Pat Patterson.
I play Mrs. Webb.
I'm an Aries.
People see me as
kind of maybe buttoned up,
but inside
I'm this massive romantic.
I'm also Pat Patterson.
I play her husband
and I'm her real husband
and I'm a Cancer.
You're actually a Leo.
[Mr. Pat] July is Cancer.
I was born in July.
[Mrs. Pat] You were born
on the cusp. You're a Leo.
Fine, I'm a Leo,
but if you ask me,
all this astrology it's just
a bunch of bull crap.
Pardon my French.
You're really married.
And not fake married.
You know, intimately and thus
somewhat passive-aggressively,
and meshed.
I'm Dr. Derek Seale.
I play Doc Gibbs.
And I'm a Leo.
I'm recently divorced.
My daughter said
I should do something,
so I'm doing this.
[chuckles]
Oh, I--I don't have
the ball. Sorry.
Yes, and I also
don't have the ball.
Hi. Uh, I'm Miranda Bean.
I play Emily.
I'm a Gemini.
I'm an actor and a singer
and newly vegetarian.
I'm a Gemini, too.
We're twins.
-Oh.
-Excuse me, dude.
You don't have
the fucking ball either.
Randall, chill.
I'm chill.
He doesn't have the ball.
Jesus.
Um, Heath.
Heath McCardle.
George,
Emily's love interest.
Gemini, as we already
said before.
And I have my Equity card.
[whispering]
What's an Equity card?
Um, I'm Randall Potts.
I play Wally Webb
who's, like, 11-years old
and dead
for most of the play,
so whatever.
But I am Miranda's
real-life love interest
because I'm her boyfriend,
and I am a Sagittarius,
so I'm also creative
and a warrior.
Think fast!
[groans]
-Oh, my God!
-[groaning]
-All right, all right!
-He's bleeding!
What are you doing?
-Getting a towel!
-I'm sorry.
-Oh, my God.
-Are you okay?
I'm so sorry.
What are you doing?
-Aah!
-Oh!
Pinch his nose.
Pinch his nose.
[Richard] Now that
the bleeding has stopped,
let's read the play.
Hugo will read
the stage directions.
Our Town. Act One.
No curtain, no scene.
Oh, um--
Lots of scenery.
[upbeat gentle music]
I wash-ed and iron-eid
the blue ginga-ham
for you special.
Gingham.
Ginga-ham.
Gingham.
[Nadia] Ginkam.
Gingham.
[quietly]
Gingham.
Perfect.
[upbeat gentle music]
Great work.
-Whoo!
-Yeah!
[applause]
Whoo!
Mother Gibbs, it's George.
Shh, dear, just rest yourself,
[Miranda] Mother Gibbs?
[Nadia] Yes, Emily?
They don't understand, do they?
[Nadia] No, dear,
they don't understand.
Oh, uh, take a break.
Wonderful work.
-Give them a ten.
-Yeah.
Take ten minutes, everyone,
yeah? Just ten minutes. Thanks.
Dad is doing unbelievable work,
and Miranda is gonna be
a better Emily than you.
Yeah.
You should come and join in.
Maybe come on Monday
and join our Circle of Truth.
You know something
I don't miss?
Theater games.
I honestly can't think of
anything I'd rather do less.
[woman gasping]
[woman]
So this is the Temple of Art.
Oh! Oh
-Oh--
-Oh
[stammering]
Who do I give
my cab receipt to?
Oh, uh--
Oh, there he is.
Hi, Polly.
Good to see you go.
[Polly] Hugo!
-[chuckles]
-Thank you for doing this.
This is--this is Polly.
-Kristen.
-[gasps]
Oh-my-God.
This is the famous Kristen.
-Oh!
-[nervous chuckle]
It's--it's very nice to--
to finally meet you.
I--I--of course,
I'm--I'm a big fan.
And--and I can't wait
to see what you--
what you do with
Richard's vision.
Oh, let me to--
Thank you, no.
Thank you, darling.
Oh, can I just--just--
A, you are gorgeous.
And B, you don't know
what it means to me
to meet another person who
has had to live with this man.
Did he ever steal
your concealer?
It's not--Borrowed.
Never stole.
-[laughing]
-Oh, come on.
But you're not to--
you're not to be trusted
around reflective surfaces.
[laughing]
-No.
-No, are you, darling?
Papa says you spend hours
in the bathroom.
-[laughing]
-My son is an actor.
His face is important to him.
It's important to many.
And why don't we change
the subject from me to, well,
the play, for instance.
Yes. Let's move on from
my big brother's eccentricities
and just take a moment--
You're good?
No, I'm good.
Take a moment to marvel
at the fact
that he's managed
to secure a blank check
from the Nederlanders.
The Nederlanders?
Yes! And it's not
just for the play.
He is spreading money
all over this town
like--like fairy dust.
The Nederlanders?
Yes.
They're backing Our Town.
You have to admit
that's pretty incredible.
Incredible. Yes.
Because I was
with James Nederlander
at the Jimmy Awards last week
and he told me that you called
and asked him to invest
and he told you that he was
just dying to get into bed
with a raging psychopath,
didn't he, darling?
Yes, that was the general
thrust of what--
Listen, I didn't want
to bring this subject.
I didn't want to make it
all about me
but I've decided to pay
for the production myself.
-What? You?
-You?
But with what?
I mean--No, I--I don't mean
to sound bleak, pet,
but you have no money.
At least that's
what you claimed
when we got divorced.
-Don't forget, I--I--
-It was the art collection.
-Wasn't it, Richard?
-I have the art collection.
I believe he got that
in the settlement.
You sold our art collection?
I didn't sell the whole
art collection, darling.
-Oh!
-No, don't be silly.
I only sold the--
-[Polly] What?
-The, uh
-Schicklgruber.
-[Polly] The Schicklgruber.
Which one was that?
The Schicklgruber was the big--
the big, moody, dark--
-Moody.
-Dark, dark, crazy, crazy
Expressionistic-ish.
Um
Yeah, it was--
I sold it to a very
moody Japanese
businessman from
Yeah.
-Japan somewhere.
-Mm-hm.
-Yeah.
-For a very good price.
Schicklgruber is
Adolf Hitler's family name.
No, no relation.
No, no, no.
These--these Schicklgrubers
were from Liechtenstein.
Yeah, the Liechtensteinian
Schicklgrubers.
I don't remember
the Schicklgruber.
Oh, darling, it was
in storage most of the time.
Because it--
it troubled people.
You would've hated it.
[Kristen laughing]
[distant chattering]
[sighs]
I come seeking refuge.
Put me to work.
You--ah, here,
can juice these
lemons and oranges.
Sure.
You know, it's funny.
Even with my whole family
beating up on me all at once,
I'm happier now
than I've been in years.
Here.
[pan sizzling]
[Jon] Try these.
They're very hot.
Glamorous peas.
The hell--
-Good?
-Good?!
They're--Mm!
Magnificent.
[laughing]
You make perfect food,
little brother.
Here's a question for you.
Would you consider
coming back here?
-I am back here.
-No, no, I--
I mean
I mean staying in Millersburg,
and, uh, running the theater.
Yeah, you might want to run
that idea by Kristen first.
She sees what
you're pulling off.
You know,
you've got the talent
and you clearly have
some resources now
-Well
-and, you know,
you're gonna make a success
out of this show.
I know that.
And if things go back
to how they were,
I mean,
not a dinner theater,
a lot of things become
possible for everybody.
Like what?
Boyle
has offered to build
a restaurant for me
in the casino, for me to chef.
Ho, ho, ho
-Oh, I see.
-You know, making real money.
Making the food I wanna make.
That would be incredible, right?
You know, Miranda, she goes
to college in the fall and
We got a little bit put away.
But, you know, four years,
that's a massive whack.
And I just--I want to give
her every opportunity.
[sighs] I mean,
I'm not saying I'd
take Boyle up on the deal.
I just--I know
you don't trust him.
And he's always saying how
he's buying up
all these properties.
He's--he's feasting
on people's broken dreams.
I mean, you talk about him
like he's--
-Satan.
-Yes, exactly. Satan.
You know, he offers you
what you want,
but he always wants
something in return.
-Usually, it's your soul.
-That's not a good thing.
Maybe a time when you
and the devil
want sort of the same thing.
And so in that case,
it might be all right then.
But, see, you're saying.
The devil wants you
in hell, but--
You don't mind being in hell
because there's this
fabulous restaurant in hell,
and you were the head chef.
We're not getting
any younger, uh--
I would say
-Go for it.
-That makes a lot of sense.
Carpe Diem.
Carpe
Diem.
How many of these are there?
Here, let me do this.
-Uh--
-Just, you know, like this.
You make it look so easy.
[chuckles]
Good of you to have the ex over.
Oh, you know,
I must say, this is
kind of my weird confession.
Mm!
I always wondered
if I'd like you.
[laughing]
Well, the--
the reviews are mixed,
No, but I--I do,
you know, I--I really do.
And you were always--you were
always so good to Miranda
when she was in the city.
She'd come back just, you know,
full of all the wonderful
times you had.
You know, I must say, I--
I hope it's okay
I say this, but--
You know, I was--
I was surprised
when I heard that you and
Richard were getting divorced.
Well, I--I guess I just don't
like playing second fiddle.
Hm. [laughing]
Yeah. Yeah.
I know.
The career.
And the mirror.
[laughing]
No, no.
Darling, I was--I was fine
with all of that.
Second fiddle to you.
You were the great love
of his life.
I was just someone
to drink with.
[soft music]
Speaking of which--
[chuckles]
I forgot my bottle.
[soft music]
[Boyle] Yeah.
-[door closes]
-No, I don't want him.
Ah, he's a total gobshite.
Yeah. Never liked him.
Catch you there. Bye. Bye.
Thank you for seeing me,
Mr. Boyle.
Connor. And it is a treat
to have you here.
So, how's our resident genius
this fine day?
Oh, he's well.
He's well.
You know,
the show looks terrific.
Oh, I'm not talking
about your brother, mate.
I'm talking about you.
-Oh.
-[laughing]
Oh, thanks. I'm--I'm good.
Thank you. Thank you.
Um--
So I, um--
I've been thinking
about your, uh,
restaurant proposal
and I would love
I guess to, uh
move forward.
You guess?
You guess?
No, geniuses don't guess.
I mean your--
your brother is gifted,
but what you do with food
is of far greater value
than what he does playing
make-believe all day long.
You know, people are going
to spend a lot of money
eating the food that you make.
Listen, can I offer you
a wee nip?
Well, it's a little
early to tip it.
So, I mean, all I'm saying is
I'm all in.
So I've got investors
who want to meet you.
-Wait, investors?
-Yeah.
So we're gonna drive down
to Atlantic City
tomorrow after lunch.
You know,
you fix them a meal,
they fall in love,
write big checks.
We're at the crap tables
by ten,
shitfaced by midnight.
What do you think?
[laughing]
Ooh--I, um--I should--
I should call Richard because,
you know,
I'm doing company management.
You know what?
Your brother's grand.
But it's all about Richard,
which is all right.
And do you know
how I know that, Jon?
It's because I'm all about me.
[chuckles]
Now, what we need to do
is to make you
a little bit more
about yourself.
[intriguing piano music]
Well
I guess I could do that.
I mean, I--I can do that.
I'm in.
Good lad.
-[laughing]
-Slainte!
I do love craps.
[laughing]
This is the Circle of Truth.
As the Stage Manager says,
"People in our town
want to know the facts
about everyone."
It's--it's our play.
It's about people
living together on this earth.
Given the brief amount of time
that we have here,
I thought it would be good
to learn some truths
about each other.
I would stress that
anything that is said
in the Circle of Truth
stays in the Circle of Truth.
Okay, so who wants to start?
I'll go.
This probably won't come as
a surprise for some of you here.
I want to move to New York.
I want to be an actor.
[all exclaiming]
You can--you can stay
in my alcove studio in Brooklyn.
Yeah, dude, I'm pretty sure
it's not your turn right now.
The thing is, my mom doesn't
want me to be an actor.
She wants me to go to college.
And
-I just got in.
-[gasps]
[Mr. Pat] Wow.
-[Miranda] I got accepted.
-Congratulations.
[Miranda] But my mom
doesn't know about it.
And she also doesn't know
that I'm going to turn it down.
Interesting, yes.
So
now that we're playing
husband and wife..
I really feel
that we're complete opposites
on almost every level.
-We're fine.
-I never said we weren't fine.
-I said we're different people.
-Can I fire myself?
I mean, can I play another
character in the play?
[Mrs. Pat] Here it comes.
I mean, one where
I'm not married to her.
The--the choir director
that kills himself.
Well, if we're picking parts
I want that guy
to play my husband.
-Oh, my God.
-[woman] Oh, my God.
I just feel totally,
completely alone.
-Wow.
-Thank you. This is great.
This is marriage.
Kenny has something to say.
-Kenny!
-This is crazy.
I think I'm
kind of afraid of dying.
But aren't you like
the undertaker?
I know. It makes no sense,
but being around so much death
and now working on this play
[chuckles]
just makes me extra aware
that time is running out.
This is fucking depressing.
[Richard] Yes!
Isn't it? [chuckles]
I want to speak
from the heart.
Go ahead.
I am a gay man.
[mischievous music]
I was always a gay man.
Oh, boy,
This is harder than I thought.
It doesn't have to be a track.
Casters are fine.
Most of the actors
loved pushing things on.
If I do improve
and make a big change
would you be--
I--I mean, could you be?
I am now.
I always have been.
Well, I love her,
but she's not a horse.
Oh, no, no, she's a pony.
We couldn't fit a real horse
in the wings.
Oh.
Hey, has anyone
seen my backpack?
No?
[Richard clears throat]
Miranda.
-Oh, thank you.
-I was sitting on it.
-Nice.
-Listen, did you, uh
say no to Penn?
Not yet.
I'm not crazy, am I?
No, you want to be
an actress, so
I made a couple of calls
and there's an internship,
if you're interested,
at MCC in the fall.
It's not a lead
in a Broadway play,
but it's working in
the theater in New York.
So, it's a start, you know?
Thank you so much.
-I love it.
-My pleasure.
-Thank you.
-You're very welcome.
-Okay.
-Okay.
[calm music]
Get on, you Jonny!
You got away in time.
[chuckles] I'm excited!
[laughing]
Let's now let's do an exercise.
Forget about the lines.
You are just Mrs. Gibbs.
Uh
turn of the century,
wife of the town doctor.
Um
And, um, we're just
going to chat.
-[quietly] Okay.
-All right.
So, good morning.
How are you, Mrs. Gibbs?
How are you? Hello.
Hi, you guy.
Yeah. What did--
what did you do this morning?
I--I waked up.
Now, remember.
You're a real person.
-Yeah.
-You do real things.
Chores. Any chores?
Be specific.
Details are important.
I wash-ed and iron-ed the flag.
You what?
I'm washing the flag
and I'm ironing
the stars and the stripes.
So they lying
perfectly straight.
Oh, I see.
Okay, uh
One last question.
Would you say you're
a happy person?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah. I'm a happy
American woman,
lady, girl, woman.
And I'm wearing "ginam."
Gingham.
Yes. I've been working
on that one.
[big band music]
[knocking on door]
[door knob rattles]
[knocking on door]
[man] Mr. Bean!
Hello. Where am I?
[man] Atlantic City.
Who--? Who is it?
[man] Mel, your driver.
Wait, just--just a second.
[sighs]
I'm so sorry. I overslept.
Is Mr. Boyle ready to go?
No bother.
He left hours ago.
-What?
-Yeah.
He wasn't as wasted
as you were.
What time is it?
-2:35.
-In the afternoon?
-[laughing]
-Je--Jesus Christ.
You had yourself
quite a night.
I did?
I don't remember.
Yeah. It's probably
not a bad thing.
You hit a hot streak
and you won and you won.
Why wouldn't I want
to remember that?
Because then you lost
and you lost.
Lost? What--
-Like what?
-I couldn't keep track.
You kept running to the ATM,
and then you started
talking routing numbers
and wire instructions and--
Finally I just--I just got
depressed. I went to bed.
Uh
I'll wait for you downstairs,
-Okay.
-Take your time.
[mischievous music]
[gasps]
[dramatic music]
Who told you?
Does it matter?
Does it matter who betrays me?
Yes, it does.
It was Randall, wasn't it?
Do you ever stop to think
that just maybe
people are trying to do
what's best for you?
Do you ever just
think that maybe
I know what's best for me?
You know what?
Fuck Mirandall
and fuck Penn.
Because I'm going to New York.
-No. No, you are not.
-Why not?
You know how much
acting means to me.
Because it meant
the same thing to you.
New York will eat you alive.
[Richard] Oh, uh, sorry.
Did I interrupt something?
Uncle Richard found me
a job. Tell her.
What do you mean
he found you a job?
I, uh--I made a couple
calls about an internship
and I offered her a place
to stay, with me.
-That's not a job.
-It is.
All I have done
is listen to your daughter.
You ought to try that yourself.
She wants to be an actress.
Please stay out of this.
She has the talent.
She has the passion.
So, why shouldn't she?
Because it will
make her miserable.
Because it made you miserable?
Acting didn't
make me miserable. You did.
You gave up.
You gave up on yourself
and your talent and you left.
That's on you.
[calm music]
-[Miranda] Hey.
-Hey.
I just came up with the sickest
baseline for "Best of Me."
-What?
-You're a total betrayer.
I'm--I'm a what?
You told my mom about school
in New York,
and now she's losing it.
And--and you betrayed
the Circle of Truth.
You're the betrayer.
You're betraying me
with Mr. Actor Man.
-Heath?
-Yeah, what--
"Come to my tiny alcove
in Brooklyn."
Oh, my God, Randall.
Nothing is going on with Heath.
You guys are always hanging out.
It's like you're a couple.
We're playing a couple.
We're playing Emily and George.
-I don't like it!
-Well, I don't care!
Go be a crazy jealous person
somewhere else.
Don't go telling my mother
my personal shit.
Where are you going?
Are you going to see him?
Jesus Christ.
What about Mirandall?
[suspicious music]
-Hello, Richard Bean.
-Oh, Jesus.
How did you get in here?
I'm climbing, like monkey.
You are wanting
to kiss me now?
No. No, nyet.
Don't want to kiss you.
I'm your mentor.
I'm your director.
And your boyfriend, he seems
like the very violent type.
If you're worried about Connor,
you must know that
he's not understanding
how it is you touch me.
I am dreaming all my life
to be actress and now
I want everything
that you can give me.
There is genius in your fluids.
Wow, that's--
that's--that's--
Very high praise, I'm sure,
but it's probably a weird
translation of a Russian idiom
that sounds
just like a bad idea.
You're always talking
about how you want these
special alone times together
and I'm thinking,
"Oh, my gosh, this guy,
he has feelings for me."
You are always telling me
I am great.
-No, I don't think I--
-You said I am big actress.
You said I am huge.
Well, yes,
when I said that I meant
that some
of the choices you make
are grow--growing
a little too large.
They're outsized.
They're not natural.
So if I am not great,
then what am I?
You must tell me the truth.
You cannot just--you cannot
beat my bush around.
-Oh, you want the truth?
-Yes. You're my mentor.
I'm your protégé.
What we have if we
don't have truth, you know?
-Well--
-So mentor me. Now.
-Go, tell me.
-All right. Well, you--
Shape me, coach me.
Change my life. Go.
[quietly]
Yeah, well, I got--
Okay, don't get shy on me,
little guy.
There's a--
[quietly] What's that?
I can't hear you?
-[mumbling] You can't act.
-[quietly] You're mumbling.
You're always
telling me "articulate,"
but you're not doing that.
-[mumbling] You can't act.
-What you say?
[mumbling]
You can't act, you can't--
Don't be shy.
Don't be shy.
You can say,
but what you're saying?
You can't act.
-You can't act?
-What?
You are not an actress,
that you're--you're
in the wrong line of work.
You can't act.
How do you mean?
You can't act!
You can't act.
It's not your thing.
-I can't act?
-No.
You wanted the truth.
That's the truth.
You're not an actress.
So fire me, then.
I can't fire you.
I mean, I wouldn't think
of firing you.
I can't.
Right.
Because then you lose rain
and the little horse
and the fountain of soda.
I understand why I am
in show now, Richard Bean.
There's another possibility.
You could, of your own
volition, simply quit.
Just walk away.
You insult me, Richard Bean.
You insult my spirit.
No one talking to Russian
women in this way.
-Nadia.
-I'm knowing
when it is I'm not wanted,
Richard Bean.
-Na--Nadia?
-Good evening.
Nadia. Nadia!
Na--
[quietly] Nadia.
Nadia.
[quietly] Nadia.
[thud]
I'm fucked!
Fuck!
[upbeat music]
[intriguing music]