From the ACLU, this is at Liberty.

I'm Emerson Sykes, a staff attorney here at the ACLU and your host.

A surprise hit from the last Broadway season is an original play that's uniquely relevant to the ACLU's work.

It's called What the Constitution Means to Me.

Our guest today is Heidi Shrek, the writer and star of the play, which was nominated for two Tonys and was a Pulitzer finalist.

It's inspired by Heidi Shrek's experience as a teenager, competing in

debates about the Constitution at American Legion Halls across the country. As an adult,

she revisits her personal connection to the Constitution to see how her relationship with the

document, an American democracy on the whole, hold up in new light. What the Constitution

means to me wrestles with big questions,

like, who's included in the phrase, we the people? And how do we reckon with the complicated

role the legal system plays in advancing social progress and equality? Heidi Shrek, thanks very much

for joining us in the studio. Welcome to the podcast. Thank you. It's a real pleasure to have you

in the studio. I have seen your play Thank you. It's a real pleasure to have you in the studio.

I have seen your play not just once but twice. And so just for those who haven't had the chance

to see the play yet, it's kind of three shows in one. It starts out with a reenactment where you're

in character as teenage you. And then there's more of a monologue in your present day voice.

Yes. And then it ends with a debate. in your present-day voice. Yes.

And then it ends with a debate.

So it's got a few moving parts.

But for those who haven't seen it, can you just describe what the play is really about?

Sure.

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