Writing Web Novels In America-Chapter 314 - 317: Invitation

"Broadway?"

Inside a villa on the Upper West Side, Wang Jian, wearing pajamas, sat on the sofa, staring blankly at a beautiful card.

Broadway and himself—there shouldn’t be any connection, right...

Why would they send him an invitation to be a judge for their highest honors, the Tony Awards?

Of course, had it been an invitation to the Oscars or the Grammys, he might not have given it much thought.

After all, watching films or listening to pop songs at home is something he could do as pastime.

But the Tony Awards?

That required attending the theater and watching the performances live!

Not to mention, Broadway’s decline had been increasingly evident since the nineties.

Just the thought of those operas made Wang Jian quite uninterested.

For him, this stuff was a bit too high-end.

"After all, I’d need to watch the nominated ten operas!"

Wang Jian pondered for a moment, then dialed Mr. Stephen King’s number.

As a writer who became a judge for this prize, he only knew this "King of Bestsellers."

"The Tony Award?" Stephen King was momentarily stunned, then let out a chuckle.

"This means you’ve been recognized, an invitation to be a Tony Awards judge is considered an invitation from the United States’s top art circles."

"Of course, as writers, we ultimately rely on our own work to speak for us."

"You could do like I do, watch just one show, then cast a casual vote. Or you could ignore it altogether like Neil Gaiman."

A symbol of status?

Wang Jian considered for a moment, still deciding to see one show.

The main reason was that, with no work at hand, he was somewhat restless.

A secondary reason was that the artist identity was just too useful...

According to Stephen King, the judges included classical musicians, painters, sculptors, etc., with little relation to musical theater, and the selection process was also quite lax.

However, it was best to dress up, much like attending a classical music concert, when going to see a special judges’ performance.

Not only did he need to wear a suit and shoes, but he also had to bring a female partner.

"But how many people are interested in musicals anyway?"

Wang Jian thought for a moment, then dialed Vera Farmiga’s number.

After the first season of "Anomalies" ended, she should still be in a rest period and had not taken on any new projects.

Besides, as a former Broadway actress, she probably had a higher tolerance for operas.

"Miss Saigon? As a judge’s companion?" Vera’s shriek pierced through the phone nearly shredding Wang Jian’s eardrums.

"I would love to, of course I would!"

"Wang, are you at home? I’ll come right over with the costume!"

Shoot, am I just a teddy bear in her eyes?

"No need, there’s still a chance tonight..."

Wang Jian hung up the phone, helplessly curling the corners of his mouth.

Just a musical, if it weren’t for the added status, he really wouldn’t be particularly keen.

"This Vera, is she overdoing it?"

Forget it...

Wang Jian shook his head and walked into the bedroom to start choosing his clothes.

Around six in the evening, outside New York’s Metropolitan Opera House.

Vera Farmiga in a red evening gown, arm in arm with Wang Jian, appeared with a beaming smile.

Honestly, having become a second-tier TV star through "Anomalies," she had no plans to act in any musicals in the future.

After all, TV dramas and movies had a wider audience and paid better.

Moreover, her days on Broadway truly left her with no fondness for that place.

Many say the competition in the United States entertainment industry is fierce, countless actresses sell their bodies for a role.

But compared to Broadway, what is that worth?

Regardless of quality, Hollywood starts shooting roughly thousands of films a year.

And operas?

Once you hit a hundred, it’s called a "Broadway" year.

This directly led to the fact that, besides the famous actors, the bottom-tier of Broadway had little chance to be exploited by unwritten rules.

On her way to shoot "Anomalies", Vera swore she would never come back to this godforsaken place again.

Although she went back on her word, she was very happy in her heart.

Vera watched as Wang Jian handed over the invitation to the jury to the ticket inspector, who then respectfully escorted him to his seat.

"Because everything is different now!"

"Vera?"

At that moment, a surprised voice rang out behind her.

Vera turned her head and saw it was a former companion.

They had once worked part-time together at Wang Jian’s apartment, and also sought opportunities on Broadway together.

But now, she had become a second-tier star, while her former companion was still hurriedly wearing the apartment’s uniform and rushing backstage.

"It’s been a while," said Vera, embracing the other warmly, showing genuine affection.

After all, they had relied on each other for a long time in the gilded city of New York.

Their friendship was quite sincere.

But the next words from her companion nearly erased all her goodwill.

"If there’s ever an opportunity, could you recommend me?" her companion asked timidly.

Then, she stealthily pointed at Wang Jian, "And, could you introduce him to me sometime?"

Introduce him to you?

If possible, Vera even wished she could be the only woman Wang Jian was fascinated with.

During this time, she deeply understood the importance of relying on a major figure in the entertainment industry.

Not to mention, on the set of "Anomalies", the respect she and Naomi received was unprecedented, just because she had let slip her connection with Wang Jian.

"Heh, not this time, but definitely next time," Vera laughed as she rejected the request, "Also, you need to hurry to the backstage to do your makeup."

"Who was that just now?" Wang Jian took the voting card from the staff member and casually asked as he turned his head.

"Uh..." Vera hesitated, "An unrelated person."

Soon, as the curtain rose, the famous opera "Miss Saigon" officially began.

Vera watched her former companion onstage, acting as a silent human backdrop, and then she thought about herself.

She couldn’t help but sit up straighter, yearning to catch the attention of those former competitors on stage, and found herself leaning closer to the man beside her.

But Wang Jian was unmoved by this.

He frowned at the stage, feeling a sense of discomfort.

For this so-called classic opera was just a melodramatic story of an Asian unmarried girl falling in love with a married American soldier.

For the male lead, the female lead actually abandoned her childhood sweetheart, her relatives, and even her country, to travel thousands of miles to the United States to become the other woman.

"No wonder some people say that no matter how you render it, white people are inherently racist!"

"You believe yourselves to be superior to other ethnicities!"

Wang Jian pondered for a moment and then straight-up gave the lowest score on the ballot.

"Mr. Wang, don’t you like this musician?"

A middle-aged man’s voice sounded beside him.

Wang Jian looked up to see he actually knew the man.

Roger Ebert, one of Joseph Keller’s students, a third-rate writer.

Of course, his more widely known identity was that of a drama and film critic, with significant influence over important awards, including the Oscars.

"Um, not really," Wang Jian nodded in response.

"Neither do I. The actors in this musical are too green. It was nominated purely on the basis of ’Miss Saigon’s’ own fame," Roger nodded and wrote the lowest score on his ballot as well.

"By the way, Mr. Wang’s ’Anomalies’ has been nominated for an Emmy Award," said the critic with a smile. ƒrēenovelkiss.com

"But ’Friends’ really has been the most popular TV show in recent years."

"Although ’Anomalies’ seems to have a certain chance due to some controversies."

"That controversy is not enough to make the jurors switch their votes from ’Friends’ to ’Anomalies.’"

Roger paused, "Although I chose ’Anomalies’, please convey my apologies to the teacher on my behalf, Mr. Wang."

"Heh, first of all, thank you, Mr. Roger Ebert, for liking ’Anomalies,’" Wang Jian laughed openly, "I think Mr. Keller certainly wouldn’t mind."

Roger looked at Wang Jian’s indifferent expression and nodded unconsciously.

"This kind of attitude may be the difference between me and top-tier writers."

But what he didn’t know was that what Wang Jian was thinking at that moment was, "Whether ’Anomalies’ wins the Emmy Award or not is ABC’s business."

"Does it have anything to do with me, even for a cent?"

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