Image Credit: Giovanni Rufino/The CW Gossip Girl
A very special Nov. 14 episode will find the gang attending Sleep No More, the provocative live show that contains elements of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. “It took months to get it together,” executive producer Josh Safran tells EW exclusively of the super-secret filming of the episode. “It was incredible to use their space, their actors… the whole thing. We like to do a masked ball every year, and this just dials it up so many notches. We were very much attuned to keep Sleep No More‘s secrets. At the same time, they were also really helpful in letting us utilize stuff that they maybe normally wouldn’t. We shot there for two days — several of the rooms, different floors.”
Sleep No More, known for its dark tone and unconventional approach to theater entertainment, also provided a perfect backdrop to tell a twistier story, Safran said. “Unlike our previous masquerade balls, there’s blood; it’s darker. There’s Lady Macbeth, there’s Macbeth. It’s a little more twisted than usual, and that episode also holds in it so many surprising, romantic twists … It’s sort of a big, sexy, blood, everything-comes-to-a-head kind of an episode.”
For Safran, the chance to go a little darker is a perk that comes with having young adult characters. “They’re older. Now we can go to these dark places,” he says. “The episode is still very fun, by the way. In fact, in some ways, it’s probably even more fun than a usual masquerade ball for us because it’s all of these characters connecting and missing each other. It’s really sort of allowed us a broader range of emotions for the characters in a weird way — they’re dealing with adult issues. It’s sort of a big turning point episode for everybody.”
Including, he teases, Gossip Girl herself! “I don’t mean as a person, I mean as an idea,” he clarifies. “[But] Gossip Girl becomes a part of the plot in a major way that episode.” In sum, he says, “Even if you haven’t [seen Sleep No More], it’s fun if you’re just a fan of Gossip Girl because they really kind of all perfectly-matched worlds.”
Follow Sandra on Twitter: @EWSandraG
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Bring back GG recaps PLEASE!
I second that
Coming from a Gossip Girl fan, this season has been beyond disappointing.
LOL, I love how he spoke a lot but didn’t really tell me anything. I am interested to see how Macbeth coincides with the stories of the characters. Fingers crossed real tight there’s some good Chuck and Blair in this episode. I’ve really missed them this season.
…You wouldn’t happen to have gotten any good ingo on them that you can share, have you, Sandra? Pretty please? With cherries on top?
Obviously by “ingo,” I meant info, but I suck. Still: my bowing and scraping still stands, Any info on Chuck and Blair would make you a goddess in my eyes. Chuck was so wonderful in the Chuck/Louis scene that I just wanted to hug him. Is there any hope for him to get closer to Blair again in the next few episodes, despite her baby and engagement?
Gossip Girl has been kind of missing that special thing and I think it’s because there’s so little Chuck and Blair this season. It just doesn’t feel right without them.
Thanks for the article, but can we get a Chuck and Blair scoop because I really need it to continue watching GG.
This episode sounds a little warped. I’m not sure I’m that interested. With this wedding stuff and no Chair interaction this season is a bit of a dud.
So that’s 5.07 and the episode where Blair has a dream? Sounds exciting, and I hope some of the romantic twists include Chair!
Why am I not excited for Gossip Girl this year…..oh, yeah, because Blair and Chuck have had a total of 3 minutes together. Thanks Sandra but I’m not into Safran’s Gossip Girl these days.
Is it wrong of me to hope the “blood” mentioned is the miscarriage of Blair’s baby and that awful storyline? Yeah, probably.
Ugh, that’s exactly what I thought, too! But then he promised the episode would be fun, and I thought there’s NO WAY he’s that sick…
I doubt that considering in 5.10 filming pictures she’s pregnant still.
Chuck and Blair have not been in too many scenes and thus the show hasn’t been great.I hope we get scenes here
lol, awful, maybe, but man I so agree. I don’t want to see Blair Waldorf anywhere near a baby, to be honest. Blair Waldorf and mommy duties? ugh, noooo.
Dying to find out about CB in this episode!!! Awww, how much I miss them. Gossip Girl lost its spark without them.
I fear anytime Safran says fun. His idea of fun was last years mess of a season and this season isn’t any better off. Get it straight GG, we want Chair not boring wedding or boring dan
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He said this season would be “fun” and “light” and as a Blair and Chuck fan I’m not seeing that right now. Is anyone really caring about the wedding? I’d rather they build CB. Best thing is Chuck growing that’s it.
I love that they filmed there and I’m excited for that! I’d be even more excited if it included Chuck and Blair. They are needed!!!! And this type of set up is perfect for them!
Josh has really mastered the idea of saying everything without say anything at all lol. Please more Chair!
Where are the GG recaps anymore?
Macbeth and Lady Macbeth? All I can think of is Chuck and Blair in that reference.
Blair better not lose the baby and that baby better be Chuck’s not that boring prince.