and who decides what foods may be on your plate? the show may be over but the conversation continues on @ajconsiderthis. we'll see you next sometime. ime. >> hi owner. this is al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler in new york. 11 in the east, eight in the west. you're watching the only live newscast at this hour. [ bugel ] >> forever grateful on the 70th anniversary of d day. president obama and the world leaders honor the heroes who change the covers history. bank of marijuana, the first for colorado's booming pot business but will it back fire?

>> seeing is believing with google's prototype tablet. 3d motion sensors and cameras. only the first. >> her brilliant career, director, choreographer, trail blaze are, my conversation with tony winner susan stroman. the numbers are astounding. on d day exactly 70 years ago more than 150,000 troops came ashore at normandy. for the world, it was the turning point. so much has changed since then but at the same time, much has remained the same. this is a beach off the coast of normandy. here is the exact location from 1944. ceremonies across northern france marked the anniversary

today and dana lewis reports. >> american f-fancy rattled the quiet of omaha beach today. but the sound was only a whisper compared to the roar of the bloody battle of d day. 20,000 americans died here seven years ago, the largest amg fib use invasion in -- amphibious invasion in history. 9,387 u.s. soldiers are buried at the time cemetery there. president obama called normandy america's beach head in europe. >> our claim to equality, to freedom and to the inherent zig tonight of every human being, that dignity is written on the blood on these beaches and it will endure for eternity.

>> 6:30 a.m. the exact time the americans came on shore under hef fire. one of those mentioned by the president in his speech was bill colwell. he was dropped by helicopter under heavy fire. >> it was a very, very nasty thing. i had no idea what it would be like. i don't think any of us did. we were all in the same boat, a bunch of young kids. >> dressed in u.s. soldiers uniforms, celebrating d day in the allied sacrifice, as a great diplomat of liberation from nazi occupation. arriving at the d day celebrations president obama was applaud he along with the royal emfamily. in sharp contrast, there were no applause for president putin.

french president francois hollande tried to use politician behind. if we today can live in peace, if we can live in safety, if we can live in sovereignty protected by the laws we have chosen he said, it is thanks to these men who gave their lives. i declare here on this beach that france is eternally grateful. this anniversary is so poignant because many of these veterans are in their 90s. this was their last chance to honor loss comrades and lost sacrifices. dana lewis, al jazeera, sword beach, normandy. >> near houston the french government awarded the legion of honor to 36 u.s. veterans. heidi zhou-castro reports. >> on d day the u.s.s. texas

fired on the hills above utah and omaha beach, ig giving cover to thousands of troops on the beach below. the ship remains tranquil, in the houston harbor. but fireman first class howard mills. >> it means everything. it means this was my home for over two years. >> reporter: mills turned 19 years old on d day. he had no idea his birthday present would be the battle of his lifetime. >> i was in turret 5, fifth division. we took care of turret 5. i was a shell handler, a 14 inch shell handler. >> his job was to hoist these 1200 pound shells using this pulley system, to the gun topside. during the normandy invasion he was here for four days straight

working without rest. >> so these were the people that were on the beach. and my heart goes out to them. from the standpoint, i had the ship here. i didn't have to suffer like they did. >> reporter: more than 9,000 allied troops were killed or wounded on d day. >> to texas friday, the houston consulate gem, awarded the legion of honor to 36 veterans. >> they not only fought for their country, the united states of america, but they also fought for my country, france, as if it were their own country. for that, france will never forget. >> we prayed together and we fought together. it's part of the lord, i guess. the biggest thing that ever happened to me, really, it was.

>> on this d day anniversary, mills is turning 89 years old. >> happy birthday to you ♪ >> a shining medal is his birthday present this time around. presented board the ship that carried him to the shores of normandy 70 years ago. heidi zhou-castro, al jazeera, la port, texas. >> now to good economic news. the may jobs report shows more growth for four months in a row. total payrolls are finally above where they were before the financial crisis but the employment rate stayed about the same. about 10 million people are still out of work. it's been nearly a week since sergeant bowe bergdahl was released for five taliban prisoners. tonight president obama is defending the swap. the white house has been under pressure for not notifying

congress ahead of time. they said it would have endangered bergdahl's life and president obama said it was worth it. >> the fact is: we are ending a war in afghanistan. we have releasein both my administration and previous administrations a large number of former taliban prisoners, some whom returned to the battle field. but by definition, you don't do prisoner swaps with one of your friends. >> said sergeant bergdahl was treated well in cap tifts. in text they're openly carrying powe powerful rifles te text convention this week. interbaned from restaurants like chipotle's starbucks and chilis.

long guns are legal to carry openly, and about 30 people brought them outside the texas republican convention in fort worth. chris miller is a mechanic who's engaged. he says he's just a regular guy who really doesn't want to carry his ar-15 for protection. he's just doing it to make a point. >> i just believe as free citizens we should have the option to conceal or openly carry. if you can openly carry an ar 15 or a shotgun or a black powder resolver, if you can get arres arrestfor concealed carrying, that's something we want to change. we're supposed to be the gun capitol of the world essentially. >> the controversial demonstrations make some people

uncomfortable. however, approaching folks around the state gop convention. are. >> appreciate it. >> chris miller says his group is not out to scare or intimidate but do the opposite. >> you see us meeting all the time, bad guy with the gun, bad guy this bad guy that. we want to show people that good people own guns, attorneys, mechanics, anybody. >> tara cowan is somebody. she says it's not practical carrying an ar-15 for protection. she wants to carry a handgun without concealing it. >> it takes time to pull out a handgun from where it's concealed. that's wrong. if i need it, i should be able to pull up and shoot it. >> one person that wants to see open-carry handguns passed a

great grandmother. >> beverly donahue doesn't want to use it. >> i don't want to be a radical or a weirdie, i just want my second amendment rights. >> bringing long guns out into businesses is hurting the cause. the demonstrators disagree and don't plan to to be. mark schneider, al jazeera, fort worth. >> coming up later this hour, texas republican's party platform endorsing gay conversion therapy. i'll find out what a gay republican from texas thinks about it. >> general motors recalls keep coming, it announced four for radio and diagnosic. some of those have been put off for 13 years, some resulting in

deaths. leaving the company with a string of legal suits. shops that sell marijuana are facing financial security. today colorado's governor signed a bill into law approving the world's first banking system for the pot industry. paul beban has the story. >> since recreational marijuana became legal on january 1st, business has been booming. but one big problem. while it's perfectly legal in colorado it is illegal, they have to pay their bills in cash, they have to pay their taxes in cash. they have to pay their employees in cash. and that of course creates a lot of lojlogistic problems.

the are pot related businesses couriers say they are being targeted by thieves. so what the legislature and the governor here are hoping to do is set up something like a co-op or credit union that would be specific to pot businesses to allow them to process checks and credit cards. however they can't do that without a signoff from the federal reserve which is indicated they are not going to go that near of a short active congress, change pg marijuana laws. while business advocates for the marijuana industry are very hopeful that this will send a signal to federal regulators, this is not final piece of the buzz l in colorado. paul be beban, al jazeera, denv. >> average 90,000 vehicles are

being diverted into downtown wilmington traffic. officials admit they tooking too ttooktooling to inspect too long to do the inspection. minor damage, kevin corriveau is joining us with the weather update. kevin. >> john, we've been having the conversation all along about the storm damage across the united states. tonight, we're looking at damage that happened in south dakota. video that came in that region, hail that came down very strong winds also created quite a bit of damage. and also quite a bit of flooding across the region. hail was about a dime to quarter size in this region. we also saw lots of damage in parts of arkansas.

this was dealing with straight line wind damage, structural damage to a lot of cars as well. come back to the weather i'll show you what we expect to see in the flex day. now we're dealing with a lot of storms that are coming across the high plains and it's only going to get worse as the night progresses. we have seen a lot of wind damage and then here are those tornadoes that we saw anywhere from parts of wyoming anywhere to new mexico. this is what we're look for this evening. tornado watches that are in effect. texas, oklahoma, part of kansas, and tomorrow, john, what we have seen all week long is going to continue through most of the states that have already seen damage. this is going to continue all the way through at least saturday evening. back to you. >> kevin corriveau, thank you. the drought has led to worse

nifngworsening. sometimes in baja, california sometimes no water at all. jennifer london reports. >> in this sprawling community you'll find a street that means waterfall, which is ironic, people have been without water for weeks. >> there is no water for the bathroom to wash clothes or do the dishes. >> manuel's father hasn't had water for weeks. the problem is not the pipes. >> the problem is the drought since we've had in 2009. it's affected the whole area. >> this is what the city's where unprecedented water shortage looks like. ensenada relies entirely on well water and reservoirs.

both are nearly dry. in january city officials began rationing water, which is a polite way of saying, the water was turned off three or four days a week. as the drought got worse, so has the rationing. marina: >> it's terrific not to have water. in order to conserve water we need to get used to a sink full of dishes before we wash them. >> the only water for residents come from these storage tanks. but even this water is in short supply. >> the crisis is clearly twofold, clearly there is not enough water. part of this reservoir has turned into a road, you have cows grazing. what water there is is oftentimes dirty and isn't safe to use. many residents end up using bleach to treat the water

they've managed to collect. but if you travel downtown where the tourists say you would never know ensenada is drying up. locals living outside of town are the ones paying the price. >> we understand they're upset. they have a right to get good service. we have to save our responsibility that in the past we didn't do a lot of things we should have done. and we are suffering for that. this is the area we're are working now. >> alvarado says they are finally doing what they should have done all along. look for new sources of water. the immediate solution is two underground wells that have just been completed this week. and desalination, which is more of a pipe dream than a reality. which means that people here find themselves high and dry

caught in the unprecedented water crisis. jennifer london, ensenada, mex. >> for the fastest internet it is not in silicon valley. it's in a are city in tmz. jonathan martin reports. >> now an ultrahigh speed internet service. >> it's about 100 times faster than the national average. >> is driving growth in this small tennessee city. >> just so much easier to do everything. >> chattanooga's fiberoptic system transfers at 1 gigabyte per second, on par with hong kong which has the fastest internet in the world. >> gig city, the first city to have a gig. >> chattanooga, tennessee has

become the world's first gig city. >> looking to upgrade its power distribution center, not only improve the power grid but with over $330 million of bonds and federal stimulus grants, the city created a fine are opti -- fiberoptic system. chattanooga's chamber of commerce reports in the last three years more than 30 companies have moved here because of the gig, creating more than 3,000 jobs. jack said the gig was a key reason for expanding in chattanooga. >> you realize how much time and money you're saving on each and every transaction. i got an hour of my life back or four hours of my life back. >> the easy to see, video files, we uploaded a youtube video in

just over a minute. it would take four minutes in other places. a few other cities have their fiberoptic systems too. and google added fiberoptic systems in three cities with plans for more. >> when it comes to internet connectivity, we're well behind. i wouldn't say five years, ten years a lot more cities will have it if not most cities by then hopefully. >> chattanooga sees itself as having a head start on the rest of the country and the leaders are pushing past the basics. finding new ways to take new advantage of this new pace of networking. jonathan martin, chattanooga, tens. >> the truth about eyewitness testimony. plus face to face. president obama and russian president putin meet in normandy.

the game's really really grown. >> gaining popularity. >> people are crazy for it. >> is now the time for u.s. soccer? >> anything is possible. i believe that this u.s. team, we can beat anybody. >> the stream, tomorrow 5:30 eastern. only on al jazeera america.

>> north korea is naming the third american citizen deindependent at a in that country since november. north korea's news agency

identifies him as jeffrey edward fowe. media reports he may have left a piebl in his room. -- bible in his room. two other americans are being held. a encounter between president obama and russian president vladimir putin today. the two met face to face for the first time since the ukrainian crisis began. >> speaking with 15 minutes with the russian leader after all. a behind the scenes discussion caught on video. a cease fire in the ukraine was part of the topics. and also met with petro poroshenko in a meeting brokered by germany's angela merkel.

including opening up a dialogue with poroshenko and recognizing his government as letting and ceasing efforts to destabilize eastern ukraine. the obama-putin meeting was even more of a surprise. it looked like the chill between the president and putin had grown colder as each men seemed to ignore the other. a day of solemn ceremony and commemoration. final resting place for almost 10,000 americans near omaha beach, president praised american veterans of the battle who were present and paid tribute to those who gave their all. >> whenever the world makes you cynical, whenever you doubt the courage and goodness is

possible, stop and think of these men. >> u.s. officials regard both meetings, the obama-putin meeting and the putin-poroshenko meeting, as hopeful, but they warned, this has happened before. >> first message, we can neither confirm or deny that this is our first tweet. hours later they sent out this, thank you for the twitter welcome. we welcome sharing unclassified news with you. this cia pla platform has alreay over 300,000 followers. we'll talk to one gop law make are, plus race day. california chrome's bid to make history and we talked to the

jockey who says, it's going to happen.

>> this is al jazeera america. i'm john siegenthaler in new york. and coming up conversion controversy. texas republicans about the new party platform saying gay conversion therapy is okay. eyewitness identification. why it not be so crucial for police officers anymore. and broadway's best. my conversation with award winning director, choreographer susan stroarm. stroman. in wisconsin, a federal judge struck down the ban on same sex marriage. it's the 27th state where courts have accepted gay marriage as legal unions. but the state's attorney general is seeking an emergency court order to stop it. a lawsuit in north dakota is also challenging the state's bans. it's the last state in the country to be sued by couples seeking the right to marry in

their home state. now some text republicans are endorsing psychological treatment to turn gays straight. they call it repair tiff therapy. gay republicans in texas say they may not fight their party's push for it. tougher antigay language might enter the platform which is increasingly anti-gay. joining us is rudy eftering, a member of the group metro republicans. thank you to the show. >> you guys talk about refreshing issues. >> what do you think of this draft legislation? >> i tell you what. this initial thought we had was perhaps we shouldn't fight it. but over the last 24 hours we

have received so much support from the delegates inside the convention, they don't want the story to be that the republican party endorses gay therapy. they want the story to be that the republicans endorse a great candidate, greg abbott for governor. >> what do you think this says? >> they say the gap is between the rank and file and a small part of the party leadership that continues to push, we have been successful in getting the antigay military plank taken out of the platform this time. we've removed some horrible language about homosexuality tearing at the fabric of society. if the rank and file realize that if the party is going to grow we've got to get away from the party of limited tolerance and become the party of limited

government. >> but how does this kind of language impact the party long term? >> well, we think it would be negative for the party long term. as a matter of fact, there's a growing mood within the convention. tomorrow the gavel will come down on this issue, and we plan to make every effort to make the delegates realize that the country's changing. attitudes are changing. inside the republican party. every young republican you talk to says that we need to get away from issues like this, and concentrate on the core issues that win republicans elections. and those are limited government, lower taxes, common sense health care solutions, and issues like that. >> the natural question might be, why are you in the republican party to begin with? >> well, i'll tell you. i grew up very poor. the free enterprise system allowed me to escape poverty. i want to keep that platform in for other people. that's why i'm a republican and that's why i emphasize those

issues. i was the first openly gay chairman of one of the most conservative organizations in text texas, the texas association of business and commerce. it's because the business community has been way ahead on this issue and the business community is wanting there to be good roads, good schools and a good infrastructure system, so texas can keep growing. since distraction he of gay therapy, these distractions about language in the party of homosexuals, are just that distractions. >> you think this type of language threatens to run gay republicans out of the party. >> if we were going to be run out we would have been run out a long time ago. we're going to stay republicans. >> why do you think republicans are still in power? >> well, i'll tell you why republicans are still in power. because most of the policies we have are very positive and proactive. the business of either party is

governing. who can govern the country the best, who can govern the state the best, who can govern the county the best. and the republican party over and over again proves that our policies work. but unfortunately sometimes we tend to want to shoot ourselves in the foot by putting in language platforms that tells gay people they are sick and need to be fixed. that is simply not accurate. let mee me tell you there's a growing ground swell in the republican party. i don't know, it can be. there is a tremendous movement in the republican party to move away from the gay issues, and concentrate on the issues that win us elections. because this plank is simply bad politics. no matter how you look at it. >> we'll be watching this. rudy eftering thanks so much. >> thanks for having me on, i appreciate it.

eyewitness testimony, ash-har quraishi reports on this report. >> he quickly jumped on top of me, i felt something sharp go against the left side of my neck. he told me to shut up or he would kill me. >> jennifer thompson was raped in her apartment. she kept her eyes focused, to memorize every detail. >> it gave me a job, survive, know everything about him. you're going to know who this person is and send him to prison the firs rest of his life. >> she did. he was convicted and tensed to life in prison but 11 years

later, dna evidence cleared cotton and led to another man who was eventually convicted. >> in the minds of juries, a positive eyewitness identification is almost the gold standard. >> but since 1989, dna testing last exonerated 289 convicted of sexual assault. most often the victim identified them. rob wardon says science has proven over and over the unreliability of eyewitness identification. >> one of the things so tragic to my mind about the criminal justice system is we allow a conviction to stand only on a single eyewitness identification. >> neuroscientists here at northwestern university has mapped the brain's memory process and why it is so often

long. interput this on one past part of -- part of the ear where there is no pulse. >> we have stored some information, and then at the time of retrieval when we're remembering we use those bits of information to reconstruct the whole story. >> thompson says her own eyes and memory failed her, despite her own efforts. a mistake she had to live with for the rest of her life. >> i feel completely responsible even though detectives and assistant district attorneys, say this is everybody always fault. the system failed you, i took it as my fault, i bore all the responsibility on my shoulders. >> now unlikely partners, thompson and cotton have traveled the country, hoping

that it will help. ash-har quraishi. al jazeera, chicago. >> jessica taff has the story of california chrome. >> in the sport of kings, linda rice may be considered queen. she's one of the most successful female trainers in north america. no surprise if you know her lineage. having grown up in a family where everyone was in the industry, rice was already a certified trainer by the time she was 23. a new york trainer of the year. >> a lot of people talk about female trainers, it is a novelty, but for you, it's been second nature since day 1. tell me about your history. >> yes, i've been training horses in new york for two decades now since i moved to new york and i was a bit of a novelty when i showed up.

>> rice's history speaks for itself. she has won nearly 1200 races to go along with 40 million in prize money. she even made history in saratoga in 2009 when she was the first female to finish in the training. first female trainer to win a triple crown race. >> he may be running in the belmont, i certainly have my eye on the travers, that's on my bucket list. >> what is it that makes rice a great trainer? it's like being a talent scout and a coach. >> you have to train your players and you know between fitness and weight training and you also have to judge their abilities as to what their strengths and their weaknesses

are. >> rice admits. she spends more time with horses than people. >> i had a horse named soldier field, who was one of my favorite, favorite horses. he won all over the country, every track, california, new york, he was a terrific shipper and great performer. he wasn't my most successful but my favorite. >> at belmont, jessica taff, al jazeera. >> a new phone is in development which will be able to sense the room you're in. and map your building. and it will do so all from your pocket. jake ward has that remarkable story. >> john back in february google debuted something it called project tango which the company said giving mobile device he a human scale of understanding and moses.

now -- and motion. now that means google is trying to put sensors into their devices that will allow the devices to understand which room of your house they're in, they'll probably even know what pocket of your pants they're in. they're going to recognize your face most likely. in february google put out a prototype phone that could take advantage of sensors like that. now they've announced the first tablet with the same idea. big beautiful 10 adp display. it's a monster. but what makes it different is it's absolutely bristling with ways of watching and measuring you and your environment. it has a wide angle camera that faces you. and it has a big powerful camera in the back that sees very well in the dark. that should be useful.

an integrated depth sensor, a tablet version of the knex. the research is going to change a lot of things in our lives. data scientists have been trying to quantify not only human behavior but human interactions with other people. wearing quies he that track their movements and listen to the tone of their voice. researchers came away with all sorts of data about improving efficiency, at a call center, based on how fast people work after taking a break. now this sort of quantification is what google is after here. right now when you surf the web you're used to the idea that google serves up ads based on what you're look at on the last

page. they could know that you and your kids are in the room, you are playing a game, what game you're playing, suggest what you might enjoy like a beverage, who knows, whatever it is your personal devices are about to know a lot more about you. >> that's jake ward in san francisco tonight. show stopping's a signature for seurch stroman. a creative force -- susan stroman. winner of five tony awards, up for another this sunday. i talked with her about her legendary career, her latest work, bullets over broadway. i asked her how they got started in the business. >> well, i've been in dancing school since i was about five years old. my father was a wonderful piano player. he would play every day, so the house was filled with music. he would play the piano and i would dance around the living

room and create dances to his music. and when ad from astaire movie would come on our television, it was a big deal for my motor and father and -- for my mother and father and family to be around the television. when i got older i started doing community theater and high school and just couldn't get enough of it. >> so you -- i mean i can't even list all the shows that you've been involved in but just to name a few. the producer young frankenstein, big fish, bullets over broadway. you're nominated for another tony. five tonies. the show is up for how many? >> six tony awards. >> this weekend? >> yes, on sunday night. >> what's it like at this point in your career? obviously you have had successor

in your career but at there point what does it mean? >> it's nothing like it, live performance. you never forget broadway show you see, you can't remember the movie you saw friday night but you'll remember the play you saw. it's something about the life performances, life affirming, everything about it. to do rehearsal for sunday night you know i was thrilled. it never gets old. never gets old. every moment of it is exciting. >> tell us the job of a choreographer. >> for example, in bullets you immerse yourself in the time. for 1929 it's of course charleston. but also the choreography is based on the architecture of new york, at that time in the '20s, vargas girls, held

cartoons, and you see the lamps of the girls holding the balls in their hands from the '20s. and all those wonderful illustrations, so the look is very threng. you do the -- very authentic. we have an arranger, glen kelly who is very visual. i go in a room with him and tell him how the dance should go and he takes the music and opens it up for the distance. so i work it in a room first and then get dancers in front of me and teach it to them. >> are you under nowadays compared to 20 years ago, when it comes to a big show like this, i mean the pressure to succeed and the pressure to have a hilt, because it's not easy to produce a show and it's not inexpensive. >> no. it's a miracle a musical gets

done, it really is, because of the finances everything is very expensive. >> do you have to have a star? >> not necessarily a star -- >> a tony-winning choreographer? >> you know, it as the a good story in the end. there are a lot of shows that have limited runs for a movie star's schedule. we're very lucky to have the wonderful zack braff, a tv star, who is so funny, he really does sing and dance around he's a good leader of the company. ♪ >> most of the people who do the work you do is men, right? >> it is male-dominated. >> how tough is it for women? >> it is getting easier. not only in the profession of

the theater but most professions women are in i think they're criticized more. so it's trying to get through that which is a little tricky. but it is -- it is getting easier. there are more of us. and i think when i first started i did feel a bit more like how could she possibly be in charge of a musical? now i'm good to go. i think it's okay now. >> so tonight's image of the day is coming up next plus: >> you have to believe in it. have passion. it is a tough business. >> we'll hear more from seurch stroman. her incredible -- susan stroman. her wisdom for women hoping to make it there.

>> earlier we talked about the severe weather here in the southeast as well as across the high plains. if you want some better weather this weekend come up near the northeast, we are looking for plenty of sunshine. so tomorrow of course the belmont stakes are happening in the early evening. temperatures we expect to be in the high 70s. high temperature for new york though will be about 83°. that will be about 4:00, so by the time we get to the race, temperatures will drop off to the high 50s, bum, star filled night. albany, beautiful and about 83. for new york we do expect the temperatures to come back on sunday to about 84. by the time we get to mid week

we'll see more humidity and chance of thunderstorms coming into play there. southwest, heat warnings, heat situations in place. that's not going ochange. we'll see those temperatures on saturday very, very warm, phoenix into texas. coastal california temperature 78°, maybe a little bit warmer as we go towards sunday. salt lake city, 78. that's a look at your national weather, news coming up right after this. this.

>> in the second part of my interview with director and choreographer susan stroman, we talk about the new generation of broadway hopefuls, and i asked her what advice she had for girls looking to follow in her footsteps. >> you have to believe and have passion. it's a tough business. >> why is it tough for women? you might think that broadway is more open than the rest of society. >> yes. i might be -- you know what? i don't know. it might be just because of the finances and the fear of investors losing so much money. i'm not sure why it is. >> i mean when they're looking for a choreographer or a director or people to star in a

show how do you choose? it's a small club, right? >> yes, well, it is like a catch 22, you have to have something up or running for someone to see your work. and i was very lucky when i was young, i had an off-broadway show called and the world goes round which was the cantor and ebb, just about their work and then i had liza's show at radio city music hall. so when they were looking for a director for crazy fuse and i had extravaganza of liza. and he chose me to do, crazy few. >> so they said did you see extravaganza of liza and they say yes. >> it's a real catch 22. it's hard for people to get started.

>> i guess you were in previews first are right? >> yes. >> what's it like to watch as the show is just beginning to open up, from the audience, from your standpoint? >> when i'm working with woody or the actors, it's all about immersing yourself in the art of it. you don't think about tony awards or anything until that first night you have an audience. and the audience is the last thing you add. the last thing you add to make a musical. >> where do you sit? >> i sit in the back row. but you can feel the breath of an audience. you can feel if something is going too long or too quickly or you don't understand anything. >> what if they don't laugh at the right time? >> then that joke is out. woody allen would come in with this script for the actors. >> during previews? >> during previews. he would hear the audience, that

joke is out. >> you're reacting to every law of every applause. >> absolutely. >> we haven't had a chance to sit down and talk. if it tastes from lighter fluid it's because it's lighter fluid. >> if a show is running too long you go out and carve out a few moments of it, it will clip it, and things that didn't get laughs will all of a sudden get laughs. it's real chemistry. >> don't speak, be silent. >> so when you get to the point where it's right, what's that feel like? >> there's nothing like it. nothing like for me standing in the back of a house and seeing -- feeling have you touched an audience. whether it's laughing like in bullets over broadway or crying in contact in big fish, or just like in crazy few where they would put their arms around one

another, i could sit in the back of the house and see that. there's nothing so fulfilling than something you've created touching an audience. >> ♪ baby that's all ♪ that's all ♪ ♪ ♪ [cheering and applause] >> is broadway different today than it was 20 years ago? >> that's interesting. in the staging the audience has a more cinematic eye now. in the old days you would do a scene and you would black out and they would change the set and then the lights would col up. or in the old days you could signing song called bill, there was no bill in the cast, but someone would sing a intong bill. the set changes, the -- a song

about bill. the audience is pushing the plot forward and that's the big difference from the way theater used to be done. >> what sort of pressure is on you? >> making sure you're making an audience happy and selling those tickets really. >> headed into the weekend. >> yes. >> it is a big weekend for broadway and a big weekend for you. so do you write a speech? >> probably not -- yes. whoever is nominated for a tony about make sure you have a speech when you get up there. >> it's a delight to get to talk to you susan stroman. >> please come see the show. >> we will. our picture of the day has a great story to go with it. surrounded by ferry employees is bernard jordan. an 89-year-old veteran of d day.

he was supposed to be in his nursing home, no one could find him. jordan without telling a soul left home, hopped on a ferry to france so he could attend the anniversary at normandy. congratulations to him. "america tonight" is coming up next.

america mobile app, available for your apple and android mobile device. download it now >> on "america tonight": the child abuse scandal that's rocked britain. a beloved celebrity. the scandal almost incredibly widens. >> that's probably the tip of an iceberg. something like 1500 individual over a number of decades. >> also tonight, stopping the shooting in california's meanest city, the street capitalist that put cash on a