The curtain rises on Episode 1 of American Classic, as Richard Bean prepares for his monumental role as King Lear. The crowd hums with anticipation, their excited chatter echoing through the auditorium. As the lights dim, Richard steps out onto the stage, fully embodying his character. He's fed lines by one of the stage directors in the back, but it seems to do the trick to win over the crowd.
Later, Richard catches up with his ex-wife, Holly, who gushes over his performance, noting how well he's embodied the character (despite a few choice changes to the script). She congratulates him on rave reviews across the board. However, Richard is left feeling quite alone and winds up drinking too much at the bar. He confronts Xander Young, a prolific theatre critic who has given him a good review. Richard flippantly retorts that he's never really been a fan of the man's writing... and it becomes clear why.
Richard is a bit of a narcissist, and he's not happy when Xander's partner, Troy, clarifies that Xander loved the production but disliked Richard's Lear. Troy rips into Richard, pointing out how his performance was lifeless and passionless. Xander's comment about him being "like an anchor" wasn't about the centrepiece keeping everything together but actually dragging the whole show down.
Of course, the real crux of the issue here is how far Richard has fallen from his initial performance in Hamlet as a kid. Xander once believed he could have been the next great thing in theatre, but now, his arrogance prevents him from understanding how far he's fallen. The scene is a stark reminder of how much has changed since then, and how much Richard has lost sight of his original passion for acting.
Richard's outburst, fueled by alcohol and a deep-seated embodiment of Lear's character, has gone viral online, causing a complete mess that forces his manager, Alvy, to impose a hiatus from the play. Alvy explains that it will take several months to clean up this mess, so Richard must leave Broadway for the time being.
Just then, Richard's brother, Jon, contacts him to reveal that their mother, Ethel, has passed away. Richard's first thought is whether she saw his reviews. Jon's wife, Kristen, has no love for him and demands that he pay for the entire funeral, given their current financial difficulties. She's also adamant that he should be kept away from the theatre - no matter what.
Richard returns home to a warm welcome from Jon. He's shocked to see how many shops are shuttered and how long it's been since he last saw his family. Oh, and he needs to keep quiet about their mother's death to their father, Linus. Bizarrely, Linus doesn't know, although Jon explains that she had been sick for a while so he's not sure how he'd take it.
Up in the attic, Richard reunites with Linus, who is getting things mixed up due to his dementia but is also clearly living through Richard and his theatre career. Richard is caught in the middle of this, especially when he finds out that his father is gay.
Speaking of being stuck in the middle, we're also introduced to Miranda here too, Jon and Kristen's daughter. She has a passion for singing and musical theatre, wanting to follow in the family's footsteps. Richard knows how brutal it is and tries to temper her expectations.
Despite being warned not to, Richard can't help himself and shows up at the local theatre. There, he's shocked to see the entire place has been completely transformed into a dinner theatre.
