Just returned from a weekend in NYC on a fundraising trip with patrons, subscribers and theatre lovers seeing Broadway shows and having a fantastic time of it! Friday night’s bill was Sigourney Weaver & David Hyde Pierce in Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, a riot of verbal high jinks and physical comedy like I’ve never seen! Saturday Matinee: Pippin, a breathtaking gymnastic, acrobatic, and authentic Fosse hybrid delivering a carnal carnival, a show stopping standing ovation for Andrea Martin, and a dynamite Leading Player, Patina Miller. (and each lady took home a Tony Sunday night)! The visually excellent Matilda, Saturday night and a superbly danced Newsies Sunday afternoon rounded out the excursion as we ate our way from one fabulous Times Square eatery to the next! And speaking of The Tony’s…TRACY LETTS WINS! Met Mr. Letts backstage at Steppenwolf after his brilliant turn in American Buffalo and was impressed by his warmth and humility…you know all of Chicago yelled a collective “BOOM!!!!” as he won for Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolf? Sunday night, a performance I had the privilege to see co-starring stunning Amy Morton on Broadway.
On the home front: I’m having to reach those near and dear with what causes me a heavy ache in my heart…because they have a place there in my heart…it hurts to tell them that, at this point, they’re not in the cast of Miss Saigon…dear friend and colleague, Rachel Rockwell, has a way of explaining the process, it goes something like: “Casting is a huge, intricate puzzle. You just didn’t fit the puzzle this time. But you just might next time.” I received a very generous, understanding, and loving response from an actor I’ve hired and watched grow and conquer and gave a terrific audition but just wasn’t quite the right fit… “I get it, Jim, you’re gonna give someone a shot just like you did for me.”
I’m losing it and late…more next time!
-Jim