The One About Theatre

Wait, what? This blog was supposed to be about theatre? Oh yeeeaah...
So let's talk about it, yeah?

In the past couple months, we have gotten to experience some kewl theatre. And in fact, I don’t think I’ve mentioned any of them since Glass Menagerie. Who do I think I am?! So let’s travel back a few weeks…

The Magnet Theatre. I unfortunately don’t have pictures to prove it (what!), but Victoria got me to come to a show at Magnet Theatre, and this was cool…cuz it’s an improv theatre! And even cooler is that it was a musical theatre improv show! I had never even heard of that, and I believe the concept started there at the Magnet Theatre (correct?). Anyway, it was awesome. As with any improv show I watch (G-Troupe included), it’s one of those things where Victoria & I sat the whole time with our minds running, trying to think of what we’d come up with in the same scenario – meaning, could I do this & actually be funny? I think I decided – as with G-Troupe – that the answer was a little bit no. But I guess you never know til you try! (So I may never know.) But each group did an incredibly impressive job, and I’m sure I’ll be back – whether taking a class or watching a show!

"Aquarius" - one of the groups we saw that night! Hilarious.
Photo cred: The Magnet's website

Fetch Clay, Make Man. Also, did I ever mention that Rachel & I saw a play about Muhammad Ali? Cuz we did. We were able to receive comp tickets (fancy jargon for free tickets;) for New York Theatre Workshop’s "Fetch Clay, Make Man." Review here. It was our first free show in NYC, so we were already pretty giddy about that, but then we really enjoyed ourselves. The plot revolves around Ali’s relationship with actor Stepin Fetchit, their unique relationship, and how it all fit into the racial context of the time. I wasn’t sure how engaged I could be in a play about boxing, but the characters’ relationship had such deep implications & the actors’ performances (particularly Ray Fisher & K. Todd Freeman) were so compelling that we easily would’ve recommended anyone to enjoy this play themselves. Also, their use of media/video technology to build upon the play’s message almost served as a third character in a way that was both gripping & impressive. Loved it!

Fetchit & Ali -- so good! Photo cred: NYdailynews.com

Dear Mr. Rosan. So this was cool…a good friend of my sister’s from Baylor – Alex Witherow – has been doing the theatre scene in D.C. & NYC for awhile now, & I got to go see him in an Off-Broadway show called, “Dear Mr. Rosan,” for which Alex did the fight choreography & also rocked it. Niiiice. My roomie Alekza sweetly attended with me as I led her to the wrong “Roy Arias” theatre, and we proceeded to have to SPEED 4½ blocks over to the correct theatre. (Woops.) And this was another show that we thoroughly enjoyed. Set during the Great Depression, the play centered on one man & his family’s struggles, with a pretty significant sub-plot involving a man named Mr. Rosan who places an ad in the paper offering some money to families who will send him letters regarding their monetary needs. (Apparently this is based on a real article in the New York Times about a man named Mr. Samuel Stone. Pretty cool!) One of the neatest parts to me was that there were a few songs – that I liked enough to ask about – that were original pieces written for this specific production. I also loved that the theatre and atmosphere was intimate enough that the audience felt completely at home, and you were able to casually interact with the cast members in the lobby and elevator afterward…and they were kind enough to welcome the opportunity - even initiated many of the conversations themselves! Finally, I thought it was really cool that the company, Purple Threads Ensemble, prides themselves on their motivation to both imitate and ignite real conversations being had. Solid production, indeed!

Awesome job, Alex! Killed it.

Anthem. Just a couple more... So, this week Rachel & I went to our second comp'ed show! We saw "Anthem" at the Baryshnikov Arts Center. We went into this play knowing little about it other than that it was an adaptation of of Ayn Rand's novel by the same name and that the four named characters were Equality, Liberty, Democracy & International. In addition to those names, the set let us know that this was going to be very unlike a traditionally staged play. The ground was covered in ERS lights faced upward, and during the show they used these lights as obstacles, enemies and representations of several different objects. They also utilized a huge movie-theatre-like screen for video clips throughout. It was pretty awesome. The basis of the plot was of a repressive government seeking to enforce equality by keeping each citizen from choosing their own career, feeling any emotion but 'happiness,' and from asserting themselves as better than anyone else - including a law against working/creating/thinking aside from the "collective group." And the main character - Equality - begins to realize that something must be wrong with this way of thinking, so he breaks off by himself every night, eventually creating electricity (by himself) which ultimately leads to the turning point of the play. And in the midst of this drama was a refreshing, forbidden love story between Equality and a girl named Liberty - and both actors played out this relationship so believably, it was so enjoyable! Anyway, as much as this play was consumed by dialogue, it did cause many interesting questions to arise such as "Do we lose some of our individuality when we're constantly consumed by fitting in with the collective?" and "Are all of the truths that society leads us to believe actually 'truth' to us?" It was a good - albeit, unique - theatrical experience, and I really hope to see Matthew Lieff Christian in more productions because he killed it!

A little glimpse at the set, so interesting!
(Those are the light instruments at the bottom.)

Romeo + Juliet. FINALLY, and MOST DYNAMICALLY - Rachel & I went to our most recent comp'ed ticket show this past Wednesday. We saw "Romeo & Juliet" at Classic Stage Company starring Julian Cihi as Romeo & Elizabeth Olsen - the sister of those twins by the same name - as Juliet. ;) It also starred T. R. Knight as an incredible Mercutio & MY favorite - Daniel Davis as Friar Laurence ... aka NILES from THE NANNY. I died!! I even surprised myself at how excited I was to be within a few feet of Niles! My dad & I are huge fans... Anyway, this production was breathtaking, modern, energetic, edgy & everything I love about Shakespeare reproductions. It reminded me of when we saw "Richard III" at the Royal Shakespeare Company during Baylor Theatre abroad last summer. That Shakespeare play with its edgy costumes and contemporary soundtrack was kiiiind of a Shakespeare game-changer for me - which I appreciated - and this play was the same way!

R & J after the Capulet's feast. It was awesome.
Photo cred: NY Times

It started out with each character walking out one-by-one and lining up with their respective families - Capulets on one side, Montagues on the other. It was awesome. And before I ramble on forever & ever, I just want to say that Elizabeth Olsen killed it. She wasn't an over-dramatic, damsel-ey Juliet. She was a quirky, energetic Juliet with a CRAZY talent at creating real, heart-wrenching tears onstage. She was the type of Juliet that would say some bold "Shakespeare-ey" statement like "Come to thy heart as that within my breast!" and would then walk off-stage with an expression like "within my breast?! that was so stupid, juliet..." Ha! It was so awesome. And then Mercutio. OH GOSH. Possibly the best I've ever seen. He was likable, hilarious, terrifying & everything else I will now ever expect to see in a Mercutio. And the set was almost bare, with just a row of chairs in the back & one table, with a bucket at the front of the set where they'd grab their "blood packets" before fights without even trying to hide it from the audience. Which just made it even cooler. It was one of those plays where when the final lights went down, the entire audience just sighed of every emotion. I couldn't recommend it more highly! If you're in NYC... DON'T DELAY. SEE THIS PLAY. ;)

T. R. Knight as Mercutio & Julian Cihi as Romeo
Photo Cred: Broadwayworld.com

So anyway, there you go. You are currently up to speed with about .03% of the shows going on in NYC right now. ;) But we still can't get over the fact that we can just go through our normal days & then casually get the chance to see some of the best theatre in the country later that night. Gosh, so lucky! But we don't take it for granted! On the contrary, we are SCROUNGING for ways to fit even half of the shows we want to see into our budget. But we'll figure it out eventually. And when that happens, I'm sure you'll see a blog post about it.

In the meantime...

Here's a pic of Rachel after she dropped her 

freshly-dishwashed retainer in the toilet... Okay bye!

Homecoming And Coming Back Home

Alright, so switching gears from the “sidewalk” post… (so weird, right?;) now for something a little warmer & a little less synical. Homecoming! Family! Lovin!

So first let me just back up WAY far & say that as excited as I was to go home, there is nothing more intimidating than being a first-timer in Penn Station, alone, with a suitcase at least ¾ the size of your body. And did I mention alone. Even though I had spent a better part of the work day making sure I knew every possible train time & number I could possibly need, once I arrived, it was like chaos. But probably everyone else was fine & really I just looked like a panicked teenager fleeing around the station. (But apparently I must not have looked that panicked because I had at least 3 tourists turn to me for guidance in my state of chaos – “Is there a bathroom where you’re headed?” “Is this train going to Grand Central Station?” and most importantly “Could you tell me where the Cinnabon is?” NO PEOPLE. Does this giant piece of luggage I’m carrying LOOK like a cinnamon roll to you.) Anyway, I finally grabbed my ticket, found my station, and although I wasted $12 on an unneeded “return” ticket in the midst of my panic, I eventually sat on the train next to a Scottish family for the next 30 minutes of dreamy restfulness.

And NOW I must take a moment & say that I have one of the most amazing fams there is. No wonder I miss home so bad! After this crazy day, I was outrageously excited to get picked up by my family and walk into a home smelling of pumpkin fall candles – just as requested. :) Spending those 2 days at home resting, eating Chickfila with my momma, joking with my dad & helping Andrew with his homework ;) was everything my homesick heart needed! (Not to mention the coffee. & the FOOD.)

cutie ;)

cutie #2 ;)

And then Waco.

Now let me say that I know Waco has its flaws and its occasional armed robberies (okay, weekly) and somehow still lacks a La Madeleine, but man, is that a great place. And though it might mean less to me in three years when most of the pieces of my heart there have graduated, there will always be one day that occurs every year in Waco that is important enough to steal my autumn plane ticket from Thanksgiving. And that, my blogging peoples, is Baylor Homecoming. Since about age 4 (maybe earlier. I don’t know. mom?) I have counted down the days til the morning of Baylor parade and the night of Baylor pigskin, and haven’t missed many since then!

good times.... (tiff, don't kill me!;)

But enough of the history lesson! The real news is I got to eat La Fiesta with some of my best friends in this world! (And had even missed tex mex a little if truth be told…I know.) Then we headed to the bonfire where I got to see MORE friends like Brian, Chris & Garr! (friends, friends, everywhere!), and we were able to enjoy ourselves regardless of the fact that Baylor has now added a stay-away-from-the-bonfire fence around the bonfire. (And how weird was it seeing all the pigskin peeps walking around in costumes while we were now the people in regular clothes? So weird.) Then a bunch of us went to Uswirl and froyo’d OUT – with endless samples I might add – and spent the rest of the night at Gotch & Amber’s place still in disbelief that we were all actually in the same city.

But missed you, Ann & Sim, SO MUCH! :(

*hearts in eyes emoji*

SATURDAY.

Was the best. Paraded with the Martin fam at our ole faithful spot by Martin Hall (& it was actually cold! It had been so long since a cold Parade!), went to Uncle Dan’s with friends & fam & INDULGED in some Texas BBQ, and then sped over to the Pigskin performance. And that was really the best.

Love those 'rents :)

Saw so many friends that I’d missed so much, and sat – for the first time since freshman year – in the audience while watching friends perform. I’d been wondering for a long time what that would feel like, and I was so relieved that it wasn’t sad & it wasn’t painful – it was a blast. “Sing” might be a different story, but we had so much fun being those alums that get to sit in the audience & scream their heads off for all their friends and – especially – for “Chi O & Company.” ;) After being one of the Sing Chairs for this act for the better part of my senior year, it was pretty sad not being able to be involved in its final semester…especially after all the changes it went through & knowing how much hard work the other chairs were having to go through. But I. Was So. Proud.

I am absolutely biased in the worst way, but I gotta say – watching that act was an absolute blast. Those guys stepped it up HUGELY, and those girls looked like they were having the time of their lives. Which was all we wanted! So I was beaming with pride!

my cutest lil hip fam :)

my lil kitty-kat!

(So proud of those Sing Chairs :)

Probably the most stressful part of the whole weekend – and probably for weekends to come – was having to balance spending time with all the people I wanted to spend so much time with. It’d be one thing if I knew I’d see these people again soon, but everything was so much more urgent in light of the fact that I had – and still have – no idea when I’ll get to hang out with them next. And-that-is-SAD. So I was forced to split my time between seeing friends at their theatre rehearsal for a little while (not long enough),

gah, no amount of time is ever enough! love them.

& find a last-minute ticket to the game to spend a little more time with Gotch & Amber & talk to friends like Jdun & Ann for less than five minutes (SO worth it), 

ann in her official "get up" :) so proud of her!

and then leave the [most crowded ever] game at halftime to spend some quality time with my momma & sister. Yes it was as crazy as it sounds!!!! But man, ending the night at an almost completely empty Common Grounds with my fam was as good as it sounds. And really hard to leave! 

Spent the rest of the weekend SO happy to worship at Gateway, my home church, eat homemade meals, walk around Southlake with my fam & FINALLY get to see my little medical professional, Kris! She was gracious enough to sit there while I packed, and even though it was for less than 30 minutes, it was the best! It was as hard to leave Texas as I expected it would be. How can you be expected to say goodbye to people when you actually don’t know the next time you’ll be seeing them? Ouch. But the Lord is good, and sat me on the plane right near another BU alum – Sarah George. So we were able to split a cab ride home! (So much money saved.)

(P.s. If your final destination is in Manhattan, it actually makes a lot more sense to fly into Newark. The train is over 50% cheaper than a cab, and will get you to Penn or Grand Central Station in the same amount of time – with a lot less motion sickness…in my humble opinion.)

But just so you know, the sadness I felt when flying from DFW was equally matched by the excitement I felt once again when we were able to see the first traces of the NY skyline. And that was a relief. It’s one of those things you hope to feel when you’re coming back to your “new home” for the first time, but I was so thankful that I actually felt it. And that excitement only increased as I walked into our teeny little apartment. I was glad to be home, and I was glad to call it home! And that felt good!

Sim's precious & practically professional illustration of my self in 

proportion to the big city ;) had to save it! miss that little argentinian! 

But anyway, it was an exceptionally good weekend. And as much as I wish all those people were here with me, it reminded me how lucky I was to have them, and thankful that I didn’t take my time with them for granted. Now I just have to give up this weird, irrational expectation that they’ll somehow all live here in NYC with me someday…a girl can dream ;) And hey…

ONLY 48 DAYS TIL CHRISTMAS, AM I RIGHT? :)

oh, just central park SHOWING OFF. ;) and YES, it's
actually as dreamy as this picture lets on. (so why haven't
i been living in a tent here ^ these past 2 months?)

But more on autumn in NYC later :) I've got SO many ideas for my next few posts, so hopefully I'll be more on top of it than I was these past couple weeks! And they'll be more nyc-related, i promise!

til then i'll just be kickin' around some leaves,
kelsey