I haven't written an update in over a week, and that's rare for me--I think that a lot of it has to do with the incredible pace things are moving at as we hurtle toward the opening tomorrow. At the same time I feel badly that I've left so many in the dark...so let me try to catch everyone up with some tidbits from the previews:
�David Byrne (of Talking Heads and many cool projects fame) came and saw the show last week--I don't know if he liked it, but I could see him smiling from the stage and that will have to suffice for now. I would make a joke about him wearing a gigantic white suit, but I bet he gets that a lot so I will refrain.
�On preview #7 I kicked one of the lamps over on my entrance, totally destroying the lamp and knocking the lamp's metal cover nearly into the front row. Thankfully no one was hurt, and being show business we didn't acknowledge it, but I felt awful that these nice people who came to see the show almost got a lamp in their face. The show turned out especially well, probably because I was compensating.
�On preview #8 there was glow tape showing me how not to kick the lamp over on entrance.
�In the second week, as I was leaving the theater two older black ladies stopped me to tell them that the show made so much sense to them that they would be bringing everyone from their workplace. I asked where they worked, and they said the Manhattan court system...proving again that the show is about a lot more than dot-com shenanigans.
�On preview #11 I thought my pants were unzipped for the first 20 minutes, and that my genitals were visible to the audience. I got really, really paranoid and wanted to check, but you can't check if you are zipped in a one-man show--people notice that. I became totally and completely freaked out, and in the brief lighting changes between sections kept checking my pants, but I appeared to be zipped. That is the last time I will take strong cold medication before performing. One of the producers, who saw the show and thought it was a killer performance, commented that from now on they'd just make me paranoid before every show to ensure top-notch acting.
�On preview #17 my water cup exploded when I was banging on the table, and 80% of the water landed on me. I normally sweat in the show, but this evening ended with me looking like Sailor #6 from THE PERFECT STORM.
More than anything else, this has been a fantastic time for me and for the show...I feel like I've compressed years of learning down into just three weeks, and in a sense I have--as of tonight we will have performed the show more often in New York than in the entire four month run in Seattle, and I am so grateful to Jean-Michele, my producers and the audiences who make it possible. I've learned a lot, and I'm grateful that I'm getting the chance to do work I love for a large audience, and to feel like I'm connecting with audiences with both comedy and intelligence. It's worth doing, and that's the coolest thing anyone can say about their job.
4:43 PM
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