Theatre Camp!
Volume 3 Book 3 Part 8 of
Living in the Bonus Round

Jimmy's Times Square Fantasy.
Yes, Jimmy is learning his photo editing program.

[ Book 3-2 ] -- [ Pt 1 ] [ Pt 2 ] [ Pt 3 ] [ Pt 4 ] [ Pt 5 ]
[ Pt 6 ] [ Pt 7 ] [ Pt 8 ] [ Pt 9 ] [ Pt 10 ] -- [ Book 3-4 ]

February 19-25, 2003.
NY Photo Album/news.

 
I have some photos from our trip to Manhattan a couple of weeks ago that I have had a chance to post so I thought a photo album might be a fun diary posting. Meanwhile, it's been a very exciting week here in Rochester.

The first thing that happened was a visit last weekend from Kenn McLaughlin, the managing director from Stages Repertory Theatre in Houston. I'm busting a gut to share everything he had to say, but I think it was mostly private on his part -- about what the show meant to him, both as an entertainment and even as a spiritual experience. What I do know is that he said, "This is a show I NEED to bring to Houston." He saw the show Saturday night and by Monday, we had sealed a deal to bring it to Houston in April as a fundraiser for PFLAG'sstudent scholarship fund.
 
 

Lori in her car doing last minute errands.
This is my favorite picture of Lori ever.
Steve, Mitch Douglas (our agent) and Jimmy.

Where's Jimmy?
In Sardi's! Find Jimmy's caricature on the wall. Do you see it?
L. to R.: Franco, Anthony Barnao, Jimmy, Michael Alden.
 

Jimmy in Times Square on our first day: Big blizzard!
At the Shubert, Bernadette Peters is doing an Ethel role!
This is the show that Jimmy saw as a child
that doomed him to hell.

Steve down at the World Trade Center site looking at the handmade memorials.

Looking down into the excavation.

The NY Stock Exchange.
The street in front was blocked off to traffic.

Manhattan looking downtown
from "Club 39" where our actor friend Dick Bell lives.

Our intention in writing the show was NOT to be giving people spiritual experiences. We just wanted to tell what happened to us in a way that would bring lots of laughs and good songs. Who can judge how an audience is going to react? Here's a new email:
 

I had the joy of watching "Big Voice" tonight (in Rochester, NY) and was truly amazed me.  The content of the music and the script are what really touched me.  It's given me a lot to think about and digest.

I'm a Catholic from Arkansas so I could certainly relate to the Catholic jokes, but the references to people who claim to be Christian by condemning others really hit close to home since I saw so many people like that during the 15 years I lived in Arkansas before coming here to college.  I've always felt something far closer to hatred than a true Christian should feel towards them and while I've been working on that, your show helped me to see them in a new light and might have given me what I need to begin to truly love them.  I realized something:  they must experience God as a fierce and judging presence in their life, and they must be feeling that more strongly than they feel God's love.  How absolutely tragic!

Another part of  your play that hit pretty close to home were the references to your battle with AIDS.

One of my life ambitions is to being a psychologist in a medical hospital working with "mentally-healthy" people dealing with illnesses and surgeries.  I volunteered at AIDS Rochester last semester.  My experiences there were incredible and I learned so much from those people and truly love them, but what was missing from my experience was hearing about someone who hasn't let AIDS completely take over their life.  Watching and listening to you was like witnessing a miracle for me.  Thank you so much for sharing your story, your talent, and the love you and Jim have with the world.
 

Here's another email:

I'm so glad I had the opportunity to see you and Jim here in Rochester.  The show was absolutely tremendous.  Very rarely does a theatrical experience just capture your inner being and transport you somewhere else.  You and Jim have a magical gift of reaching into people's souls.  Of course, that emanates from the kind beings that you are.

What can I say? And by the way, we've extended the run for another week. This was supposed to be our last weekend but the houses were sold out and the standing ovations have been damn near riotous, even among the oldest matinee audiences.

[ Book 3-2 ] -- [ Pt 1 ] [ Pt 2 ] [ Pt 3 ] [ Pt 4 ] [ Pt 5 ]
[ Pt 6 ] [ Pt 7 ] [ Pt 8 ] [ Pt 9 ] [ Pt 10 ] -- [ Book 3-4 ]

© 1996-2003 by Steve Schalchlin.
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