June 4, 2005
Outside Will's house this evening, off in the distance, several explosions were heard. At first Will and I thought it was thunder, but as the sounds became more rapid we realized they were fireworks. But why?
Suddenly I snapped. "Of course," I said. "It's Quatro de Juno!". Someone was either celebrating July 4th too early, or Cinco de Mayo too late. There was no other explanation.
Thursday I went to lunch with Will a few blocks away from our rehearsal studio and we ran into a pal of his on the street, ex-Monkee Mickey Dolenz. They used to perform on Broadway together in a show called Aida (music by Elton John and Tim Rice). Mickey's a nice fella, and fond of Will. Will is the kind of guy who knows lots of people, and is on great terms with all of them. That's because he's a man of character. A devoted husband and father with a solid work ethic, loaded with organic talent, humor and passion without pretentiousness. He's not a star (though he's comfortable around them), just a guy who works for a living and is good at what he does. Like most New York actors, he does a few TV shows here and there but has relied mostly on theatre gigs. He's worked his way up the ladder, from swing jobs and touring casts to feature roles on Broadway, and finally, Lennon. He seems destined to be in this show, as we all do, in different ways. I've learned a lot about the nature of this business from Will, and the more we talk, the more I realize just how lucky I am to have even landed an audition for this, let alone be cast as a swing. Thousands didn't even make it to the door.
Meanwhile, Manhattan is a great place to come home to. Although I'm living out in Jersey, I come into town every day to my old neighborhood of the west side. I'm almost nostalgic for it, and I was only living there for a month. Even though it's just a short block up, rehearsing on 43rd street is miles away from working on 42nd. The street we're on now is less conspicuous, more everyday business and basically more New York, whereas everything on New 42nd St is big BIG BIG! I think the new location, however drab, has a positive effect on our production. The "big time" nature of studio 6A and it's surroundings (including two walls of windows looking out over the city) made it too easy for the entire group to be starstruck by its own atmosphere. "This is great, this is huge, everything here is great and huge, we can't miss!" Now we're in a space that's stripped of all bells, whistles and celebrities (and comfortable chairs, sadly), with a vibe that suggests nothing except what we create ourselves. As always, less is more. There's even less light, which some have complained about, but there's also less noise, so the room's sound is more concentrated. Overall, there's a new kind of energy; an energy of unity, intimacy, humor, spontaneity, and love.
It is the energy of John.