|
 Well,
whatever gave me the silly idea that the
Bill Manhoff comedy The Owl and the Pussycat
was going to be a simple walk in the park
...I must have been thinking along the lines
of a town square cause in reality it was
more about
walking the complete circumference of
Central Park blindfolded ...this is one
complex script with two complex
characters�Doris and
Felix�challenging,
liberating and an exhilarating feeling to
finally reach that characterization and let
it fly.
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Directed
by Anne Kraft who
left no stone unturned in finding out each
and every aspect of what we were doing, why
we were doing it and making us both rethink
certain moments, just by changing our
intentions or body position created such
amazing dimensions in our characterization.
This
Broadway play was done back in the early
60's with Alan Alda
and
Diane Sands, and then of course the
movie with Streisand
and Segal and nothing was modernized
or changed in our script. It was edited down
to two acts by playwright and director
Nelson Sheeley. |
This
must have been so daring when this premiered in
the early 60�s because their were gasps when we
did it due to the language and a lot a lot of
laughter thru each and every performance. What�s
so amazing about this particular comedy was that
the laughter came in so many places where I did
not expect to hear it and places where I thought
"how funny"...well, maybe only "how
funny" for me.
I
got to do this with Curtis
Tucker, the artistic
director of First Coast Opera...who writes
operas and conducts operas all over and yet
intrigued with the idea of doing this�taking a
big step out of his comfort zone�informed me
that he had never done a theater piece that did
not involve singing. I think he told me this
opening night. Well, he can�t say that anymore.
I bet that really came thru loud and clear for him
when we were doing our final performance�a
matinee to be exact�and the AC went o-u-t during
the first act. All I saw were tons of people
fanning themselves with our programs and my
co-star looking like he had just arrived onstage
from a sauna.
The
director was there and made a big announcement
about the AC going awol during intermission.
Somehow on a Sunday they got an AC expert to come
there and somehow he managed to get it on again
after an extended intermission. I thanked g-d in
my dressing room�I mean I looked up to the
ceiling with my hands in prayer and thanked Him
since I knew I was about to enter the second act
in a long sleeved jumpsuit with over-the-knee
suede boots.
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I
enter Act Two by myself and I couldn�t
help but ad-lib "Oh, its so nice and
cool in here" to believe you me a
tremendous response, but no matter how
warm the audience had felt during act one
they weren't feeling what Curtis and I
were feeling under those lights
We
did it at the most unique three theater
complex: The Corozon
Cinema and Caf� in St Augustine�the
caf� where the entire menu is named after
famous individuals, like The
Bridget Bardot is "the French
dip" and The
Alfred Hitchcock is "Egg Salad."
You get where I am coming from with this?!
And for our show they made the
"owl" mimosa and the
"pussycat" mimosa. Oh,
and my dressing room was the room where
they put the film in for one of the other
theatres so I would get a knock on my door
to ask if they could enter and put the
film on and then right around intermission
they would come and again ask if they
could take the film out of the projector.
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Oh,
somehow one individual really wanted to let me
know how much he liked the show and found my
dressing/screen projector room during an
intermission. He just wanted to tell me,
"Your really good." ...I asked him to
please leave and from then on they roped off my
area. I swear to you I don�t know how he found
it when it was hard for me to find but find it he
did. It�s kind of a queasy feeling to have that
happen and their is no one their but you and him.
| We
rehearsed in an empty storefront since the
theater was being used right up until our
tech rehearsal. The storefront was located
right next to a Dominos that I wish I had
invested in, since this was a store front
I could see the drivers with stacks of
pizzas in their arms running to their cars
to deliver all day and night. Oh, and the
storefront had no carpet
and bare walls so every time we
said our lines or the stage manager or
director said something it was like
whoever�s voice it was vibrated thru-out
the room. At first both Curtis and I
thought we were going to have headaches,
but we finally got accustomed to it.
I
had a lot of fun rehearsing this piece and
my co-star was just what I had hoped he
would be and very giving. I had done
"Venus In Fur" Vanda/Wanda a few
seasons back and I thought that prepared
me for "anything," but this was
its own special challenge and I hoped that
I conveyed this character to its utmost.
We didn�t have any reviewer but we were
SRO and received a standing "o,"
but I wanted to close with the most
touching note I have ever gotten�from
the actor Lee Weaver�who
has seen it all and done it all�onstage
anyway. This touched my heart so much. |
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Dear
Annie - I've sent only three "fan
letters" in my life. Jimmy
Carter
(with whom I've broken bread and
corresponded). Also, Steven Schwartz,
lyricist behind "Godspell." You
are to be my next.
I
enjoyed "O and PC" much, much,
more than I planned. You were absolutely
over-the-top. I was overwhelmed by your
performance this time. How I envy Curt
being able to work with you. Difficult
room! But wow - how you made that room
feel like the best on Broadway.
Thanks for a great show. Cheers! Peace! -Lee |
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