It’s always difficult for me to let go of a project – (well….usually it’s difficult!) but this has been an especially hard show to bid it’s fond farewell.  In just four short months, I made friendships that I will cherish for life, marvelled at talents that topped the peak of gifts I’ve seen – and I learned such a vast amount about myself as an actor that it will probably be quite some time before I’m able to fully recognize the extent. 

For a very long time I harbored a secret sense that contemporary Shakespeare productions were done for the benefit of mostly the artists involved and a thin sliver of intellectual elite audience members who came to see how many lines they could quote in their heads (or aloud!) – but after two incredible seasons on stage with my family at Writers’ Theatre – after journeying through the darkness of one of drama’s most painful tragedies last year and then through the revelations of one of the most complex and uplifting comedies this year, I have seen first-hand that audiences from age 9 – 90 - from the most studied Shakes scholars to the first-time initiates – can be taken away, their thoughts and imaginations lifted to places they’d never imagined before taking their seats.  I can’t believe how much I actually missed slathering my face with the clown white make-up last night! 

My love and thanks to everyone who gave me such an unforgettable adventure through those crazy woods of Arden!

We are about to start our extension week, which I like to think of as the post-season. It’s like we had a great year and won our division so we get to play a little longer. Of course you can’t push this metaphor too much, like an out-of-shape jogger it strains easily. There is no playoff, we are not going to extend further, come Sunday we are done. That is always a happy and sad day. Happy because we’ve completed something, it’s a job well done, and we suddenly get your evenings back! Sad because the community that was created around this production will dissipate as we all go our own ways.

One of the wonderful parts of being an actor is the companionship that develops during a show. When it really works, when you’re having a good time in an engaging show, it has the same uplifting feeling as being a part of a team in a pennant chase. I personally function best as part of a team. In a show like this one, where everyone is good at what they do and also fun to be around, it lifts up the overall production to a higher level. We all want to do the best job we can and it is a real gift when you find yourself in a show that encourages and celebrates that. We’ve been up and running for awhile now but there’s still an excitement every performance because you know that no one is content with just repeating what we’ve already done, everyone is still exploring and searching and discovering, and that is thrilling.

Of course, like many teams, we’ve had a line-up change mid-season. Robby Lehman had to leave us and so we called in our fearless director, Bill Brown (harkening back to the day of the player/manager). It was very exciting being behind the plate for the first few performances. Each pitcher has a different delivery and there were a few times I was looking for high heat and got a wicked slider instead. Okay, my metaphor is getting a side-stitch… but, seriously, it has been great to have Bill with us again. Besides that the dressing room is suddenly a little more bombastic, it’s just plain fun to find these scenes again with a different partner.  I have to compliment Bill on how well he made the transition from Director to Actor. In the hands of a less secure person that could be an awkward situation. We have been very lucky to get not one but two great Touchstones over the course of this run. If you are asking yourself, “Is it worth coming back again to see it one more time?” the answer is YES.

I’d like to wrap this rambling blog up by thanking our wonderful, smiling, laughing audiences that have made our jobs so much fun. I also want to thank all my teammates (both on the field and in the Writer’s Theatre clubhouse) for their hustle, humor, honesty and affability. It has been a pleasure working with such a talented and hard-working group. I am proud of what we’ve accomplished and I have enjoyed the whole process immensely. I’m glad we’ve got a few more games to play.