Magic

People talk about the magic of theatre and the theatrical profession. I stumbled on this story on a blog I found while doing a photo search, called The Sheila Variations. As incredible as it is, it has the ring of truth to me. It says so many things about theatre and theatre people that I had to pass it on.

I was involved in a production of Clifford Odets' Golden Boy in Chicago. It was a wonderful production, but it did not generate an audience. We had read somewhere that William Hurt was looking for a theatre company to be involved in. He missed the stage. We weren't just a random group of actors happy to have jobs - we were an ensemble, a company - so we sent a note to his agency, inviting him to come see Golden Boy.

Well - he did come - with his assistant - and on the night he showed up to see it, we had NO audience. Not ONE OTHER PERSON showed up. It was so mortifying. But we did the entire 3-act play solely for William Hurt and his assistant - as though there were a full house. It was one of the weirdest theatrical experiences I have ever had. On any other night, we would have CANCELED if only 2 people showed up ... but this was William Hurt! Flown in from Los Angeles!

We were all very embarrassed. We came out for our curtain call, mortified at making him come all that way to see this obvious failure. And he was sitting there, clapping, (an odd lonely sound - 2 people clapping in a big empty theatre) - and he had tears running down his face.

Afterwards, we all sat around in the lobby of the theatre with William Hurt, and talked about theatre, the state of the theatre, and acting - until 3 or 4 in the morning. He needed a ride back to his hotel. Michael, one of the actors in the show, offered him a ride with the rest of us, in his pick-up truck.

So I sat in the back of a rickety pick-up truck with William Hurt, as we drove through the quiet dark streets of Chicago, my hair blowing like crazy, William Hurt was just beaming - and laughing in exhilaration - He looked so happy.

He hugged all of us good-bye, holding on to each one of us so tight - He said that we had made him believe in the possibility of good theatre again in this country. It is a night I will never forget: laughing and screaming "Whoo-hoo!!" into the wind with William Hurt, crouched in the back of a battered pick-up truck.