My goodness, the pansies are so lovely this year.
We’ve had rain for 3 days and we’re finally going to get a break today. Don has a gig tonight and we’re still tired from our trek into the city on Wednesday, so I have ordered him to take it easy until he has to head on out this evening.
We had a major delay on the trip into the city on Wednesday. Something was happening on the George Washington Bridge which impacted the tunnel, so there were three times as many cars and buses heading into the tunnel. Traffic was backed up for miles. In the end, the trip took 3 hours instead of 1 1/2. Since we planned our departure to allow enough time for lunch, we were okay in terms of a 2 pm curtain, but we didn’t have time for lunch and made do with 2 old fashioned donuts from Dunkin Donuts. And some water. (We did have time for dinner before we left, though, so everything worked out in the end.)
We had great seats, courtesy of Jim, and the theater itself is very intimate. It’s the smallest house of all the official Broadway theaters and it was perfect for this play.
What can I say? Words seem to be inadequate. It’s a three-hander (3 actors in the cast.) A true ensemble piece. It’s the story of a mother and her two children that takes place over the course of many years, as they move from apartment to apartment. The play is subtitled “a play in five evictions.” All three actors: Jessica Lange, Jim, and Celia Keenan-Bolger were brilliant. The play was written by Paula Vogel, and directed by Tina Landau. Two women who are 72 and 62, respectively, creating magic on Broadway. I love this play that Vogel has written (much of it autobiographical) and the way in which Landau has staged it.
Jessica Lange. My god, she gives a performance that is beyond words! She is magical, luminous, heartbreaking, moving (the same words can be used for the entire experience.) I’ve never seen her on stage before. I was stunned by her performance. (She just turned 75, by the way.) Three women over 60!
Celia and Jim gave gut-wrenching, touching, funny, beautiful performances. They were freaking amazing. (I’d never met Celia before, but I’d worked with her husband a couple of times out at the Old Globe.)
At the end of the play, the audience surged to their feet. In this case, it was a extremely well-deserved standing ovation, with cheers erupting spontaneously. It’s the best thing I’ve seen in a very long time. It is ensemble work at its finest; three actors working at the top of their game. Each of them has been nominated for a Tony Award this year.
I am so grateful we went. The entire experience in that theater was a gift that I will never forget. I am still thinking about it and suspect I will be thinking about it for a long time.
We went backstage afterward and met Jim in a reception room. The three of us had a great conversation about the play, and Jessica, and time, and the process of working on the play, and what did Jim do for his audition piece when he auditioned for the grad program at USD because I couldn’t remember, and his wedding anniversary, and how much we adore each other, etc. I choked up when I talked about his growth as an actor since those days in grad school. He is simply marvelous in this show. I am so proud of him, of the person he has always been and remains to this day. We did get to meet Celia (who also had a friend at the performance.) But I think Jessica stayed in her dressing room. And I know Jim was headed to his as we left – it was a 2 show day and he was going to take a nap. This play is gut wrenching, as well as life affirming, and I imagine doing it twice in one day takes a toll.
Here we are. I love this guy.
I have seen and worked on countless plays in my lifetime. The occasions when I walk away from a performance feeling stunned and shaken and moved are truly rare. That happened with this play. A gift I will not soon forget.
Mother Play has a limited run and it closes on June 16th. If you can see it, do. It’s extraordinary.
Stay safe.
Happy Friday.
Oh my gosh….the play sounds just wonderful…so glad you got to see it and chat with Jim afterwards…though the trip had the hiccup of the traffic it nonetheless sounds like a perfect day! You described everything so well! Great picture of you and Jim! Hope Don has a great gig tonight! Enjoy your memories of the play!
Thanks so much, Barrie.
Stay safe.
too bad about the very long traffic delay on the trip into the city. glad you and don had given yourselves plenty of leeway. i hope it was resolved by the time you and don headed home.
excluding the traffic, it sounds like you and don had a wonderful date and i am very glad for you two. also that you and jim could spend time together. great photo of the two of you (and the pansies).
glad don has another gig as well as time to rest.
here? well, we have another squirrel that is both adorable and heart-squeezing. his fur has a lot (a lot!) of gray in it, from nose to tail, so we are calling him grandpa. a couple days ago i went to get something from my car in my parents’ driveway and there he was, by the short row of bushes out front. without delay, he came right up to the front porch, was gently shooed back, then kept following me around my car. i had a bag of cracked-corn seed mix in my hand (maybe he could smell it stored in my car trunk?) and my heart broke for not giving him some right then (wondering if his bravery was a sign of hunger), but we need to limit where we offer food so i was very relieved to see him on the deck later that day and days since (his fur makes it very easy to identify him). continuing to sweep the deck before it gets too dark and thankfully haven’t seen any raccoons up there.
reminds me to share something seen on the internet … image of a (cartoon) raccoon shrugging and saying “because it’s trash can, not trash cannot”. haha!
finished “a gentleman in moscow” (i have questions!!! did/does anyone else?) so will pick out another book today …. which, after years of not reading, is a wonderful thing to do, brings a wonderful feeling. :) ordered a book online that i know will be a keeper. enjoying time with family, also the weather … very pretty. no more knitting until fall. better sleeping schedule over the past three nights. so, okay here.
hope you, don and everyone else is, too … having good, easy days and staying safe.
kathy
That squirrel sounds adorable, Kathy!
Thanks so much.
Stay safe.
good and happy saturday morning to you and don!
yes, “grandpa” is adorable. they all are. so fun to watch … some being brave, like pearl and grandpa; others being super-cautious, like baby earl (burl). we want them to keep their instincts, not get too close to us (like grandpa did a few days ago) or dependent on us as their sole source of food, but we also need to help creatures upon whose wild areas we (people in general) have encroached. one example: there are two very busy streets on either side of this townhome group, in a city that chose to bulldoze lots of trees along the creek (which is not deep or wide) and reroute part of that creek out of caution for ever maybe having a “once in a hundred years” flood”. i suppose that flood could happen, but sure doesn’t seem likely around here. anyway … yes, we love all the squirrels and birds and deer. and as long as they stay off the deck and roof, the raccoons, too. :)
hope you are having a great day and weekend.
xo,
kathy
Thanks so much, Kathy.
Stay safe.
That’s a beautiful picture of you and Jim. You and Don must have been thrilled to see the show. We saw Jim last night in the series finale of “Young Sheldon”. He and Mayim Bialik reprised their roles as Sheldon and Amy from “The Big Bang Theory”. Enjoy your weekend. Hugs, Elaine
Yes, I know. I don’t watch Young Sheldon, but I’ll probably look for the episode later.
Thanks, Elaine.
Stay safe.
Despite the traffic, I am glad to hear you had a memorable time, and enjoyed Mother Play. Love the pic of you and Jim….two old friends just getting together.
Raccoon update….We removed all feeders from the deck at dusk….after the first night of that, there have been no raccoon sightings. I got yelled at the first night by an oriole….evidently I took his jelly away from him too soon! So for now, we have a system. It’s a challenge to outfox a raccoon….they are very resourceful creatures.
My mom always used to say that pansies always have a smile on their faces. Yours are lovely.
Hope Don’s gig goes well. Enjoy your day! ;)
Raccoons are smart! Sounds like your solution is working well!
Stay safe, Donnamae.
glad you have found success with a quick, easy (though repetitive) solution!
hope you are having a great start to a fun weekend! stay safe and raccoon-free!
kathy
First, wonderful photo–definitely frame worthy. Great review and summary of the play. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks so much, Terri!
Stay safe.
dear Claudia/Don — so glad your “date” was fun!! great pix w/you/Jim–have said it before but I think he is a fine young man/actor–a good soul. hope y’all have a good weekend. stay safe/healthy
He is a very good soul, Linda.
Stay safe.
Thank you so much for sharing your friend Jim. Brought tears of happiness for all involved in Mother Play.
Joy
Thank you, Joy!
Stay safe.
Sounds like a magical experience! I love a performance that moves me and stays with me a long time. Jim is so special.
Sounds like a lovely ‘date’ except for being stuck in traffic. I think Jim is so talented. I enjoy everything I’ve seen him in. I’m glad you were able to spend some time catching up with him.
I am sitting by a window as I write this and a cardinal just landed on the window ledge and was pecking at it and staring at me. Very strange. My brother passed away several weeks ago….hmmm, I wonder if he was sending me a message??
Take care
I’m sorry to hear of your brother’s passing, Marilyn. Maybe he is sending you a message, telling you he’s okay.
Stay safe, Marilyn.
very sorry about your brother’s passing.
sending my sympathy and (if okay) hugs to you, marilyn. prayers said and will continue for you, your brother and the rest of your family. take good care of yourself and enjoy seeing that cardinal.
kathy
He is. I truly love him.
Stay safe, Linda!
Thank you ,Claudia, for sharing your experience with us.I am in tears ! xo
Thank you, Annette.
Stay safe.
I would have been so darned frustrated to be stuck in that traffic jam, knowing that I had theater tickets and to a play that would be both personally meaningful as well as a darned good show. I hope it fares well in the Tonys. It sounds like a beautiful, wrenching piece and having Jim as a big part of it had to make it all the more special. So glad you had special seats and time to visit between shows. That has to be draining on any day, much less a challenging and emotional play. The photo is exquisite — beautifully framed with the colors and your smile says it all!
Thank you, Jeanie.
The color of that wall really is a great backdrop!
Stay safe.