Exciting people live for exciting times. The trick is in the in-between. No one can be "on" all the time.
I've been fortunate enough to be asked back to the Sherman Playhouse theatre in Connecticut to do another theatre run for them, and rehearsals have just begun. I say this every time I have an extended interim between stage plays; there's no rush out there that can hold a candle to live theatre. Actors need to act. Its like clean air, and fresh water. The body simply does not work without it. Classes are fun, and can be a tool for getting in front of agents and casting directors. But there is no class or workshop that can replicate the feeling of a live show.
I'm fortunate. This fall I get to commute to the plush countryside of New Milford, CT, and get exposed to a whole other market of theatre goers outside of NYC. Believe it or not, many (I'd say just short of most) New York actors would snub their noses at doing a show like this. I say why? Even Malkovich does random experimental theatre, and its alway phenomenal. This day and age, Anything off-broadway is technically community theatre. We live in a digital world now. If its not on tv, to most people, it doesn't exist. I say, good. Let the pop cultured masses have their fill. There are more than enough people that still love an electrically charged evening of comedy and drama. You just have to have the guts to stand up.
As a matter of fact, next to stand up comedians, theatre actors are the realest it gets.
Stand up and take your bow. And if the crowd sucks that night, screw 'em, another full house will be here tomorrow.
Its the communal experience that they come for. And its the electric funky soulful acting that keeps 'em coming back. Film and television will never replace that.
This year we lost a handful of some of the most prolific actors of our time. Robin Williams passing has been a wake up call to perfumers, and non performers alike. Every one has their own demons to battle, and you never know what the person you are idolizing on TV is really going through. Actors across the board, but especially comedians are constantly forced to be "on" all the time. Thats like meeting your favorite basketball player and expecting him to go dunk a double clutch jam for you right quick, so you can get a picture for instagram. How ridiculous would that be? But thats what happens every day in the world of entertainment.
Just think about that next time you bother a celebrity at a ball game. Or photo bomb a selfie with some rapper at a club.
They're the celebrity. You're the customer. Just relax, sit back, and enjoy the show.
