Thursday, May 27, 2010

The Star-Spangled Girl

THEATER 33
-summer 1991
Ken had another play for us, back at the M.P.C. Fellowship Hall. I was leery when Ken told me it was Neil Simon. Mind you, the previous summer's ODD COUPLE had been fantastic. It's just that i was ready for more meaty stuff, particularly with every company (and their Uncle Lou) doing Simon. But i read it. It's the story of two friends self-publishing a protest magazine, and what happens when Sophie, a flag-waving swimmer, moves in upstairs and becomes the object of obsession of Norman, the writer. The other partner, Andy, tries to keep the magazine afloat, and keep Sophie from dismembering Norman. Antipathy between Andy and Sophie escalates when they are forced to hire her, then obsession takes a new, comedic turn. I liked it. Particularly with the cast Ken had in mind. I would play Andy, my old buddy Charlie Leeder would play Norman, with newcomer Linda Rossi as Sophie. She had just graduated with an acting degree, and she made a wonderful impression. I was hooked. Ex-Youth Clubber Becky Ellis was our stage manager. Working with Charlie…i had done so before, but never so intensely. It was wonderful. Humor and dedication and non-stop energy. Linda clicked with us beautifully. I'd never worked on a show that felt so perfect. And that's funny, because the play is regarded as Neil's worst. But what we did was joyous proof that with the right chemistry, conventional wisdom need not apply. Norman is a brilliant nut who washes Sophie's cat, paints her steps, follows her into the Y, and leaves her notes and gourmet food. Sophie's an Arkansas girl engaged to a Marine. Norman's stalking wouldn't be regarded as comedic today, but our chemistry was so great that it didn't matter. Finally, it comes out that Sophie's anger with Andy is so intense because she's attracted to him. Andy doesn't know whether to kill or kiss her. Ken loved working with the three of us. We were so motivated that he just sat back and watched us go (although Linda was sometimes desirous of more active direction). We all socialized outside of rehearsals. Linda was dating a musician who took her for granted. Her scenes with me were as incredible as Charlie's. Early on, we agreed our kissing scenes should be well-practiced. Kissing her felt kind of amazing. I tried to put that out of my mind, but gradually became deeply, profoundly attracted to her. She threw herself into the kissing with an energy that matched mine; it was intense enough that it became a bit of a joke with the others. One night we even drew blood, but she never broke eye contact, and said to do it again. She and i kissed for two months. She pulled me on top of her, night after night…at that point in the script, Charlie is supposed to walk in on us, but one performance he missed the entrance, leaving us in our embrace an extra ten seconds (neither of us chastised Charlie after the show, however). Ken designed a wacky set, with a beanbag chair and suit of armor. The energy with the audience was just incredible, night after night. I did some great "sunburnt" physical humor, and some great phone humor with southern and Chinese accents, keeping creditors at bay. The night after the show closed, Linda came to my house, and she and i kissed. We were no longer Sophie and Andy (see the forthcoming "Linda" link).

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