that lion again!

ANDROCLES AND THE LION
THEATER 45
-fall 1998
Around this time, artistic director Bob Cacioppo had been voted out by the Pirate Playhouse board, and they replaced him with another Bob, who'd had a distinguished New York career. He was gentle and thoughtful, and we hit it off. He directed the first show, and cast me as Lentulus the mocking patrician, and the Retiarius, a crafty gladiator. The pay was $200 a week. I loved Shaw, and had played Androcles at Hedgerow. Bob assembled a wonderful cast of New Yorkers and locals. Playing the Emperor was Obie-award winner Robert Bonnard. His quirkiness and grace were a constant delight. His Emperor voice was imitated by most everyone ("man" was pronounced "me-an"). Local actor Steve Smith was the lion and the gladiator i vanquish (his whine of "Caesar!" was well-imitated too, though perhaps not so complimentarily). New Yorker Charles Turner played Ferrovius, and his huge presence was wonderful. I had to stage-slap him, and he was nervous about being hit, but he did me honor with how greatly he eventually trusted me. He was a spitting actor, but it was worth it. My patrician partner was Jason O'Neill. A great actor, and my closest friend in the cast. We made our big entrance from the front, so we had to walk around the building. After the show had been running a week or two, the unthinkable happened. We strolled into the lobby (Steve came on with us too), as the stage manager came tearing out of the booth. We'd missed our entrance, and scurried in. Unbelieveable. My third missed entrance in the space of a few months. The Captain was played by Billy Green, who did a nice job. Robert S. played the cowardly Spintho, with wonderful comedic presence. I liked him. I think he thought me a bit of a buffoon at first. He had propositioned me, i had declined, and soon after, i greeted him with a mock-punch. He told me not to do that (i don't blame him, it was faux-macho nonsense). Rachel Botchan played Lavinia with charm and grace. Having done the show before, i realized that an audience member might love a play, yet not like it if done by a different cast (even if that cast were just as good, or better). Eric Kuttner played Androcles. He was fine, but i thought his nervous quality wasn't quite as right as the sweetness i had given the role. Lou Tally played the menagerie keeper. We got along wonderfully, and i've never seen an actor continue growing with a role after opening, as much as he did. John Thomas, Leanne Braman, Cary Coffy, and Brent Smith were local actors, a pleasure to be around. But the (ahem) star of the show was local Nat Gerhart, who played a guard. He used recreational chemicals to prep for performances, and one night, he lost his balance onstage, proceeding to do an extended stagger-dance, trying to not fall down. He didn't succeed. Each night as the show music came up, Jason and/or i would do an abstract jungle-dance backstage, for the entertainment of all. My greatest moment was when i came down with food poisoning on the day of a matinee. By my final scene, i was on the backstage floor, lying inert. They were trying to figure out how to go on without me, but i pulled myself out. When my last line was spoken, long before i normally exited, i slipped offstage. I collapsed, not moving until after the curtain calls had ended. We did another show a few hours later. A great day. The soundman Todd and i hit it off (at least until i approached a woman he hadn't been able to get the nerve up for). He assembled the "I'm a Man" mix, a pseudo-rap with computerized rhythms and vocal tracks from the show ("I'm a Man" was one of my hugely-imitated lines). Bob took me on a trip across state to scout acting talent, but may have been disappointed in my heterosexuality. He felt my acting technique needed more schooling. During one rehearsal, he took my performance to a place that felt quite good, and i had trouble recapturing that exact feeling. Early on in my craft, my technique had centered on creating an extensive character biography. Lately i'd been experimenting with different ways of being alive in the moment, and not doing as much bio work (and honestly, the fact that i was making less money than the leads, also played a small part in my lessened prep time). A group of us had a weekly poker night, usually at Bonnard and Steve Wise's, who played the Centurion. Wonderful fun. The only sour note was when Jason and i were invited to Steve and Robert's Christmas party, but then un-invited, as they had overbooked. Sometime that year, i'd started using the surname Shineyoung. I had long been disenchanted with our patrilineal system, and how our given names were a reflection of our parents. The only tribal name i could think of was the anglicization of the Chinese for mountain goat, which is what my hosts had taken to calling me after watching me on the Great Wall. I used Shineyoung on and off for years.