A DOUBLE HELPING OF MICHELLE WITH A SIDE OF RANDY
Last weekend, I went to NY to see Michelle Clunie’s play US about her love affair with a New York politician and its unfortunate demise.
This is Michelle’s first attempt at playwriting and it’s a very personal one. She plays herself and Jeff LeBeau plays her lover in this two person production. It’s very sweet at times and very volatile at others as she gives insights into the beginning and ending of their relationship. At times there is a series of scenes with them played out on a big screen behind them. No names are mentioned as they refer to each other as “Boo” or “Booboo” but many know who she was in a relationship with several years ago. It really is a heartbreaking look into their lives and I actually felt a little guilty to be witness to it. One scene onscreen is Hillary Clinton’s concession speech when she lost the nomination in 2008. Michelle was a big supporter of Hillary and this was of special interest to me as I went to see Michelle, Sharon Gless and Robert Gant when they were campaigning for Hillary in Pittsburgh.
Michelle knew that we were coming to see the play on Friday evening and Saturday afternoon because of our conversation when I saw her at Silence and one of my friends had been facebooking with her so she told her where we should go to see her after each performance. We saw her in the theatre lobby on Friday night and inside the theatre on Saturday. It is so nice to actually get to have a real conversation with one of the QAF actors and not feel like you are taking up their time. She is genuine and was so excited talking about her play, about politics, her plans to move to New York after the play finishes and the possibility for a QAF Convention on the West Coast next June. She introduced us to her director Jennifer Gelfer and then one of her old friends from drama classes, Peter Allas, walked up and we got to talk with him about his career and their friendship over the years. She promised to let us know when she would be doing plays or readings and gave us no less than 3 hugs before we left. Such a refreshing change from trying to get a few minutes with someone who is surrounded.
When we found that Randy was back in Silence for the weekend, we decided to get tickets and see it again Saturday night and get the chance to see some of our other New York friends that were attending. Even though there were several cast changes that night and I missed David Garrison as Hannibal and Topher Nuccio as long as Jenn Harris is Clarice and Randy is Dr. Chilton, I’m happy. Apparently Garrison was off for the weekend and Harry Bouvy, the actor that Randy had replaced as Dr. Chilton, played Hannibal so Randy slipped back into Chilton’s role. Regardless of the cast, the play is more fun than anything I have seen in years. Jenn, who originated the role of Clarice, is leaving in a month and I can’t imagine anyone else playing that role. After the play many of the cast came out to the bar area but Randy was a no-show.
This turned into another lovely weekend in New York which is one of my favorite places to go.
This is Michelle’s first attempt at playwriting and it’s a very personal one. She plays herself and Jeff LeBeau plays her lover in this two person production. It’s very sweet at times and very volatile at others as she gives insights into the beginning and ending of their relationship. At times there is a series of scenes with them played out on a big screen behind them. No names are mentioned as they refer to each other as “Boo” or “Booboo” but many know who she was in a relationship with several years ago. It really is a heartbreaking look into their lives and I actually felt a little guilty to be witness to it. One scene onscreen is Hillary Clinton’s concession speech when she lost the nomination in 2008. Michelle was a big supporter of Hillary and this was of special interest to me as I went to see Michelle, Sharon Gless and Robert Gant when they were campaigning for Hillary in Pittsburgh.
Michelle knew that we were coming to see the play on Friday evening and Saturday afternoon because of our conversation when I saw her at Silence and one of my friends had been facebooking with her so she told her where we should go to see her after each performance. We saw her in the theatre lobby on Friday night and inside the theatre on Saturday. It is so nice to actually get to have a real conversation with one of the QAF actors and not feel like you are taking up their time. She is genuine and was so excited talking about her play, about politics, her plans to move to New York after the play finishes and the possibility for a QAF Convention on the West Coast next June. She introduced us to her director Jennifer Gelfer and then one of her old friends from drama classes, Peter Allas, walked up and we got to talk with him about his career and their friendship over the years. She promised to let us know when she would be doing plays or readings and gave us no less than 3 hugs before we left. Such a refreshing change from trying to get a few minutes with someone who is surrounded.
When we found that Randy was back in Silence for the weekend, we decided to get tickets and see it again Saturday night and get the chance to see some of our other New York friends that were attending. Even though there were several cast changes that night and I missed David Garrison as Hannibal and Topher Nuccio as long as Jenn Harris is Clarice and Randy is Dr. Chilton, I’m happy. Apparently Garrison was off for the weekend and Harry Bouvy, the actor that Randy had replaced as Dr. Chilton, played Hannibal so Randy slipped back into Chilton’s role. Regardless of the cast, the play is more fun than anything I have seen in years. Jenn, who originated the role of Clarice, is leaving in a month and I can’t imagine anyone else playing that role. After the play many of the cast came out to the bar area but Randy was a no-show.
This turned into another lovely weekend in New York which is one of my favorite places to go.