My wife is a relatively private person, so when it comes to her and/or anything in which she is involved, I have to blog with great restraint . . . no small feat for a cyber blabber mouth like me . . . so you have seen nary a mention here of something which has pretty much swallowed up our lives since early December- the play “Glorious” with my wife in the leading role of Florence Foster Jenkins. In case you don’t recognize that name, FFJ was New York City socialite in the 20’s, 30’s and 40’s who presented herself to the public in a number of lavishly appointed benefit voice recitals, despite the fact that she herself was an absolutely appalling singer. But she truly loved to sing, and that’s what drew people by the hundreds to her performances, the most famous of which was a recital at Carnegie Hall in 1944, not long before she died. Carnegie Hall didn’t open their doors to her- she rented Carnegie Hall for the night- and there was not an empty seat to be bad! The play “Glorious” seeks to explore why singing was so important to FFJ and why so many people flocked to her performances beyond those who came to discreetly mock her. Many more were cheering. Why?
It’s hard to put into words what this undertaking has been like for Kathy- exciting, intimidating, terrifying, humbling, gratifying- all of the above and more. One very basic facet of the challenge is that this is an enormous role – perhaps the biggest single role of any play that the theater guild is doing this season – and far bigger than any role my wife’s ever had- or most people have ever had, for that matter. So there’s been the reality of having SO much to memorize – and not just a mountain of spoken lines, but a number of musical selections to learn as well. With the former, there is the matter beyond memorizing the role to making the role her own- of finding a way to embody the character of FFJ, to make her lovable and sympathetic as well as hilarious. And with the latter, there is the challenge of singing badly when one in fact is a very capable singer- and once you have an audience there, of not bursting into laughter yourself as the entire audience guffaws at such wretched sounds. And by the final week and a half- especially when the director is the meticulous Norm McPhee – it means being at the RTG night after night for five hours or more. . . and then getting up the next morning to teach elementary music.
There have been a few moments when Kathy was figuratively (and a couple of times nearly literally) banging her head against the wall, wondering why in the world she took this on. But mostly she has soldiered on with firm determination and good cheer – grateful for the opportunity and especially grateful to be part of such a fine cast and supported by such a capable crew. And honestly, for as little as we have seen each other lately, this has drawn us closer to each other. It has been so healthy for our relationship for me to be in the supportive role for a change, even if it’s meant having to empty out the dishwasher (one of my least favorite jobs) and other homebody duties. I’ve also been the #1 Line Driller for her, which has been fun, and her primary Coach in Bad Singing – although I have to say (at the risk of inadvertently insulting the woman I love) that she has managed to sing badly pretty much all on her own. 🙂 And by the way, it’s made a really big difference that Kathy is accompanied at the piano by one of my Carthage colleagues, Dimitri Shapovalov, who has really thrown himself into the role of Cosme McMoon, FFJ’s pianist and devoted friend, and contributed mightily to this production’s success.
Anyway, last night was opening night- and it was great. The crowd was small, thanks to the snowstorm, but those who were there had a splendid time – including me. I already knew almost every single line of dialogue, thanks to the hours of line drilling with Kathy, so I knew every joke before they were even said…. but I had not attended so much as a single rehearsal, so visually I had no idea what sort of sets or costumes had been created for the production, or how all of this would play out with the full cast vs. me in every role opposite Florence (which didn’t work so well- trust me.) So I was on the edge of my seat, taking it all in and enjoying it so much – at least the part of me that wasn’t tied up in an emotional knot, nervous for my wife. But before long, I realized that she had things very well in hand- as did everyone else- and before long I was able to just have fun with everyone else.
As I think back on last night and what people said about Kathy, two things stand out. First, I was so gratified when several different RTG veterans who have been on that stage many times in previous productions- very capable actors- were so lavishly complimentary of Kathy…. not realizing what gifts she had as an actress. But maybe even more, I was so gratified at the cast party afterwards when – right after Kathy left the table for a few moments – the woman who designed and built the amazing costumes leaned over to me and said “your wife has been SUCH a trooper. She’s been put through so much without so much as a single word of complaint. She’s been great.” And I know for a fact that anyone on that crew would say the same thing about her. Unlike some performers who are otherwise perfectly lovely people but turn into narcissistic basket cases and the very definition of High Maintenance once they are given a major role to perform, my wife could not have her feet more firmly planted on the ground, and could not be more grateful for all of the unsung heroes and heroines of the crew without whom there could be no performance. She knows because she’s been a crew person many times over – and will be again. So as proud as I am of what she did onstage last night, I am maybe even more proud of how she has been backstage and offstage… gracious, grateful, humble, and a real pro.
In case you couldn’t tell, I’m a fan.
pictured above: Kathy greets well-wishers after the opening night performance. By the way, I snapped a couple of fabulous (and illegal) photos during the preview Thursday night – and I was SO tempted to use one of them here. But they show Kathy in her final costume of the night and I would hate to give that away. So come to the show and see what all the fuss is about. Performances run thru February 5th, and you can call 633-4218 for more info.