The night before last, I was sitting in the Racine Theater Guild, watching rehearsal for “Gypsy” and marveling at all of the fine performances unfolding on that stage . . . but nothing prepared me for the shattering impact of Teri Wilson doing the climactic “Rose’s Turn.” This is the scene at the end of the show when Mama Rose, feeling cast aside by her newly rich and famous daughter, Gypsy, suffers something of a nervous breakdown as she imagines what she would have been like had she been given a chance to be onstage in the spotlight instead of offstage, cheering on her daughters.
I’ve seen Teri in all kinds of major roles over the years and she has always been terrific, but this was something on a whole different level. She was conveying such raw, intense pain and ecstasy . . . and it was so REAL! I actually forgot that it was my wife’s good friend in a community theater production – in fact, it almost didn’t feel like theater at all. It was as though it was the real Mama Rose on that stage, pouring out her heart. Incredible!
Afterwards, I went up to Teri and said “please don’t take this as an insult, but I truly did not realize that you were capable of this.” And she replied – “I never had the chance before.” And that’s so true. Her previous roles were certainly challenging in their own way, but none of them required this kind of dramatic potency. And if she hadn’t auditioned for this role (she almost didn’t) and if we hadn’t cast her in the role, who knows when she and we would have learned that she was capable of this kind of dramatic work. That’s certainly a sweet feeling – to have given someone the opportunity to take it to an entirely different level.
I experienced something similar last night with a student- directed musical theater production at Carthage called “A Man of No Importance.” WONDERFUL show- and a young freshman voice student of mine, Drew Lenox, played the title role with truly exceptional skills and assurance. (His was one of many good performances- but his role is by far the largest in the play.) Afterwards, my colleague Corrine Ness went up to Drew to say how much she enjoyed his performance and to ask what roles he had in the music theater productions he was in during high school. “Just chorus,” he replied. This was amazing to us, given Drew’s strong talent and his exceptional maturity and work ethic. But for whatever reason, Drew never had the opportunity to explore a lead role- and when Carthage accorded him that pleasure and honor, he ran for a 102-yard touchdown.
I’m not sure there is anything more thrilling than to see someone rise to the occasion so impressively and so convincingly. And on some level, maybe that’s the heart and soul of being human- the opportunities which life presents us and what we do with those opportunities. And of course, we do not always hit home runs off of the balls which are pitched to us. But it’s more likely to happen if you’re in the game- and more likely if you don’t neglect batting practice. Teri and Drew have both worked mighty hard, and I am so happy for both of them that such thrilling oppprtunities are theirs and that they’ve made so much of them.
“Man of No Importance” is only this weekend- Fri and Sat evenings – and also Sun afternoon. Gypsy opens a week from tonight.
Pictured above: Teri Wilson rehearsing “Gypsy.”