Notre Dame Academy West Side Story Ticket (3/23/91) and Hopkinton Middle School Our Town Program (12/5/03)

I don’t remember who went to the Notre Dame show or who was in it, but I know it was only a couple of months after I got my driver’s license. My girlfriend at the time was a sophomore at NDA, and it didn’t take a lot of convincing from her for me to visit the all-girl school for this play after a day at the all-boys Saint John’s.

I was teaching special education at the Hopkinton Middle School in 2003. I remember the day of this play vividly because the principal at the time came into my room during my prep period. My students’ 1:1 aides had taken them to the auditorium, and I was finishing something up before I headed there myself. I don’t remember what I said (“Hey, how are you doing?”), but I do remember her response: “You’re EXPECTED to go to the play, I hope you know.” There were a lot of things I wanted to say to her, but I kept my mouth shut. Full report coming in my book…

Miss Saigon Ticket (8/2/97)

In the summer of 1997, I was working at JKST Summer Camps (I guess they’ve changed their name since) on the grounds of Haverford College. It was an enrichment camp, so there were actual “classes” for the campers to take. I was teaching psychology as well as dream analysis (no idea about that, they just gave me a book to go by). One of the funniest memories of that summer actually happened in dream analysis. I had the students write down what their ideal dream would be and one of them wrote, “All I’m going to say is that it would involve a goat and one of the Golden Girls”.

Another part of the enrichment was taking trips to New York, Washington DC, and nearby Philadelphia. I went on a day trip to New York, and Miss Saigon was part of that. To date, the only Broadway show I’ve seen. I still prefer going to my sister’s shows. More on the summer of ’97 later…

Westboro Players' Club Sweeney Todd Program (2009)

Sometimes things just pop into my head and I say them without thinking about how upset the person I’m talking to might end up. Two years ago was one of those times.

I went with my friends Glen and Krissy to the Westboro Players’ Club production of Sweeney Todd at the middle school in Westboro. As we were walking in, I thought of Glen’s love of all things ice cream, especially the sundae variety. I turned to him and asked, “I told you they’re having make your own sundae at intermission, right?” Glen’s face lit up for a bit until I started laughing, and he realized he was a victim of a typical Dave ruse.

Even though Glen was upset at the lack of intermission ice cream, this story has a happy ending. We enjoyed the show, and the next day I felt bad for tricking him so I brought over make your own sundae ingredients to his house. I cant’ help myself sometimes when I make people believe things that aren’t true, but I’ll try to make up for it…

Wall of Water Ticket (4/12/02)

I love watching playoff hockey. The intensity, the checking, the goals, the overtimes, and the passion all amaze me. But, I can play hockey pretty well. I know what it feels like to be skating and competing, even if it’s at a level way below the NHL.

Something I can’t do is act. I tried taking an intro class my senior year of college, and I didn’t do very well. Well, I was good at all the improv stuff. But when it came to memorizing, being in a scene, and becoming someone else, I struggled.

One of the reasons why I knew acting wasn’t one of my strengths was that I had been watching my younger sister Megan excel at it for years. Whether it was a comedy, musical, drama, or a take on Shakespeare that required Cliff’s Notes to understand, she always left me in awe of the way she could play the part.

Even though I don’t really remember what The Wall of Water was about (and the Amazon review doesn’t really help), I’m sure a quick summary by Meg would jog my memory (I think it was a comedy?). I believe this was also the last play I saw Meg perform at Stonehill, and it’s hard to believe that was 9 years ago.

Ah, I found this page on the Stonehill website and found some other plays I watched there (and I was right, Wall of Water is comedy!):

Spring 2002

Wall of Water by Sherry Kramer

This fast-paced farce is a jewel in the comic world. The classic humor on mistaken identity mixed with many new-aged twists leaves the audience wanting for more.

Wall of Water is not simply a bunch of funny one-liners and slapstick; it is an intractably woven tale that tackles subjects as serious as death and as important as scientific inquiry, and everything in between.

Wall of Water offers a delightful cast of characters, from the mentally unstable Wendy to the serious and studious Stuart who all take on the world in their own, unique way, on this one day out of their lives- the one day when everything goes wrong!

Fall 2001

Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury

Spring 2001

Ubu by Jeff Goode (I don’t remember this one, but I could have been at a BC Hockey Frozen Four Game)

Fall 2000

Wild Oats by John O'Keefe

Spring 2000

Gint by Romulus Linney

I’ll have to see if I come across any tickets from these other plays. Thanks for always putting on a great show, Meg!

In the meantime, GO B’S!!!!!

Tales of the Lost Formicans Program (Clark University, 2/26/11)

After browsing Worcester’s Cultural Calendar online this afternoon, I found this play the Clark University Theater Department was presenting. The price was definitely right, so my girlfriend and I went to check it out after our first stop at Beatnik’s.

The play had sex, drugs, rock n’ roll, cursing, multiple generations, aliens, and a nurse (it was a male nurse, so I didn’t get too excited – but in case you didn’t know, I Love Nurses). Add those ingredients to a lot of great delivery that made me laugh, and you have a performance I really enjoyed.

I won’t go into details with individual performances, but everyone did a great job. I could feel the emotion, conflict, and drive to find peace in each character. And the crowd definitely responded.

I think the point of all art is to move you in some way - make you laugh, think, or feel. This play did that to me, and I will take that anytime over some dumb reality TV show. I also really want to read the script now…great job Clark U Theater!

Okay, third period…go B’s!