Dublin Carol - Part Two
Is there anything better than seeing William Petersen live onstage in Dublin Carol? Why, yes there is. Seeing him again! I and a group of friends were in Providence, Rhode Island, on Saturday, January 6, 2007 to see Dublin Carol at the Trinity Repertory Theater.
Back when tickets first became available I decided to go on my own…a sort of birthday gift to myself. That show was on Friday, December 8; my actual birthday. The show was wonderful and I wrote a long review (you can read that here).
I had another opportunity to see the play, this time with a group of friends from YTDAW: cropper, smacky30, atruparrothead, golffer5, and domo arigato.
It seemed the travel gods were still in a pissy mood (read what they did to me last time here) when Crop and her family struck a deer on the highway right before Christmas. They are all OK but her van was not so fortunate (her kids, who were in the van, wanted to know if they’d hit Rudolph). Time to go to Plan B. Ligaras, who was to be traveling with us, offered up her SUV, but we ran into a snag there because there was no third seat. As there were six of us going from DC, that would mean someone would have to ride the roof rack. Time for Plan C. I have a van with three seats so we decided to go in that.
I knew I needed a bit of work done on Old Blue: I took the day off on Friday to have the brakes done, which was fine but sadly the tires were not. $500 later I am rolling in a vehicle with new shoes and socks (why am I picturing argyles? I have no idea).
On my way to Crop’s house I get a call from her wanting to know how far it is to Richmond. “A hundred miles in the wrong direction…why?” I ask. One gal had called with the cryptic message that her train from Richmond ‘had a flat tire.’ Crop was frantic that she was not going to make it and we would have to detour to Richmond to pick her up. Eventually Amtrak got their shit together, put our friend on a later train and she rolled in about 11:00 pm. We were all very happy to see her, especially me as I hadn’t met her yet and I really did not want to go to Providence by way of the Virginia state capital.
Once the van was packed our little group piled in and headed north. We had DVDs, junk food and caffeine...what more did we need? Well, bananas apparently. Thanks, Ligaras. Unfortunately, it was raining and foggy the whole way which made for some hair raising moments.
We rolled into Providence Saturday morning at about 7:00 am having had no sleep...we were too excited. Everyone but Smacky was already in town. We trooped up to Golf’s suite at the Providence Biltmore where I got to meet her in person, as well as her charming husband Michael. Domo Arigato, my roommate for the duration, was waiting for us and I got to meet her for the first time as well. What a delight! She dragged my very tired self down to her room where I managed to get a couple hours of sleep before the afternoon festivities, part of which featured gifts bags from the girls and an assortment of premium Galler Belgian chocolate bars that Domo brought for us.
A number of other folks made up our theater group (this larger group was more than 20). Crop had arranged a dinner at the Trinity Brewhouse for 5:00 pm. I made name badges for everyone with their screen nick and first name. Crop put these and a placecard along with little goodie bags I’d made at every place (each bag contained some gold chocolate coins, a pair of CSI earrings and a silver Sharpie for stalking purposes).
We arrived at the Brewhouse a bit before we were scheduled and had to wait upstairs until the room was ready. One of the women we knew, AmberCelt, had the good fortune to snag an interview with William Petersen the night before for Hornpipe, the Irish culture magazine...some of the gals already in town had spied them there. Golf pointed out the booth (the third one down on the left). I am a little embarrassed to admit I actually looked at the empty booth...I am such a fan girl.
We waited about fifteen minutes for the room to be ready, then we trooped downstairs to eat and gab. About halfway through the meal our waitress saw my name badge and asked, “Are you all a William Petersen fan club?” I told her yes and she said, “I wish I’d known. He was upstairs at the other end of the bar when you all came in.” Great, I thought, NOW she tells me!
Dinner was loud and long. Parrot and her husband, Mike, were watching a playoff game with much fervor while Golf gave Mike the business because the Chiefs were losing. The food was good and plentiful. I noticed many friendships were started or rekindled…a lot of the larger group had been at YTDAW's get together in Las Vegas last summer.
Eventually it was time for the show. I had to wait in the lobby for a long time because there was some issue with my ticket: it would not scan in their little hand held devices. Once this was sorted out (they had to reissue the ticket) I was shown to my seat: this time on the right side of the house. I sat with Ligaras, who’d seen the show before as well. We were both excited to see it again...to see what we'd missed and what had changed.
When the lights went down I was transported to another world...Dublin on Christmas Eve. William Petersen and the other cast members, Rachael Warren and Danny Mefford, had tightened up the show considerably. The characters were more focused and defined, the timing of the funny bits was spot on, and each player had added so much depth to her or his character that it was almost like seeing a whole new play.
I enjoyed seeing the show from the right side of the house; it seemed to me that the blocking favored that side. It also gave me a new POV which I liked very much. I saw things I didn’t see the first time, like the space heater on stage lit up to simulate radiant wires and the second little Christmas item on the table stage left (next to the angel) was probably a Nativity (I couldn’t see what it was the first time). Also, the rain effect in the left side wings was visible from my seat this time. I missed it the first time.
NOTE: Above script does not have complete text of play. Version shown on button (avalable from Amazon.com) does. Button courtesy of wiske2
Dublin Carol has so many layers, it was a thrill to see it again. I tend to see movies multiple times and read books over and over. Guess I can add play-going to that list. I was struck by how William Petersen was able to immerse himself in the character…I only saw John Plunkett..not Petersen or Grissom or any other character I've ever seen him play.
Rachael Warren had so improved the funny bits in her part that it made her sadness and anger over Plunkett’s past failures as a father all the more poignant. William Petersen’s response to her showed quite a bit more sadness and regret because of the contrast.
The relationship between Plunkett and Mark was more interesting this time. Danny Mefford turned Mark into something other than a sounding board, which served to point up just how desperate Plunkett was not to be alone with himself. During the scene in which Plunkett describes a 4 day bender Petersen outdid himself, adding many many layers and shades. Whatever emotional place he went to for that is quite dark and it showed. I wanted to cry. I was again reminded that he brings subtlety to his work...quite a trick on stage which requires bigger action...only a good actor can make nuance read from a distance.
I still see the play as ultimately hopeful because Plunkett has decided to try…not to change but to try. I do hope Mary came to fetch him even though she was late. Even if she didn't, he was able to resist the pull down the drain this time...I have to hope he was able to stay in that positive place.
After the play there was much excitement as our group got to meet with Billy himself!
Months ago our little group wrote a letter to William Petersen saying we’d be in town for the play and since we admired him so much, would it be possible to meet with him for a few minutes after the show. All of us were stunned when his personal assistant called our point-of-contact saying he'd agreed to meet with us. The PA was quite protective of him, telling us we were limited to the signatories on the letter, we could bring only one camera and we could have just 10 minutes because he would be tired after the play. She cautioned us that he was very nice and wouldn’t toss us out if we took advantage…so we should not take advantage.
At the same time all this was brewing, Parrot had started to correspond with David Rambo. At some point she asked when he was going to see the play. He said he wasn’t going to be able to go because he couldn’t get tickets. Since Parrot was our ticket coordinator, she told him she’d be happy to send him one of ours. To our surprise he accepted! We were beside ourselves at our good fortune!
Because we so enjoy David’s writing, we had a little award made up for him. He seemed genuinely pleased with the recognition and was showing it to everyone after the play. He sat down front…second or third row right with our bunch and chatted away about CSI and his various projects. Sadly because of my seating requirements I was not close to any of that, but I did get a chance to chat with him afterwards. He was charming and very pleased to talk about his work. True to form, Dramatists Play Service took their sweet time getting The Lady with All the Answers and God's Man in Texas to me: they didn't arrive before the show. I did tell him I'd read Ann Landers for years and preferred her to her sister...he said he did, too, and that he'd gotten to know Annie's daughter quite well. *still tapping my foot waiting for those plays to show up*
ETA January 11: My plays showed up today in an envelope that looks like it went a few rounds with a tractor trailer. Great dirty tire tracks all over it. I paid extra to have these sent two day...invoice is marked January 2...grrrrrr. *Wanders off to read two wonderful plays*
After the play, we were directed to go to a little bar to the left of the lobby. Victor, the theater manager, checked our names against an authorized list. We waited as patiently as we could, hoping we wouldn’t make fools of ourselves when we finally met William Petersen. Also at the reception was David Rambo, Petersen’s agent, Jackie Hoyt (who wrote Spellbound, Burnout and Redrum), Jackie’s uncle, and a couple of other people from Hollywood that we did not know.
About 20 minutes later in walks Petersen. He was wearing a black jacket, black t-shirt, black slacks, brown loafers and that tweed cap from the play (he loves that hat). After he greeted his friends, he spoke to David who happily showed off the award we’d given him. Finally he turned to us and asked David, “Are these your ladies?” (he knew that we’d made it possible for David to see the show). He came over to us and greeted us.
When it was my turn he shook my hand and said, “Hi, I’m Billy.” We chatted for a moment about the play. I told him I’d seen it December, that it was much tighter now…etc., etc. He asked where I was from, which was nice. I had brought a box of Blue Dog Bakery dog biscuits for Bruno. He seemed pleased and touched that I’d thought of that. I had made a little label for the side of the box (see picture) as a kind of gift tag to Bruno from my dogs Neilli and Chance. Despite Neilli grumbling that giving a whole box of her favorite cookies to another dog was a horrible idea and my little lecture about sharing, I think the cookies were a big hit. I hope Bruno loves them as much as my puppers do...I visited the BDB website: they are available at a number of California grocery stores so 'Mom' and 'Dad' can get refills.
Next I pulled out a couple of prints of a drawing I’d been given months and months ago. When I was thinking about what I could have Billy autograph for me, I thought of it because it is so good and I was pretty sure he would like to see it. I explained that Maria, a very talented and generous woman from Spain, had done an illustration for one of my stories. His eyebrows went up when he saw the drawing. He asked, “Where’s my shirt?” Domo, whom I love for her smart, clever wit, said, “Everybody in this room has probably seen you naked,” at which we all laughed. He grinned, a little embarrassed I think, saying quietly, “That was a long time ago.” I could hear Smacky thinking, “Not so long ago for some of us…” I’d given him a silver Sharpie to autograph the pictures with but he didn’t think that would show up well enough. A black Sharpie materialized. He signed one print to me and the other to Maria. Next I gave him two more prints of the drawing in hard plastic sheet protectors: one for him and one for Jorja. He said, “I don’t have anything for Jorja from this trip. She’ll really appreciate this.” Of course, I was pleased at that. I hope they both enjoy the drawing. It's so striking. Maria captured the exact feeling I was trying to express in Dark Season.
ETA January 13: I just sent Maria's signed copy of the drawing to her. Now the circle is complete :)
After that Crop took my picture with Billy and that was it for my turn. OMG! I’d just met Billy Petersen (and I feel I can call him Billy now since that was how he introduced himself).
Almost everyone in our group had a gift for Billy. He kept taking them over to his agent…he said, “I need a sherpa. Will you be my sherpa?” I'd brought a large nondescript shopping bag for him to put his booty in as I had visions of him carrying an armload of stuff and dropping bits and pieces…my mom would be proud of me. One by one the gifts disappeared into the sack.
Back when I was making the badges for our group, it occurred to me to make one for Billy, so he now has one just like ours that reads:
Billy Petersen
Himself
After all, Dublin Carol is an Irish play and they do have a penchant for referring to themselves in the third person. It was probably meaningless to him, but I laughed for at least 10 minutes when I thought of that. Sometimes I really amuse myself. It makes me smile even now.
Our 10 minutes stretched into 30. He spoke to each of us individually and was so sweet and gracious. He was quite careful about getting people's names right on the things he signed -- he said his mother insisted on correct spelling so I guess that was a lasting lesson for him. One of our group had a migraine and when he heard someone ask if she'd taken her medicine, he was concerned and asked if she needed to sit and rest. Another of our group was quite shy: he went out of his way to put her at ease and I noticed the items he signed for her had the most personal inscriptions.
He seemed genuinely tickled with the gifts we'd brought for him, one of which was a piece of Chicago sports memerobilia. I was impressed with his manner and the fact that he actually paid attention to us even though he was tired from our performance and one earlier in the day. All of us now feel as protective of him as his assistant: he took so much time with us and was so generous with himself and his attention, we want to look out for him even though we are merely fans and not in his day-to-day life. I believe that kindness begets kindness...if that is true, his life is rich, indeed.
I was kind of expecting that personal furnace thing he does. On screen and on stage he is a house afire. I was surprised that he is definitely not ‘on’ in person. He’s just a very kind man. Gorgeous…oh yes…and he looked so good. Happy and centered. Not stressed at all. The theater is good for him...and though it will absolutely kill me to see his run in CSI end, if theater makes the man that happy, well that is what he needs to be doing. I'll just have to start a theater fund to finance more road trips!
Finally our time was over. We invited Billy to Golf’s suite for her after-party, but he was on his way across the street to the cast party. One of the folks from Hollywood took a group photo for us, we said our goodbyes and that was it.
I think, though I can’t quite recall, that the wind blew me up the hill to the hotel…I was walking on air. What an experience! We all met again in Golf’s suite afterward. Neither Golf nor Michael had ever been to a play before. Both were just blown away by the experience and are now true theater converts (Parrot's husband, Mike, also enjoyed the show when he saw it the evening before). We rehashed the play and the meeting for awhile (showing each other the many items Billy had signed as well as episode specific things we'd brought for Jackie and David to autograph). We still could not believe we'd met the man...we kept remembering bits and pieces...things this one or that one said...something funny or kind that he'd said. It was a delight to share this happy time with such good friends, especially when each of us remembered something a little different. Taken together we have a wonderful set of memories.
Eventually Domo and I went off to our room where we stayed up chatting until 4:00 am. You should know I am a terrible wimp…I do not stay up late, so two days of no sleep was really working on me. I ended up driving all the way home, too, so by the time I got back in my neck of the woods I was so tired I burst into tears for no reason. I ended up staying the night at my friend Patti’s house: she had kept the puppers for me. I managed to drag myself out of bed the next morning but really was Night of the Living Dead all day. Thank God I’ve had a little sleep since then!
All in all this was an incredible trip. I am Blessed to have such good friends. Crop told me that individually we are all formidable but as a group we are damn near unstoppable and I have to agree. We put together a wonderful experience for ourselves and had the time of our lives.
Now, what will the next project be? Hmmmmm…
.