Left for Stratford at about 530 for the 8 o'clock show. I like to go early so I can walk around a look at things.
Ate a small dinner at Bentley's restaurant and pub. Parsley and Pineapple soup with Greek pasta salad. mmm.
While eating dinner, glanced up to see Eric - actor Jenni and I accosted after seeing West Side Story a few weeks ago - but only briefly. Still...
Walked around towards the theatre. Bought a pen from the theatre's gift shop. Used it to update my journal. Nice pen.
Found my seat in the theatre. Nice space. I'd never seen a production in that theatre, so it was nice to finally get to know it. The stage space was about as big as that at the TRU theatre, but more seats- and the seats are stacked really high up.
My seat mate is a woman names Eleanor. We chatted for a while before the show. Turns out, she's a retired theatre teacher from New York City. omg. She's really nice. She's only in Stratford for 6 days, and is seeing 2 plays a day, plus on on Sunday before she has to go back to Florida where she lives to be closer to her daughter. She said she'd get to Manhattan at least a few times a week, and she misses being there a lot. duh. So we kibbitz about what shows we're both seeing, and how much we like being here.
Show Starts. Good show. A little complicated to explain, but an Indo-Canadian dad and son (mom died a few years ago) having a rough time in Canada go back to India for a while to be with the family. Things turn out imperfect but ok.
about 1/2 way through the first act, I see that an usher has had to attend to an audience member. Because the space is so small, it's quite distracting. I figure maybe her headphones aren't working (they give those to people who have hearing difficulties). Then, two ushers come. More distraction...
...Then all of a sudden a woman in all black with a headset walks into the theatre and right onto the stage. It took a second before I realized that she wasn't an actor. But as she walked on, the lights came up. "We apologize, but we have to pause this performance". ???. And they escort an elderly gentleman out of the theatre. I assume he must have been having chest pain or something for them to warrant stopping the show. But a few ushers helped him walk down the stairs, across the front of the stage (that's the only way in and out), and out towards the lobby. I hope things turned out o.k. for him. eek. That was the first time I'd been party to a production needing to be halted midway through!
Show continued smoothly. After, more chatting with Eleanor. It was nice of her to say so, and it totally made my day since I already admired her, but we parted with her saying "I wish there were more people like you coming to the theatre". I assume she meant young people who were passionate about live theatre. Whatever it was, it was nice, since it was coming from someone who's around theatre types all the time.
Left the theatre. Didn't feel like going home yet, so walked to Othello's pub next door. Took about three hours to have a rum/coke and a fuzzy navel. Did some writing and some knitting in the almost totally empty pub - it was a Tuesday night after all. When I'm 1/2 way through the Navel, this gangsta looking young black guy swaggers into the pub. He belines for me. uugh. I hope he's not drunk or on drugs right now. I don't have any money, and now I can't leave in case he's trying to cop a ride...I think. He's got droopy eyelids and talks with a slurr. He's also a little slow on the uptake. But he seems nice. After he's tried to get me to buy a copy of his CD, and asked me about my shoes, and what my name is and where I'm from (I'm vague, and say my name is "Sam"), finally the bartender, Brad, comes over. While this guy is writing down the name of a website I should visit, I mouth is he ok? to him.
Oh, I forgot to mention, this guy's name is Bailsey. He introduces himself, and I can't understand, so he spells it, but spells it wrong the first time.
But apparently "Bails" - as everyone calls him - is "cool." He plays drums, and often plays gigs in local pubs around town. He's just a bit slow. But Brad (bartender), says then that I must not be from around town because everyone knows Bails. haha. And just as I'm leaving, the remaining waitress (it's 1230 by then) mentions it's cold, and suggests she might close the giant patio doors. She turns, and Bailsey is already doing it for them.
So I go home, feeling pretty good. I talked to Brad for a bit, and find out that he's "just" a bartender for now, but won't be forever. He's pretty much here in Stratford to be close to the theatre. I mention that I'd just seen Rice Boy, and he wanted the deets, since one of the main characters kept coming into the pub and was always talking about the show, so he wanted to go. It was a good show, and I told him that.
I left, and Brad said he'd be happy to have me darken the pub's door late on another Tuesday night.
A pretty good day.
Here's proof of knitting while at a bar. That's a Fuzzy Navel.
This is Brad the bartender. Bails wanted to take a picture, but I suggested he ask Brad first. Here's how it went:Bails: Hey Brad!
Brad: looks over
Bails: CLICK
Brad: I thought you were going to ask me first...
This is the Infamous Bailsey. Take from it what you will, but please disregard the fact that my mug is also in this picture.
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