Yesterday

So pretty much yesterday was the best and weirdest day that I could have asked for.

I spoke at Georgian Court University and it was a really great experience all around. The professor was really great and the students had some really interesting questions for me afterwards. It's always nice when you feel that connectivity to a bigger picture, and in this Social Work class, it was great to feel that you're helping to arm people to make a change in the world. The professor said she'd like to bring me back in a larger capacity to speak to Georgian Court again, which is really exciting. I'll keep you posted on how that turns out.

After that, I had to head into the city. Brian told me that we were going on Secret Date Night, and that I had to just show up in the city at 6:00, but he wouldn't tell me what we were doing. So I got on the bus, the driver decided that once he got out of the Lincoln Tunnel he in fact would NOT be going to the Port Authority, but instead would drive around the city for another hour before heading back to 41st. At 30th and 12th, he asked if people wanted to get off the bus, and the bus emptied. You can't keep people on a bus for 2 hours when the trip was supposed to take 40 minutes.

I walked to 51st and 7th and met Brian. As we're standing there talking, Sebastian Arcelus (Fiyero in Wicked) walked by us. Brian then told me that as he was crossing the street earlier in the day that Tony Danza had pushed him out of the way and had not said "Excuse me." Jerk. I guess this is proof positive who was REALLY the boss. That's right....Katherine Helmond. Mona, to friends.

I walked with my head down for a few blocks so I couldn't see where we were going. I guess being walked blind-folded through Manhattan would have been too suspicious. When I lifted my head, I saw that we were standing in front of the marquee for Les Miserables. That was the first show that I ever saw on Broadway, my sort of indoctrination into the world of theatre, and Brian knew how much the show meant to me. Now that the show has been revived and brought back to Broadway, he snatched up a pair of tickets for us. The show was great, just to be able to be there in the theatre hearing the songs that had opened an entirely new world for me was really great. Also, Jenny Galloway is in this production, who played Madame Thenardier in the London 10th Anniversary Concert (which I saw in Middle School on a VHS tape at Rebecca Hoover's house on a snow day, before I went anywhere near New York City years later). I was dying to see her perform live. That's a picture of her in the show. She was amazing, doing so much with a really fun character. Really, I can't say enough about her, so afterwards I just wanted to meet her and say hello and thanks for doing an amazing job in the show. She came out and I almost didn't see her. She's soooo short. I'm 5'8" and she's well below me. Here's a picture of us together. Isn't she adorable?

She could not have been more grateful for the compliments or for the appreciation from a fan. I didn't keep her long, I know people want to get out of there at night, but I just had to pull her aside and say thanks.

Brian totally isn't the kind of guy that likes to hang out at the Stage Door and wait to talk to performers. In fact, he hates it. So of course I made him wait a little longer until Norm Lewis, currently playing the police inspector Javert (the villain) came out so that I could get a picture with him as well. I reminded Brian that it was Secret Date Night. He smiled and said that we would wait for Norm to come out.

Luckily, Norm came out just a few minutes later and again, could not have been nicer to fans. He took a picture with every person that wanted one, signed everything that was put in front of him, and stuck around to talk to anyone that had questions for him. I saw him years ago in the Children of Eden Benefit on World AIDS Day at the Riverside Church. He was great then, and I really enjoyed him now. I asked for a picture and said thanks for a great show. He said he's leaving the show in April, and because of a friend on the inside, I know that he's going into The Little Mermaid as King Triton. That'll be interesting to see. Here's a picture of me and Norm. So nice of him.

After Norm, I kind of just wanted to wait for Lea Salonga to come out, who played Eponine awhile back, but is currently playing Fantine in the revival. This woman is a huge star in the Phillipines, and her contributions to Broadway (Les Mis, Miss Saigon) have earned her huge critical acclaim and success. I hear screams from the crowd and figured it must have been her. I turn around and see a huge pop star standing there. Not Lea Salonga....no no, that would have been too easy.

Of course, it's David Hasselhoff. That's right, the Hoff. Towering above the crowd at easily 6'3", the Hoff came out of the Stage Door of the Broadhurst Theatre to squeals and shrieks from the crowd. Did I miss something? Was I in Germany? Why are people going crazy for David Hasselhoff? I didn't know, but I wanted a part of it. I walked over to the crowd, and he was handing out his own stack of promotional pictures. Of himself. That he was signing for people. As the photographer that he had brought with him snapped pictures of a happy Hoff signing autographs for fans. I asked him for one and he said "Sure buddy!" Ok, this whole thing was weird, I had to get out of there. So Brian and I walk away from the Hoff-cluster and are standing apart from the group.

And then Academy-Award winner Ron Howard walks by with friends.

Ok, this is too much. We hauled over to the Port Authority and then, when safely back in New Jersey, asked ourselves if it was all real. Had it been a joke? The only proof we have is one picture, a testament to a night filled with random happenings. Judge for yourself....