It was finally time to head to New York on the long-planned-for Theatre Tour. I could feel the mix of excitement and apprehension overtake me as I taxied out to the Winnipeg Airport to meet up with most of the 30 people who had decided to risk a week in the Big Apple with Kayla Gordon and myself escorting the group. There were some non-Winnipeg folks who would meet up with us at the hotel in New York. All the details were spelled out in the travel packets everyone had received, so there was little left to do but get on the plane and take off. That was the easy part. The rest was like herding cats!

            New York’s weather was completely accommodating when we arrived at LaGuardia, and we experienced only minimal confusion in finding our Tour Bus to take us into the City. The Metro Hotel (now The Kixby) on 35^th Street was slightly away from the craziness of Times Square, but very “boutique-y” and nicely decorated. We assembled that evening in the private dining room for orientation and our first meal together. My Mom and her friend Susan along with two good friends from Portland, Ronda Gates, and Sharon Knorr, had flown in from points East and West and now sat beside me as we laid out the itinerary for the days ahead. The coming and going of folks during dinner had me slightly concerned, but everyone seemed “up” for the time ahead. The rest of the evening was “off” for folks to do their own thing and “explore”, and I wondered how many people would actually turn up at the bus the next morning for the first event – the Circle Island Boat Tour.

            We “lost” no one overnight and everyone was on their best behavior on the boat. With so much to look at from the water and with a great guide pointing out landmarks as we floated by, folks got their bearings with some history thrown in. In the past, I’d taken visiting friends on this 3-hour cruise, and even though I’d not lived there for a while, I still found myself feeling proud of The City. The afternoon was classed as “free time” and allowed me to do some MSI work (which followed me wherever I went). Then it was off to “Chicago” (the musical) for the evening. It was about this time that things started to get a little bit dicey. An elderly lady named Ruth began complaining … about everything … literally everything! It was too hot, it was too cold, there was too much walking to get to places, she didn’t like her room, she didn’t know where to find a drug store, why were there so many people on the sidewalks, when was she supposed to be at the theatre, how was she supposed to get there, she couldn’t find a good restaurant for lunch … and on and on and on. She drove Kayla and me NUTS!! Of course, you want folks to have a good time, but after a couple of days trying to be accommodating and helpful, we both wanted her to fall into one of the rivers (she could take her choice) and never be heard from again. But, being nice Canadian Folk, we usually managed to mollify her … for the most part.

            Up to this point we had kept everyone on a strict timetable because our bus was taking us to the various events. The third day started with my Walking Tour of the Lower East Side. The Lower East Side had been one of my haunts when I lived in NYC back in the 70’s. The maze of little streets and the history in every block fascinated me, viscerally consumed me. I think perhaps I’d lived there in a past life; being in that environment always felt comfortable and familiar. And it was at this point that the herding cats thing came into play. My experience being a Tour Guide at Lincoln Center had been a very positive one. I loved doing it. But that was always in a very controlled space with folks who had bought tickets specifically for the Tour. With no distractions, they looked where I wanted them to look and had no trouble hearing what I was saying in the carpeted lobbies and theatres. Keeping 30 people together on the streets of New York was something quite different! The start of the tour was in front of Gramercy Park, just a few blocks from the Hotel and amazingly, everyone, even Ruth, managed to find their way there. It was a beautiful day and as we proceeded Kayla just naturally fell into keeping some order at the rear of the mob as I led them forward. But Ruth would manage to stray from time to time and hold everything up while we went to find her, the group collectively pointing in the direction she’d gone. I found that getting folks to stand close together to hear me talking was also difficult. Thirty people in a clump take up a lot of sidewalk room and while New Yorkers are sort of accommodating … well, we got some dirty looks every now and then. We also found that tourists not on our Tour would subtly join the group, sidling in to hear what I was saying! That was confusing. I realized that talking fast and loud kept my charges focused, and moving at a quick pace rather than sauntering got us efficiently along the crowded “Avenues”. The smaller cross-town “Streets” were easier at deal with. But we did lose a few people. Whether I was boring them or whether we had actually lost them in the process, I never did find out. It was, for me, essentially a performance … with no rehearsal. Grasping for descriptive adjectives and remembering dates was a challenge, but despite that my remaining charges told me they had enjoyed it. I was glad when it was over.

We had arranged another Tour the following day and I was excited about this one. It was at my old stomping grounds at Lincoln Center. Since our group was rather large we had to split into two tours, and each had the best Guides at LC – Maria and Peggy. Peggy had actually got me my job there and I joined the group with her. Her spiel hadn’t changed over the years, and she was just as funny and informative as ever, slightly irreverent, and blasé in a New York kind of way, all at the same time. It made me want to do those tours again! The rest of our time rushed by. As we went along I had been making detailed notes about what worked and what didn’t, what folks responded to or not, and presented a report to our organizers at Carlson once home. They’d already heard from our charges that we were “born escorts” and, on the spot, we were booked for another Tour the following year. Time to start planning again!

            Returning home was always a bit of culture shock. After the chaos and energy of New York, Winnipeg seemed just a bit dull, a little too quiet, but I settled in at my desk and was soon on the phone with Sam. I was jolted back into new shows about to go on the road, budgets and payrolls to prepare and the news that we were now going to become TWO companies! One would handle the orchestra contracting (Music Services) and the other (Lutvick Productions) would deal with only the Dean Regan shows (“Patsy”, “Red Rock Diner”, “Hotel Porter”, et al.) including a new one called “Swing!” which Dean was in the process of writing. I was now to head out to Vancouver to help him create the transition fibre for that show. And just to keep the pot fully aboil, I found myself auditioning for “Cabaret”, an up-coming co-pro between MTC and The Grand Theatre in London, Ontario.

            I’d not met Michael Shamata before. He was the AD at The Grand and a very eloquent, knowledgeable, and tall gentleman. There seemed to be a sense of excitement and breathlessness about him, constantly surprised by the moment and anxiously anticipating the next. I wanted to work with him. His reputation had preceded him as a caring and detailed director. Tim French, the choreographer, was also on hand, but Don Horsburgh, the show’s Musical Director and a friend through MSI, had other commitments. I was up for ‘Herr Shultz’ and, since I’d played him twice before, thought I had it down. The audition went well, but, as usual, one can never tell what “they” thought, and I was in wait-mode for a while. MSI had also been hired as the orchestra contractors so being on-site for payroll and stewarding would be an additional responsibility for me … should I get the part. Hiring this band had to be a careful choice for Sam. In the show, the “all-girl band” is on-stage, so choosing the right guys meant considering their “citizenship” in a new light. As well as being excellent players, they had to be easy-going, out-going, and “up” for just about anything by way of “performance”. Sam’s choices were spot on!

            Now, where one door opens, it was usually the case that a whole bunch of other doors open at the same time! In this case, one door was a PTE production called “Speak” by Greg Nelson, wherein I would play a Christian politician who spends most of the time in histrionics and speaking in tongues! That sounded really interesting! The other was Mark Harelik’s “The Immigrant” for Winnipeg Jewish Theatre. But these choices were moot because a few days after the audition I got the call from London, and I was on for ‘Shultz’. This was to be a long contract starting with late August rehearsals and performances in early Fall in London then moving on to Winnipeg in November! I was delighted to be doing the role again. I didn’t know who else was in the cast, but I hoped that I would have a good ‘Fraulein Schneider’ to play opposite. I wasn’t disappointed! But there were a few things to deal with before all that happened.

As I mentioned a few posts back, the Toronto Symphony had signed me on to do six performances of Bramwell Tovey’s “For A Fistful Of Guilders” for their “Last Night of the Proms” Series. I’d never performed in Toronto, so for me this was a big deal. And, with the Symphony at Roy Thompson Hall (above) …  even bigger! While I don’t want to say the TSO is cheap, they refused to negotiate for a hotel room across from the Hall as part of my contract, so I ended up staying at Mom’s condo, a blessing in disguise because I got to spend a lot of time with her, family, and some new people in her life. Being in Toronto also allowed me to touch base with folks I’d not seen for quite a while. Nick “Mr. Cheesie” Rice had been a constant and considerate friend and it was great to visit with him in his natural environment. I was also a blessing to share some time with Richard Ouzounian. Our relationship had been sporadic over the years since he’d left Winnipeg; but his rapid rise to celebrity (and some notoriety) in Ontario working for CBC and TVO and as a theatre critic and commentator was newsworthy and kept me aware of his life journey. It was the first time we’d really ever been “ourselves” with each other, not as an actor and a director or employer-employee. We talked about our lives and the challenges and just regular-folk stuff. I fell in love all over again with his wry humour and irreverence and it was deeply satisfying to be back together, if only for a few hours.

The concerts went extremely well. The fact that I’d done “Fistful” a number of times before kept my nerves in check, despite the fact that the house was packed and it was, after all, the TSO! The audience (which had a lot of kids in it) loved the piece, and my job was done. Bramwell was in top form. His “stand up” (which had become the norm for his hosting of the POPS concerts back home) got the house revved up, one might say “incited”, for their participation. He was incredibly funny with his droll British delivery and each show turned into a party! By the time our run finished I’d seen a lot of folks, including dear Rainbow alum Brian Gow, who was now married with children (how time flies) and living in St. Catherine’s. We planned to spend some time when I was back in London in a few weeks!

I hit the ground running in Winnipeg. I’d managed to score a few days on couple of films, one being directed by the incredibly kind and generous Kiefer Sutherland called “A Woman Wanted” starring Holly Hunter. Then it was back to NYC on MSI business (talk about jet setting!). I was to make the connection with line producer Allan Williams at the Alan Wasser Office (a major Broadway Producer) about our involvement in a Broadway limited-run of Matthew Bourne’s “Swan Lake”, the highly controversial all-male version of the ballet. We got it! Sam was over the moon at the news, but for me, it was another case of “add it to the list and on to the next one” … which made me realize that I was getting kind of jaded about this job.

Then, after a small jaunt to Vancouver to help Dean with that connective tissue for “Swing” (which was all really a case of doing “stuff” that I could have just as easily done at home), I packed up the car and set off for London and the adventure of another “Cabaret”!

I love, love, love driving long distances! It had been a while since my last major trek but this time my Jeep was decked out with a lot of technology. Primitive though it was by today’s standards, I’d purchased a “Global Positioning System Receiver” (GPS) along with a new laptop and, hooked up with the destination co-ordinates entered into the program, at exactly 5:10 AM on a Friday, I hit the road. Watching the late August sun come up over the Prairies thrilled me. The windows were down with a warm breeze circulating in the cab and the robotic female “Map and Go” voice was telling me which turns to take to get me out onto the Trans Canada. There wasn’t a lot of traffic, and the time went by rather quickly. I’d packed sandwiches and Diet Pepsi so there was little need to stop except for gas, and after a night in a highway motel (always a gamble) I was back on the road taking the shorter route crossing into Michigan for a few hours. It wasn’t long before the big green overhead signs were telling that London was just ahead.

The house I was staying in was magnificent. My hosts, Brian and Peter, were used to putting up performers from the Grand and their welcome was very chatty, warm, and friendly. My room for the weeks ahead was very large and beautifully appointed (Brian owned an interior design shop in London) and they’d even set up another room beside it as an office for all my computer stuff. I was up early the following morning to get my bearings in town, have the car cleaned, buy some groceries, find the ‘Y’, and got to know my hosts a bit better over dining that evening.

The “Cabaret” cast was all new to me (Nicola Lipman, Milo Shandel, Jane Johnson, Jeff Hyslop, Laurie Paton, Bruce Davies). Although I knew some of them by name, we’d not worked together before. There didn’t seem to be any of the surreptitious assessment that happens with a cast at the first read-thru. The atmosphere was very friendly and calm, probably because Michael (Shamata) was exceedingly gracious and gentle in his approach to us and the process. I quickly connected with our Musical Director Don Horsburgh. There was no official score reduction from the usual twenty-five-piece pit orchestra down to the six musicians we were using for this production, and Sam needed to know if he wanted anything to help in creating the new musical arrangements. He certainly had his work cut out for him, but turned out to be a miracle worker … and a great human being. Very little fazed Don, and he was always respectful and helpful if anyone was having a problem. That bode well for down-the-road.

Rehearsals were, of course, my main focus, but there were also some other projects of my own that were causing me stress. I had been hired to play ‘Applegate’ in a production of “Damn Yankees” in Oregon the following season and the Immigration process was getting very messy and complicated because some folks weren’t “taking care of business”. This would be a headache for weeks to come.

That I’d directed “Cabaret” and played ‘Schultz’ a couple of times had its pros and cons! I had the character well-placed in my head and heart – his look, his sound, the physicalization, his motivations and emotional qualities – and that package had served me well. I had given a passing thought to those Opera singers who arrive at rehearsal and tell the director “I do it this way, and move here on this line, etc.”. Sometimes that can work in a pinch … or if a Director has no new ideas and is relying on an artist to “do his/her thing” … which is usually what the audience is buying tickets to see and hear. But, of course, I wasn’t one of those performers! It turned out that Michael had other ideas. And therein lay the cons.

I consider myself to be pretty amenable as a performer. I take direction with little fuss (most of the time – except when a director is dead wrong) and can usually adjust easily. But ‘Schultz’ was deeply embedded in me. I was unabashedly in love with my characterization. I don’t know how it evolved but I do know that somewhere along the line my ‘Schultz’ had turned into a kind of S.K. Sakall. (If you don’t know who he is, Google him and you’ll recognize him immediately … IF you’re of a certain age.). Sakall (who was also known as “Cuddles”) always played the slightly confused, befuddled uncle or sidekick, funny in a self-deprecating way … and that last thing is probably where I hung my interpretation of ‘Schultz’. That “don’t rock the boat, don’t cause trouble, ignore what’s really going on and make yourself invisible” attitude had all worked to give me a foundation. Michael thought there was another approach. Through gentle, sensitive and, most of all, incredibly patient guidance, he led me to new discoveries. My ‘Schultz’ became a dignified man who didn’t know how to deal with what was going on around him. That was his conflict but also his action. This approach was fulfilling and satisfying dramatically, and I found an additional anchor in Nicola Lipman’s beautiful ‘Fraulein Schneider’. This grounded and compassionate lady accepted all my little idiosyncrasies and inner turmoil as I trudged my way toward this portrayal of ‘Schultz’.

The work was very difficult as we went along. I would frantically bounce about in my head trying to adjust and calm myself when I couldn’t find the newly created and very narrow track for a moment. It felt like “Our Country’s Good” all over again and that fraught journey to “finding” ‘Harry Brewer’. But as had been the case back then, the visceral intensity of using my craft was, in itself, the reward!

We moved on to John Ferguson’s astonishing and wonderfully theatrical set, an Escher-like maze of dozens of stairways and levels; when combined with the dreamlike atmosphere of his lighting design, our cocoon was complete. We were held and embraced in another world, at times confusing, at times comforting, at times dangerous, but always specific and focused. We headed to the opening, very excited and very ready.

Meanwhile, Music Services continued to gouge out a portion of my day. So many projects demanded a great deal of attention, mostly those budgets and payrolls. Our relationship with Wasser Office in New York and the “Bourne Swan Lake” solidified further and Sam was making some major inroads toward the down-the-road picture. I was just waiting for the phone call from him asking me “how fast can you pack up and move to New York?” That thought was frightening and exhilarating at the same time. The picture of living in New York again was very firmly in my head, but I kept pushing it into the deep background, thinking that I would cross that bridge if I ever came to it. In fact, I was actually on the bridge. Putting it out into the Universe as a question – “should I prepare myself for this change?” – the answer always came back a resounding “YES!”