“The world is as a looking-glass and gives back to every man the reflection of his own face. Frown at it and it in turn will look sourly upon you; laugh at it and with it, and it is a jolly, kind companion."I teach voice and speech at Stella Adler Studio. I am an actress. One might say I love communication. I love diving into stories and telling them well—and then discussing the stories after. I love sitting over coffee and exchanging ideas. I love helping a student realize that they might be understood a bit better if they would open their mouth more and breathe. I love random conversations with strangers on the subway (sometimes complaining about the MTA, sometimes not). I even love non-verbal conversations: realizing that you and a stranger are smiling about the same child in the stroller; You make eye contact, and you smile at them too—sharing the moment. I love meeting new people and hearing their stories. “Where are you from? What brought you here?” I love striking up conversations with taxi drivers, discovering that this person was a doctor in his country before he came here. I love asking people about their children or pets—there is a very special light that comes on when they speak about them. It’s a different light when you ask them about their parents. Watch for this, it’s fascinating. I love, love, love talking with people about dreams. I love brainstorming the possible rungs on the ladder for reaching those dreams.
Yep, I’m that person.
I mean, I’m not annoying about it—I just think that people are
fascinating! I wish that history class
had been more about the people and not so much about dates. Anyway, I guess I’m in the right business. I
get to literally step in others’ shoes and dive into their stories.
But in this constant curiosity about humanity, what I find
most fascinating is the very common thread of the basic need for human
connection. We need it. We need it to push ourselves forward. We need it to see the mirror. We need it for validation. We need it to feed each other. We have a responsibility
to feed each other. And I’m pretty sure that
requires compassion.
I am so proud that Theatre East provides many outlets for
possibilities for human connection; possibilities for discussion of big ideas
as well as big dreams. Whether at the
monthly mixers, readings, talk backs, main-stage productions, family series—we
believe in human connection, with compassion, so that we just might all help
lift this world up a little bit higher.
So join us February 20th for the next Theatre
East Third Monday Mixer/Neighborhood Reading Series installment: StephenMassicotte’s THE BOY’S OWN JEDI HANDBOOK.
Come hang out, hear a fun & clever play about the life lessons a boy
learned from Star Wars. (If you are a fan, were a fan, or knew anyone who was,
you will love this play!) Let’s laugh about ourselves and learn from each
other, shall we?
See you there!
