The day after

The latest from DNAinfo.com:

http://www.dnainfo.com/20110829/upper-west-side/upper-west-side-church-doubles-as-theater-set

8/29

Charlotte is there on the steps, but no Edward.

A guy from Starbucks shows up with a bag of overstocked food from their Irene weekend. So there will be bistro boxes, panini and breakfast muffins for actors and homeless people.

It’s time for Danielle and I to take a deep breath and check out the church and see how we weathered the storm. We inch down into the darkened basement, and to our amazement, it’s dry as a bone. Or at least as dry as these bones can be. The new pipes installed by Clint and the Watson Plumbing guys did the job. Thank God for small miracles. 

Danielle’s inspection of the whole building shows that the roof held up as well. 

When Teddy arrives, he breathes a great sigh of relief. They were prepared for a day of bailing. Later today his crew will come in and begin to unbatten, getting the elcectricity up and running again, getting the yard furniture back out. Much work to be done.

Lynnea comes in to try and find rehearsal space for Frog and Peach. This will not be easy. The next several weeks are really full. And a lot of scheduling is still unclear. It looks like we can find some space for today.

It’s late afternoon. John H and his Dark Lady Players cast are in the sanctuary. I greet them. See some faces I recognize from past productions. Welcome them into our home and talk about our plans for the Center and the open discussion of their production we plan for September 18th. 

In the session room, now the landlord’s apartment, Lynnea and her cast are gathered for their first read through of Two Gentlemen...Again, familiar faces. Welcoming Frog & Peach back for the first time in five years. Lynnea speaks of the Seven Deadly. Asks me to define envy. When you want what I have, I say. And vice versa. Grass is greener, she responds. 

Teddy’s crew is getting organized, ready to put things back in order. I invite all the theatre people to share in the Starbucks buffet. The Dark Lady Players volunteer to  get the food out to our homeless guests.

John comes over. Do you rrealize, he says, that you just had four theatre companies in here simultaneously? Dark Lady, Woodshed, Frog & Peach an a very important company from Los Angeles checking out the space for a possible production. That is really something.

I check out the Starbucks’ box. Pick out a ham and swiss panini and a breakfast sndwich. That’s it for this long day after. Dry, we’re dry.