If You Rain on Us, Do We Not Get Wet

What would you wait for? What would you sweat for? What would you pay for? What would you cling to hope for, enduring a 6 hour line followed by a deluge?! For me, tonight, it was Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice...

Imagine the feeling of a bathroom after you've taken a steaming hot shower. The air is thick, moist, hot and we-just-sit-in-it! Arriving in pieces to the stand-by line outside the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, we sit on a hope and a prayer (and gravel) waiting for the possibility of snagging a ticket to one of the final performances of the summer's Shakespeare in Central Park.

In total we are seven, probably sitting a good 50 people from the front of the line. Now this line will only receive tickets after the folks with vouchers (some of whom camped out over night) get their tickets, who won't receive tickets until extra tickets are distributed by the box office. Basically, our chances are slim but we're optimistic people. We are actors after all, we live on the possibility of 'what if'! Anyway, knowing all this a pair of fellows walk by offering to sell tickets to the show. Now, you should know that the homeless folks in NYC are quite clever. Some camp out in the line over night, cause why not, and then receive tickets in the morning. Later in the day they sell them to people desperate to see the show and viola! make a little money! Genius! My friend and I perk up and inquire to the amount. $10 he says! After close inspection of the tickets (and assuming, based on appearance, that these guys wouldn't have the means to create fake tickets and then only sell them for ten bucks) we decided to purchase the 4 tickets they held. The seats were in the back row, so we opted to stay in the line to see if we could do better. Never satisfied!

The day continued to drag on but with enough snacks, good company and funny stories the day ended up flying by. Eventually we had purchased enough tickets for the group to be guaranteed a seat. Some were still skeptical about the validity of the tickets but once it became evident that we weren't going to get a ticket in the stand-by line and they were making last calls for anyone with a ticket, we jumped out of line and ran to our seats!

Now I should preface this next section by telling you that the forecast for the evening was heavy/severe thunderstorms with a chance of hail and a tornado watch! Am I back in Texas?! As we sit there is a slight breeze in the air but I am praying that the weather will hold. The play begins and Pacino is fabulous! We make it to the scene where Shylock is approached by Bassanio and Antonio for infamous loan (that whole pound of flesh bit) and the wind has picked up considerably. A gust of wind blows several leaves on the stage and the crowd begins to stir uncomfortably in their seats. A slight spitting kind of rain descends from above but the players go on. I draw my eyes to the sky and my heart drops at the sight of a wall cloud dividing the heavens and moving across to cover us. Then the rain comes... and comes... heavier... and heavier! The players abandon the stage, which is good cause eventually the wind knocks over the sets! The crew scrambles to cover the props as the audiences scrambles to take shelter. Those of us buried in the middle of our row remain stagnant huddling under a pitiful umbrella I may have borrowed from work. With every umbrella-breaking gust of wind, we'd all scream and cheer in defiance!! We WILL stay in our seats and see this show that we waited all afternoon for! One of the most amazing acts of nature I've encountered that closely!

For 35 minutes I bounced back-and-forth between hope and despair, never truly believing the performance would be canceled (little did I know the actors were down below taking off their costumes). The rain slowed bringing forth cries of victory, and as it stopped many of us stood proudly as though we had endured a great battle! Then we swiftly moved down to abandoned seats much closer! As the crew reset the stage, the weaker, more timid theater-goers emerged from their haven under the stands all nice and dry. Honestly, the shower was welcomed after spending several hours in the sweaty heat!

"Three thousand ducats!" and as Pacino delivered the line, the audience erupted. We loved them for coming back on stage and they loved us for staying. The rest of the performance fell under the gaze of the waning moon and ended somewhere around midnight. Portia was exquisite, Pacino played Shylock brilliantly and any issue I may have quibbled over on any other night was forgiven because it was performed. I loved every moment of it because it felt like a gift!

Montauk Triathlon

4:45 a.m. Is that my alarm? Where am I? Oh Yeah! I'm in East Hampton at David's House (a.k.a. my dream home) and Ana is asleep in the next bed! Thank God I wore my race clothes to bed.

4:55 a.m. No one will care if I steal one piece of oat bread. Should I eat anything else? No, Ironman Archer and wife advised me not to do anything out of the ordinary, which really means no breakfast at all.

5:05 a.m. "Morning David (a.k.a. "coach"/chauffeur/camera man/hero) Thanks again for getting up incredibly early to drive me out to Montauk", while Krissy and Ana (my best friends) sleep in.

5:58 a.m. Where do we go? Should we drop off the bike or the run stuff first. The directions aren't the best. I have no idea what I'm doing. "Oh ok just in here. This must be the second transition point from bike to run. Let me get my run gear stuff ready." Wait, I don't really have any run gear. I'll put the Texas A&M rally towel in my spot to make me smile, cause I think I'll be dying at this point in the race.

6:18 a.m. This is such a long walk. I feel bad for making David come all the way out here. Its such an early morning, but the sunrise is beautiful. So glad to have someone here with me. I have no idea how I'm going to feel during this race. I know I'll get thru it, I just hope I've got some dignity doing it!

6:30 a.m. Ok, so I'll set up my bike like they did. Just hang it? Like that? Huh, cool. Lay out the towel, my shirt, my shoes, socks, helmet, snack, water bottle. Got it. They just announced its 6:30! Ah! I should get to the beach, right? I love that David is here. He is a very calming presence that quietly supports me. This line for this disgusting clogged bathroom is full of 'chatty kathys'. All these women who know each other and are relaxed. I'm dying to talk to someone who is about to race. I really wish I had someone racing with me. I'm surprisingly chipper. Wonder what my heart rate is at right now. Where is David? Ah yes, he's right there. Patiently waiting. A blessing, that one.

6:40 a.m. David just gave me a pep talk. He he! Glad I could laugh before the start. Hope the girls are here when I get back to the shore. I can't believe I'm walking down the beach to swim all this way back! Whoa, look at how huge that dog's head is! Ok, so I'm more than half way finished when I see the camper on the beach with the dog with the giant head. What is that? A St. Bernard? This is kinda far down here. Hmmm, what should I do? Some people are in the water, I should probably at least feel it. AHH!! So cold!!! Ok, now I definitely have to get all the way in, so the start isn't a shock. I'll just sit in the water until everyone else gets out too. Lots of wetsuits out here. Still don't think I need one. I'm not that hard core.

6:55 a.m. Ok, so we just had to get out. Wonder what a 'water start' means. I need to connect with someone here. Must reach out. Oh, he just said it was his first tri. "Its your first one? Mine too. I'm a little nervous. Hi, TJ, I'm Erin. Pat, nice to meet you too." Ok, two names. That kinda grounded me. Oh geez, the Elite group is swimming out. That's what a water start means. Ok, so no bounding into the water. There they go. Oh my goodness, we can get in the water now. Ok, well its about to begin. I wonder how long this will take me. 'Just swim my race. Don't get overexcited and tire myself out. Slow and steady. Just finish.' Oh! He's counting down from 10. Where is the American flag for the turn to shore? I see it... barely.

The race begins for #69 from Texas. I didn't want to discriminate so I incorporated all strokes into my half mile swim: free style, breast stroke, back stroke, doggy paddle, side stroke (strongest one actually). Under the keen eye of the local lifeguards and staff I managed to struggle my way through the murky salt water. Forgot it was going to be salt water until I got a mouth full! BLAH!! Before leaving NYC, I read up on Montauk a bit and discovered the character of the captain in JAWS was based on a shark hunter from Montauk. Great shark hunting off these beaches. Excellent! This helps to fuel my paranoia about losing a limb or a good chunk of myself in the ocean to an unseen creature and here I am voluntarily splashing around, which you're not supposed to do when there are sharks, right? Its like subconsciously I want to give a little nibble. I press on, and focus my attention on the swimmer with the blue wetsuit. Her form is solid and yet I'm keeping pace with her. Ok, stay with blue back. Keep up with her. That is the goal. Eventually overtake her, cause lets face it, you're always saving a little for the end. And a couple buoys before the turn to shore, I passed her! Thats right! I am Ariel! The sea is my home! Can't wait to leave it!

Ok, gotta swim all the way in just to save face. Ah! LAND! Ugh... sand! Not so easy to run in. Ok, lets jog up to the bike. Yeah right. Not happening. Ok, wipe the feet as best we can. Geared up, got the helmet, snack, chug some agua, shirt... ready. My camera man tried to grab a pic of me before I peddled away. Wonder if he got it. Wonder how long it takes to bike 14 miles. I don't even have a ballpark of an idea. Ah well! Apparently, you just keep moving your legs the whole stinkin' time! I was hoping for a little rest on the bike, but somehow failed to ever stop moving my legs for this "rest". I did love the bike part though. If I tried to capture all the things I thought about on that ride, this would go on forever. Its incredible where the mind goes when the body is active. Just an idea, I rehearsed my Shakespeare monologue in several accents, took note of some properties for sale, waved at the locals on their lawns, high-fived a couple cops, chatted with a few fellow racers, ate half a fruit bar then decided I didn't really even want it, took note of the ages of all the folks passing me (they wrote our age on our lower leg). Everyone seemed so intense during the race. Granted some were Olympians but was anyone else doing this for fun? I wonder if I'd trained more I might have been more intense... nah, its not my personality! Its all about F-U-N!

The last 15 min of the bike included a gigantic hill! Luckily there was a dude at the top cheering us on. Definitely gave him a big ole high five! Then it was transition #2. Found my spot, hung the bike, left the helmet and started jogging out to the course. Now I see the girls! Ana and Krissy cheering on #69 as she loosely jogs down the hill and on for the 3 mile run. Once I'm out of their sight and any other spectator, it becomes me and my head again. Maybe the longest mile of my whole life! My legs weighed 100 lbs each at that point. Race tip: stand up on the bike for the last little bit to get your legs moving more like a run. The transition will be easier Definitely the hardest part of the race. My body would not move faster. My lungs were doing their job very efficiently, but my poor legs were ready to be done. Just keep running, just keep running. I took four 10 second walk breaks. I was told I have a nice smile- still enjoying this.

Ok, second to last water stop, no more walking. Finish the race with style. Pose for the camera. Round the corner to the bottom of the hill. I see the lighthouse. I see the finish. Hey, this is almost the exact same incline and length as the street I grew up on back home in Texas. Perfect. I know how to push thru this! All the way up. Use the crowd. Oh, I hear the girls. Almost there! Did they just say 'representing Astoria'? How lame! I should have put Texas on my registration. That would have sounded much cooler running through the finish! Wow! I made it!

*for more photos, check the facebook page!

Out of 700 registered racers, I placed 406th overall, 120th among women, and 12th in my division (women under 34 yrs) with a time of 1 hour, 49 minutes, 35 seconds...
thank you very much!

My Typical Evening in New York

Upon returning home from a long day of serving lattes and iced espressos to the tourists brunching in TriBeCa, desperately hoping to spot a celeb (pssss... they're all out of town), I returned home to take a little cat nap before a potential subletter stops by. Thats right, I'm vacating the City for August! Some much needed time apart is quickly approaching, which means I need to find a stranger that will not steal things, to basically pay rent for me while I'm away.

I'm shortly off to do a bit of training for my triathlon around dusk, cause its my favorite time to run in Central Park. The fireflies are floating around, the temperature has reached a tolerable level and things quiet down a bit. I paused my run to view a tango dance party at the south end of the literary walk (the famous wide pathway with all the trees over it). The tango is such a sensual dance. I love it!

As always, I ran by the Shakespeare in the Park and as I reached Belvedere Castle I heard them call for Shylock, which meant they were doing Merchant of Venice, which meant Al Pacino had just entered the scene. I stayed and listened to it for while despite having a tiny peak at the stage through the trees. Don't worry, I will do the whole come before dawn and sit in line waiting for the free tickets... and then tell you about it.

On the way home, while waiting for the train at the end of my run, a voice comes over the speaker announcing that, "Due to a police investigation, service on the N train has been cancelled" WHAT? You can't just cancel service!!! Ah! Several trains later I find myself walking toward my house on my street! Thank Heaven!

Quick Update

Ok Ok I've been absolutely terrible about writing! Somehow at the conclusion of my time at the Esper Studio I've become increasingly busier, when I thought I might have more free time. That is the nature of NYC, and myself. If suddenly more time is available, it will be filled beyond capacity. No excuse though. Apologies (I'm apologizing to myself as much as you)

Now, quick update: The last day of Esper I began a new class at Atlantic Theater Company for monologues with Karen Kohlhaas, who was just voted best monologue instructor here! Not too shabby, I think! Anyway, the class was fabulous and I learned a ton, plus it was nice to know that I can in fact act outside of the world I've known for the past two years at the Esper Studio. Slowly taking baby-steps into the great big world of NYC and the millions of actors that inhabit it!
Currently, I am back at Esper Studio studying Shakespeare with the studio's namesake, Bill Esper, and Nancy Mayans, who has been my voice teacher the past 2 years. Its an incredible class and has only increased my appreciation and desire to perform Shakespeare. Speaking of, Al Pacino is currently doing Shylock in "The Merchant of Venice" in Central Park this summer, so be looking for an entry about how we camped out to get tickets for this free but terribly popular event!
Also on the horizon I am competing (although maybe competing is an overly ambitious word) in a sprint triathlon in Montauk on the 18th! You might be thinking, "Wow, I didn't know you were a triathlete" and I'm not. Signed up for fun and that is precisely what I plan on experiencing, probably along with a little pain and fatigue. Going to start training the swim part today and find a place to air up to tires on the bike I'm going to use! I got 10 days! Wish me luck!