My First Audition - Hole in the Wall Theater - 1979 - PART I I was excited but nervous because Id never auditioned for anything in my life. Here I was auditioning for a musical and I was terrified of singing. I couldnt carry a tune in a bucket. It didnt even occur to me that I would ever have to. And forget about dancing. I had enough trouble walking! And here I was auditioning for a musical! It was late July and hot as hell. I parked my VW Bug right in front of the theater. I paused before I went in. Not because I thought I was on the brink of some momentous occasion, but to whisper a silent prayer that I wouldn’t make a complete ass of myself! Then slowly, cautiously, I walked in the front door and immediately knew that everything was going to be all right. That feeling of belonging, I was there to become a piece of the place, like the cross beams or the floorboards. Walking through the front door was like walking through a membrane into another world. Literally! The people inside were not only alien, they were insane. Emotions cranked up to 11. Nobody was middle of the road. Some people were arguing violently. Enraged enough to kill. I could hear a womans voice somewhere in the distance sadly calling, Jim! Jim, you promised you wouldnt smoke any more pot! Jim! Where are you? Others were deliriously happy. Some were screaming with laughter. Some were just screaming! One creepy skinny guy was telling a story about when he was on Broadway in Hair. Wow! I thought. Broadway! This guy is a star! As the day went on I heard him tell more stories and realized he was not only full of shit but a compulsive liar to boot. Also he was a child molester but we didnt find that out until after he was dead. But Im getting ahead of myself. There was a tall thin kid in a leather jacket, sitting at a desk with a clipboard. He was a couple years younger than me. He had long hair and wore gold rim glasses. He looked like Joey Ramone. If Joey had worn gold rim glasses. He looked up when I walked in and said, Well? What the hell do you want? I was suddenly confused. What if this wasnt the audition? What if this was some AA meeting or Halfway House for mental patients? I mumbled I was there to audition. Do you know how to write your name? He asked. What? Then I looked around at the maniacs in the lobby. Youd be surprised. He said and smiled. I laughed and wrote my name on the audition list.
Posted on: Sun, 04 May 2014 16:13:25 +0000