Snow Day!!

It all started like a normal, early, we're-traveling-very-far local show. I awoke at 4:45am, showered, dressed, caffeinated, oatmeal-ed, did my last-minute double-checks, grabbed my suitcase and headed out the door. We had a show scheduled in Easton, PA, and then an overnight in Scranton, where we had an early show the next day. There was some talk of snow, but nothing that seemed terribly threatening. We'd had some blowy, dusty stuff in the city, and I had seen some mention of snow closures in New Jersey on the early local news, but nothing seemed to be worth any second thought.

So, you can imagine my surprise when, at 6:40am, while standing in the waiting area at our garage on 108th St, I found a missed call and a text message from Alaina. It read:

"Our show today was canceled. Go back to sleep and be at the van at 11:00am"

Curious, I called Alaina, who had set up shop at a local Starbucks and inquired. Apparently, Easton-area schools delayed their start time by two hours and, with a new 10am-ish stat time, our 10:30am show was not happening. After a brief debate between the merits of caffeine and sleep, I hopped back on the subway and raced back to my bed in Brooklyn, where I fell asleep to the strains of Good Morning America.

Back at the vans at 11, I learned that Grace, Alaina and Colleen had spent their nearly-five hours together at a Starbucks, while Claire had camped out at an organic coffee shop near a friend's apartment. Seems the guys were the only ones to catch a few more winks. And, finding a max snow covering of about a quarter inch during our entire drive, we began to question the reasoning of this show cancellation. "No matter," I said. "We just earned ourselves a snow day."

Scranton was our final destination, and we took it by storm. Our Priceline-picked Holiday Inn provided a pool and hot tub, but we were all ready for some more action first. Our two freshly-minted vegetarians headed to an organic/vegan cafe in downtown Scranton, Colleen worked out, and the gentlemen plus Alaina made our way for burgers and BBQ chicken tenders at a local Friendly's (after a wild goose chase to find "The Loading Dock," a closed, and moderately shady, bar recommended by our hotel). Between their unfortunately-named "Happy Ending" sundaes and the dry cleaner on the corner encouraging passersby to "drop your pants here," we were all in good spirits as we headed to check out The Book of Eli at a local multiplex. (But not before a rousing game of Rock Band and Dance Dance Revolution at the attached arcade!)

Home, worked out, whirl-pooled and hungry, we convened for a light dinner at the attached bar, made fun of the American Idol contestants with the locals, and then decided to turn in. All in all, a great day!

In my experience, these days off together are so important. With all of the local shows we've had, it's been hard to get together as a company (or even small groups) for a drink, a laugh, a movie and a serious DDR competition. In rehearsal, actors are very different people than they are in real life, and it was so nice to let down the guard and really get to see the members of this company in the "real world." It reminds me why I love touring, and why I am particularly fond of this cast. If this is the kind of fun we have during the first four weeks, I can only imagine what we're in for once we get down to Florida!

Call tomorrow: 7:40am, Holiday Inn, Scranton, PA. Kiddies need a show!

Kid quote of the day: Immediately following Jenny's departure, I realize that "I've ruined everything!" A this point, a little girl shot up from her seat, index finger raised and announced, proudly, "OK, I got this! Here's what you gotta do." At this point a teacher silenced her, but I was truly intrigued to hear her solution to my problems.