#nick gaswirth

[dynamicsofapodcast]

In this second episode focused on Ken Ludwig's Moriarty: A New Sherlock Holmes Adventure, and its world premiere at the Cleveland Play House, we talk this time with the original cast: Christian Pedersen, Nick Gaswirth, Jeff Bender, Olivia Gilliatt, and Talley Gale!

(Sidebar: This is the only time you are ever going to hear the Professor himself open a podcast episode. 😁 That was so much fun.)

There are two places in which we talk spoilers — one is our now-normal spoiler section (suggestions for naming it are welcome!) — and the other happened first during the course of the conversation. The first moment is brief and happens between 0:38:04 and 0:38:16 — believe us when we say you're better off not spoiling this for yourself if you don't want spoilers!

Our actual spoiler section had to be shortened due to time constraints, so 1:01:38 to 1:07:15 is where you need to beware of talk about the very end of the play.

Quick note: We’ve been told by a friend that the spoilers didn’t feel very spoilery since they didn’t know the play. Fair enough, but we like to err on the side of caution with these things!

[ashleywool]

For the last few days, I’ve been getting really into How To Dance In Ohio and, my goodness, I adore the cast EP and have watched and re-watched every YouTube video about it I can! But, from what I could find, there isn’t a Wiki page or anything like that with information about the characters! If you can, I would love to know some fun facts (maybe pronouns, likes, dislikes, whatever else!) about the seven lovely autistic people we follow in the show!

I’m hoping to see it sometime next year! 💛

Hey there!

The Wikipedia page does exist, although it's still pretty sparse as the show is still in previews and there are rules about what the updates are allowed to be. Everything has to be substantiated by a published article on an established platform or a first-person interview.

Here's the character breakdown from the Equity Principal Audition, with some of my own notes added for context. I've included some of the nicknames we've come up with for the characters also, some of which are canon.

Johanna: 40s-50s, she/her, powerful mezzo-soprano. Caroline’s mother, perky and positive, keeps a watchful eye over her daughter, artsy mom vibes. (Note: it's pronounced "yo-HAH-na.") Also known as: Jo-Jo (pronounced "yo-yo;" not canon) Currently: played by Darlesia Cearcy, and understudied by Marina Pires. (Note also: Darlesia's name is pronounced Dar-LEE-see-ah.) Fun fact: Darlesia isn't much of a public social media user, but when I looked her up on Twitter, this is the first thing that popped up, from her time in Shuffle Along. If I were her, I wouldn't even bother with a headshot and resume anymore, I'd just hand casting directors a copy of that tweet. It pretty much says it all.

Terry: 40s-50s, she/her, powerful mezzo-soprano. Jessica’s mother, patient, loves leopard print, gives her daughter lots of space, cool mom vibes. Also known as: Ter-Bear. (not canon) Currently: played by Haven Burton, and understudied by Marina Pires. Fun fact: Haven plays my mom but she's only seven years older than me in real life. Marina P is four years younger than me. Best of all: when we were premiering in Syracuse, this role was also covered by an SU junior (Elana Babbit). She didn't get to go on, but if she had, I would've had a mother who was almost half my age!

Michael: 40s-50s, he/him, mid to high tenor. Marideth’s father, blue-collar, doing his best, is anxious in new social settings. Also plays: "Derrick," a pharmacy technician employee at Columbus Community College, who has a brief interaction with Caroline (and may or may not be a murderer). Currently: played by Nick Gaswirth, and understudied by Martín Solá.

Amy: 40s-50s, she/her, soprano. Drew’s mother, cultured, a housewife with a master’s degree, adept at managing her husband and son’s needs. Also plays: Shauna Parks, a super hawtt reporter from the Columbus Gazette. Currently: played by Melina Kalomas and understudied by Marina Pires.

Kurt: 40s-50s, he/him, mid to high baritone. Drew’s father, white-collar, conservative, a bit formal, has high expectations for Drew. Also plays: Hawkins, Mel's manager at Paws and Claws Pet Shop, who's kind of a douchebag, and Rick Jenkins, a blogger (not a reporter) who has no idea how to write about disability with any shred of respect. Currently: played by Carlos L. Encinias--who calls his collection of roles "The Villain Track" though I assure you is an exquisitely kind and funny anti-villain in real life--and understudied by Martín Solá.

Dr. Emilio Amigo: to play 50s, he/him, high baritone, Cuban-American. A clinical psychologist, founder and director of Amigo Family Counseling, great at his job, charismatic, full of empathy, recently divorced, at a crossroads. Currently: played by Caesar Samayoa, and understudied by Martín Solá and Carlos L. Encinias.

Ashley Amigo: to play 22, she/her, mezzo-soprano with a strong mix, of Cuban-American. Amigo’s daughter, a dancer recovering from an injury, is at a crossroads. Currently: played by Cristina Sastre, and understudied by Marina Pires and Marina Jansen.

Drew: 18, he/him, mid to high tenor, autistic. He needs structure, a bit formal, knows a lot about electricity and electrical grids, is looking for deeper connections in life, possibly romantic, on track to go to his dream college. Also known as: Drewby (by his mom; canon) Currently: played by Liam Pearce and understudied by Collin Hancock, Jean Christian Barry, and Hunter Hollingsworth.

Marideth: 18, she/her, alto with a strong mix, autistic. Raised by a single dad, loves to research facts, hates shoelaces, doesn’t like to be touched, is anxious in new social settings. Also known as: Wolf (not canon) Currently: played by Madison Kopec, and understudied by Marina Jansen and Ayanna Nicole Thomas. Fun fact: Marideth isn't the first canonically autistic character originated by Madison Kopec. I first heard of them back in 2019 when they were cast as Emma in a reading of a new musical called Indigo, which eventually had its world premiere last summer in (funnily enough) Ohio.

Caroline: 19, she/her, soprano with a strong mix, autistic. Perky and positive, goes to community college, is best friends with Jessica but is obsessed with her boyfriend. Also known as: Menace (not canon) Currently: played by Amelia Fei, and understudied by Ayanna Nicole Thomas and Marina Jansen.

Jessica: 20, she/her, full-voiced mezzo-soprano, autistic. Wants to live on her own, loves fantasy but is surprisingly practical, has a flair for drama. Also known as: Rachel Berry (obviously not canon as that's copyright infringement) Currently: played by Ashley Wool (yours truly) and understudied by Ayanna Nicole Thomas and Marina Jansen. Fun fact: Lol. 20. That's adorable. I'm absolutely not 20.

Mel: 24, she/he/they, earthy alto, autistic. The oldest member of the group, a seeker into self-help and mindfulness, a natural leader, works at a pet shop. Also known as: Head of Reptiles (technically canon, but we also just like to imagine Mel as a mythical creature with a reptilian head) Currently: played by Imani Russell and understudied by Marina Jansen and Ayanna Nicole Thomas. Fun fact: way back in 2021, when they were casting the first reading of the show, my agent at the time submitted me for Mel--the character was initially conceived as a cis woman on the breakdown--but I had already gotten a callback for Jessica from my self-submission, and I had a gut feeling that there was somebody better out there for Mel. I couldn't have been more right--after Imani was cast, it was largely thanks to their creativity, insight and influence that Mel evolved into the distinctive non-binary icon (non-bicon?) we know and love today.

Remy: 18+ to play 16, he/she/they, mid to high tenor, autistic. Into cosplay, makes a How-To costume and makeup tutorial videos online. Currently: played by Desmond Luis Edwards, and understudied by Jean Christian Barry, Ayanna Nicole Thomas, and Hunter Hollingsworth. Fun fact: Dez's involvement in HTDIO is the ultimate "Cinderella story." In 2021, Jacob Yandura was running a summer camp in Florida, and Dez was a student there; upon finding out Dez was autistic, Jacob said, "hey, I think you'd be a good fit for this musical I'm writing." The first time I heard Dez sing at the rehearsals for the reading, I was like, "you're SEVENTEEN?! I quit." How many actors out there go from their third high school musical DIRECTLY to Broadway? Another fun fact: Dez created all the cosplay designs we used onstage in the Syracuse production. Check out his art account here!

Tommy: 22, he/him, mid to high baritone, autistic. Funny, self-conscious, studying to get his driver’s license. Currently: played by Conor Tague, and understudied by Hunter Hollingsworth, Collin Hancock, and Jean Christian Barry. Fun fact: In real life, Conor does not drive and is staunchly anti-driving.

Ok, I gotta shower and head to the theater for work notes, but I'll happily add more later!

[tenebris-lux]

In the musical Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812, there’s a song called “The Abduction”. Most of the song takes place at a tavern where there’s kind of a bachelor party going on for a guy about to elope with a girl. There’s a pretty long instrumental break during the song, and for most of that part, there’s choreographed dance segment. But then it devolves into chaos. That is what the writer of the play, Dave Malloy, calls this segment. I’ll let him tell the rest:

“…to this day I really don’t know everything that happens in this moment, but some of my favorite bits include: Natasha breaking a painting (of a troika) over Balaga’s head; Marya D. and Hélène making out; Andrey and Azudi Onyejekwe having a fully choreographed fist fight; Mary doing some sort of bizarre elf warrior attack on violinist Billy Joe Kiessling, using his bow as a sword; Pearl Rhein and Summaya Ali throwing pages of War & Peace from the balcony; Heath Saunders taking his wild hair down in an existential rage; Nick Gaswirth tearing his shirt; and dear sweet Sonya cowering in fear, in the corner of the house right mezz.”

This is so funny to me, because a lot of those names mentioned are characters who wouldn’t be at the bachelor party, they’re just there as extras and are adding to the chaos with some OOC actions. But for some reason, in my head, the image of a couple people throwing War & Peace pages around so they’re raining on the audience … that’s what kills me.

And it sounds really funny on the soundtrack. Lots of cheering, some chatter, and a couple shrieks. It sounds like a complete madhouse. And then the chaos stops when Pierre finally joins the party and starts singing.

[ratcarney]

my experience at the great comet

needless to say, it was fantastic. -i was sitting in the front row of the back mezz and i could see everything and it was incredible. -brad came up to us beforehand and shouted "NYET, NYET, NYET!" at things such as leaving your cellphones on during the performance and talking during the show, etc -then prologue started. and everyone in the audience was so engaged from that point on it was great. we had such a good audience omg -cathryn played her clarinet in my face and it was magical - celia mei rubin's arms are my RELIGION, holy shit??? she's tiny but so fucking strong i love it?? she's incredible -okay fast forward to natasha and the bolkonskys...after mary said "and he looked at her once head to toe" nicholas belton managed to mutter "not in my house" at shoba (who was playing natasha) right before mary continued with the lyric and i dIED -fast forward to the duel: balaga ate sonya out next to the bolkonsky chair, anatole seduces marya, marya whips some poor ensemble member on the top of the stage, and let's not forget the special appearance by all eighteen of josh canfield's abs - everything was fantastic up until in my house - brittain is in the middle of her line and her mic cuts out - cue my heart dropping - then ALL THE SOUND CUTS OUT - and suddenly there's an announcement over a hidden loudspeaker: "EXCUSE US. WE'RE HAVING SOME TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES. ALL ACTORS PLEASE EXIT THE STAGE." - shoba and grace and brittain are just kind of standing there laughing nervously and eventually grace beckons to shoba and they exit - the audience starts murmuring and everything is quiet - until a man behind me starts singing: "whOOAAOAOAAAOHOAAA" - getting the message, i stand up and shout "HEY! HEY! HEY!" - and the WHOLE AUDIENCE STARTS SINGING THE ABDUCTION - IT WAS INCREDIBLE -EVERYONE STARTED CLAPPING AND SHAKING THEIR EGG SHAKERS AND SINGING - eventually the song died out and everyone started clapping again it was hilarious - scott stangland (pierre), had to stay in the circular pit the whole time, and i'm not sure if he was staying in character or drinking from the wine bottle to cope with the fact that things had gone horribly wrong - then the guitar player next to him started the wave - and since its a circular theatre, the wave extended through the entire imperial - after that ended, heath came out to his spot to loud applause - he grinned and waved as the rest of the cast came out - they weren't getting the okay to continue the show so they just stood there in silence in their spots right before in my house - after a long pause, lucas, who stood on the top of the stairs, called "YOU GUYS REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED, RIGHT?" everyone says "yes!" and then grace comes onstage and the audience ROARS - they continued the show and it was terrific anyway, tl/dr: props to the great comet cast retaining their good humor and taking a major technical difficulty in stride.

[they-are-there-upon-his-head]

great comet ensemble appreciation post (and costume references!)

[mangomemos]

dat mustache tho

[thegreateditsof1812]

Prologue with the exception of Pierre, and Andrey.

[thediaryofatheatrekid]

Understudy Love: Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (Original Broadway Production) 

Former Understudies:

Erica Dorfler- Hélène (u/s), Marya D. (u/s)

[viikarious]

Nick Gaswirth and Katrina Yaukey in a new photo feature for the Great Comet by Matthew Murphy for Broadway.com

[lesbiancartoonist]

I saw the Great Comet on Sunday!!!! It was AMAZING!!!!!! I gave all the casts little doodles and some of the cast said I could be in the show because of my hair!!!! Simply AMAZING!!!!!!

[dreamcastingbroadway]

Dreamcasting Broadway: THE GREAT GATSBY

“I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy.”

Dreamcasting Broadway: The Great Gatsby

Troy Iwata as Nick Carraway

Joshua Henry as Jay Gatsby

Denée Benton as Daisy Buchanan

Steven Pasquale as Tom Buchanan

Danielle Steers as Jordan Baker

Joe Tippett as George Wilson

Grace McLean as Myrtle Wilson

Danny Burstein as Meyer Wolfsheim/Wolf Eyes

Abby C. Smith as Ensemble

Ashley De La Rosa as Ensemble (Jordan u/s)

Chris Dwan as Mr. McKee/Ensemble (Nick u/s)

Dorcas Leung as Mrs. McKee/Ensemble (Daisy u/s)

Ericka Hunter as Ensemble

Eymard Cabling as Ensemble (Tom u/s, George u/s)

Hayley Podschun as Ensemble (Daisy u/s, Myrtle u/s)

Heath Saunders as Klipspringer/Ensemble

Kathryn Allison as Ensemble

Katrina Yaukey as Ensemble

Natalie Walker as Catherine/Ensemble (Myrtle u/s)

Nick Gaswirth as Dan Cody/Ensemble (George u/s, Meyer Wolfsheim/Owl Eyes u/s)

Ryan Alvarado as Henry C. Gatz/Ensemble (Tom u/s, Meyer Wolfsheim/Owl Eyes u/s)

Sydney James Harcourt as Ensemble (Gatsby u/s)

Wonza Johnson as Ensemble (Nick u/s)

Anthony Festa as Swing (Gatsby u/s)

Camden Gonzales as Swing

Jillian Mueller as Swing (Jordan u/s)

Olutayo Bosede as Swing

Veronica Otim as Swing

[shiningnorthernlights]

December 4, 8-10pm (https://arsnovanyc.com/telethon)

The Comet Comes Home with hosts Rachel Chavkin & Dave Malloy

The cast and creative team of Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 reunite to tell their story from Ars Nova to Broadway through performances, conversations and tributes. Featuring Brittain Ashford, Courtney Bassett, Gelsey Bell, Nick Belton, Denée Benton, Brian Bogin, Josh Canfield, Kennedy Caughell, Manik Choksi, Claudia Chopek, Blake DeLong, Erica Dorfler, Ashley Pérez Flanagan, Paloma Garcia-Lee, Nick Gaswirth, Alex Gibson, Amber Gray, Billy Kiessling, Bradley King, Blaine Krauss, Mimi Lien, Andrew Mayer, Grace McLean, Karyn Meek, Mary Page Nance, Shoba Narayan, Kenny Nuñez, Pearl Rhein, Phil Romano, Celia Mei Rubin, Phillipa Soo, Scott Stangland, Cathryn Wake, Charity Wicks, Katrina Yaukey, Paloma Young, and Lauren Zakrin with appearances by Billy Eichner, Jennifer Kidwell, Scott R. Sheppard, and Robin Lord Taylor.

would anyone be willing to grab this for me? it's likely I won't be able to catch it because of timezones and I want to watch it so bad, I miss them that much. great comet is one of my ultimate favourite musicals and I'd be so thankful.

[emeraldskulblaka]

Can you talk about some Great Comet understudies you love?

Yes of course! Thank you so much for sending this one ♡

Honestly, all GC casts so far have been made up of phenomenally talented performers, and I don't say this lightly. A large percentage of people who were part of Great Comet have music careers of their own, or are generally less of a 'typical' Broadway performer.

I'll start with the Natasha understudies - Lauren Zakrin and Shoba Narayan. Gorgeous and nuanced acting from both of them! They embodied Natasha's naivety and showed character development in a clear and distinct manner. I'm aware that it looks like I'm conflating them, but they both had their own version of the character that didn't feel like a rip-off from Pippa's, Denée's or each other's portrayal, and that's VERY rare. I'm a bit sad there's no video of Lauren at all considering she's been involved with GC from the beginning, which makes the fact that I still love her this much from just audios extra special. As for Shoba, I'm so so glad that her performance has been captured and is there for the world to enjoy.

PIERRE. Well, the only one I can talk about is Scott Stangland because the others were principals, and I'm not sure if Nick Gaswirth ever got to go on, Heath Saunders definitely didn't. I've never listened to Luke Holloway. Scott was principal Pierre pre-Broadway and alternate towards the end of the Broadway run, but a standby most of the time. His voice doesn't have the edge that Dave Malloy's has, but isn't as gentle as Josh Groban's either. In my opinion, he has the perfect voice for Pierre because it fits all emotions Pierre goes through. I love his acting as well - he's neither pretending to be an old man, nor is he acting like one. His Pierre is a man who has been told that he is an old man, and he believes he is, but he isn't! He's quite energetic and emotional. Scott lives and breathes the show, it's a joy to watch him.

(The world missed out on Heath Saunders, I bet he would have been phenomenal. Watch this.)

The Anatole understudies had quite some work to do trying to live up to the standard Lucas Steele had set, but did some phenomenal work. Blaine Alden Krauss comes to mind first. He's got quite the range, but sometimes didn't even try to sing the notes as written. His Anatole was more youthful and seemed less serious. His intentions towards Natasha seem to be of a more playful nature, in a way. Blaine also was the one who ran around in a dinosaur costume backstage, right? Iconic.

Azudi Onyejekwe was 'downgraded' to 'just ensemble' eventually, but I'm glad he was kept on the show. I haven't listened to a full recording of him yet, but damn. That voice. Also, no copycat. Josh Canfield might have been closest to Lucas, but you certainly didn't get the same performance. Also, he's so KIND.

I can't say much for the other roles because I simply don't remember much, but shout-out to Courtney Bassett, who understudied Gelsey Bell and Brittain Ashford. Damn. The SKILL. I'm still looking for a full audio of Lulu Fall as Helene, but this performance makes me think I'd have fainted if I'd seen her live xD

[druid-for-hire]

i’m afraid i don’t have any pictures, but these are the names listed in my playbill from last summer!! 

those in the ensemble were: sumayya ail, courtney bassett, josh canfield, ken clark, lulu fall, ashley perez flanagan, nick gaswirth, alex gibson, billy joe kiessling, mary spencer knapp, reed luplau, andrew mayer, mary page nance, azudi onyejekwe, pearl rhein, heath saunders, cathryn wake, katrina yaukey, and lauren zakrin!

the swings were: kennedy caughell, blaine alden krauss, brandt martinez, mary page nance, shoba narayan, and celia mei rubin!

(mary page nance was listed as both ensemble and standby? idk why but it’s the same person, not two different people with the name ‘mary page nance’, i believe!)

these are just the people from early july, tho- i think there were some people who were in the ensemble who left before i saw it!!

------

wonderful; thank you so much!!

[cockvengers]

Final Great Comet Notes (2/2)

So as I mentioned in Part 1, I was fortunate enough see Comet on September 2nd (matinee) and September 3rd (closing) with a friend. In Part 1 I covered mostly the 9/2 matinee but there may be a few leftover notes interspersed.

September 3rd:

So first we actually went to the stage door to drop off some candy before the show. We went the day before with baked goods from a local bakery and gave them to Alex Gibson who was super nice.

I usually don’t do pre-show stage door because I don’t necessarily want to interact with people on my way to work but since they prefer you don’t bring food food into the theatre it is what it is.

Lauren was signing things for fans when we got there and since I hadn’t had the chance to give her the drawing I got to do that and she signed my book which was really generous.

One fan had a rose for each cast member that came by and idk if they’ll see this but I thought it was a very classy move.

Moving on, we headed back around to go in only to be stopped by the massive line around the block that would eventually lead into The Imperial

We were in line behind some ladies in their mid-sixties who were complaining about the show closing. It was something I heard a lot of whispers between fans about. Obviously we’re all upset. I could write essays on my feelings about the whys and hows and the disappointment but no one wants to hear it. It led to such a negative atmosphere on what I had hoped would be a going away party of sorts (ala The Abduction)

Luckily we went separate ways once in the theatre and the atmosphere was much improved.

Unlike our stage seats last time we were in the front of the rear mezz (2C) along the aisle closest to the center. It was a few rows forward from where I had seen Comet the first time and I’m fond of that area for that reason.

We had another friend (and their friend) in Row C of the front mezz and said hi to them before the start of the show

When Rachel and Sam came in and sat on the stage there was much applause. We actually missed it them sitting down because we were prepping our drinks

We saw Scott and Celia in the doorway to the mezz before the start of the show and I gave Celia her drawing since I hadn’t been fast enough to yesterday and I know that during normal show days she often leaves early if she’s not on

Andrew gave out dumplings. My friend got one and was kind enough to share with me.

After the warnings it was time for Dave to come out. That was a standing ovation that lasted maybe a minute.

Natasha chases Andrei and there is applause for her entrance.

The Prologue starts and at this point I feel sorry for anyone who hadn’t seen the show. That includes a person behind us. Hopefully you got something out of the show because I’m pretty sure there was no way to figure out who’s who over the applause.

Natasha is Young... *LOUD APPLAUSE*

Sonya is Good... *Applause* The audience hadn’t decided if we planned to applause for everyone at that point so Brittain didn’t get as much applause. We made up for it when she sand Sonya Alone.

After that we had figured it out and we continued to applause for every character

At that point we already could feel the energy in the room. Things were electric.

Brad walked by at some point and sung “everyone has nine different names” and I held up 9 fingers and he nodded.

Literally if there was a spot at the end of a song to applause we were there. By the end of Pierre I already felt like my hands would fall off.

During most of the songs in the first act I really tried to take in the costumes and movement because it would be my last chance.

During Private and Intimate Life Blaine starts to sing in his old man voice and the girl sitting in the banquettes across the aisle from Bolkonsky  waved and he flirted and waved back.

He also was all over the woman he picked to be the “Cheap French Thing”. At least from our angle he looked like he was halfway on top of her.

During No One Else the guy sitting near Denée nodded  at her during “We were angels once. Don’t you remember.”

Was there applause and a standing ovation at the end of No One Else? You know there was.

During The Opera Dolokhov just kind of lets Helene go to Natasha with a shrug like “Kuragins gotta hit on pretty girls” kind of a shrug. He’s used to it.

I always love the black cloaks and candles part of the opera. The whole thing makes no sense

The Duel is always exciting to me because the lights hide some naughtiness. I believe Katrina was dry humped by Cathryn. There were definitely piggyback rides happening on the stage.

Also, I had never realized that Brad wears the same outfit as Sumayya and Cathryn and a few others and tthose shorts... that’s some equality right there.

Also during the Duel Paul did the Denisov lisp that Dave mentions in the book (and I think on the genius) that they had tried but people found distracting. It was subtle until the end.

So, Dust and Ashes got the LONGEST standing ovation during the show. Two minutes by my estimate.

Did Charming get applause? Was the entire audience in love with Amber Gray? You know we did and we are.

I love the Ball. I get distracted watching the ensemble dance.

I loved watching Helene’s glee at when her plan to throw her brother and Natasha together came to fruition.

The Natasha and Anatole kiss was wow. Normally Natasha leans into it but today Denée really took over the kiss.

Act II. Begin Letters. Who do we spot coming to the rear mezz but Kennedy and Celia. We later learned at stage door that stage management approved them to come out and do the second half of the show as additional tracks so they covered the rear mezz during letters. It was outstanding.

The woman who gave Natasha The Letter was there for it. I have never seen someone get on the stage so fast.

Just says “yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssssss” was longer than normal

As I said Sonya Alone got major applause. What I forgot to mention was something I noticed during the day before. As Sonya marches off the stage while Dolokhov starts Preparations she is pissed as hell at him.

“Was ruining this family once not enough for you?” her look conveys.

Glad to hear Nick Choksi’s “NO” off mic again when Lucas explaining the argument for the hundredth time.

Balaga. Who got shakers? You know our row did. It was my first time getting a shaker and I was so excited when Brittain handed me the basket.

Our friend in front mezz row C said she had a good feeling about getting shakers and she was right as we all got shakers that night.

Did we singing along? Of course. The entire audience did.

Balaga and the Abduction were a non-stop party. Brittain held my shoulder and comforted a girl across from me who was crying as the ‘Goodbye my g*psy lovers’ portion began.

Anatole’s WOAHHHHHOOOOAHHHHHhhhhHHHHHhhhhHHHH was longer as expected for the final show. Lucas held all his really great notes for as long as possible.

Sometime around here you could hear Lucas trying to hold it together.

When Pierre did his WOAHHH. The audience did a standing ovation. The cast was sweaty as usual. Nick Gaswirth was on the floor in front of the mezz stage door panting. Everyone went all out.

Dave had to motion for us to stop twice before we actually did.

The song continued as usual. As you know the triangle strike was a miss. He hit it in the end.

Also a note from the day before actually being able to see Natasha pour the arsenic into the drink was helpful. The first time I didn’t see that and I thought when she poisoned herself with a “bit” of arsenic it was just a ton of arsenic in the whole glass.

The Petersburg Note was long as expected.

I really liked Blaine’s emphasis on “If you want to be MY FRIEND, Never speak of that AGAIN.”

Natasha and Pierre is wear things started to get awkward. I don’t really cry much over these very emotional things (luckily my friend doesn’t either) so while the audience was sobbing (some of you sobbed loudly) I kind of kept glancing at her for reassurance I wasn’t alone.

The last two songs of Comet are always so hopeful in message despite the melancholy tone and even during it’s closing their beauty fills me with such joy.

Denée was folded over and crying and it took her a little bit to recover. Then you could hear it in Dave’s voice that he was crying. Amber and Grace were both wiping their eyes from the tables.

There was so much love in that theatre at the end.

During bows Paul came out beardless and many I spoke to at stage door commented that they almost thought the beard might not have been real and that Paul was just so committed by doing stage door with it before logic won them over.

Bradley King runs down from the front mezz to make it to the stage.

Or Matias, Rachel Chavkkin, Sam Pinkleton, Badley King, Paloma Young, Mimi Lien, and Nicholas Pope all came on stage for Rachel’s short speech.

Erica Dorfler dame up as well and I saw Paloma Garcia Lee at the stage door at one point but I don’t think I saw her on stage.

Josh was there as well in the banquettes but he kept a low profile and I feel like that was probably the right move given how much hype his appearance would have caused during the show as a whole’s moment.

I was one of the first five or so people out the door from rear mezz and even the people from orchestra were just coming out. Normally that would have put me front row for stage door but today the first row was already full which was a little tragic.

While we were waiting for everyone to come out Sam Pinketon, Paloma Young, and a few others threw shakers at us. I caught one in the opposite color scheme from the one I had gotten from the basket. I was very excited.

Everyone was so kind at stage door. Most everyone who came out signed things. Or Matias, Nicholas Pope, and Paloma Garcia Lee did not but everyone else who is or was involved in the broadway run did.

People had been asking if Josh Groban would sign and they initially said no. Josh’s car was already waiting and everything but he went down the whole line and signed and took photos, etc. which was very nice of him.

I enjoyed talking to everyone and I was able to give out most of the drawings. I only had Brandt, Denée, and Amber left at the end of the night.

Since our friend in the front mezz talks with Nick Choksi every time she sees the show he stopped to talk for a minute or two longer than normal given the line size and I got to ask a very important question about his serving plate spinning while shot pouring skills. He said he came up with it at Ars Nova and asked for something that spins so he could use it to pour the shots. It seems like an important life skill we should all learn

That’s all I got right now (aside from a brilliant side story of what happened in the theatre while we were at stage door but that’s not mine to tell) but I’m sure I’ll think of more and maybe I’ll make a post for that later.

[raulsparza]

Great Comet Stage Door Stories!

I held off posting these cast interactions so I would have an excuse to relive the experience yet again after Comet was gone. I’m sad so let’s focus on how awesome everyone is!!!!!

From June 10th, the night before the Tony’s ~

-Josh Canfield was an absolute cutie I asked if he was looking forward to the Tonys and he was like omg yes! But also it’s gonna be crazy and then he told me about how they had rehearsal and then a show and then more rehearsal and then the tony performance and that he would be tired but so happy. I told him to have fun and he thanked me and I thanked him and he’s wonderful

-I already mentioned this here, but Lucas Steele is just as blindingly brilliant up close in normal life as he is during his opera entrance, lime green baseball cap and all. He must have been on vocal rest when he came out bc he was just gently nodding and smiling at everyone. He stared into my eyes so directly and kindly while I was talking to him and he smiled warmly when I thanked him for the show. And then I said “I don’t care how good looking Anatole is, his swagger is still ridiculous” and, though he looked confused for the beginning of the sentence, he burst out laughing when I was done. Very adorable. I wished him a fun night at the Tony’s and he mouthed thank you :)

-Nothing else too distinct from this night, just that it was awesome to feel everyone’s excitement anytime I mentioned how much I was looking forward to their Tony performance. Simpler times. Lovely times.

From August 17th (under the cut bc it’s a lot more) ~ 

-After the show ended I was getting up to leave and realized that Claudia Chopek, the viola player, was still on stage like right next to me so I went over to her and thanked her for an amazing show. She seemed kind of surprised when I said I had been specifically watching her at certain parts but I kinda gushed about how awesome the slides and shifts and everything for the string parts are and she agreed. And then my pal A who had been in the Anatole seat came over and Claudia was like lol you had no idea that was gonna happen, huh? A was like yeah not really and Claudia said it’s fun to see the difference between people who expect it and those who don’t. I love that someone who sees the show every night is still able to enjoy it and look forward to parts of it. ((And now I’ve made myself sad))

-Sumayya was really excited when I thanked her for my pierogi

- I had everyone signing next to their headshots in my program (pic here) and Nick Gaswirth joked about how he needed to find his “beardless picture” and then he talked about how he’s embraced the full glitter beard now. He was indeed covered in glitter. Even his teeth.

- I thanked Andrew Mayer for playing his violin next to me during Balaga the last time I saw the show and he laughed and was like aw man awesome!!

-Cathryn Wake saw me and immediately asked what seat I was in, because she recognized me from sitting onstage. I told her my seat and was like yeah we definitely made some faces at each other at points (we kept making eye contact it was wild) and she laughed and agreed she had absolutely made some faces at me. She was so bubbly and squealed at one point and?? Adorable?? I love her

-Heath Saunders, long curly hair and a full beard, looked at his headshot in my program, shook his head, and wordlessly added in more hair and more beard with his sharpie (pic here). I cracked up and thanked him for the masterpiece.

-I tried to get a coherent sentence about how much I love Pierre’s characterization out for Scott Stangland but I tripped over my words and he seemed equally shy but was super sweet about it lol. I thanked him for how he brought Pierre to life and he thanked me for seeing the show and I was like um thank you for doing the show

-Brittain Ashford is…an angel. I thanked her for making me cry during Sonya Alone and she laughed and apologized and I was like no that’s idea it was the best thing and she was all smiley awwww

-Nick Choksi’s eyeliner hypnotized me

-Paul Pinto’s headshot is his head turned to the side and it looks like hes,, screaming. I told him his picture was iconic and he was like well, that happened because I don’t have a headshot. I laughed and said he clearly did, and he was like you know, maybe I’ll change the way all headshots are done now. Game changer.

-They took the barricades down but I was still kinda standing by the stage door talking with friends and then someone caught my attention and asked for a sharpie, which luckily I had. He passed the sharpie to Blaine Krauss to sign his playbill. Blaine started to then give the sharpie back to me and I was like lol, might as well sign my playbill while you have it. He laughed and was like yeah that makes sense and then he paused and stared at me and then asked what seat I had been sitting in because he thought he recognized me. Which again, is ridiculous. I’m so thankful for this show breaking down some barriers between audience and cast and really including everyone in the show. Everyone involved in any capacity was so dedicated and talented and sweet and I love them all.