The carnage.....

continues----just read about the death of Sandra Bland in Texas; how can we train policemen to behave this way? It is simply frightening. Sometimes I feel that all the "art" in the world is useless as long as this brutal kind of racism is going on. And it isn't as if we allow it----these policies are made by others, nevertheless, something must be done. So I will continue with this blog describing last night, a night completely cut off from any racial problems---but it is important for me to stay involved.
Last night; did join the rush ticket line at 10 by 12; arrived at 6:30---surprised at how many people were there---I was about number 8. Had two good conversations: one with an actor named Zak who was in Two Gentelmen at Theater for a New Audience Home in Brooklyn, and the other with a Saint Anne's sophomore named Fred, who goes to the theater a lot and also knew two or three people that I have had contact with in the past. One of them, his Shakespeare teacher named Nancy, is the very same women with whom I worked on  my first scene in Milton Katselas' class in September of 1965. Wow! I was just at the beginning of things then, she was a bit older than I, understudying in a Broadway play called The Right Honorable Gentleman (not a success) at the Billy Rose (now Nederlander) theater. Actually did some rehearsing in one of the dressing rooms there. The scene was from Barefoot in the Park; I think I was totally awed by the situation---we performed it for Milton and the class---he gave us both good criticism---I never spoke to her again (that is the way it is in theater). I wonder if she has any memory of this at all.
The play 10 by 12 was a little less then I expected, mostly about a tech---that morphs in act II into a deep appreciation of just the process of doing theater. Some very moving moments, others that just seemed to go over ground that any theater person would be familiar with. Story that ends the play is about a bunch of young actors, fighting it out to get the play on while dealing with regular jobs to pay their rent. Anyone who loves theater will appreciate it---yet it also can be seen as a bunch of (probably) white kids from prosperous families, living in a "post racial" world where what I describe in the beginning of this blog is disregarded. The two people who recommended that I see this strongly were both young---probably more exited by the play than I was.
Afterwards, a long walk, stopped off at the Bean, walked from Canal and Broadway to Canal and Allen, to 14th and 2nd. Baseball returns tonight.
Tonight will see my "buddies" at Assembly---looking forward to some good stuff, will keep you posted......