These Boots Are Made For Walking

Week 11: Nashville, TN

Y'all take it easy now. This isn't Dallas, it's Nashville! They can't do this to us here in Nashville! Let's show them what we're made of. Come on everybody, sing! Somebody, sing!
--from the film "Nashville"

We closed our engagement in Hershey during a deep freeze. When we left the theatre, the crew was preparing for load out and the temperature was 14 degrees with a wind chill below zero and a bitter wind blowing. I prayed for those people. The crew of any show are always the unsung heroes of the production-- we get the standing ovation and then they get to break everything down and pack it up for the next city.
Our local crews work hard too, even though they are only part of the "Spamily" for a week. Here I am with my Hershey dresser, Jaki. Jaki is such a cool lady, mother of four (her oldest is in college--I know, I don't believe it either) who owned her own hair salon and now does numerous things to make her living--all of them with a wonderful sense of humor and a definite sense of cool. Thanks for the laughs Jaki!




And here we are in Nashville. The winter weather followed us here and this city is experiencing uncharacteristic snow and ice. I have been looking forward to Nashville because I had a sense that it was going to be a fun town. Thus far I have not been disappointed. Nashville is very much like other American cities that have history but have changed with the times. The architectural landscape is a series of contradictions--19th century churches next to glass skyscrapers, funky old buildings sandwiched between steel towers. Music and the music business are everywhere. Guitar cases are as common as briefcases in the downtown streets. Places like Printer's Alley harken back to another time, a time of honky tonks and country boys coming to Nashville to find their big break in the music biz. Those country boys and girls are still coming to Nashville full of dreams of stardom and the city is rife with places to hear great music. There are even boxes on the street corners that blast country music all day long, just to keep the soundtrack of the city going.





And the Nashville audience knows how to appreciate live performance. Our opening night audience was like a rock concert! Such enthusiasm, such quick ears--this audience was laughing and applauding in places no other audience yet has. And there are plenty of Python fans in Nashville. The atmosphere at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center was like a big party. And the Nashville audience raised all of our spirits to a high that reminded me why I got into this business in the first place. For the joy of sharing the live experience. It is wild, too, to perform in this HUGE ultra modern facility after the quaint Venetian chocolate box of the Hershey Theatre. There you would run off into the wings and practically hit a wall (or a crew member)--here the stage is so large that there is enough room behind our set for a whole other stage!


One of my missions while here in Nashville was to buy a pair of cowboy boots. I don't know exactly why I got fixated on this idea but I thought Music City would be a good place to shop. I found a place called Boot Country which is on Broadway where there is a strip of honky tonks and Western stores and souvenir shops. I walked in and had not exchanged two words with one of the salespeople, Paul, before he said, "You're from New York, huh? Here with 'Spamalot?'". We started talking and it turns out Paul is an interesting guy who has lived many lives. He was an actor at one point, having appeared in the original Chicago production of the musical "Hair." In 1970 he became a born again Christian and was handing out pamphlets when he met Jim Morrison. He told me the story of meeting him and handing him a pamphlet which Morrison took without saying a word, crumpled it up, and ate it. Paul is an interesting guy. I tried on probably 20 pairs of boots, finally deciding on a wonderful pair of vintage style boots, just like the ones the guys wore on "Gunsmoke" and "Bonanza." But it turns out Boot Country is buy one pair GET TWO FREE. So I got two free pairs! I now have a boot wardrobe which I have to somehow travel from city to city--I guess I will have to take up two-stepping! Well, the weather report for Jacksonville, Florida says 60s and 70s. Hallelujah. More from sunny Florida next week...