Mile High

Week 73: Denver, CO

My week off in New York sped by. There were many things to attend to, people to see, and goals to accomplish. Such is the New York way, but in my case, this was my last time home for at least several months. I really was industrious, and among other things, I passed my driver's test and am now a licensed New York driver. It's funny to be saying that at my age but it's definitely an achievement, and is just in time for our California tour! I had not realized I needed the break from the show so much until I showed up for our opening here in Denver. I suddenly felt so refreshed and energized to perform, and the Denver audiences are vocal, smart and there to have a rollicking good time. Fantastic crowds.

Our energetic opening here was tempered somewhat by a visit from our general manager, who came out from New York to give us all the official news that the "Spamalot" tour will close in October, following our engagement in Costa Mesa, CA. With over three years, 101 different city stops, and over 160 million dollars in revenue, this highly successful tour will finally come to an end. It is, of course, always sad when a production has to close up shop, but it is also the nature of the theatre. I am sure that I am not the only performer in the company who is now focusing on the horizon and thinking about that next job. It's the nature of the beast. Anyway, that's all a few months off and we still have our exciting San Francisco and LA engagements to look forward to. I am grateful that I will be fortunate enough to be in the final company of the original "Spamalot" production.

Denver is a really cool town. I love the look of it, the laid back energy of it, and the weather has been wonderful. It has been quite a challenge to get used to the dryness of the air here as well as the altitude. The former makes it imperative to guzzle water all day and stave off chapped skin with lip balm and lotion; the latter makes breathing a challenge, and as you can imagine, that poses something of a difficulty when one is jumping around on stage in a musical! I have not gotten to see as much of Denver as I would have liked but I really love the visual character of the city. Old warehouse districts are now high end loft condos and chic restaurants; old buildings have been preserved, giving a taste of gold rush era Colorado, while modern structures and glass skyscrapers provide a modern edge.
The Denver Center for the Performing Arts is one such magnificent architectural feature. In the 70's, an ambitious project centered around expanding the existing old Auditorium Theatre into a multi-space performing arts complex, and today the DCPA encompasses ten different spaces with over 10,000 seats. Our theatre, the Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre, was opened in 1991 and is a really beautiful modern performance venue.

While I was in Des Moines last Christmas I was befriended by a couple of fans, Beth and her mom Karen, who saw the show a few times while we were there and who have become pen pals of mine. They decided to take a vacation to Denver while the show was here to visit relatives and see their favorite musical (and actor!) again. I had the pleasure of spending some time with Beth and Karen during their visit, and we all went to see the Denver Art Museum together.
The new wing of the museum, designed by Gio Ponti, resembles something out of "Star Trek"--all pointy angles and high tech gray tiles. The collection is relatively small but diverse, and they had a special exhibition of psychedelic concert posters from the Haight Ashbury period of the 60s in San Francisco which was fun. Of course I took Beth and Karen to the European collection to see what treasures of the Renaissance or the Baroque they might have. I was pleased to find two really exciting pieces there: "Portrait of a Young Man in a Red Hat," a famous piece by Sandro Botticelli, and a rare "Still Life With Fruit" by the master Caravaggio, on loan to the museum. One of the great joys of doing this tour and keeping this blog is that it has introduced me to some terrific people like Karen and Beth. I was delighted to visit with them here in Denver, and as fate would have it, Beth was the audience member pulled up on stage to be our "peasant" at the third performance she saw this week! What a treat for a diehard fan!




And so, with the completion of our time here in the Mile High City, the long awaited California leg of the tour will begin. We are all looking forward to a nice long stay in San Francisco at a wonderful time of year, and, since we all know now when our tour will come to an end, we will cherish these next few months. Denver has treated us well. Some of our best audiences ever, and a really swell time had by all.
Janel is my Denver dresser. She has been doing wardrobe work since she was 18 years old, and it is a family business. Janel's husband has been a wardrobe worker, her mother in law started the wardrobe union here in Denver, and she has a handful of relatives actually working on our show! She's been just lovely to work with. And so folks, it is good to be back on the road with you! San Francisco, here I come!