Studs Terkel and Me

I was browsing through my theater memory book the other day and I stumbled upon a number of photos and clippings from "Working" by Studs Terkel. It was produced, like so many of the shows I did, at San Luis Obispo Little Theatre. It was also the first and only show I did with my daughter, Lisa.

Ed Galena, who had previously directed me in “Same Time, Next Year,” directed the play. My dear friend, John Bartelt, who was my George in "Same Time," was the music director. I played a number of roles, as did most of the cast, the most memorable being Kate Rushton, the housewife. And, once again, my ability to improvise saved me on opening night. More on that later.

I returned to theater in early 1983, when Lisa was a little more than three years old. Most nights, her father looked after her while I was rehearsing or performing. But sometimes she accompanied me to the theater. We would bring her sleeping bag, pillow, snacks, books and coloring books, and she would make herself at home. She grew up around actors, directors, and designers. She always knew my lines and let me know when I got it wrong.

Lisa was with me when I auditioned for "Working" and ended up being cast as one of the children. As I recall, she appeared on stage four times, had one line, and sang in the big company numbers at the end of both acts. This helped to assuage my guilt for dragging her to the theater every night. I imagine she was bored to sobs during her long stints in the green room. I'll have to ask her.

Back to opening night. John had recorded all of the music to tape, in the order it was to be played. The sound tech had a copy of the script with the cues highlighted. It should have been a no-brainer. Unfortunately, there was this guy Murphy and his stupid law.

By the time I appeared on stage as Kate, my music was to be already cued up. So, I said my lines... no music. I ad-libbed a line thinking, perhaps, the sound tech hadn't heard me. (I don't know why. It's not like it was a Beatles concert.) Still, no music. So, I just started improvising, about how I always wanted to be a singer. I had no way of knowing that the sound tech had advanced the tape past my song and was frantically trying to find his way back.

In the meantime, the director and the rest of the cast were back in the green room watching the show on the monitor. My friend, Martha Hawley, said, "I don't remember her having that many lines." The director suddenly realized what was happening and ran to the booth. I was just about to start singing my song a cappella, when the sound tech found my music and hit "play." I carried on like nothing unusual had happened.

When I finished the scene and exited the stage, the director was waiting for me in the wings. He put his arms around me and said, "If it had to happen to someone, I'm glad it happened to you." He knew that if something went wrong on stage, I would just reach into my improvisational grab bag and carry on.

Considering how often things go "wrong" in life, I am very grateful to have this skill. I wish they taught it in high school.