Of watery tarts and heavily armed christians

So yesterday was my first real excursion into the Python world, besides the endless quipping by coworkers and Brian's references. I laughed, of course. It was funny. Course, but funny. Plus, you can't beat live theatre. God, I love it. There's something that happens that's different when it's live, different from movies. I enjoy movies quite a bit (depending on the flick itself) but the performer/audience interaction is palpable, I think. And the Fox lends itself to big-ticket shows with lots of flashy mechanics and stage props. Some would say, theatre at its best. It made me think of the summer in college that I babysat for a couple that worked on the Phantom - stage crew of some kind. As part of my payment, they gave me a couple of primo seats to the show.

We had better seats last nite. It's not that the seats I got that time for the Phantom weren't supposedly in one of the best areas - it's just that I really like the height of the balcony. You don't want to be in nosebleeds, obviously, but I really like to have an overview of the whole stage, particularly in a large production such as this one in which so, so much is going on. So our seats were great - they gave us just enough of the overview while being close enough to actually see the actors' faces, gestures, and so forth.

To digress and counter my own point, I think the most powerful theatrical experience I had was a show put on by a friend and his erstwhile "B-side" theatre company. The stage was a demarcated square in the center of a church hall around which several rows of folding chairs were placed. I could have leaned forward and touched the actors at some points. It was about a man that was coming out, I think, and how he deals with his own emotions when his gay lover (or friend?) is beaten by some particularly unenlightened young men in a dark alley or something. I don't remember the details of the plot well, but the controversial subject matter and the intensity of seeing the actors' emotions up close and personal (some of whom may not have been acting - I had the distinct feeling that they were well-acquainted with a number of the issues in their own lives) was... powerful, there's no other word for it.

But that was not last night - the whole play was fun, no other word for that, either, altough I was frankly a little uncertain about the song describing how you can't make it on Broadway without Jewish involvement. As I write this, I don't know if it was anti-semitic or not. I mean, substitute the words for any other ethnic group and it would probably cause demonstrations, picketing or riots. Not that I don't support free speech, and I'm told the author is Jewish, but still, I think that number treads a fine line. I did not laugh at that one.

Heavy thoughts aside, what made me enjoy the evening the most? Was it just the fact that it was theatre, and I like it so much? Was it going to the Fox (theatre of theatres, and a real treat because of its history in the city) again with Brian? Yes. Was it finally experiencing Pythonique humor? Particularly because it's something that Bri enjoys so much? Yes. Was it that I did, in fact, enjoy the show? Yes. Was it the feeling of being out on the town with my baby? Yes. Was it just being with Brian, whether we are sitting at home, each with our heads in our own books, in quiet companionship or out on a date? Indubitably.

So my score, as a whole: 9 out of 10, in its category. Although I resist the thought of becoming a true Montyite (mostly because I don't like being a "fan" -- short for fanatic -- of anything), I may have to check out a little bit more of this material.