The Civic Chat » August 2014

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It’s the last night of “Joseph” and the after show speeches have begun. Having satisfied myself I’m not needed I’ve settled into a dark corner with a beer ….disturbingly, an ex President comes up to me and says “you should be up there”, “no” I say. “Yes”, he says. “Just get up there and smile and nod, it’s what you must do”.

Being an assertive guy, I turn to a life-member and good buddy next to me for support and ask, “surely not?…I’d look a proper nong…smiling and nodding”….. “get up there” the ex buddy says. “you must”

So…I’m up there, trying to hide behind the stars of the show, trying to smile and nod….feeling like a proper nong.

But I’m probably not noticed. This night is about them … the directors, the cast, the crew and their friends and family who are here celebrating. They are loving it, and rightly so. Celebration has been earned.

What a show! So many compliments, so many expressions of delight and gratitude for the wonderful performances, the costumes, the staging…even the bar manager.

The production manager and default MC has mercy on me and allows me to say a few words, and to call out from the list the names of some people who have contributed. It is long list.

I mentioned last month the huge contribution of creative hard slog that went into this show and it is fitting that no one is missed out. It seemed that just about every name I mentioned triggered someone else to take the microphone and amplify the thanksgiving, so it took some time.

Good for them. The whole company deserved to celebrate and to party long and hard. No doubt relationships were strained and commitments tested in the process, but at the end there was the satisfaction of a job well done. New friendships forged and old friendships affirmed.

One last thing. I have previously mentioned the magic that happens when production meets audience. An emphatic “Thank you” must go out to everyone of you who came to see this show. If I had the wit to mention this on the night the microphone would have been grabbed by many others wanting to sing your praises. We can’t overstate the importance of a good audience, and you guys have been a very good audience. Together we all made each performance a wonderful experience for everyone involved. Thank you all so much for your support of this first rate society.

Bye for now

Pete