I don't think there's such a thing as an average night out with my friend Trevor Daley.
On Friday, he invited me to opening night of the musical "Avenue Q" at the Ahmanson Theatre and despite my getting stuck in traffic, I managed to get there about 10 minutes before curtain time. We had terrific seats for what is a sensational, must-see show with that wonderful opening night buzz all around.
[The photo above was taken on Friday, hours before the cast took the stage...]
I've never seen anything like "Avenue Q" with real-life actors and puppets interacting like they are in some kind of naughty episode of "The Muppets." Such great songs, terrific writing, wonderful performances by an immensely talented cast and best of all, just one laugh after another. The Tony Award-winning show is about trying to make it in NYC with big dreams and a tiny bank account.
There are good times with Princeton, Rod, Kate Monster, Lucy the Slut, Brian, Trekkie Monster and all the rest. The character that just killed me the most was Gary Coleman, played by Carla Renata. She sounds JUST LIKE the "Different Strokes" star who is manager of the apartment building. It's a brilliant parody. At the end, the character laments: "Everyone's dreams are coming true...but WHAT ABOUT GARY COLEMAN?"
It's a riot.
Then there is the hilarious Angela Al who nails her role as Christmas Eve and the multi-talented Robert McClure who was superb in duel roles, including one as a closeted gay man (or puppet) in deep denial. (No, the character is not based on Larry Craig!)
But the night wasn't just about seeing the show. Trevor knows EVERYONE so I got to meet Martin Massman, board president of the Center Theatre Group (Ahmanson, Mark Taper Forum and Kirk Douglas Theatre), Artistic Director Michael Ritchie and the show's writer Robert Lopez. Then, we got to go backstage to meet the cast! There was champagne flowing and a real electricity in the air.
The cast had every reason to feel ecstatic. We got some photos taken with some them with the puppets etc. [I should have those e-mailed to me this week sometime]. Chatted with "Desperate Housewives" creator Marc Cherry briefly and at length with LA newscaster Kent Schockneck who is much taller than I thought, very nice to talk to, and someone I have watched for years.
We were all over the moon about the show, I am just nuts about it. And I'm so glad to have a friend like Trevor. Not just because he takes me to cool events every now and then, but because when we are there, we always have so much fun working the room and meeting the people involved.
This is a night I'll never forget...