Jeff McCarthy, our Henry Higgins, took a spill on Friday evening during the show and was forced to call out for the Saturday matinee so his standby Peter Thomson endured the actor's nightmare: playing a MASSIVE starring role in a classic, well known musical with minimal rehearsal.
Peter is not only a gifted and stylish performer but he is blessed with a photographic memory (essential as he is also covering me as Colonel Pickering). Peter stepped in and made Higgins his own without a hitch. He was hugely relieved when Jeff returned for the evening performance!
Some actors are surely made of sturdier stuff than others. TT has triumphantly done the standby gig on two big musicals but I think I would completely fall apart under the stress.
On the same day another MFL cast member, the delicious Cat Brindisi, commandeered the Guthrie Instagram account and snapped a few backstage selfies. Here, Mrs. Higgins' maid and Colonel Pickering are caught in flagrante delicto.
Another show currently playing at the Guthrie is the Christopher Durang comedy VANYA, SONYA, MASHA & SPIKE. Isabell Monk O'Connor, a veteran of 27 seasons at the Guthrie, plays Cassandra and always has her wig put on in the make-up room as I'm getting my moustache glued which she says is the high point of her evening. We discovered we have a very dear mutual friend in the beautiful New York based actress Kathryn Meisle (once my landlady on the Upper West Side) so we have happily bonded.
Another happy surprise was discovering that the National Tour of EVITA was playing in St. Paul starring Sean McLaughlin as Peron. Sean played Lancelot when I appeared in CAMELOT in Houston last year so we enjoyed a jolly catch up lunch and I heard all about his new baby boy.
I'll be returning to Theatre Under The Stars for a new project in Houston in two weeks time where I'll be reunited with several of the CAMELOT team so that will be exciting!
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