After reading Frank Rich's article about the play and it's source material in New York Magazine, I put it on my to-see list and also read a biography of Moss Hart that Mr. Rich mentioned in his article. I had ordered a single discount ticket from TDF and was settled into my end of the row seat way off to the side of the orchestra section at the Vivian Beaumont, when I was approached by a woman who asked me if I had come alone. When I replied that I was, she invited me to come and sit with her in the fourth row center because her husband had backed out of coming at the last minute and she didn't want to waste such a good seat. I had been prepared for another magical evening of theatrical nostalgia diminished slightly by the fact that I wasn't sharing the experience with a friend. It turns out that theatrical magic can manifest itself in many ways beyond the stage and I found myself in the best seat in the house as the curtain parted. I don't know why this woman named Beth chose me in particular, but I never questioned her motives. At the time it seemed a perfectly natural thing to do. We chatted like strangers who have just met at a mutual friends party and I guess in a way our mutual friend was the theater. We were there to share the same experience and therefore we had something in common. The boundaries between strangers are lifted when join an audience in the theater and that's a big part of the magic. I'm sure I would have enjoyed the play immensely from the end of the row, but because of Beth it was a much richer experience.
I would like to think that it was my good karma coming full circle that moved me to decide to go alone and purchase the last single discount ticket available that turned into the best seat in the house. When Beth chose me to join her, she didn't know that I had read the article that lead me to read the book. She didn't know that I once met Moss Hart's wife, Kitty Carlisle. She didn't know that this play about one of the theater's most successful legends would resonate so deeply with me as one of the theater's least known failures. She didn't know that this former set designer would appreciate more than most the beauty of the immense revolving set, especially from such a good seat. Perhaps it was the theater gods feeling sorry for one of their poor broken hearted orphans or perhaps it was just dumb luck. In any case I feel may have appreciated and enjoyed the seat upgrade more than anyone else in the place last night and somehow this lovely woman sensed it. Thanks again Beth.
