The year was 1999, and the Midwest’s starry sky was my artistically endless limit. I was the Robert De Niro of Wheeling High School, the Al Pacino of my senior class. With all the budding talent of a 17-year-old aspiring actor, I conquered Petruchio with Shakespearean gusto, mastered Willy Lohman with a sad dignity and brought buoyant life to Tiny Tim. On stage, I was a true maker of music and an idealistic dreamer of dreams.
Unpretentiously humble yet creatively confident, I knew that my one horse of a hometown would never bring me the silver screen success that every ounce of my inner being desired. So the day after 12th grade graduation, I packed my Louis Vuitton and headed west for imaginatively greener pastures, otherwise known as the bright lights of LaLa-Land. A man with a plan and a performer with a vision, I knew that international stardom was nothing more than a successful audition away; I could feel imminent victory cursing through my invigorated veins.
But a mere month spent in the City of Superficial Angels sent my naïve self-assurances for a swan dive. Standing in audition line after cattle-called callback, I slowly began to realize that I wasn’t the only former high school celebrity with big city stars in his now-bloodshot eyes; I was now a big fish in an intimidatingly immense pond.
Moreover, my inspired Taming of the Shrew and Death of a Salesman scripts had been replaced with one-lined Pizza Hut commercials and principal stand-in appearances on late night infomercials. Seven years of unsatisfying attempts and dead-end endeavors left my heart heavy and my soul starving, both literally and metaphorically. Would the reality of life in Hollywood ever be able to satiate the performing passions that I once relished in throughout high school? Would the paycheck-to-paycheck existence of a struggling artiste ever reverse my ever-turning positivity?
There and then, during an 8-hour callback for half-mutilated corpse on CSI, I made a promise: If my aspirations did not find an artistic home within the year, I would head back to the outskirts of Illinois and start living a “normal” life.
One atypical afternoon sometime later, I found myself strolling down Santa Monica Boulevard, an ever-typical Starbucks latte in hand. The sights and sounds of urban life whizzing by, my waning awareness found attention in a quaint black and red building. Simple painted lettering on the fore wall proudly stated the edifice’s moniker: The Celebration Theatre. A banner before the front door, its illustration a bold snapshot of two boyish youths holding hands with all the passion of first true lovers, advertised the company’s current production, A Beautiful Thing.
Immediately, my inner-artist had to know more about this celebratory collective. That Friday night, I dropped by to take in their hit play; plainly put, I was instantaneously enthralled. Welcomed by a company of expressive individuals from all realms of artistry, I felt utterly at home. The on-stage work, dynamic and progressive in equal measures, gave a contemporary voice to the gay and lesbian community. The backstage energy, positive and prolific in abundant amounts, spoke to the needs of the GLBT culture’s every changing values and sentiments.
Clean and contemporary in its design, the theatre space emanated a unique Hollywood energy that was representative of the company’s history. The walls were enlivened by posters of past plays and performances: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the all-male cast of Pinafore, Men on the Verge of a His-Panic Breakdown and the world premiere musical Play It Cool to cite just a few. Award statuettes were proudly displayed in handmade trophy cases. A rich tapestry of the company’s 25 years unfolded before my excited eyes.
Currently celebrating its silver anniversary, an almost unprecedented milestone in Hollywood theatre history, The Celebration Theatre is stronger than ever. Talented newcomers passionately meld their idealistic visions with the help of more experienced theatre veterans; the resulting work is a true collaboration of both aspiring and accomplished Los Angeles talent, which is reflected in the shows’ rave reviews. Continuing to push the proverbial envelope, there is never a dull moment on or off the Celebration stage, and that passion is the vital ingredient that enables the troupe to be the positive GLBT influence that it has become.
It’s now 2007, and I truly feel like my inner-artist has found a home among the two-dimensional trappings of Hollywood. As the Front of House manager and co-director of the New Works Program, The Celebration Theatre has taught me how to symbiotically coexist and create in the theatrical community; I am thankful for that continually giving gift.
While diamonds may be an aspiring actor’s best friend, silver is truly the color of Celebration this year. So treat yourself to an enlivened evening of impassioned art, and stop by the inimitable playhouse. Discover today what it took me 8 years to unearth: Truly, there’s no theatre like The Celebration Theatre.
Unpretentiously humble yet creatively confident, I knew that my one horse of a hometown would never bring me the silver screen success that every ounce of my inner being desired. So the day after 12th grade graduation, I packed my Louis Vuitton and headed west for imaginatively greener pastures, otherwise known as the bright lights of LaLa-Land. A man with a plan and a performer with a vision, I knew that international stardom was nothing more than a successful audition away; I could feel imminent victory cursing through my invigorated veins.
But a mere month spent in the City of Superficial Angels sent my naïve self-assurances for a swan dive. Standing in audition line after cattle-called callback, I slowly began to realize that I wasn’t the only former high school celebrity with big city stars in his now-bloodshot eyes; I was now a big fish in an intimidatingly immense pond.
Moreover, my inspired Taming of the Shrew and Death of a Salesman scripts had been replaced with one-lined Pizza Hut commercials and principal stand-in appearances on late night infomercials. Seven years of unsatisfying attempts and dead-end endeavors left my heart heavy and my soul starving, both literally and metaphorically. Would the reality of life in Hollywood ever be able to satiate the performing passions that I once relished in throughout high school? Would the paycheck-to-paycheck existence of a struggling artiste ever reverse my ever-turning positivity?
There and then, during an 8-hour callback for half-mutilated corpse on CSI, I made a promise: If my aspirations did not find an artistic home within the year, I would head back to the outskirts of Illinois and start living a “normal” life.
One atypical afternoon sometime later, I found myself strolling down Santa Monica Boulevard, an ever-typical Starbucks latte in hand. The sights and sounds of urban life whizzing by, my waning awareness found attention in a quaint black and red building. Simple painted lettering on the fore wall proudly stated the edifice’s moniker: The Celebration Theatre. A banner before the front door, its illustration a bold snapshot of two boyish youths holding hands with all the passion of first true lovers, advertised the company’s current production, A Beautiful Thing.
Immediately, my inner-artist had to know more about this celebratory collective. That Friday night, I dropped by to take in their hit play; plainly put, I was instantaneously enthralled. Welcomed by a company of expressive individuals from all realms of artistry, I felt utterly at home. The on-stage work, dynamic and progressive in equal measures, gave a contemporary voice to the gay and lesbian community. The backstage energy, positive and prolific in abundant amounts, spoke to the needs of the GLBT culture’s every changing values and sentiments.
Clean and contemporary in its design, the theatre space emanated a unique Hollywood energy that was representative of the company’s history. The walls were enlivened by posters of past plays and performances: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the all-male cast of Pinafore, Men on the Verge of a His-Panic Breakdown and the world premiere musical Play It Cool to cite just a few. Award statuettes were proudly displayed in handmade trophy cases. A rich tapestry of the company’s 25 years unfolded before my excited eyes.
Currently celebrating its silver anniversary, an almost unprecedented milestone in Hollywood theatre history, The Celebration Theatre is stronger than ever. Talented newcomers passionately meld their idealistic visions with the help of more experienced theatre veterans; the resulting work is a true collaboration of both aspiring and accomplished Los Angeles talent, which is reflected in the shows’ rave reviews. Continuing to push the proverbial envelope, there is never a dull moment on or off the Celebration stage, and that passion is the vital ingredient that enables the troupe to be the positive GLBT influence that it has become.
It’s now 2007, and I truly feel like my inner-artist has found a home among the two-dimensional trappings of Hollywood. As the Front of House manager and co-director of the New Works Program, The Celebration Theatre has taught me how to symbiotically coexist and create in the theatrical community; I am thankful for that continually giving gift.
While diamonds may be an aspiring actor’s best friend, silver is truly the color of Celebration this year. So treat yourself to an enlivened evening of impassioned art, and stop by the inimitable playhouse. Discover today what it took me 8 years to unearth: Truly, there’s no theatre like The Celebration Theatre.
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