What can I say except that this show was everything I could hope for. It was money well spend. It was the best show I've seen. And I didn't sleep until the early hours of the wee morning. Thank God I had the foresight to take today off from work! Well, Barbara, Toria and I did meet up for dinner in Toronto. We had a very nice social visit, getting to know each other. And then...off to the show! We went to the pre-show cocktails, but I was too excited to drink anything. We looked around, but no Victor in site. So shortly before the show began, we took our seats. Our first moment of excitement came when we found Victor's picture in the program. Sigh, gorgeous picture. But it was scanning the credits in the program that got our biggest thrill. Barbara found the credit for the person who choreographed the "All For The Best" number. I was ecstatic! I had seen Eric McCormack sing this song two years ago and now I would see him sing and dance it with Victor Garber!!! Victor reprising his Jesus role in Godspell for this song!!! I was a very happy camper.
Toria was further back in the orchestra on Stage Right. Barbara and I were up closer on Stage Left. Now, when I went to the show 2 years ago, the actors took over the box seats to watch the show, so I advised everyone to watch those seats. My experience paid off because...
S - Barb! Look to your left! By the box seats on the second floor!
B - Oh My God! Is it? C'mon, turn around and...
It was HIM.
Victor Garber.
He was up on the second floor but practically parallel to us. All the money I paid for the tickets were instantly worth it.
B - OH MY GOD!
(waves at Victor)
Now, try watching
anything with THAT kind of distraction. Of course, I knew the whole bit before Victor's act would be a write off as we wouldn't be watching the show as much as we would be WATCHING Victor watching the show. Much more entertaining. So we spend the first act watching Victor a lot and a little of the first act, unless it was Eric McCormack on stage in which case Barbara and I were nearly getting whiplash from watching Eric McCormack on stage and then watching Victor from his seat. Barbara was like a big kid in a candy store and I'm sure I had a big smile plastered on my face the whole time. So we pretty much spend the first act watching Victor smile, watching Victor laugh, watching Victor lean forward in his seat and hold onto the brass railing in front of him with his right hand (His hand!!!!). Victor chatting with others. Victor stroking his chin. Ummmm, oh yeah, the first act of the show was good too, but I was very distracted. (Gee, wonder why?)
During the intermission, we had a funny moment when we found Toria and friend. Toria didn't see Victor in his seat so she was a tiny bit disappointed. But then Barbara told her about the "All For The Best" credit. Toria yells "WHAT!" and everyone in the lobby turned around to look at us. Whoops!
Back to the show! Eric of course was brilliant as MC and the entertainment was very good. Then, we see Eric come out in a slightly more casual look and I KNEW! Eric introduced Victor by telling a story about when he was younger, his family would go to dinner at a place called Honest Ed's. Ed (Mirvish) is a very big theatre guy so he had pictures of many of the shows in Toronto all over his restaurant. And the Godspell picture with Victor and company was located by the men's washroom. Eric joked that his parents must have thought there was something wrong with his bladder as he was always going to the washroom just so he can look at this picture. Flash forward to years later in California where Eric was in a gym working out on a treadmill and realizing that Victor Garber was right beside him! "I have to introduce myself to him!" Eric revealed. Then as Victor was done his workout and was walking away, Eric decided to make his move. Unfortunately, he didn't turn off the treadmill first and went flying on his face! Thus, Victor's first impression of Eric! And then the big moment!!! Eric introduces Victor Garber to the audience. Barbara and I were swooning! And of course Barbara has to yell out "VICTOR!!!" Ah to be young! So there was Victor in a navy Hugo Boss pinstripe suit looking gorgeous. Mind you he could have been wearing a potato sack and I still would have thought he was yummy.
So Victor is talking onstage with Eric and joking about the Godspell photo. In the picture, the Godspell cast surrounds Victor while Victor is standing on some kind of platform, sticking his butt out towards the camera. What does Victor do but to mimic the pose he did years ago and stick his butt towards us! :stretcher: Sorry, had a moment there, I'm fine. Anyways Victor was joking that that picture of him was still floating around and why didn't someone burn it? (Ummm because his butt is awesome maybe?). Then Eric and Victor broke into song "All For The Best". Victor assumed his Jesus part while Eric sang the other part. Then they started dancing as they were singing! Singing and dancing Victor! Oh the joy! Oh the wonderfulness! After the song, Eric left the stage and we were left with just Victor. Just the way we like it! Victor was a little out of breath from singing and dancing, so he began talking about Gilda and Gilda's Club and that Sunday night was the first time he had a chance to see the club and he felt as if it was him being back in Gilda's place when she was alive. All the love and warmth. He joked with us that he still couldn't catch his breath so he then sang a song he introduced as a ballad by Stephen Sondheim. It was "No One Is Alone" from Into The Woods. I just floated on the power of his voice. It was amazing. I got shivers up and down my spine.
Victor later came back at the end of the show when the whole cast sang "Day By Day". He was standing beside 2 girls from the Hairspray cast whose microphone wasn't working so, gentlemen that he is, he would hold his mic to them so they could sing and be heard. AAWWWWWWWW! What a guy!
OK, I need a break. I'll post the second half of my recollections of the night soon.
Sounds like you had fun 
