St. Paul Minnesota- Week Twenty Seven

The Sleeper bus from Des Moines to St.Paul, was actually really enjoyable. Usually, I can't sleep on the bus because it is ALWAYS hotter than the Sun in my bunk. This time around though, it was quite cool and sweet slumber was achieved. When I woke up and checked into the hotel, I looked out my window and high up on a hill over looking the whole city was/is this beautiful cathedral. I was instantly transported back to my visit to Italy. I learned that it is -obviously- the Cathedral of St.Paul.

I am not a big fan of his, honestly. His views on women can really piss me off. Often I have thought that perhaps Paul was a big sissy, but that is a debate for another time.

I also learned that you can't toss a cat around this town without hitting a Catholic. On a very brief walk I took, (brief because it was deliriously HOT) I ran into three different Catholic churches. I had no idea there were so many here. You know when you visit Boston that Catholics abound, but my experience has been that once you get into middle America, the predominant religions are more along the Evangelical line. Whatev. This topic is boring me. However, I will go in that church before I leave. I am hoping you can go all the way to the top of the dome.

So.
Opening was fairly uneventful, a great relief from the dramas of the last few cities. The crew is really good. Some of them I have worked with before when Sweet Charity did it's pre Broadway try out in Minneapolis. I liked them then, and I like them now. This doesn't mean that there aren't any characters among them, but nothing like Des Moines, that's for sure. What is even better, is that we are here for 3 weeks. (breathes a sigh of relief)
Opening was a piece of cake.
After the show the presenters threw us a very nice Opening Night party. Lots of people I don't know were there. You can always find everyone in the show, because we are all dressed uber-casual, while the fancy people are dressed...well..fancy. They had this great little veranda most of us settled on. That's a picture of Tony, Nate, Patrick, and Mike, toasting the night.
Wednesday Night I went out for cocktails with Wayne and Tony. It was at a place called...oh God I don't know what it was called but they had these hilarious cans of Spam with our logo on it. Actually the place was crazy with Spamalot promos. Big Posters and Spam napkins at every table. Either St. Paul luuuuuuuuuuvs Spam...or they are REALLY excited about our show being here. The waitress gave me one of the cans, but you know, I can't find that damn thing anywhere. That means I hafta go back and get another one. Balls.
After hanging there for a spell Tony and I had a pinball championship playoff. God, I really love pinball, but you can rarely find a place that carries it anymore. It is a dying game. Pics below.

Thursday I went to the Science Museum. I went because it is around the corner from the theater and because they currently have an exhibit about Pompeii. Jim and I went to Pompeii during our visit to Italy a few years ago. I loved it. There is something so horribly beautiful about all the artifacts from that event.
The excavation in Italy seems like work that will never end. I am sure, they will never be finished finding interesting things at that site. The exhibit was very arty actually, considering it was surrounded by the typical -jump on it-push it-pull it- displays that normally crowd such a museum. I really felt it represented the sad beauty of what I saw when I visited the actual dig. I spent a long time just staring at the casts of people covering their noses and mouths, trying to protect themselves from a certain death. Powerful stuff. pics below...
God forbid I should have a drama free week. I woke up on Friday morning thinking my front teeth felt funny. One of them felt kinda wiggly. I joked about it with people at work, and basically mocked myself until I got back to the hotel. I took a close look at my teeth and realized that my extremely expensive, VERY NEW veneers had a crack running down them.
DUN dun duuuuuun.
I completely wigged.
I spent Saturday morning online and then on the phone, calling all over God's green earth to try and find some dentist who could keep me from looking like a resident of Deliverance. In my mind's eye, I saw it breaking off. I peeked at the stumps that used to be my teeth when they were being fixed. I KNOW what that shit looks like. This is a Catagory 5 issue. I have been on a pureed diet since. People offer me hard food, I just shake my head no and point at my mouth. What's funny is that a normal person might have kept it a secret and just dealt with it quietly. I told everyone. One, because I thought someone might know someone who knew someone who knew a good dentist.(which they did) Two, because if the damn thing did break off, everyone would have some prior knowledge of the problem and not judge me for my snaggle teeth.
Hello?!!! This is my front tooth I am talking about. This is not some back molar that I can hide and deal with later.
The stress of the whole thing has given me a monumental zit right on the nerve line in my cheek. Great. Now if I go to my new dentist, and he is hot, I have this adolescent pustule radiating off of me. AND I get to spend my day off at the dentist when I was supposed to go hang with my good friend Anne. great. just great. (insert many many swear words)

Sunday morning I woke up in a panic, SURE that my tooth had broken apart in the night. Nope. Still there.
During the second show on Sunday, I popped an Altoid in my mouth and it hit my tooth and I felt it shift and stick. Then I said " GOD, I have one act left, can you just get me through it, without me looking like someone from Arkansas???!'
Our leading lady Esther turned around, gave me a good hard stare and said "EXCUSE ME?!"
cough.
She is from Arkansas.

Francesca and Jovon had a good laugh at that one. (They were walking behind me)

I recently sent out an email, telling people of my new email address. In that email, I let everyone know where I was and how I was doing. Two seconds later I get an email back from my friend Robin. I am such a loser. I mean, seriously people - LOSER!!! I completely spaced that she lives here!!! This isn't some random person, this is a woman who had a MAJOR role in shaping the neurotic work obsessed person I am today. I mean Robin is - well - ROBIN. Those of you who don't know, I didn't go to school my senior year of high school. I was an intern at a regional theater and got credits to graduate. Robin was my mentor and advised me through the whole thing. Not only did she act as an advisor to me, but she, god bless her, dealt with the teenage Fran. I was full of all this unbridled, unfocused energy and she spent an incredible amount of her own personal time leading me through that mine field. My mom thinks she is a saint. (OMG I can't believe I was EVER 17)
Robin took me for a tooth friendly brunch and we got to catch up a little. It was at this lovely place in the richey rich area up by the cathedral. I need to spend a little more time looking at the houses up there. Those of you who know me well, know how much I love looking at the homes of the better half. It was beyond great seeing Robin and, no doubt, we will have some more time together while I am here.

So tomorrow I head over to Minneapolis in the hopes that this dentist will correct my smile. Hopefully I will still make it down to see Anne. You will have to check back next Monday and see what happens.

Love
Fran



The Extra Pics:



Catholic Church #1. Actually this is the "poor peoples church". one of the locals told me they built this church so that the rich people who went to St. Paul's on the hill, wouldn't have to look at the poor.



Called "The Little French Church". This was around the corner form my hotel. Catholic Church #2




Ryan, Mike, and Nate, enjoying a bite to eat at Wild Thymes.




The Opening Night party.


The nest few are from the Pompeii exhibit










This picture really shows how I felt about the whole exhibit. It was haunting and beautiful.





Wayne and Tony have a shot while we were out.




Tony playing pinball. As you can see from the score, he is winning. (@!%$GT#@^%!!!!.....I am just a lil competitive...)