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The dream had finally come true.
I had my own dressing room with my name on the door.
Sure, it was only for one night. And my name wasn’t etched on some fancy gold plate that was then bolted, for a long run, to the door. Rather, it was just printed out on a simple piece of paper and fastened by tape on the door.
Yet, it still made me feel like a star, forever connected to such famed actors of the stage as Laurence Olivier, Julie Andrews, Tim Curry and Joey Fatone.
OK, so very loosely connected. But certainly far more connected in this moment than I was before I had my own private dressing room.
And it was all because Shorenstein Hays Nederlander (SHN), which is presenting “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical” at San Francisco’s Golden Gate Theatre (see the review here) invited me to appear in a bit part onstage during the musical about the great singer-songwriter (I am a music critic, after all).
So, I immediately started warming up my singing voice, in the usual fashion of crooning along to Roxy Music’s “Avalon,” and practicing my moves to the “Humpty Dance.”
I soon realized I wouldn’t be singing, which made me realize that they did not, in fact, want me to play the role of Carole King. I also learned that I wouldn’t be dancing or even have a speaking part. I’d just be onstage, in the background, for a few scenes. And the crowd probably wouldn’t even notice me most of the time I was onstage.
So, in other words, I was going to be a star!
At least that was what I’d tell my wife and daughter, over and over again, in the days leading up to my appearance in “Beautiful” on June 1.
They’d both accompany me to the show and get to hang out for a bit backstage and meet the star Sarah Bockel (who plays Carole King so well in this Broadway touring production). That was a cool experience for my daughter Grace, who is into theater and appears in stage productions with Children’s Music Theater of San Jose and Starting Arts.
Now, there were no real rehearsals. Or anything like that. I just arrived at the Golden Gate 90 minutes before curtain and got about 5 minutes of detailed instructions about what I’d be doing from production stage manager Joel Rosen.
Then I promptly forgot everything he told me and went and ate a cheeseburger.
OK, I don’t want to sound flip about forgetting what the director told me. It was my full intention to listen closely to every word he said, but once I got out on that big stage and started looking out at all those seats in this majestic theater, I just kind of lost myself for a bit.
Fortunately, I had time to gather myself in my dressing room — did I mention I had my own dressing room? — before taking the stage. And my fellow actors (aka, the people who actually knew what they were doing) were there to guide me along.
My first appearance in the play was clearly the pivotal moment of Act 1. It consisted of me walking across the stage. And then walking back across the stage. I was busted for overacting when I did this during the mini-rehearsal before the show. Yes, I overacted in a scene about walking. So, this time I just concentrated on not tripping as I made my stage debu
And that was that, for Act 1. Otherwise, I just split my time between watching from the wings and venturing back and forth between my dressing room. That was tiring enough for me, since my dressing room was seven flights of stairs above the basement (which actors use to get from one side of the stage to another). Let me tell you, those seven flights of stairs felt like 70 by night’s end.
But I was still back in my proper place and ready in plenty of time for Act 2 to begin. Well, at least, I thought I was ready. A few minutes before we were to take the stage, I realized that I had forgot to do my wardrobe change. So, I had to jam back up to my dressing room, shed my khakis for jeans and one button-up shirt to another, and then zoom back down, barely making it in time.
‘BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL’
By Douglas McGrath and Carole King, presented by SHN
Through: June 9
Where: SHN Golden Gate Theatre, 1 Taylor St., San Francisco
Running time: 2 hours and 30 minutes, one intermission
Tickets: $56-$256 (subject to change); 888-746-1799, www.shnsf.com
Just as I was catching my breath, it was time to take the stage, where I was working as an engineer in a recording studio. I stood there and twisted knobs, checked levels and mouthed words with the other two actors in the soundproof booth, while the musicians worked in front of us.
Actually, we did more than just mouth words. James Clow, who plays legendary music producer/publisher Don Kirshner in “Beautiful,” was talking to me about Chinese food and sushi while we were in the booth. Later, we’d chat about Vietnamese food, leaving me with the perception that the poor guy must have missed dinner that night.
But Clow was one of many cast members who went out of their way to make me feel comfortable on this night. Everybody was so friendly and helpful, making sure that I was where I needed to be at any given moment.
My final scene of the night came in a club setting, as I sat at a table and just listened to the music. Now that’s a role that I was definitely qualified for.
After the show ended, I met up with family and they said I did great. We ended up taking selfies with “Carole” (aka, actor Sarah Bockel) onstage. Then we ventured up the long stairs again for one last look at my dressing room, bringing this “Beautiful” evening to a close.
‘BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL’
By Douglas McGrath and Carole King, presented by SHN
Through: June 9
Where: SHN Golden Gate Theatre, 1 Taylor St., San Francisco
Running time: 2 hours and 30 minutes, one intermission
Tickets: $56-$256 (subject to change); 888-746-1799, www.shnsf.com
