Do you realize it's been over a year since I've been on an actual stage? Over a year?
Yup. But that changes tonight.
Tonight's the first of a two-night stand Jack & I are doing at the Lake Superior Theater, reprising a couple of History Center shows we did at Kaufman Auditorium. And the one we're doing tonight--”North Vs South Marquette”--was in fact the last time I was on a stage doing a program, back in the halcyon days of the Before Times.
January of 2020, to be exact.
That means that while I've done a lot of outdoor walking tours, at least this summer, it's been over 19 months since I've presented to an indoor audience. I'm not sure, because I don't actually keep track of things like this, but it may the longest span of time in the, oh, past twenty years without me doing some kind of thing on some kind of stage somewhere.
I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, nor do I know if that says anything about the way I live my life or what I've chosen to do with it, but it's probably been the longest span of time without me being on a stage. It's just weird.
Of course, when tonight's shows were planned everything was (comparatively) honky-dory in the world. People were getting vaccinated, it seemed like the virus that had kept us offstage since January of 2020 was being conquered, and the hope was that things would (soon) be back to normal. Unfortunately, that turned out not to be reality in most of the country; fortunately, we're in one of the few places in the country where vaccination rates and careful living have kept this latest wave at bay, and has allowed to do things like get back on stage for the first time in nineteen months.
Hopefully, it stays that way. Thankfully, the theater has been taking precautions all summer long (with cleaning, extra space between seats, and the recommendation of mask usage); hopefully, during this final week of their season, nothing untoward happens.
But all that aside, it'll be nice to be back onstage for the first occasion since the Before Times. It'll be interesting to see if it's one of those things like riding a bike; do you just get back up there and start babbling, or while it take a little while to get back in the groove? I'm thinking it's the former, but we'll find out tonight.
And I'll report on the result tomorrow. Wish us luck!
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