Lambeau Field and the Packers Vs Vikings

Hey Everybody.  So the last time I checked in with you lot I was talking about the Appleton museum and the Packer Mania that keeps a tight grip on this northern Wisconsin region.  But one thing I didn’t know, that I just found out recently, is that our hotel, the Paper Valley Radisson, ALWAYS houses the visiting team when the Packers have a home game!  So, according to Daniel, the Paper Valley Radisson Sports Bar Bartender, (‘Sup Daniel!) the Saturday night before a home game is Notorious for multiple, random fire alarms, siren wailing, or whatever other sleep disrupting hijinks that can be imagined by the diehard (or maybe slightly unbalanced) Pack fans, throughout the night and into the wee small hours of the morning.  Makes sense.  But can you imagine the outpouring THIS week (sliiiiightly hotel sanctioned or not) of diehard Cheese-Heads to disrupt the sleep of the hated Minnesota Vikings and… wait, what was their quarterback’s name again???  WHAT?  How did we get caught up in the middle of this stuff Again??? Noooobody’s sleeping at Paper Valley on Saturday night!  Although, I bet you Brett’s gonna stay somewhere else.  He’s gotta know the way it would go down after 16 years playing here… (and Maybe he still has some friends around town :)  maaaaaybe.

Anyway… when “said” visiting team is ready to make the trip to the game, they will drive the 25 minutes or so up the 41 to the frozen (or not-so-frozen) Tundra of LAMBeAU Field; the hallowed ground that has housed the Packers for the 

last 53 years.  And on Friday my boy Mike and I made the trip for ourselves…  It was a miserable day.  Cold, rainy, AND windy, and, Magically, the normal stadium tours were unavailable for the few hours that we were there (we had to be back by 2 for cleanup rehearsal :)  I was okay with it for two reasons.  One, I wasn’t dressed for the rain and cold, and two, the Packer Hall of Fame was open AND indoors.  And it’s really a fun place to visit. 

The Packers have been playing football since 1919, when some guy named Curly Lambeau formed a team with some his friends. At that time Curly worked at the Indian Packing Company in town, and one day he talked the IPC into giving him permission to use their athletic field for practice, and to provide the team with jerseys and some equipment.  So initially the club was identified in its early publicity as a project of the company (later the ACME packing co)… and they were thus named.  In 1921 they joined the NFL, and the REST… as they say, is history.  They’ve got 25 players in the NFL hall of fame!  19 Divisional Championships, 9 NFL Championships, and 3 Super Bowl Championships later, we have the Packers as we know them today.  A team, uniquely owned by their own fans (and perhaps the most loyal fans anywhere), playing in the smallest market in American Professional Sports, with Brett Favre at the helm… oh I mean, uh… with Aaron Rodgers at the helm… and… wait a minute, this can’t be right… Brett Favre coming to town with the rival Vikings… WHAT?  You canNOT write this stuff!  :)

Obviously the Packer Hall of Fame will one day include Favre, and even today pays plenty of homage to their ironman of 16 years.  I’ve actually visited Lambeau once before, when I was a kid in 1989, back when the Packers quarterback was a guy named Don Majikowski… that’s right, remember the MaJik mAn?  At that time the Packers were in about a 20 year funk among the leagues cellar-dwellers, and even though Majikowski is in the Packer Hall of Fame, the museum itself seems to be in denial about those years.  They tend to skip right from Bart Starr to Brett Favre.  I enjoyed that.  It’s understandable.

And THEN of course there’s Vince Lombardi, the legendary coach for which, oh by the way, the NFL Championship Trophy is named!  Last week I mentioned that, while dining at his steakhouse, I could only think of one of his famous quotes.  Well predictably, the Packer Hall of Fame had a few more.  Here’s a couple standouts:

“Football is like life - it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority.”   

“If you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm.”

“I don't think there's a punch-line scheduled, is there?”

“The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have.”

 “Winners never quit and quitters never win.”

 And my personal favorite: “We didn't lose the game; we just ran out of time.”

 We’ll see who runs out of time on Sunday.  The Packers?  Or Brett Favre?

Thanks for Hangin with the Underdogs  :)

 

Appleton Sports the 101D!

So life in Appleton continues, and the 101D machine continues to chug along healthily.  We are playing the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center downtown, just up the street from Lawrence University; a beautiful and historic school that opened it’s doors in 1847… and of it’s first 7 students, 3 of them were women.  Alriiiight.  Not bad Wisconsin :) 

Right off of campus sits the grand Castle-Looking Local History Museum (also known as the Houdini Museum because of a permanent exhibit upstairs dedicated to the legendary hometown Hero.)  Interestingly, Harry Houdini was not born here and he actually only lived here for 4 years from age 3 to 7, when his father, the first Rabbi in Appleton, was fired for not speaking English well enough.  YoUCH!  So the destitute family made their way to New York where  “Harry”, originally named Erik Weisz, eventually became world famous.  Even though he was born in Budapest he always told people he was born in Appleton… so I suppose that goes a little ways toward justifying a town claiming a hero who only lived there for 4 early years.  Otherwise it’s a bit of a stretch.  Sorry Appleton, LOVE you :)  Anyways, the OTHER exhibit at the History Museum was… you guessed it.  SPORTS, and the impact on local culture!  Nice, NOW we’re back on track…

The exhibit was very cool.  It featured lots of interesting local sports history... like a pic of an 18 year old Alex Rodriguez, who played his first professional baseball game here as a member of the Appleton Foxes, a minor-league affiliate of the Seattle Mariners.  Like Houdini, I’m sure Alex didn’t stay local very long either!  

Surely, one day, A-Rod will be enshrined upstairs, next to Houdini, as the great Post-Season CHOKE artist!… aw, I kid my Yankee-fan friends.  Actually, I feel like he’s ruining his legacy by being GOOD in this year’s playoffs.  C’mon Alex, where’s the consistency?  Ugh.  Enough about baseball, it’s still dead to me… Heck, if we get a Yankee/Phillies world series I’m gonna cremate it!  (I know, I know… enough sour grapes, silly Mets fan.) 

Aaaaanyways, the museum also featured a look at the evolution of Cheerleader cheers from the 1920’s (hilarious), a tribute to a Local Green Bay Packer fan who only missed 11 games in 71 years!  Wow.  Good job GUY!  Also there was a giant picture of The Lawrence University 1901 Football team (which went undefeated that year!) with interesting related artifacts (Including some archaic headgear they used back in the day that looked kinda like something from the

Hannibal Lecter collection.)  AND, my personal favorite, a 1901 letter from concerned University brass claiming that football was simply too dangerous of a game and that colleges should not continue sponsoring teams!  How about that??  Could you IMAGINE a world withOUT college FOOTBALL???  The world as we know it would be COMPLETELY out of WHACK!!  “Marty, MaRTy!!!”

Oh and speaking of College Football, it’s Saturday again and the Gators are on in 2 minutes.  UnFORtunately, I have to head back to the theatre 20 minutes after THAT!  WHAT???  :(  See I told you that life on the road can be tough!  I mean, c’mon people!  GATORS!!!???  UGH.  WHO schedules these shows???  Oh well :)

Hope all is good Y’all.  And hopefully wherever you are you have as much BRATwurst as you desire… kind of like we have here in Wisconsin.  MmmMmmmmmm  :) thanks for chillin!

Jeff

The State of Wisconsin vs Brett Favre

So on our last day in Minneapolis, the Vikings played their third game in the Metrodome since we'd been in town and, like their first 5 games of the season, they emerged victorious. It’s hard to believe that with all of his previous successes, this is the first time in Brett Favre's NFL career that his team has started 6-0. Looks like the Vikings are really for real, people… incase you were doubting :)  It's amazing how rejuvenated a QB can look with the best running back in the league behind him to keep the defense off balance. That's you, Adrian Peterson!

And speaking of Favre's "previous successes" yesterday the 101D company made our way east to Appleton Wisconsin, a slight jaunt from his old stomping ground of Green Bay. And I'm here to tell ya, we are DEEP in Packer territory here.  With really no other sports representation nearby (apologies to Milwaukee) you can just feel a heavy 

Packer presence in this town. I mean, if I had I bought a Favre Vikings jersey in Minneapolis (I didn't) and then wore it around this town once I got here (I wouldn't) to say the least I don't think it would be interpreted by the locals with any good humor.  Or to put it another way, I would expect to be calling my George, our company manager, from a local emergency room (And rightfully so, I would think.  It's hard to imagine that kind of blatant disrespect going unpunished... aaah, Aren't football rivalries graaand? :)

Obviously, there is Packer stuff everywhere in this town.  (In fact, there are surprisingly still some remaining pictures of Brett Favre, in Packer Green, scattered throughout the sports bars on the strip... I would ask some Wisconsin locals how they feel on the matter but... it's just feels like it's still too soon.) The First two things I saw walking into the hotel was a Packers Clubhouse store and Vince Lombardi's Steakhouse. Think they do good business? A few hours later when most of the cast was there sampling "Vince's" choice cuts, I was trying to explain who the guy was to Julie Foldesi but the only quote of his that I could think of was "winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." Not only had she never heard it, but she also thought it was pretty stupid. She's probably right. Football is a funny thing :)  

Speaking of football, the game that was playing on "Vince's" TVs was the Monday night game between the Denver Broncos and Joy and Brian's (my sis and brother-in-law's) hometown San Diego Chargers. Great game to watch (sorry Joy and Brian) with two punts returned for touchdowns AND a kickoff return for a touchdown! Wow, has that ever happened before?? I'm sure the answer to that is a short visit to espn.com away, but let's just say it's rare and leave it at that.  (Oh and congratulations Derek, on ya Denver Broncos!  They are for real for REAL now :)  

I guess that's all the time I have to talk about football for now... I know... it's soooo sad :)  Gotta hit up the theatre in a bit for soundcheck.  We are HERE Appleton!  

Hope all is well, and thanks for dropping by.

Best, Jeff

 

 

College Game day... and two shows as well.

So this is by far one of the main challenges of being on the road in a show.  Your weekend is almost always made up of two shows on Saturday and two shows on sunday, which, during the fall and winter, obviously begs the question... when do you have time to watch FOOTBALL???  Luckily, these days it's a lot easier to follow your team because of mass communication devices, the fact that a lot of the big games are on national tv, and College football has risen to a level of national significance that several stagehands or security guards will usually be up to speed on the latest scores.  Identifying these stagehands/security guards early and utilizing them strategically throughout the show is KEY to keeping tabs on your team :)  

Our cast in 101 Dalmatians has a lot of big school representation.  Jimmy Ludwig and Rachel York are both Michigan Peeps, Kristen Beth Williams is diehard Oklahoma Sooner (I know because every saturday it says so on her HAT), Mike Masters went to Auburn, Chuck Ragsdale and Garett Hawe are both Cincinatti Bearcats, and Julie Foldesi bleeds UNC Tarheel Blue!... (well we won't have to worry about her until basketball season :)  And those are only the ones I know about.  Every single cast-member of this show has a heart of gold (especially the canines) buuuuut on Saturday... things can get dicey.

Fortunately on Saturday the shows are usually at 2 and 8, so there is a significant break inbetween so you can usually catch the second half of a later game.  Today, I used my break to hurry back to my hotel to watch the second half of the Florida/Arkansas game.  Now, because we are in Minneapolis and on Central time I got to watch most of the Oklahoma/Texas game Before heading in to the theatre for the first show.  Neither team was very impressive, including Colt McCoy, and sadly Sam Bradford was reinjured early.  But it was like everybody had a case of the FUMMMMBLES... sooo many fumbles in that game.  It was like they were playing in an invisible blizzard or something... (Sorry KBWilliams.)  Anyway, there must have been something in the air today because by the time I got back to my hotel room on dinner break, my Gators hadfumbled FOUR times already, and were down 10-6 in the 3rd quarter.  Later they trailed again 20-13 in the 4th.  It looked like a little bit of nervous time in Gainesville, as 

the RazorBacks were hanging tough, and threatening the Gators 15 game winning streak.  In the end Caleb Stugis stoically drilled a go-ahead Field Goal with 9 seconds left (He had kicked a career long 51-yarder earlier in the game) and the Gators hung on to preserve the streak.  Tebow had a great game, and with the other major QBs struggling right now, he has to be the current front-runner for the Heisman.     

And now for some Arkansas love.  Dennis Johnson KILLED us all day.  Every game I've ever seen in the SEC there is a running back that I've never heard of (first, second, or third string) that absolutely blows my mind!  And then a year or two later they are KILLING in the NFL.  That's the SEC baby!  SPEED!  Today it was Dennis Johnson, remember that name.  The Razorbacks almost upset us today... and it was because of this guy.  

Aw, will you look at that.  I got all caught up in Football chat and the time just FLEW by.  I gotta get back to the Orpheum... for show number 2!!!  Man, I love Saturdays!!!  :) 

Cheers,

Jeff  

The 101D has OPENED!!!

Hi Everybody.  Sorry I've been gone so long.  We've finally gotten through tech and the show actually OPENED on tuesday.  We have had amazing crowds so far in Minneapolis and it seems like the show is getting positive feedback, but no reviews yet... actually I don't know if there are reviews yet... if there are I will IGNORE them (: Quick quote from Jerry Zaks during a notes session the other day, who was actually quoting Robert Altman, regarding Critics: "a Critic is like someone who stands on a mountain-top while the battle takes place.  Then after the battle is over they come down from the mountain and slaughter the survivors."... oooor SOMEThin like that :)

On the other front, Minneapolis sports took somewhat of a hit from it's mountain-top high this past week when the "200 MillionDollar" Yankees took out our UnderDog Twins in 3 quick games.  Incidentally, our Cruella DeVil (Rachel York) sang the national anthem before game 3 at the Metrodome, so SHE, and not Me, or Mike Masters, or Jerry Zaks, WAS actually at the last Twins game at the Metrodome EVER.  It took a while but we finally have some clarity there... although I still have the certificate that SAYS I was at the last game, soo... i mean history is in the history books, right?  Anyway, even Rachel's amazing voice wasn't enough to inspire the SmallMarket Twins to victory against the Mighty Jerks (i mean... yanks.)  Oh well... hopefully they'll have enough money to resign Mauer.  But the Yanks will more Likely get him... wow, how UNfair is baseball???  

Anyway, the town of Minneapolis is still cruisin tho because of Adrian Peterson, Brett Favre and the Vikings.  Headed into week 6 they are still undefeated and fans around town are thinking about the SuPERBoWL already!  They are playing Sunday down the street against Baltimore, back at... you guessed it... the METROdome.  I wonder if Rachel is going to sing the National Anthem again :) 

So even though the show has opened we are still making changes every day so I have to head back to the theatre to see what the new developments are.  I love this job.  The most wonderful thing about theatre is how much of a TEAM effort it is.  Everybody has to just roll with it!... Oh and during opening there are lots of COOKIES.  Thanks Kisha!!!  

TWINS WIN, TWINS WIN!!!

Holy Cow!  What a game!  The Twins out lasted the Tigers tonight and won with a walk-off RBI basehit in the 12th!  Soooo Dramatic.  I'm feeling badly right now for all of my Detroit Tigers fans tho.  It does complete something of a monumental collapse for them.  It hurts... it really does.  I know this to be true because those Blasted METS did it two years in a ROW!  But I'm not Bitter...

AAAARRRGGGGH!  and THIS year was even WORSE!  Baseball has been basically dead to me since June; right around the time when Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Gary Sheffield, and a couple of pitchers all got hurt at the SAME time.  YOuch!  Then later David Wright got drilled in the head with a pitch and the Mets lost a game on an unassisted triple play.  First time that had happened in like a HUNDRED years!  (Literally.)  just Bad BAD Luck :(

ANYway, as much as I'm bummed for my Detroit Tiger's peeps, coming to Minneapolis has righted my Baseball Soul.  Brought me back into balance so to speak.  This team has been on an Incredible run for the last month and they totally earned it tonight!  Inspiring!!  Baseball is BACK baby :)  Well, they have to head to the Bronx for a game tomorrow night, so we'll see how that plays out.  Bloody Yanks... I would love for the Twins to knock them out.  But regardless, EVERYone in this town is STOKED just to be there!  I tell ya, BRET FAVRE one night, TWINS the next.  This place is a hotbed for spectacular Sports Stories!!! 

 

Oh and by the way, the Vikings won a Great game last night too.  The Crazies in the pubs were quite happy.  More on that Laaaater.

Goodnight now

J

 

Monday Oct 5, 2009...

Hey Guys!  My name is Jeff and I’m on the road with a new musical based on Dodie Smith’s book “101 Dalmatians.”  Thanks for comin over… Welcome to the UNDERdogs!

Being a theatre actor makes for an interesting life in many ways, particularly on a gig like this where we are on the move every week or so.  Discovering new cities week in and week out is intriguing and, more importantly, it brings the opportunity to experience unique aspects about each place… Restaurants, bars, clubs, historical landmarks, museums… you name it.  Anything that sets apart that spot…  the spot where you currently find yourself, from the REST  :)  For instance: there is only one place you could see the Alamo, or the Liberty Bell, or the Golden Gate Bridge, or Fenway Park.   These truths are obvious… I mean, those things aren’t going to come to YOU right?   Herein lies the fun of touring (or traveling in general if you like.)  Every city is different and each offers exciting specifics that separate them from the rest; and along the way can create amazing thrills and memories for anyone looking for them.  Especially if we’re talking about sports!  (uh-oh… How many people did I just lose?? :)

Alright, alright.  I must admit I’ve been a pretty avid sports junkie since I was a kid, and every year I spend countless hours watching games, sports shows, or reading about sports on ESPN.com or other sites.  It’s fun for us.  I like to think this “hobby” is at least in a reasonable place though… I mean I’m not one of these guys so obsessed with a team that it becomes my entire world, or find it absolutely necessary to memorize EVERY pedestrian statistic on the off chance somebody might ask me.  I don’t do fantasy sports or see the allure in betting on who wins (or covers the spread.)  It’s about the winning and losing; and the beauty and simplicity of each game.  It’s not conjecture, it’s conclusive; you win or you lose, that’s it.  I think secretly we all want life to be this absolute.  There is comfort within the foul lines.  All of the excitement in the world can be found on any given night and there’s certainly enough to go around!  

We got to Minneapolis on Saturday the 26^th of September to start a technical rehearsal process for the show, downtown at the Orpheum.  I’ve always admired this fresh and vibrant city when I’ve been able to visit in the past.  I’ve been here in the Winter (COLD) AND the Summer (HOT) and was excited this time to be here right in the smack of Autumn.  So far it’s been slightly confusing though, as it seems the weather just doesn’t know what to DO!   Perhaps a useful conclusion after all, the locals must be well aware of these climactic shifts since the city is flush with skyways (elevated and more importantly INDoor walkways that connect many of the downtown buildings) AND because all of the major sports teams in this town play indoors as well.  Like somebody was on to something right?  “Hey, why don’t we just cut out this Rain, Snow, Wind, Frost, and Scorching heat thing?  Just put ‘em all inside and adjust the thermostat.  Easy.”  Good idea Minneapolis. 

But I digress, the point of this blog is not to ponder the many mysteries of North American Weather patterns, but more to focus on the great anomaly of Sports in the National Landscape.  What other way could so many people be brought together so passionately?  I’ve seen games all over this country and team spirit truly does defy every demographic, race, creed, or any other invented boundary between people.  Plus… it gives us lots of stuff to talk about :)

EXHIBIT A – Minneapolis THIS weekend.

Saturday:  The city hosted the annual ultra rivalry-juiced University of Minneapolis Golden Gophers vs University of Wisconsin Badgers Game.  They play every year for “Paul Revere’s Axe” (except for the 30 or so years it was LOST apparently :) with the winner bringing home the axe and the Bragging Rights!  Wisconsin Won 31-28.

Sunday:  following the start of the Twin Cities Marathon,  the Hometown TWINS laced it up against the Kansas City Royals in the latest of what has seemed like a month of Must-Win Games in their quest for the playoffs.  This was an OFF day for us at the theatre so I actually made it to the Metrodome for the afternoon game, in what coincidentally happened to be the final Regular-Season Twins game EVER at the Metrodome.  (I know this is true because they gave me a certificate to prove I was there.   Nice right?  But we’ll have time to talk about that later.  Oh and BY the WAY, I heard later that our 101D Director, Jerry Zaks, just WALKED in and stood in the back... no ticket.  Just WALKED in!!!  Amazing.  I'm wondering if, right now, the Minneapolis Ticket Taker Association is circulating a grainy  security camera still of Jerry slipping through the gate to every local venue to make sure that nothing of the kind happens again.  Y'know as far as I can tell they take that stuff pretty seriously.  Or maybe there's a clause in Minneapolis ticket-taking etiquette that 4 time Tony Award Winners are exempt from admission prices on occasion.  I guess it's possible :)  Incidentally, the Twins did win and forced a tie-breaker game against the Detroit Tigers on Tuesday night, back at the METRODOME!!! And that brings us to TONIGHT… oooooo, ahhhhh... 

Monday, October 5, 2009:  forever to be remembered as “The day that Brett Favre played against his old team, the Hated Green Bay Packers at the Metrodome wearing PURPLE!!!”  For so many years he steamrolled into town with his perennially contending old Pack and broke the Vikings hearts.  I know this to be true because nobody in this town can stop talking about it.  And now in one of the wildest flips in sports history, he ends up on the squad of a bitter rival!  You just can’t WRITE this stuff!  The hype for this game is enormous.  As expected, downtown Minneapolis as I write this is littered with Purple Jerseys with the occasional Packer Green sprinkled it (albeit mostly segregated from the rest) and it feels like a major International incident is afoot or something.  Honestly, with all of the energy in the streets right now, the dogs are HOWLING back stage.  It's in the AIR!  They can feel it… and so can we.

To be continueeeeeeeed  :)