I was in New York City at the finish of May and start of June for a journalism fellowship at Columbia University Journalism School. I’ve been home a week, and I still can’t begin to describe how amazing it was.
After the fellowship closed Saturday afternoon, June 2, I put my artist hat back on. I met up with director and original cast members of Maximalista (#MentalHealthPlay) and I happened upon Bryant Park, where they were setting up for a musical performance.
Scattered across the grass were music lovers also loving one another. I captured those images in the still-bright sunlight of early evening. My own soul surged with love, and a tinge of loneliness as I wished I could have a companion for these moments.
So much of artistry, even in a collaborative art like theater, is done in solitude. I trade a social life for the adventure of telling everyone’s story on the pages of the newspaper, the bandwidth of the web page, the blogosphere here, and on the screen and stage.
When I’m working, I trade affection and companionship for the opportunities to be in New York, in Boston, and I hope soon in other places to have my artistry come to life on stage.
Usually it’s a quite fair trade and I feel there’s not much I’ve missed.
Sometimes, though, I would trade an opportunity for a hug, a kiss, a word of encouragement, or just the companionship that comes with seeing the same thing at the same time, together.
Enough of that. Time moves and so does the pace of performance. Maximalista is in rehearsals. Today, director Cammerron Baits did a film shoot of flashbacks and mind obsessions, which will play on projections during the show.
I’ve seen some stills, and while I was hesitant at first, I believe it will be phenomenal.
You can spread love and joy in your city, right where you are.
