So I just read this story about Hugh Jackman's performance of "A Steady Rain" at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre in New York. During a tense moment in the play in which Jackman's character, a Chicago policeman, describes his haunting memories, someone's cell phone went off in the audience.
Jackman broke character and asked, "You want to get that?" The audience cheered. The ringing persisted. "Come on, just turn it off," Jackman pleaded. He then paced the stage for about a minute until the ringing stopped.
I got one better!
Umberto Eco and Salman Rushdie came to my school in spring of 2008 for an event hosted by Open Letter Press. They talked with the OLP director onstage. Then Rushdie read a selection of his upcoming novel The Enchantress of Florence, to be released in April 2008. Eco read from The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loana.
Someone's cell phone went off!
Eco ignored it and just kept reading. Oh well, the ringtone was classical music. So at least it was, you know, a cultured interruption.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
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4 comments:
What?????!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You actually saw Eco and Rushdie (and at the same time) in person???????????? ARRGHHHH! I'm so jealous!!!
Um, I barely remember it. I was really tired for some reason (I think I had something big going on earlier that day - don't remember). I just kind of took a very discreet seat in the way back and nearly dozed off. I mean, I didn't really sleep per se, I was just sorta in that mid-way twilight zone.
Come to think of it, I was probably no better than Cell Phone Guy.
Well, as compelling as these two are, I doubt anyone would call either a captivating speaker, so as gracious as you are in taking responsibilty for being less-than-attentive, elf, I'm sure it lays to them...
compelling as WRITERS, I meant to say...
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