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Teacher Man

I'm not sure if this is a general-interest piece, but if you're curious about my work life, it's going reasonably well. After triumphantly planning my departure from secretarial life, I was told I'd need to stay on for an extra month. (This isn't exactly how it happened--but if you factor in vestigial Catholic guilt, you'll understand it's always hard for me to say no.) On off hours, I work with one child via Zoom, and one child via in-person visits.


Life sometimes hands you an unexpected gift, and a great treat for me this fall is that I'm working with a theater fan. During our icebreaker session, I invited her to ask me any question in her brain (she is in seventh grade), and, without hesitating, she produced this:


Which of all the Broadway characters would you want to play on stage?


This was like being handed a bag of candy, and it's a question I had never, never fielded. I sighed. I said, "Darling, let's be clear. I haven't acted in ages."


There was a dramatic pause.


"That said," I added, "I'm like Audra McDonald. She and I have one wish. We wish to play the title role in 'Sweeney Todd.'"


My new friend's eyes widened.


I went on. "I'd also happily play the Beast, in 'Beauty and the Beast.' You know, you want to be a complicated person on-stage, and you want a great score to work with...."


We sat in silence and considered the possibilities.


I'm not sure where this fall will take me, but I loved that chat. My new friend seems to have her heart set on a role in "Dear Evan Hansen." We'll see what transpires....


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