I may have posted this story here previously; apologies if it's a rerun for you.
Close to 30 years ago, Joseph Papp decided The Public would produce every Shakespeare play in six years (I think it took closer to nine). If you saw all the shows, you got a t-shirt and there was even a punch card that I managed not to lose. The first offering was Midsummer Night's Dream at The Public. I went to an early preview. I don't remember a lot about the production except for the fact that either Oberon or Puck used fire at one point. A spark landed on his hair and due to the product, was on fire quickly. The director stood up towards the back of the house near where I was sitting and yelled 'Your hair!'. Meanwhile an elderly lady in the front row stood up, giant pocketbook in hand & brought her bag down on the top of his head, putting out the fire, then sat back down in her seat. The actor was on his knees and there was no real stage, so the woman had easy access. There was brief applause for the fast thinking audience member, and during the curtain call, the actor brought her a flower and kissed her on the cheek.
If that were to happen today, there would be a half dozen people in the front row with water bottles at the ready, but this was before that fad. |
