Friday, November 21, 2008

Public Patronage

So, tonight Captain Awesome and I went to see Art on a Stage. We've been really excited about this event, watching it come together for premier. In fact Awesome contributed some money to support the Next Art Project so they could perform New Work.  Captain and I are into New Work.  Captain Awesome told me they might have our names on a program or possibly announce our names aloud in connection with that. Ick.  

Typical of our craziness, Awesome flew in from Tampa just a couple hours before the show. I came in from my last set of kid carpooling after him, with just enough time to change out of my jeans. I even thought of not changing, time was so short.  But I put on my black travel palazzo pants--though the zipper is catching, I learned in Europe that these pants go with everything--and my Look Nice Anthropologie sweater--sweaters don't need ironed. I quickly put on those dangly big pearl earrings Awesome bought me, worthy of Scarlett Johansson. No time for makeup, which I hadn't bothered with all week. No thought to change my shoes--I just kept wearing my favorite sandals although they are cracking. And carried my Rich Lady bag. In between making sure the kids were getting dinner, and the kids could reiterate how to spend the evening obeying rules.

Funny, in the movies that's not part of the getting-ready montage.

We arrived at the auditorium. My friends were there, and the people I always see at this kind of thing.

Then the show started. The Art was amazing. I could do this every month.

And at the end, they not only announced our names, but made us go up on stage to be acknowledged with Behind the Scenes people. Yikes! I managed to chose not to be terrified. And they said how much money we gave, I felt sort of astonishingly exposed. Yeah, I was glad I'd put on more serious clothes. Though I was in the shallow end of what to wear, at least I was in the same pool. Most women hadn't confined themselves to one layer like I had, but had jacket and scarf and pin and savoir-fair. Actually, it may be I did had savoir-faire.  I was so high off my enjoyment of the event, so delighted with the Art, that I didn't much care what I looked like. Though I was still capable of thinking thoughts like--the stage lights would have washed out my makeup anyway, so it doesn't matter that I'm not wearing any, and hope I remembered to tug my sweater down, so my belly's not gapping out between the bottom of the sweater and the waistband of my pants--and goodness sake, stand up straight and hold my stomach in!

I found it easy to smile at the performers upstage from me. I loved the show.

Afterwards, we mingled. There were drinks and snacks. I talked to people I wanted to see, and we didn't have to stay too long. I must say, Captain Awesome, networking gregariously, is a natural as a patron of the Arts.

And I can go along too.

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