Max Goof has achieved many things during his time in college, with the College X Games among his achievements, but there's one part of his college life that isn't talked about enough: the relationships he had at college. Let's find out more about th...
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In this chapter, I'm going to explain more about my experiences with Spoonerville College's production of West Side Story in 1999 and how Lola helped me with it.
Ever since Lola told me she got the part of Maria in the production of West Side Story, I just had to go and see her rehearse in it whenever I could. The college drama department at the college was very strict and for good reason because they were professional and they had a great reputation for teaching many professional actors before they went to make it big in Broadway or Hollywood or many other great acting opportunities. And because of their strict yet professional rules, they didn't just allow anyone in; only cast and crew in. Because I was desperate to see Lola rehearse, I decided to apply for one of their jobs to help behind the scenes. The stage manager, Mr. Backdoor, desperately needed an assistant and so I applied for it. I would assist him in getting everything the play needed ready, whether it be sets, props, lights, costumes – you name it, I assisted it. Even if Lola wasn't in the show, I was learning a lot about what goes on behind the scenes behind a live show and I was also getting paid for my work. Not much, but it was still better to start somewhere than not start anywhere at all and I earned enough to continue to pay for my college degrees and my dorm room rent. Even if I didn't get paid, doing this made me look good on my resume.
As I worked behind the scenes, I watched Lola rehearse with the entire cast. The more I watched them, the more I could see that this stage production was going to be a huge success. The entire cast nailed their roles with their acting, singing and dancing and they all shone out in their own way, but Lola shone out the most. Watching her rehearse made me wish I could star in the production with her.
Two weeks before the college was due to open, everything was looking good. So good that everything looked ready to be opened to the public, but the director, Mr. Trapdoor, who also played the role of Doc, was a perfectionist and didn't want to risk anything. He wanted to use the two weeks to make it the production the very best it could be instead of rushing anything, which included bringing the opening night forward. He was very happy with everything I and Mr. Backdoor did with the sets, the props, the lights, the costumes and everything and he was very happy with how the cast was doing, but he kept pushing everyone in an encouraging way, the way professional directors do. In fact, he was so good at his job that I still to this day wonder why he never directed shows for Broadway.
Then on that same day, the actor who was meant to play Tony got into a car crash. He was alive and would get better soon, but not in enough time for the show's premiere. And there was no understudy for Tony at all. When no one knew what to do, Lola recommended to Mr. Trapdoor that I could audition for Tony. She told him about the times when I had been helping her rehearse in our spare time and she thought I was very good at Tony when I helped her. When Mr. Trapdoor asked if I had any acting experiences, I told him that I acted in high school, starting with being an extra in South Pacific in the ninth grade and then playing the lead titular role in Sweeny Todd in the tenth grade, the Baker in Into The Woods in the eleven grade and Jean Valjean in Les Miserables in the twelfth grade. That was good enough for Mr. Trapdoor to give me a chance to audition for Tony. I hadn't acted since high school, but I went for the audition. Lola and I showed Mr. Trapdoor and the rest of the cast and the crew exactly what we've been rehearsing. We did the Tonight, One Hand, One Heart and Somewhere scenes.
Mr. Trapdoor was very impressed with my audition. He even said I was better than the actor who was meant to Tony. He said that I would need to work very hard and quickly if I wanted to play Tony in this production and I would need to sign up as a drama studies student as only drama students could play roles in college production. I wanted the role – mainly because Lola was in it – and I signed up as a drama studies student and promised Mr. Trapdoor I would do my very best with it. And I was glad I wasn't too rusty with my acting skills.
During the next two weeks, I worked very hard and quickly as I could with the Tony role, while I did my college studies and practices for the next College X Games championship. The rehearsals went very quick and they were challenging, but I succeed it, mainly due to Lola's patience and support. As she helped me, I kept thinking not only did she have the skills to be a great actress, but the skills to be a great theatre director. As great of a director Mr. Trapdoor was, I felt Lola was the true director of this production.
Lola and Mr. Trapdoor was very impressed with how I was playing Tony. They were the only ones that were very friendly and pleased with me. The rest of the cast – whether they be Jets, Sharks, police officers or other cast members – didn't seem to like me or be impressed with my acting. I still don't know why, but I can only guess that it was because they all must have liked the original actor who was meant to play Tony or that they have rehearsed for West Side Story since the college started in late August 1998 and I started off very late. But I've been bullied all my life and I've learned how not to let it get to me and not to become a bully like them. Mr. Trapdoor and Lola were the ones I really wanted to impress the most – especially Lola – and I was, so I was very happy and that motivated me to continue to rehearse for this play.
The day had finally arrived when Spoonerville College's production of West Side Story was finally going to opened to the public. Despite Mr. Trapdoor being very impressed with what I and everyone did, I was nervous. Even though I acted during all the grades in high school, I always got nervous before I went on. But I always thought that was a good thing because that meant I was taking this production very seriously. And it wasn't the cast, except Lola, was picking on me. But Lola relaxed me by telling me I was brilliant and I would be on that night. When the first show was over, it was a smash hit and I had a lot of fun. My dad, Sylvia, PJ and Bobby, who watched it on the very first day, thought I was brilliant in it. Even the rest of the cast warmed up to me more, was more impressed with my acting and apologized for being mean to me.
And we continued to keep up the good work all week. It continued to be a smash hit. All the seats were sold out all week and everyone was impressed, including college theatre critics and acting talent scouts. They awarded me the Best Leading Actor Award in A College Theatre Production and they awarded Lola the Best Leading Actress Award in A College Theatre Production. They even said that we could become Broadway superstars if we chose to pursue a career in acting. Even though I never pursued acting as a career, I enjoyed doing that West Side Story production with everyone especially Lola and I did more shows while I was in college and it did help me with my job now, but I will explain that more in later chapters. To end this chapter, I will say I will always, always, always be grateful to Lola for encouraging me to not only help her rehearse for this show but vouching for me to be in it and bring out the best of my acting skills.
