Thank you New York!

Hunchback closed at the New Victory yesterday, and after 8 hours of transit today, I'm home.

The end of the run was exhausting. We had student matinees Wed-Fri, which meant 9am calls, and we had 2-show days Thurs-Sat which meant long days. Particularly Friday which started at 9am and finished around 9pm.

Sunday, the show was up at noon, down at 1:20, and strike was 2-5. The TD and I took the train together to Brooklyn to the potluck dinner the cast was having, and we spent our last night together eating good food and chocolate cake, drinking wine, beer, and whiskey, and enjoying each other's company. This is an amazing group of people, and for us to have the chance to do this show again was received by all of us as a gift. We were joking all tour about the Berlin tour or when we go to Amsterdam, but really, we just love each other, and would take any excuse to be together again.

This morning the tour ended the same way it began: With a meal at the Manhattan Diner across from the hotel. After breakfast, we had to say goodbye to Samuel, who is staying in NY for a month to rehearse for his first Equity show, and Zach, who is going to see his family in Providence, RI. At the new JetBlue terminal at JFK, the remaining 9 of us flocked together, wanting the most out of our last hours together. We sat together on the steps outside the food court, with some of us wandering about in pairs. When we landed, the cast waited at the gate for our whole group to deplane, and we all walked together to baggage claim. Once we had all our bags, we said goodbye to Zeke, who has rehearsal tonight and whose girlfriend was there to pick him up. Next, we said goodbye to Katie Rose and Leah who had to go upstairs and check into different airlines to finish their treks home to Minneapolis and Seattle, respectively. Down to 6 now, we made our way to the Blue Line train. At Jeff Park, we said goodbye to Calvin and Alden who were taking the train further than we, and we caught our bus. The remaining 4 of us were on the bus together until Mary Winn got off at Oakley, and we were down to 3. Jeremy and Jay got off at Glenwood, and then were was one. One block later, I got off the bus and walked the last block home to my cold and lonely apartment.

I freely acknowledge that am a nostalgic person. I live in a fairly constant state of nostalgia for every show I've ever worked on and everyone I've ever worked with, but there is something unique about this show. With this show and this cast, it's like we really are family who happen to have been apart for most of our lives, but since we were brought together last October, we've bonded together. And to be together again this fall has been like a family reunion, culminating in the closing night potluck dinner and departure breakfast. I miss them already.