HEY YOU!

Sorry, Kirk took us to the gym today so testosterone is running a bit high.

We spent the morning making calls and setting up meetings. Have to say, we’re pretty booked — best thing that could happen.

While we did that, Kirk prepped himself for the hardest workout of the week: leg day. I (Rory) was pumped to learn his routine and refresh my technique.

So we filled our water bottles, put on our game faces and headed to Powerhouse Gym.

As we walked in, Kirk told us to grab a towel; we’d need it.

It was obvious why: this place was the real deal. We saw a guy who looked like the rock dude from the Fantastic Four (except human). Even the older ladies had biceps bigger than ours, and I’m not kidding.

The sign that we quote in the title (no, we did not make that up) goes a long way to explaining the mentality of this gym: total honesty. These people were definitely Detroiters, and the buffest ones at that.

Ryan went off and did his own thing, wanting to capitalize on time. I wanted to catch as much of Kirk’s workout as I could, even if it meant that I didn’t get to finish.

Trust me: I got what I came for and then some.

Just so you know, Kirk is a bodybuilder. Yeah, he built his career in the classroom but that wasn’t enough for his competitive spirit. So he started pumping iron seriously at 29.

Now, at 64, he’s gearing up for another bodybuilding competition. He says he’ll be ready by February.

I’ve done some pretty heavy lifting in my time so I thought I could at least keep up.

30 minutes later I could barely walk or see straight. I took a breather then went back for more.

And that’s when I liquidated my assets and prayed to the porcelain god. I hate to admit that I got shown up by a 64 year old, but that’s what happened.

You may not believe this, but if we move to Detroit I’m totally training with him. He’s my hero.

“I’m a bad Jew”

After hitting the showers we hit the road to see the show Bad Jews by Joshua Harmon at the Jewish Ensemble Theatre.

The space was gorgeous, with a 198 seat house and modified thrust stage configuration.

However, the audience took up only about 30 seats, spread across the 198. literally everyone in the theater was white (with the exception of one or two). Not only that, but the audience had an average age of 65 and ranged maybe 50-75 years old. Of course, this was their first preview, they officially open Saturday night.

We learned from the usher that “most opening nights are quiet because people are waiting to hear if it’s good or not.” Tough crowd; smart crowd, but tough.

Well, I’m sure they weren’t disappointed because it was awesome! Very funny, very real and very moving. Thanks so much Meredith Deighton for getting us there. So glad for the experience.

Afterwards, we spoke to the director of the play, Christopher Bremer who is also the Executive Director, (the first person we’ve met here who seemed to know the name “UNC School of the Arts” when we introduced ourselves).

His recommendation was quite positive from a performer’s standpoint: “You can find work here. You would not be competing with the huge number of people as in New York and it’s a good place to get your equity card before moving out to New York or Chicago or LA…There’s more theatre here than Dallas or some other big cities you could go to”. Then we asked “What about directors?” to which he said “You’ll have to make your own work. No one’s gonna pick you up and say “hey come work for me”. But if you’re talking about a 60-70 seat theater that’s the size that’s what’s typical and if you have the right stuff people will come…You can find a storefront here. Get one in the downtown walking district,  that’s where most of the life is.” In regards to making a living he advised “you’ll have to do six different things. I’m the executive director here and I still teach at Henry Ford College. That’s the only way to do it and make a living…I teach an acting class, a theatre appreciation class and I’m the shop foreman.”

This reflects what we know about Meredith, who works 5 jobs — and still finds time to rehearse? Amazing.

We also spoke to one of the lead actors, Mitchell A. Koory who just got his equity card working on this show (congrats!). He also works for the North American International Auto Show, “North America’s largest and most prestigious automotive showcase”, started in 1899. “Detroit had a better market before the film incentives were taken away,” Mitchell said “but, there’s so much space in Detroit and a lot of innovation happening there. The affordability and risk-taking ability Detroit has in spades. A lot of new theaters are popping up in Ann Arbor and Detroit. The one challenge is getting people down there and getting enough interest downtown. But there’s a very good community: Michigan has a rich history so a lot of good stories to pull from and a lot of talent to work with.”

Both of them emphasized the difficulty of bringing an audience to the downtown area. Also interesting, all the actors had theatre training. And by 2 pm tomorrow we will have spoken in-depth with 3 out of the 4 actors in this play: Meredith at the Ringwald, Mitchell after Bad Jews and tomorrow we’re meeting Emilio Rodriguez for lunch at 1. Making the rounds!

The other trained actor, Katie Galazka seemed cool; we just didn’t see her :(. (If you read this and have something to add, please get in touch!)

At the end of it, this was a laidback, fun, informative day.

Thanks for keeping pace. It’s been a wild ride and we appreciate you taking it with us.

Much love from the D,

R&R

Paintings of influentials Jewish artists lined the walls before entering the theater