Lost in Austin

Posted by joanne on Mar 18, 2010 in theatre, News | 1 comment

with Mark Rubin and Sasha Luminsky at World Famous Threadgill's Diner!

It’s official: Austin is my new favorite city in Texas!!! There, I said it.  I’ve enjoyed the blue bonnets in many a Texas town before ~ Houston, Dallas, Galvaston, San Antonio ~ but Austin has come as a wonderful surprise. I’ve heard tales of the music scene before, but it’s really better when experienced first hand.

Got shanghai’d on Monday by the Austin’s own, unforgettable Mark Rubin ~ dinner at Threadgill’s, two-steppin’ over at the Continental Club, then onto a giant-sized jam session in a mansion near the “J”… I’m still recovering!

Wednesday, I did a Lunch & Learn at the JCC with Sasha Luminsky and Joel Bernstein.  Talked about Fiddler with a group of fascinating people who asked challenging questions and wanted to share their experiences as immigrants and survivors.

The indefinable, Mark Rubin!

It’s great to know that we’re touching audiences so deeply… we’re telling the universal story of America, and it’s especially personal to the people who were born overseas.  It was a good reminder of why we tell this story eight times a week…

One of the best things about touring is getting to spend meaningful time with old (sorry…) friends who’ve gone out into the diaspora of America.   This tour has full of those amazing moments… and Austin was full of quality school-chum time… and when you’re reminiscing about old beau’s, proms and who-kissed-who in high school, it’s a giggle-fest!  Add to that good food, great music and a nice glass of chardonnay and you’ve got a recipe for side-splitting hysterics…  I can’t remember the last time I laughed so hard!!  Thanks, Laurie… I feel 17 again…

on the campaign trail with Ladybird at the LBJ Presidential Library

Last (but certainly not least) on this full week’s agenda was a visit to the LBJ Library and Museum.  I’d never been to a Presidential library before, and I must confess my ignorance about LBJ’s accomplishments.  His Presidency has been so overshadowed by his failures in Vietnam and Southeast Asia, I never realized the hundreds of social programs that are part of his legacy… If the Smothers Brothers can forgive this great man, then so can I.  And even though Eartha Kitt made Lady Bird cry at a White House dinner, I’m grateful for everything she did as well… it was a humbling day.  I hope to visit the Jimmy Carter Library in Atlanta as the next stop on my Presidential Library Tour…