Not too much to say about the day itself: more orientation regarding the library and software the museum uses to manage members/donors and the collection.  Teresa and I took our lunches to the park, where we were asked the directions to the Boat House and the Castle by various tourists.  Once again today was a short day.  I was at the gym by 1:45, and back at Santosh’s by 3:30.

I put myself back together and headed up to Times Square in order to take in some theatre.  I tried to rush Next to Normal which was the Impossible Dream.  I ended up getting some mezzanine tickets for a performance next Wednesday, when Alice Ripley, who is fierce, will hopefully be the newest holder of the Tony Award for Best Leading Actress in a Musical.  I decided to student rush my next choice: The Norman Conquests.

The Norman Conquests is a trilogy of plays written in the 1973 by the British playwright Alan Ayckbourn.  They all deal with the same people in the same house on the same weekend in July.  Each play is set in a different room in the house: Table Manners is set in the dining room, Living Together is set in the living room, and Round and Round the Garden is set in the garden (obviously).  The plays form an interlocking narrative, though each stands alone and you do not need to see the other shows for full comprehension.  However, the more shows one sees, the more one learns about what happens at other times and other places in the house and the more one learns about the ridiculous people who inhabit the house.  It is my goal to see all of the trilogy this summer, and my Quest to Conquer The Norman Conquests began tonight with Round and Round the Garden.

The plays are, basically, a sex farce revolving around the antics of Norman, who was played by an actor who kind of looked like a shaggy dog, Wayne Coyne and, oddly, Eric Atria, the bassist of Morningbell.  Norman likes sex, and drinking, and freedom, and just wants people to like him.  He is very tall, and gangly, and wears a beanie constantly.  Norman will make out with anything, and anyone, to disastrous and hilarious effect.  The current revival is from the Old Vic Theatre in London (Kevin Spacey is the artistic director), and the original cast is pitch-perfect and hysterical.  I was screaming at certain points.  I really don’t want to give too much away, but there is a lot of physical and verbal comedy and the Norman had incredibly expressive eyebrows.  An extremely fun night at the theatre and I am really looking forward to seeing what happens in the living room and the dining room.

I am also looking forward to moving into my apartment tomorrow night!  I’ll be sharing space with the owner for one night but on Thursday I will be happily flying solo!  While I have enjoyed the hospitality of Santosh and his roommate, I am ready to get settled into my own place.  Additionally, first full day of work tomorrow!  As always, will report.