A God Moment in Manhatten

Renee and I decided to go see if we could take in a show on Broadway yesterday. When we got to the TKTS booth, there was a long line up and the Les Mis show we wanted was not available at tkts so we walked to the theatre to see if they had 2 tickets. They had 1 and suggested we wait to see if other tickets would become available. So we headed back to tkts booth and when we got there we were told the line was at least a 1-hour wait. Just when I was perplexed about what to do next, someone walked up to me with, "Hi Ray!. How are you?" I looked up in surprise to see that it was our E St Paul neighbour, Ken Friesen! He called Heather and Ray who were just getting to the ticket window, and asked them to get tickets for us for either Shakespeare's Cymbeline or Mama Mia. We got tickets for Cymbeline at the Lincoln Center Theater. Imagine the chances that we would be at exactly the same place at exactly the same time in a city teeming with millions of people!

We got to see Cymbeline, the late problem play by Shakespeare which, as one critic pointed out, is not actually as seldom-seen as some might think. (Someone is doing it in the city at least every two years.) This production, however, was the first big-deal Cymbeline in a long time, with none other than Lincoln Center Theater backing it. Director Mark Lamos directed a talented and various cast that included Martha Plimpton, Michael Cerveris, Phylicia Rashad and John Cullum. Reviews were split, which some critics taking issue with the unevenness of the cast. But, given that this play usually sets reviewers to carping, there were a notable number of very positive reactions, particularly in response to Cerveris and Plimpton, who is everybody's favorite "It" girl right now.