Ooh La La!

I believe I mentioned auditioning for Dirty Work at the Crossroads, the Gay ’90s Melodrama being directed by my husband Steven for Ilion Little Theatre. Well, Steven is having a little bit of trouble filling all ten roles. Today at work I tried to help.

I didn’t start out trying to help. At first I was just making conversation.

“Steven is having trouble filling all the girls parts in his play,” I said to a guy who came to see Harvey and has expressed an interest in future plays.

“Sally is a girl,” he said immediately.

“Well, there is the part of the French Maid,” I speculated.

He expressed an immediate interest in seeing his co-worker in a French Maid outfit. “But don’t tell her I suggested her.”

“But I’ve given you a mental image that you will enjoy for the rest of the morning,” I said. I went and found Sally. “Would you like to play the part of the French Maid in Steven’s play?” I asked.

“I think Harry would be better as the French Maid,” she suggested.

“I’ll ask him,” I said. “In the meantime, we both have a mental image we can enjoy for the rest of the morning.”

Much later I saw the two of them talking, so I approached them. “I asked Sally if she wanted to play the French Maid and she said you would be much better,” I told Harry. He immediately started speaking French. I thought about going all Gomez Adams on him, “Tish! You spoke French!” but we were at work after all. “You know, I didn’t even tell Sally it was your idea that she do it. Oops.”

So we all got a good laugh, and I told them I was going to write a blog post about it. “But I won’t use your real names.” In case they felt weird about my vast readership picturing them both in French Maid outfits.

“I want to be Harry, and she can be Sally,” Harry immediately said, solving my problem. You see, I had been trying to think of aliases and I was worried a clever reader would trace them to their source.

By the end of the day I had at least two other votes for Harry as the French Maid, and I believe he is considering the role. While I was discussing it with him, two other co-workers walked by.

“Or maybe Tom should be the French Maid,” I said, just to widen my search (his name isn’t really Tom; I made up that alias just now all by myself).

“Huh? What? I heard my name.”

I tried to explain. “My husband needs more actors for the play he is directing.”

“You can probably get a lot of help with that around here,” the other co-worker said. “Lots of drama going on.” I believe that is the case in many places of employment.

Of course I don’t usually blog about work, because this isn’t that sort of a blog, but I thought the story about the French Maid search was pretty funny. And the search continues. Maybe I should ask my boss or maybe the plant manager…

Dirty Work at the Crossroads will be presented by Ilion Little Theatre Oct. 19, 20, 25, 26 and 27 at 8 p.m. with a matinee Sunday Oct. 21 at 2 p.m. For more information visit their website at http://www.ilionlittletheatre.org or “Like” them on Facebook. Now I know you all want to come and see who finally plays the French Maid.