1st DATE

Dallas, TX 1999
I rang the doorbell to her house
Chablis (their dog barked and barked)
Her Mom opened the door
She looked me up and down
"She's running late, have a seat."
The house was nice
The furniture perfect
There were lots of pillows
Lots
Of pillows
When Chelsea came down the stairs
It was like a prom moment
Red top
Black Skirt
She was gorgeous
We got into her Mitsubishi Eclipse
"I'm starving, we're going to Wendy's," she said
She got chicken nuggets
We went to Deep Elum
 It was busy
There was one place to park but it was tight between two cars
She was having trouble
I offered to parallel park
Got it done
There are a lot of bars down there
So we bounced around
Found ourselves on a rooftop
Had our first kiss
In Deep Elum
Walking back to the car
Wearing fancy heels
I could tell she was a bit distressed
The shoes were cutting into her feet
"Jump on my back, I got you."
We laughed as I carried her piggy-back to the car
That's a good first date
And Chels
I still got you

LESSON

There was a notice in the Seattle Times
AUDITION
Miss Saigon
I did well
Got called back
Got a dance call
Well
That didn't go well
"You need to take some dance classes," I was told
They were right
I took a dance class
1
I got a callback in Los Angeles
I didn't know if I should go or not
That's a pricey proposition
I went
Vocal audition went very well
Made it to dance call
In the dance call I was huffing and puffing
But I got through all my steps
I thought I was good
When I was done with my segment I sat against the wall
Slumped down
Head in hands
Bob walks over to me and says, "You're being watched every moment you are in this room."
I'm sweating
Sitting on the floor
Trying to catch my breath
That is probably some of the most sage advice I've ever received

You are always on display
Always

I didn't get the job
Not surprising
But I was taught a lesson

Oh, I did get the job a couple years later
Lesson learned

MERIDIAN

We were decked out
Headed out for a night on the ave
Rich Sasai and I
Lock Stock and Bagel was the bar
Some dudes from Sig Eps on the other side of 17th start shouting at us
"Fucking faggots meet us in the meridian."
I didn't much care for that language
So, I walked into the meridian and Rich followed
I'm not afraid of a fight
It's not the best way to start a night
We were dressed to meet the ladies
Rocking the Polo's with the flipped collars
They come out all bad ass and throwing up their arms
Then they bring out their champion
In the meridian
He's huge
Gargantuan
Shit, I think
But I stand my ground
I realize, though
He's a football player
He probably has to be careful about altercations
We go chin to chin
Well more like chin to sternum
"Swing," I said
"Go ahead"
"Swing"
This dude could have crushed me
If he hit me
I don't think he could have but he's backed up by 6 guys and it's just me and Rich
Stepping out for a night on the town
He's clearly an offensive line man so he's smart enough to recognize the situation
Offensive lineman are smarter than people give them credit
This could hurt his career
He backs down
I still think I could have taken him though

BROTHER

We were just kids when we became friends
Kids
I'd ride my bike over to his house
It was a serious journey
But when I got there Betty Sue had some sweet snacks
Eric would fire up the TRS-80
and we'd play video games
or Dungeons and Dragons with Scott and Russ
or other days we'd play football on the lawn at the Lynnwood Library
Other nights we'd watch Stripes or The Thing
I think those were the only movies we had on VHS

He became my brother
Like no other
We talked on the phone
The kind with the spiral cord
for hours
often

We were playing basketball
At night once
and these chunks of rock
Start flying onto the court
So Eric, Mark Rodriguez and I wander into the blackberry bushes
and find
a full on Ninja
Decked out head to toe
He whips out his nun-chucks and displays his talent
It scared the shit out of me
Eric says, "Yeah, you better know how to use them. Cause when I take them away from you you're going to pay."
The Ninja ran away

There was one time I tried to buy beer at this store we knew was shady
I was 18
I failed
The proprietor laughed
I came back empty handed
Eric, 16 went into the store and came back arms full

I was at a "young life" (Christian camp) party eating ice cream out of a Styrofoam cup
When he and some other friends came bursting around the corner with water balloons
I turned and ran and threw my ice cream cup over my shoulder
It full on hit him in the chest
Ice cream bomb
He launched his water bomb
It hit me
Square
and bounced off
I laughed and ran
He tackled me
Broke my collar bone
Maybe the most painful thing I've ever felt
I let out a series of expletives never heard at a Young Life event before or after

We went to college together
After I finished community college we both entered UW
Threw some of the most epic dorm parties
That's not hyperbole
We had a sweet sound system
REM
"It's the end of the world"
The Soundtrack to Platoon
Prince
Erasure
The RA would come by with a look on his face like, "Are you kidding me?"
"Respect." I'd put on

We started a fraternity
I had to recruit him though
He wasn't keen on the idea at first
We became brothers for a second time

There was this one time when this sorority was complaining about the tree in front of their house
So we
REDACTED

The Betas had this couch outside on a bulkhead above the sidewalk
They would insult people walking by
Flick bottle caps at people
Cat call girls
So one night we
REDACTED

He taught me how to play football
Aggressively
That's how you win
We won the Greek championship
With just a handful of guys

One time we got into a bar fight
when the guys from Chicago failed
to live up to their pool bet to shout "Scottie Pippen sucks..."
REDACTED

Another time he asked me to sing
"Danny Boy" at an Irish bar in Seattle when the singer vacated the stage
"Alright," I said
I got on stage
The mic was still hot
I started to sing
They cut off the mic
I kept singing cause I'm Greg Stone and I don't need a mic
The bouncer came over
I stopped
Thought about finishing
But are you going to fight over singing Danny Boy?
Nah

I went off to work on tour
for years
Moved to New York
for years
We'd see each other rarely
Us brothers
But it's always the same when we do
Every time
Just
With less Ninjas and REDACTED moments

EDGE OF A LEDGE

It was my first performance on tour with Les Miserables
I couldn't have been more thrilled
I signed in and got ready for the show
But
I didn't read the call sheet correctly
There was a 5 minute fight call
Before half hour
(in parenthesis)
I missed it
First day
I didn't know though
Got through the show
Excited 

I exited stage right
and was handed an envelope
"Thank you!" I said

The ASM laughed
I'd been written up
1st day!
I missed that fight call
Being written up is a big deal
A letter goes to Equity
A letter goes to your agent
It's not good
A couple weeks later
I got written up again
For being 30 seconds late
No joke
30 seconds
Late is late
This is truth
I learned this lesson
Learned to be early!
Not on time
EARLY
It's best anyway
Gives one time to chill

My Stage Manager is actually a nice guy
Hard ass but nice
Also really helpful teaching me Valjean
So when he invites me to visit
The Grand Canyon
with him and Kelly
I said, "Yes!"
Never been to the Grand Canyon

Kelly was ill and had to wear gloves
Which I didn't understand
He was allergic to sunlight?
Of course there were vampire jokes
He was kind
Gentle
Not a vampire
He was a sweet man
A friend

We got to the cabin after dark
It was deep in the park
You couldn't see much of anything but stars
We settle in and head into the black night
We sit on the edge of a ledge and pass a bottle of Maker's Mark around
The sage
The foliage
Smells so good
It's nice
We found a special place
"It's THE GRAND CANYON!!!!" I shout
Couldn't see anything
It's a fun night
Sharing stories

When I wake in the morning and stumble out to our spot
I SEE the grand canyon
It's
Indescribable!
My knees buckle
There is a 500 or 1000 foot drop from where we were sitting passing a bottle
in the dark
Sitting on the edge

By the way
I don't recommend taking a Cessna flying tour of The Grand Canyon the morning after drinking whisky

WALKOFF

"Hey let's go to a baseball game," said my buddy Enrique

"Okay," I say

"The Yankees are playing the Rangers. Can you root for the Rangers?"

"Against the Yankees? Yeah."

So we go

It's an ordeal

I take the bus to New York

Get on the train to the Bronx

It takes time

But you know after the travel I'm sitting with my friend

Watching baseball in Yankee Stadium

It's pretty cool even though I'm sort of rooting for the other team

The Texas Rangers jump out to a huge lead

It was 9-0 in the second inning

The game is taking a long time

Then The Bronx Bombers start coming back

Me?

I was getting tired

I knew I had like a 3 hour commute to get home

But you can't leave a game like this

Not till it's over

It's 13 to 12 in the bottom of the 9th

When Jorge Posada

Gets to bat with a runner on first

I turn to Ricky and say, "We gotta bolt when this game is over"

Catching those trains when the stadium is packed is not fun

When I heard the crack of the bat I grabbed Enrique by the collar

"It's over," I shouted

I can say

I have witnessed the greatest comeback in Yankee history

Wish I was a fan

NY TIMES

WHISTLE

6:05 PM
Rehearsal should be over
The cast was called at 10 AM
It's a strict start time
You can NOT be late
I learned this lesson the hard way years ago
Actor's Equity union has firm rules
At first as a young actor I balked at some of these
But over time I learned their importance
and found comfort in knowing exactly what the boundaries were
6 PM hit and rehearsal kept going
This is where stage management normally calls end of day and interrupts the director
The problem was
The director was also the producer and a very wealthy and powerful man
He had a football (soccer) team
Everton
I liked him
For the most part he was congenial
I mean, he hired me
Paid me well
Not as well as his soccer team
But still, he cared about the show
He was an Englishman and might not have been aware of our rules
My blood sugar was low
I was hangry
A few of the lead performers were called at 9:30am
They were in overtime
Now sometimes a rehearsal runs over just a little bit
And some theaters don't mind if you are a few minutes late
But that's not how I was taught the business
If you were late by 30 seconds you're late
Period.
Conversely rehearsal ended at 6pm
These are hard and fast rules
Some muttering begins among stage management
But nothing is said
6:07
6:09
6:10
The muttering increases but no one has the nerve to speak up
Bill notices the commotion, throws up his arms and exclaims, "What's the problem here?"
And then I respond
It just comes out of me
"THE PROBLEM IS you have a 16 year old lead who should have been cut more than half an hour ago and the rest of us were called till 6!"
Silence
The air leaves the room
"We're marking the overtime everyone," says a stage manager
Mr. Kenwright pauses for a moment
Composes himself and says,
"Alright young lady you are released."
He gives a few brief notes to the cast
and then he says, "You are all released except for the Snake Preacher"
That's me
"We're going to work Wrestle With The Devil."
It's a brutal song
One of the hardest I've ever had to learn
At the end of the day to work on something so complicated
Well, it's diminished returns
But I walk over to the piano as the room empties
The pianist/music directors eyes are like saucers
As I approach he says, "Are you okay?"
"No," I say "this feels like retribution"
From over my shoulder in stern British accent I hear,
"NO it isn't and that's the second stupid thing you've said today!"
He was right behind me
Then he counts off the piano and I'm singing
I was sure I was going to get fired
But the next day
When I sheepishly walked into rehearsal
He gave me a smile and a big hug
I was shocked
He treated me with much respect after that
I think he appreciated someone standing up and giving him the truth
Plus he realized I actually saved him a butt load of money
The cast tried to make me Equity Deputy
I declined
"My work is done here," I said

ATLANTA

It's the day of my first performance in Miss Saigon
I've had about a week to learn Chris
I've great coaches and everything is on point
But, you know, I'm nervous
So, I decide to go to the YMCA
Work it out
There is a basketball game going on in the gym
It's a pick-up game
I've played pick-up for many years at many different locations
This is 5 on 5
Full court
That's a workout
Winning team stays on the court for the next game
Losing team is off the court and reassembled with the guys on the side waiting to play
I waited to play till it was my turn
The game is good
The guys are good
and it's helping me to release tension
I'm having fun playing ball with these men I don't know
Then I come down
from a rebound
and step on a foot
My ankle pops
It's bad
Someone runs over grabs my high tops and pulls the laces TIGHT
"You need to keep this elevated and on ice right away."
These men I didn't know were helpful and kind
Let's remember
This is opening night for me in Miss Saigon
The producer who hired me had flown to Atlanta
My ankle was swollen and really messed up
"You can't not do the show," someone said at the theater
Luckily, Chris wears big tall Marine boots
I laced them tight
Did the show
I'm no Marine
Not even close
But that day I played one on stage