It was the night before Valentine’s Day. Frankie, a young attractive writer working as a cashier at a mid-town cafeteria, was in a conversation with Velma, a troubled self-conscious girl who waited tables there. She was nervous as she talked to Frankie telling him about her mother and the fights they had. She was lost in agony as she finished her last thought, “My head is not a hammer, my head is not a hammer!” Her mouth was trembling, as she looked away. The Fray’s “How To Save A Life” began to play as the lights faded.
“Between the lines of fear and blame
And you begin to wonder why you came
Where did I go wrong…”
When the lights were back up, Hannah, a lovely young actress from East Grinstead, England along with Noah, a brooding young actor from Philadelphia, were seated on the edge of the stage. Mr. B sat looking at them and when he finally spoke he asked Hannah what she’d had for breakfast. “Nothing,” was her answer. And what about lunch? “Nothing,” again was her answer. “I’m just so busy rehearsing and taking classes I forget to eat.” And when he asked what she had for dinner, she replied she’d had a baked potato.
Hannah had moved to Los Angeles a few months ago before starting acting class in Mr. B’s acting school. She’d met an actor in London who had invited her to stay at his mother’s house in Brentwood if she wanted to move to California and pursue her dream of acting. She’d taken him up on his offer and was sleeping on his mother’s sofa in the living room. She had no money but baked potatoes were in the budget so she’d survive on that. The $1000 she’d arrived with was almost gone, but acting was what she’d wanted to do since she was 4 years old and she couldn’t let the dream die. There was nothing else she wanted to do, she had to keep pushing forward.
Today, however, everything that could go wrong did. Her hours at work had been cut in half, her mother said they felt it was time for her to move back home and get going with a new career, perhaps as a nanny. And the casting director she was to audition for announced when Hannah walked in the room that she was completely wrong for the part and she should go home. To top it off, the scene hadn’t gone well and Mr. B was grilling her now about her diet.
“Ah, yes, the famous baked potato diet! High in protein and full of brain octane. One of my favorites!” Mr. B said as Hannah turned bright red. “What’s up with that? How do you work, rehearse, take class, and audition day in and day out on a baked potato diet? Do you think it doesn’t show in your scenes? Your energy, focus, heart, connection, and emotions aren’t available because there’s nothing to sustain them.” He was being tough and he meant to be.
Hannah felt a lump in her throat, but fought back. “Oh, you know, Mr. B, just suffering a bit for my art,” she said trying to reduce the seriousness she saw in his eyes as he looked straight through her.
“And what do you do if you end up in the hospital from malnutrition? What happens to your art then?”
He wasn’t letting up. Why was he doing this? Did he want to humiliate her in front of everyone? Did he know how hard she worked to prevent people from knowing she had no money? She didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for her. She didn’t want to embarrass her family. She was scared and she was living on best fumes, not knowing how much longer she could do this.
“I’m sorry that my scene didn’t go well tonight.” Her head was about to explode. “I’ll work harder, I can do better.” And then it happened. She couldn’t hold back the tears any longer and she began to sob. “Please don’t give up on me. Please don’t make me leave class. I couldn’t live without class. Please don’t make me leave.”
It was a heartbreaking moment, and the class was frozen in silence.
Mr. B spoke very quietly now. “You’re not going to leave class, so put that out of your mind. Hannah, you have an artist’s soul, if ever I saw one. I know how committed you are and how hard you work to bring everything you have to your scenes. But, there’s this thing called a body that we have to cart around and it takes a little looking after. If you don’t eat well and get enough sleep, it will catch up with you and emotionally you’ll start to fall apart.”
“I’d like for you to call the office in the morning. We need to hire someone to work part-time so you’ll still be able to go on auditions. I want you to check in with me everyday. I want to see your face. I want to know how you’re doing and what you’re eating!”
Everyone laughed and Hannah looked relieved. She didn’t have to leave, she could stay. She could feel another wave of emotion coming up, but she held onto to it.
Mr. B continued, “We’re in this world to help each other I believe, and it’s okay to ask for help when you need it. A person is as well off as he can help others and can also ask for help.”
And with that last thought, class was over. The Fray began to play over the sound system as people started gathering their things and leaving the theater.
“Where did I go wrong, I lost a friend
Somewhere along in the bitterness
And I would have stayed up with you all night
Had I known how to save a life…”
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