Tuesday, September 27, 2011

I Could Die Happy #4

I could die happy after...


Meeting Faye Dunaway

It was the 1996-1997 theatre season that I met the infamous Faye Dunaway.  It was my second season working at the theatre and I was thrilled when her two week tour of Master Class came to town.  Wow!  What an experience.  What an actress!  What a bitch!  The antics began as she was thrown out of one local hotel and almost thrown out of another because of her demands and the way she treated people.  I personally got the wrath of Faye one night after a performance.  

I left the theatre and headed towards the parking lot to get my car when I noticed she was sitting behind the wheel of her Lincoln Town Car (she had already fired her driver). The car alarm was going off.  She got out of the car and noticed me.

"You there," she bellowed.  "You work here don't you?"

I nodded, fearful of looking her in the eyes. 

"Do you know how to turn off this damned alarm?"

I told her I didn't.

"Well then, what good are you?" she said as she spun on her heels and flew back in through the stage door.

A few minutes later I was joined on the sidewalk by a co-worker.  The car alarm had stopped and Ms. Dunaway came back out.  As soon as she opened the door, the alarm went off again.  At this point she was furious.  And I mean, "Christina, bring me the axe" kinda furious.  My co-worker suggested that we take her back to the hotel in her car.   After a brief conversation, the three of us got into the car.  I sat in the back and caught Ms. Dunaway's bag as she threw it at me.  After a few minutes, Faye became almost pleasant.  When we got to the hotel, I stepped out of the car and opened her door, like a gentleman.

"Oh, I forgot you were here," she said as I handed her the bag.  

The next night I sat in the house to watch the show.  I was so mesmerized by her performance I forgave her "diva" antics.  What an actress!   

After a hellish two week run (of which she only actually went on six or seven times) the theatre had t-shirts made for everyone on staff.  On the front, it said Master Class.  On the back, We've Dunaway with Faye.



1 comment:

  1. I've really enjoyed the 'die happy' series. There are many things we can look back on that we've done/seen/touched and say "oh yea...I DID do that!" Thanks for sharing these.

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