Last Saturday, my friend and I attended a NYC showing of the touching "Judy and Me". The play is a fictionalized depiction of our own Peter Mac's troubled adolescent life as a closeted gay teen (named "Anthony" in the play) and his ultimate liberation with the support of friends, family and, most especially, guardian angel-like encouragement and inspiration from the iconic Judy Garland. Peter's play is at times very funny, but always poignant and thought provoking. The small cast was spot-on terrific and, with the telling of the story, pulled many in the audience out of themselves and sent them back to their own teen years where they could strongly identify with Anthony and his "Over-the-Rainbow" coping mechanisms. (My friend, who is about 12 years older than Peter, told me he grew up in a very similar situation and that Judy Garland and "The Wizard of Oz" were a strong inspiration for him in his formative years.) For me, the play was especially moving because I knew Peter when he was going through this part of his life but never realized how difficult a time he was having. Part of the play's message, I think, is for friends to always be attuned to each other and to be willing to share their feelings without the fear of indifference or rejection. After all, so many of us, gay and straight, have a great love for the timeless film "The Wizard of Oz". Dorothy's deep and unquestioning friendship with such diverse characters as a lion, a tin man, and a scarecrow is never affected by the extreme differences between them.
If you enjoy a good story or if you love the music of Judy Garland, I urge you to take a trip to New York and see this show, as soon as you can! It's showing at the St. Luke's Theater on W. 46th Street. For info go to
www.JudyandMe.comSDP
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