uhhhh I think its about time. Maybe I'll start in Philly and rewind...
I've been fortunate to have Lee Zarrett, 'the jew' be part of the Hair trifecta. Probably because of tours he's done in the past...so he just knows the good spots...that or the closeted journalism major in him. So we just end up at the good spots. The deli spots in particular. the kind of old school Jewish delis that carry the sliced fatty pastrami on rye bread with good old fashioned yellow mustard.
Before sound check the first day Lee escorted Julian & I up towards Rittenhouse Square to the Famous 4th Street Delicatessen. The good deli's that come to mind...I'm thinking Canters or Jerry's in LA or Katz's in New York. Katzs to me, has the best pastrami sandwich. Famous Fourth Street's pastrami however close, is not as good in taste but looks more appetizing. Fourth Street's specializes more in making eating time damn tasty but also making everything look massive and pretty. Its like a full plate of breakfast in the morning. It just appeals to us as eaters more than a small plate of food. Am I crazy or do we WANT our food in the morning to look a bit huge? If not actually huge, at least give the impression of something with substance. And the Matzo ball soup was special. The softball sized Matzoball in the light chicken broth (minus the chicken) was a stark reminder that i don't need to salt everything. Macrobiotically speaking at least, when you talk about the yin and yang of our taste buds, it fit the guidelines for being tasty and savory with very little seasoning. Its then I realized how much I crave salt:) And how much I didn't need it. Am I that hooked?
The 55 degree days here made for a good run along the Schuykill [pr: scoo-kl] river. With all the bread and pasta I've had the last few weeks, this was a good idea to stretch out my running legs. And Philly along with Boston is a big running town. so I put on my shoes, set my Roots playlist, and followed the flags on Ben Franklin parkway to the Art Museum and east up the Schuykill river. Even without the lights that normally light the boat houses, it's still a picturesque jog. I just wanted a quick pic from the steps of the art museum like a proper tourist. Thats another thing, I'm getting off the point but whats so special about the 'Love' sculpture? which looks a lot smaller in person. Just before I'd reached the infamous steps, I had to dodge my way around the camera friendly tourists taking turns getting there kids under the 'Love'. I guess its colorful and pretty but why not go see a Jeff Koons exhibit instead? at least then you'll get your large colorful display and maybe a little nudity kick out of it. anyway I was passing the steps and I see out of my right eye was Rocky Balboa...Seriously. with a kind of halo above him and his classic gray sweatshirt and fedora. Sly Stallone himself was sitting on the stoop just kickin it with his two friends, both black. Neither of them was Apollo. I told Rock I didn't have any money but that I'd love a quick pic. He clearly noticed the pathetic starstruck glint in my eye...the kind you get when you feel like you're immediately in a time and place (in this case Philly in the eighties) other than your current reality...
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| Sly & I |
Once I told him I didn't have money but that I'd love to take a photo with him he probably realized he didn't have any other options and I probably looked interesting enough so he obliged to entertain me and my Rocky obsession. He was one of those guys that rattles off his resume at 100 miles an hour because well... those are his business skills...especially once I told him I was an actor. 'yeah' he says in his spot on Balboa dialect "I work with Stallones ex-Manager now. I'm his number one impersonator' he claimed, very matter of fact. He extended his thick hand very much like Rocky would and I shook, still in disbelief . 'Mike Avello'...nice to meet you...Yeah at the end of the year I'll be pulling in $500,000 dollars...just doing this stuff alone. I told him I was doing Hair down the Academy of Music and all 3 of them lit up. One of his friends chimes in...'That the one down on Walnut?
'Broad Street and Locust' Its that pretty red opera house down from City Hall,' I say. And it is. This theatre, one of the oldest in the country (1856), from the inside especially, is one of the most beautiful houses we've played. from the stage you could easily picture some epic Mozart opera being performed.
'Oh thats the nice theatre,' Rocky agrees. He lit up. 'Hey can you get me a ticket? actually 2 would be great. I would love to take my fiancé, he asked trying to eek out the last drop of his business prowess. I should've asked if his fiancé looked like Adrian but I didn't. He emptied his wallet and wrote his number on his business card. I guess according to his card he also paves driveways. It was too last minute to try and get him a free ticket from our press girl which i had thought about doing. Mike suggested he would pose for any group pics if I could get the tix. After all, how cool would it be to see throwback Rocky and his mysterious woman (probably not Adrian) roll up to their seats? Keep an eye out for Mike Avello if you live around Philly. It was seriously one of those out of body (and era) experiences you don't get very often.
For lunch, after grabbing a few apple dumplings from the Amish at Reading Terminal (a Philly staple) we walked to Sabrina's cafe down freezing cold Callowhill Street, just past the Catholic school and hospital. Inside you could tell it used to be some late night 70's lounge or bingo hall, with its brown arabic tiles and arches. And it probably used to get pretty smokey. not that it actually smells like tobacco but you can sort of imagine it being a smokey furnace inside. Bolero prints and cool local artwork line the booths and there's a warm nostalgic feeling about the place that makes me hungry for brunch. In the same way that being in an airport makes me hungry.
It was too cold to really get in the shopping mood but we took a [brisk] stroll up the ninth Street Italian Market. It reminded me of that Bloomfield strip in Pittsburgh. All the butchers and sausage makers and sprinkling of Mexican markets. It was enough to say we did it but time to get warm. We found this Asian man burning cardboard produce boxes by the curb of an outdoor produce market, maybe his shop. Maybe the gas prices were too high so he was burning them to stay warm. The flame's got pretty large at one point. So the Colombian and I start snapping pictures. At least we got something out of this busted cold weather:) After we warmed up with an Americano with steamed milk from Elixir cafe. This is the best of a weak field of coffee in this town. La Colombe needs to step it up. Its one drip away from that burnt Starbucks taste.
On a sports note, I was sad to miss the outdoor Hockey game btwn the Flyers and Rangers the day we arrived in Philly. but happy however to see the Bronco's upset the Steelers today. Even though something about Tim Tebow just pisses me off, I'm still happy for them. The Bronco's were due for something positive.
Happy to see you updated your blog! :) but if that was me in Philly (it very well could have been), I am SO not anywhere near middle aged - ouch! Have a great rest of your tour!
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