Brief Early Performance History:
1978: Roman Soldier Jim
I nailed Jesus to the cross in our class production of
The Stations of the Cross. I really enjoyed that role!
After 8 years of Catholic school I was able to really
bring a lot to that part. "Take THAT, Jesus!"
1983: Big Bird
I didn't research this role enough. I was asked to
play Big Bird at a Book Store opening, but didn't
realize until I was in costume and in front of
children that I was suppose to talk like Big Bird.
I had no idea how to do that. The bewildered
children kept asking what was wrong with Big Bird?
"Why won't he talk to us?" I told my agent
afterwards I really needed to go back to doing
Roman Soldier Jim to regain my footing.
1983: Improv
I was playing keyboards in an oldies cover band
called The Jezarian Swings at the Evergreen Bar in
Somerdale, NJ. We had been playing there through
the summer that year doing Beatles, Stones, Elvis,
etc. As a change of pace, during one of our
intermissions, I asked a friend of mine, Marc Gallo,
to join me on stage for a little improv jam - just
keyboard and electric guitar. Not rock n' roll at all!
A spacey head jam. Very avant-garde, very
experimental, very esoteric, but very soft & lilting -
not harsh... I found out an old man's bar in New
Jersey at 11:00 is not a place to be experimental.
The Jezarian Swings never played there again - or
anywhere else, for that matter.
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