Steve Peebles - Role of a Lifetime

 

So, I'm playing Templeton, the rat, in a production of Charlotte's Web. [audience laughter] It runs two shows a week for $30 a show. But it's not really the way that I thought my career was going to go. In two years out of college, I was a serious actor. Here I am. I get a call from my buddy, Jonathan. He says, “Hey, man, are you doing a show right now.” I'm wearing the rat costume and I'm like, “Not really. What's up?” [audience laughter] He says, “Maine South is looking for an immediate replacement for My favorite Year. You rehearse three days next week, you go on Friday, Saturday.” 

 

If you don't know, My favorite Year is a musical about a TV variety show. And Maine South is a high school. [audience laughter] I focus on that detail. I said, “Maine South is a high school.” And he's like, “Yes, the kid playing Alan Swann got caught drinking at a party. [audience laughter] But they open tonight, so he's on this weekend, and then you're on next weekend.” And like, I’m a full adult, [audience laughter] I'm not trying to do high school musical, let alone an actual musical at an actual high school. [audience laughter] And I'm like, “Okay. So, what does this high school want to pay me to learn a show in a week?” And he was like, “$2,000.” And I got in my car and I got a copy of the script and I went to the show that night. [audience laughter] 

 

And guys, it's a great show. Okay, so, Alan Swann is this old Hollywood icon who gets called in last minute as an emergency replacement as a guest host on this variety show. When he shows up, he's an alcoholic mess, which, like, “Ouch but I’m okay, that's in my wheelhouse.” [audience laughter] He's ruined his career, he's ruined his life, he's estranged from his daughter, and all he's got to do is pull it together in this week to do this show and he does this musketeer sketch where he sings and he fights with a sword and he wins his daughter back. I'm excited. [audience laughter] 

 

I go to meet the music director who was my contact and said, “Hey, I'm Steve. We talked on the phone.” She said, “Hey, you're saving my life. When was the last time you played this role?” I said, “No, I just got the script this afternoon.” She leans in, she narrows her eyes, she says, “The only reason I got the board to agree to let me hire an actor is I said I would get somebody who had played the part before. So, when was the last time you played this part?” And I was like, “Last summer at my college.” [audience laughter] She was like, “Good answer. Let's go meet the director.” [audience laughter] 

 

So, Alan Swann on the back burner, I've got two hallways to figure out how to play Steve Peebles, who has totally played Alan Swann before, [audience laughter] but can't do any of the things associated with having played that part. So, I meet the director, we go over some scheduling, he's like, “Is there anything you want to change from the way that you did it in your last production?” And I was like, “No, this guy's good. I want to respect his choices.” [audience laughter] 

 

And the fight choreographer is like, “How are you with a sword?” And I was like, “In my production, we did it with daggers, which is not a good lie for a musketeer fighting play.” And then, we go into another room and we meet the cast and crew who have all been assembled. And the director says, “Hey, guys, this is Steve. He's going to be taking over as Alan.” And that's the sound you hear. [audience laughter] And I said, “Hey, guys, I saw your show tonight. I'm really excited to jump into this with you.” And that is the exact response that I get, [audience laughter] because I'm not the understudy in this situation. I'm the outsider who's shouldering out their friend. I was prepared to do a show at a high school. I was not prepared to be in high school again. So, I go home and I slam a script through my ear. Because if I don't show up, memorized, ready to go, these kids are never going to give me an inch. 

 

And I do it. I show up on Monday and I'm playing and I'm singing songs about losing my daughter and destroying my life, and they're playing with me. And then, it's Friday. And if you've never gone on as an understudy, it feels a lot like this. You don't really know what's going to happen next, no matter how much you've rehearsed, it's blind adrenaline. It's like Catch Me if You Can. It's just two hours of me being like, “Do you concur? Do you concur? Do you concur?” [audience laughter] And thank God, they keep concurring. [audience laughter] 

 

We take our bow and the audience really erupts, because they're so glad their kids got to do their show again and they're so glad that I'm not a disaster. It really feels like I gave a thousand-dollar performance and I have to do it again the next day. I'm a little more loose and I'm having a lot of fun, and I'm climbing the 15-foot ladder to go swinging on this rope at the end of the show. I'm up there for a while, so I got time to reflect. And I think, man, this stupid gig wound up being a lot of fun. While I'm reflecting, I think that this stupid gig actually taught me everything that I was supposed to know about being a professional.