missed connections

The first missed connection was between the seamstress and the fabric merchant.
She came to his shop regularly, to purchase the silks and satins for the boudoir garments of her clientele...
and he always had a special material set aside for her, and was always giving her a big discount.
In each scene, they clearly cared greatly for each other...
but neither went that extra step.

The second missed connection was between the seamstress and the Panama Canal worker.
He had started a letter campaign with her and she had responded to his missives.
They both fell in love, sight unseen, with the warm and inviting words through the post, words penned by others as these two were illiterate.
Thus, she accepted his proposal through the mail and he followed through, even though she was too plain for his liking.

And so, the kind Jewish salesman lost out, as he waited in vain for the arrival of his Romanian mail-order bride.
The rich client with the absentee husband lost out, as she thought the seamstress would become a stand-in for her affections.
The singing prostitute, another client, lost out after making a play for the seamstress' gallivanting husband.
The handsome husband lost out, as he literally gambled away both his talented new wife and her lifetime savings.
The mid-30's seamstress lost out, as not only her new man and her money left her, but she also lost two steady customers.
The only one who really did well was the landlady.
The seamstress had been her favorite boarder... and, at the end, she had her back again.

Missed connections.
As J. Geils would say, "Love stinks, yeah, yeah."
"You love her
But she loves him
And he loves somebody else
You just can't win."
These characters certainly could not win.

I certainly did win, though!
This was Collective Face Ensemble's opening night for this third play of their season.
That meant plenty of unexpected goodies at the reception!
Goodies like this cherry-studded delight, christened "Mr. Marks' Romanian Bread Pudding" -
totally delicious!
I bet I ate a third of this dish!
I liked the "Panama George Lime Rickey", too!

I enjoyed the artwork as well.
These receptions are held in the gallery of the Kennedy Building, where the art provides a different backdrop, which sometimes fits nicely with the play.
This was such a display, with works ranging from ceramic vases to wall prints.
The title, appropriately, was "Touched", by artist Joanna Angell.
Quite a nice word: touched.

Quite a lovely play about a seamstress hoping for love.
I can so relate.
It was set in 1905, but it could
just as easily be today.