In this post last week I blogged about the Cohort Club – Geva Theatre’s brilliant experiment to envelop 20 Rochestarians in the artistic process at the theatre through our production of The Book Club Play – and unveiled my own plans to join a book club.
Yup, I did it. It happened. Proof:
(Lest you think there was one lone dude at this gathering, there were, in fact, three guys in attendance. Gentlemen take note: Book club is a great place to meet smart and witty ladies!)
Last Thursday night my roommate Cristina and I hurriedly packed up a bottle of sweet red from Casa Larga (one of my favorite NY Finger Lakes vineyards), a dish of toastlets topped with homemade guacamole, diced tomatoes, olive oil, and sea salt (to accompany the book’s Mexican roots), and the book selection Into the Beautiful North by Luis Alberto Urrea on our iPads, and made our way to Writers & Books to join The Book Thieves Young Professionals Book Club for the first time. I had met several of the members already through my volunteer involvement with the Rochester Fringe Festival in the fall and through my friend Kristen, who works at Writers & Books. The group described themselves as “a small group of 20-40 something year-olds interested in reading good books and eating good food. We are about as relaxed a YP group as they come!” Perfect. One of the leaders, Chris, had assured me over email that even if we weren’t able to read the first half of the book in its entirety by the time the meeting rolled around, that we should still stop by and check it out. So despite being only 50 pages into the 150 page halfway mark, in we went.
And as soon as I stepped foot into the room, what to my wondering eyes should appear but the cast and director of Geva’s The Book Club Play. Of course!
In retrospect, I should have seen it coming. I mean, I actually knew that they would be checking out local book clubs for research and character development purposes…and maybe to stir up a little mutual interest in the production among Rochester’s book club community. Why wouldn’t they be here, at this very book club? The cast of a play’s YP book club examining a real YP book club in its natural habitat? Duh. It only makes perfect sense. After the initial shock of two of my worlds colliding wore off (though it was indeed a pleasant collision – there’s nothing more beautiful than when community and art come together, right?), I was glad to have some familiar, friendly faces in the room. Friendly faces I had seen only hours prior…at work. But hey, lovely people are lovely people and always a joy to see!
(Just look at this handsome group of actors and their noble director! The fun they have in rehearsals is totally enviable and is sure to translate to the stage! And lest you think there are no dudes in this book club play either, there are, in fact, three dudes as well. Eat your heart out.)
The book club made good on their promise of good books, good people, good conversation, and good food. Wine and Dos Equis were imbibed, guacamole and layered bean dip and salty tortilla chips and pizza were consumed, much analysis and discussion were had, and laughter and information imparted. They were indeed friendly, welcoming, smart, witty, and funny not-ancient people with a passion for good reads. I’ll definitely be back next month. As for the book itself, it’s interesting and entertaining, but still I’ve got more reading to do.
So, what about the book club and The Book Club Play? This book club was far more laid back than the book club of the play, fortunately. There was no overbearing leader, no sense that the book club belonged to any one person in particular, and no overt rules to contend with. And apparently no vetting process for induction into the book club either. But, sadly, no pundits (though the thought did cross my mind). All of the qualities which make it a fine comedic and dramatic piece for the stage. Let’s just mark that one as a win in my book, because I’m fairly certain arriving 20 minutes late to the pre-gramming social period and with only 1/3 of the book read (Am I the Jen of this book club!? Or the Rob?) would have qualified me for immediate dismissal in Ana’s book club. But since I’ve read the play a few times and have sat in on rehearsals, I did instinctively begin to notice which book club characters resembled, even ever so slightly, which members of the real book club. And that, in and of itself, was all kinds of fun.
Also, can I just say how gorgeous a space Writers & Books is? Seriously. What a place to cozy up with a good read!
The verdict: Get thee to a book club and definitely get thee to The Book Club Play!
P.S. This is your last day to vote for my ice wine cocktail and help me win tickets to this weekend’s NY State Ice Wine Festival! Please, please, please be awesome and click here (then click “Festival Details” then click “The Contest”) to vote for the Pear Weather Friend. It is painless, takes only 15 seconds of your time, and would make me super happy. You can vote once every 24 hrs, so even if you’ve already voted…please vote again! I am SO close guys! PLEASE help.
