How do I handle disappointment about an understudy without taking it out on the performance?
EntertainmentThe cast-change slip was on top of my programme. The actor I'd been excited to see wasn't performing. I said, 'Well, that was a wasted trip,' before we'd even taken our seats.
My partner had booked the outing after I talked about that actor for months. We'd travelled ninety minutes and arranged dinner nearby. He said I was dismissing the person covering the role without hearing a line.
He was right about that. I didn't know anything about the understudy. But I also didn't want to pretend the specific reason I'd wanted this date hadn't disappeared. During the interval, he kept pointing out how good the replacement was, and I felt obliged to agree before I'd worked out my own reaction.
The performance deserved a fair chance, and I regret the remark. How do I acknowledge both the good work onstage and the disappointment about the evening I thought we'd booked?
