Dan: Act One

When he was an adolescent, he was incredibly reckless. He treated each day like it were no more than kicked up dust on the toes of his shoes. And he didn't feel any compulsion to give them a rough tap to dislodge the dust. It simply wasn't worth his time, and truth be told, it wasn't worth his effort either.

He had a strut to his walk. He had seen "Saturday Night Fever," and he liked how John Travolta commanded the scene any time he entered. Whether it was a sidewalk or a dance floor, every eye looked his way. On the cusp of being a high school freshman, Dan wanted the same attention, and his strut was his signature. He knew he was cool enough to pull it off every day when he looked in the mirror. If he were any less good looking, the strut would be ridiculous. But Dan was who he was.

Dan didn't play baseball, football, or basketball in high school. After junior high wrapped up, he put sports away and focused on what lay ahead for him, and it wasn't sports. He wanted to be an actor. He watched his favorite actors, carefully studying their movements across the stage or screen, how they delivered their lines, how they moved their arms and hands. Especially the arms and hands because they could be darn awkward, flopping here and there, potentially taking away from the scene.

He studied diction, accents, hair, makeup. If he were to audition for the part of a 40-year old man, he wanted to know how to look like a 40-year old man, embodying everything the character required. He couldn't read for a part as a heartthrob-worthy teenaged boy because it wasn't what the role called for. When he showed up for an audition, he became the character, dressed as the character, adopted the character's stride, pitch of his voice, cadence of his speech. He enthralled, enchanted, mesmerized.

He auditioned for the role of Willy Loman when the drama department presented "Death of a Salesman." He was Willy Loman every day he showed up for rehearsal. He didn't get up to high jinks backstage with the rest of the cast and crew because he felt he needed to be as mature as possible to occupy the space that Willy Loman would need to inhabit for the duration of the production.

After opening night, the mother of one of the cast called her sister, an agent in Los Angeles, to see the show.

"There's a kid, a freshman, if you can believe it," the mother explained, "who, well, he just is Willy Loman. Charlotte is a senior, and I've been to every drama production since she was a freshman herself, and this kid, Dan Wright, has that 'wow' factor."

"Really," the sister, Lillian, said. She was working out the timing for flying out to see her sister for the weekend and seeing this kid in "Death of a Salesman."

"Lil, I wouldn't be calling you if I didn't think this kid had talent."

"I'll get a flight," she said.

Lillian arranged to see the show the following weekend, on the last night of its run. She thought Dan Wright might be tired of wearing the character of Willy Loman, but she was wrong, so very wrong. She didn't feel like she was watching a play. She felt like she was a voyeur into Willy Loman's miserable life. She met Dan's parents after the show.

"I'm Lillian Strong. My niece is also in the show," Lillian said, offering her hand to each of Dan's parents in turn. "My sister called me to tell me about your son. I'm an agent, and my sister was right. Your son is something special. I'd like to meet him."

Dan's mother said, "He is very talented. He's very devoted to becoming an actor."

Dan's father chimed in, "He has a plan, Lillian. You should meet him and let him tell you about his plan. I don't know that you'll be able to convince him to deviate from it because he feels he needs more preparation and training before he's ready."

"Thank you both for the forewarning. I do want to meet him, though, and get on his radar for when he does think he's ready. Can I give you one of my cards?" Lillian dug in her purse to find several other people's cards: the HVAC people, her hair stylist, the pest control people. "Ah, they are," she said, pressing a card into the palm of each of Dan's parents.

After the kids had changed clothes and removed makeup, they made their way into the auditorium's lobby to greet friends and parents. Every eye turned to Dan as he strutted into the room, and not a soul thought he was being ironic with his strut. He captured every woman's heart and every man's admiration because Dan was the man.

Lillian hung back just a bit from Dan's parents, thinking they'd be the first people he'd want to see after the show. She was right. Stephanie, Lillian's niece, zeroed in on Lillian, like a heat-seeking missile. She rushed to her aunt, and the two squeezed each other tightly. Stephanie's squeals of delight drew Dan's attention away from his parents.

Dan's mom said, "Oh, honey, this is Stephanie's Aunt Lillian. She flew out from Los Angeles to see the play."

"Wow," Dan said. "Steph said you were coming to see the show. That's a long trip to see a bunch of high schoolers pretending to be grownups."

Lillian said, "I like to support my niece. My sister, however, told me that this was a show not to be missed, and I felt like I needed to see this show. Steph's mom told me I needed to see you." Lillian gave Dan a business card, and he perused it briefly, his eyes widening in surprise.

"You're an agent?" Dan asked.

"I am," Lillian said. "I know about some scripts that are in development, and casting hasn't been completed yet. I'd like you to consider coming to LA during your fall break or during a weekend that you're free. I can make all the arrangements—if that's something you'd want to do."

"I'd really like to go on auditions, but I'm not ready yet. I need more acting experience to be taken seriously. I have a plan. I'm a 14-year old freshman. My plan is to take as many roles as I can in school and community and regional theater to learn and develop my acting. I think, if you're still interested in two years, then I'll be ready to go on auditions," Dan said.

His dad gave Lillian a look. "Please keep my card," she said. "I'll be keeping tabs on you. I think there are some big things out there for you."

It turned out Dan's skillset went beyond acting. He sang and danced. And his singing and dancing were actually good. His parents were surprised by his singing because it had never been something he'd nurtured in his younger years, and his voice was like velvet, pure, deep, and smooth. He appeared in all of the school musicals, and he stayed true to his self-prescribed plan. Lillian didn't contact Dan during the intervening two years.

Lillian and her sister were having a phone call to catch up, each pouring a glass of wine, kicking back to watch the same episode of a sitcom that wasn't very good, but, they weren't paying attention anyway.

Lillian's sister said, "Ooh. I almost forgot to tell you what the drama department production is going to be and the dates. I don't think you're going to want to miss this one."

"Do tell," Lillian said lightly.

"It's heavy. I was surprised, but they're doing "King Lear," and Dan Wright is Lear."

"No way," Lillian said, truly astonished. "Give me details. I'll be there."

Just like two years before, Lillian hung back, just a little bit behind Dan's parents. They recognized each other and were superficially going through the motions of the courtesy exercised between near strangers. Dan had been magnificent as Lear. He seemed to sink inside himself in his despair, and there was a very touching chemistry between Lear and Cordelia.

When Dan strode into the lobby (he had dialed down the strut in the past two years), he held a girl's hand. Her beauty stunned Lillian momentarily. Of course, this young woman would be with Dan. He had grown several inches in the previous two years, and she was surprised by this because of how withered he had looked onstage while being led by Cordelia.

Lillian observed Dan and the girl while they greeted his parents, and she knew why the chemistry between Lear and Cordelia had been electric. Dan's girlfriend had played Cordelia, and she had been superb in rising to the challenge and meeting Dan's talent where it was. The two of them together were something beyond what she had expected in any high school production, but Dan had been perfect, and he had done a very, very good English accent.

Dan's parents turned to Lillian, and Dan had a look curious look on his face. Lillian said, "Don't you remember me?" She proffered a hand to Dan, who nodded in the affirmative.

Lillian tried not to gush. "You were wonderful." She paused. "You both were. You should be so proud."

Dan continued to stare at Lillian. "Are you still an agent, and you came all this way to see a high school production of "King Lear?""

"I did," Lillian answered. "I wanted to see how your plan was coming along, to see your acting, and if you were anywhere near as good as you were in "Death of a Salesman." I wanted to see if you were ready to go on some auditions if you had the chops."

They smiled at one another. "This is Jane," Dan said, breaking the weird smiling and silence. "She played Cordelia."

Lillian said, "You were very wonderful, Jane. It had to be a challenge, a rewarding challenge acting with Dan."

"Oh, I'm not really an actor, but I thought if I could get in the play somehow, I could get to know Dan, and maybe he'd want to date me. I thought I'd won the lottery when they cast me as Cordelia," Jane gushed.

"Well, you could have fooled me," Lillian said. "You were extremely convincing and lovely as Cordelia. I was drawn to you both when you had to lead your mad father, after all you suffered because of your sisters and your father's disdain and disinheritance. Your love for your father remained true. It was beautiful."

Jane blushed. "Thank you. That's so kind of you to say."

Lillian turned back to Dan, asking him again. "What do you think? Ready to go on some auditions?" She paused. "When you have breaks from school. We don't want to mess with your education. But do you think you're ready to take the plunge?"

Dan looked to both of his parents, both grinning widely, nodding, giving their approval.

"Okay. Let's do this."