OF ANIMATORS AND HORSES

If you have ever had the joy of watching a performance at AMT Theater then you will have met Jack Feldstein, our Box Office person. He is a gem and no doubt will have made you feel welcome with his smiling face and ability to stay unruffled in most situations - and box office stuff can be stressful people, some audience members can be quite a handful at times - Jack has none of it, but in a 'no worries mate' charming Australian way. Jack is a man of many talents (not just crowd control), he is a writer, film maker and animator. His latest animation is all about Broadway and the people who actually hold all the power, I won't give it away, watch to find out!

Jack always arrives with a smile and is so fun to chat with, I am guilty of distracting him from his box office duties by asking for travel advice for my upcomnig trip down under (he has an excellent tip to do the Bondi beach cliff walk to Tamarama Beach - if anyone else has tips for 2 days in Sydney let me know in the comments). On Tuesday, while we were checking people in for the fabulous Baggage at the Door, we were also having a good chat when I heard a strange sound and said to Jack "Was that a horse?" to which he responded: "Of course not." Well, I couldn't let it go so I went to check and to my absolute joy I saw a giant palamino horse standing outside the theater!

Tony the police horse posing for photographs with a happy child and his police officer

This is Tony the police horse on his well deserved break from crowd control in Times Square. I must admit I was so enthralled with Tony that I didn't get the name of the police officer with him, but she was lovely and talked to all the MANY people who wanted to take pictures with him and stroke him and generally bask in his horse glory. I can attest to his soft snout as he let me give him a face rub, the highlight of my week by far. It is also lovely that his name is Tony as you will all know that the Artistic Director of AMT Theater is the fantastic Tony Sportiello. It felt fitting that Tony the police horse was visiting us. New York City Police Department Mounted Unit does a much needed service in Manhattan by helping to keep the Times Sqaure and Broadway show areas safer and more controlled. They are gentle giants walking around protecting us and it makes me especially happy that their stables are in Hell's Kitchen right down the road from us.

The gentle Tony about to depart from his AMT Theater break

My goodness but it is chilly at the moment! Joan Pelzer, our marketing director and executive producer, invited me to the BNI Chapter 24 meeting on Wednesday morning at 6:45am! I was hestitant at first because I knew it would be tough for me to form sentences at dawn and before coffee, but I accepted because it is a fantastic way to meet people outside of your work or social sphere and to talk to them about all things AMT Theater and what we need. Miraculously I woke up and was ready to go by 6:15, I even think I managed to smile and string full sentences together (anything not to make AMT look bad :). It was well worth watching the sunrise and braving the cold as I met some good people and made excellent contacts. Thank you for being so welcoming BNI, Manhattan 24 - The Grand Central Chapter.

All this cold weather makes me want to curl up on the couch with hot chocolate and a good book, with all the money I am saving by staying indoors I am planning on donating to the AMT Theater Giving Tuesday New Work Development Campaign. AMT Theater is aiming to raise $20 000 to subsidize our free New Work Development Program - this is a project we started in 2022 to give writers and playwrights a chance to have a reading of their new plays - something that is crucial to the development of new works. We can’t have theater without new works, how boring would that be? We are all about not boring here at AMT Theater.

So, in conclusion, have a lovely weekend, stay warm, save money and then give it to AMT Theater Giving Tuesday New Work Development Campaign ;) Seriously though, have a restful Saturday and Sunday and don't forget to book your tickets for Baggage at the Door because there are only 4 performances left! There is a song with tap dancing and cheese - you really don't want to miss that.