At A Crossroads (Writer's Island)

This week's topic at Writer's Island: “Fork in the Road." You could also interpret the prompt as a “Crossroad”. It carries a like meaning, and provides essentially the same inspiration. A simple decision made at a ‘fork in the road’, or a ‘crossroad’, can lead you to a significantly different destination.

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Gloria had been considered a very talented actress back home. Long-legged, good-looking, witty, charming, and vivacious. Here in New York, she just blended in.

But now, she was so excited to be a part of the production of "Seussical" at the Richard Rogers Theater on West 46th Street in New York. Lisa, a girlfriend she had met in the building where her tiny flat was located, had to quit the show after its run had already started, and the producers and stage manager had told Lisa she would be let out of her contract only if she found a replacement of equal talent.

Gloria thought it would be her big break! Divine Luck! Right Place at the Right Time! Her acting, singing, and dancing talent would finally be showcased. She was bound to be offered more parts as a result of this hit musical. As it turned out, she was a bit player in the last two months of the run. Apparently, she was a replacement for an extra who the other cast members had disliked, and that dislike trickled down to her simply by association. The director and stage manager never even learned her name, nor did many of her castmates. Her last performance was May 20, 2001.

She auditioned for another play opening July 11. It was a comedy called “A Thousand Clowns” playing at the Longacre Theater. The casting director had told her [rather sarcastically] that comedy was NOT her forte.

She tried out for “If You Ever Leave Me, I’m Going with You” at the Cort Theater. It would start July 17th. This casting director said she didn’t have the “look” for live theater.

There were countless other auditions, all with the same dreadful, disappointing results – “Major Barbara,” “Mama Mia,” and even one called “Urinetown!” Dreamgirls was opening September 24th. Oh, she had dreamed about that one! She just couldn’t stand any more rejection. She would have to go home to Minnetonka, Minnesota and work at the Ridgedale Mall selling shoes, handbags, or worse, burgers at the food court. She could work for Cargill, Inc. Her uncle had always said he’d create a job for her, but she was too proud for that.

Her family had given her six months of financial and emotional support to make a go of it in New York, and she’d already been here since January. Now it was September. Too many pretty faces, too many gorgeous actresses with high hopes, too much competition, too much negativity, and too many actresses willing to get their parts based on the couch call. And the rejection stung. It bit into her self-worth and wouldn’t let go.

Her lease was ending, and with no job in site, she was at a crossroads. Should she bite the bullet, ignore her family’s requests to come home, and get a waitressing job while continuing to look for the elusive part of her dreams, the one she’d actually be considered for? She knew it could take years! Or should she tuck her tail and go home?

On September 10, 2001 she boarded a Northwest Airlines nonstop flight from New York to Minneapolis, heading home. She has never regretted that decision.

(Author's note added 1/22: If you were not living in the US on 9/11/01, the ending of this story may not bear any significance.)

For more on the topics "Fork in the Road" or "Crossroads," visit Writer's Island.

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