Time Steps by Donna McKechnie & Greg Lawrence

Author:Donna McKechnie & Greg Lawrence
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Published: 2006-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

The atmosphere in London was already extremely hostile when I arrived, and I was hardly prepared for what I was walking into. I found Michael and Bob Avian under siege, holed up in a hotel. It was like walking into a scary movie, with the two of them looking under the door at shadows when anyone passed in the hallway. When Michael fired Elizabeth, who was much loved by the theater community, there was an uproar in the press. It was illegal to fire anyone in this social democracy, so a settlement was reached. Michael could be paranoid at times, but in this case his fears seemed to be well founded. There had been death threats, after which he and Bob had hired a chauffeur who served as a bodyguard. We were like prisoners in the hotel and rarely went out anywhere except to the theater.

One night after rehearsing, Michael insisted that I go out with him and Bob to attend a dinner with London producer Michael White. I was exhausted and told Michael, “I can’t. I just can’t.” But I knew that I had to, so I tried to rally myself for them. When the three of us came out of the theater, we were met by a couple dozen British paparazzi. I was accustomed by now to being photographed, but not by photographers who rushed at you, pushing and shoving. A melee ensued, and I found myself separated from Michael and Bob. I was alone and in total panic. By the time the two of them came back and led me away, I was in tears, practically breaking down. At that point, Michael became enraged at me, furious that I had lost my composure. In his mind, my loss of control somehow meant that I was giving up rather than fighting back. I was supposed to be there for him, and I let him down.

Michael was in a career crisis and stretched to the limit. I could tell that he was concerned for me after that incident, but he couldn’t deal with me directly, and I really needed that support from him. I was feeling the head-on collision of my personal and professional lives. Elaine Stritch happened to be in London, and while Michael was at the theater, he asked her to go to the hotel “to cheer me up.” Elaine was a dear and tried to help, but even she couldn’t remedy the dread I was feeling. I carried on with the work, sneaking into the basement of the theater to coach Petra, and when my job was done, I was promptly sent home to New York to go back in the show.

That was the beginning of the end, and it was devastating for both of us. During a performance on February 4, 1977, I sustained a back injury, and after the show, Donald Pippin had to carry me out of the theater. My injury was serious enough to prevent me from returning to the show, and I thought that was such a sad way for my Chorus Line experience to end.

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