.jpg)
The Fit Perception
The Fit Perception
I Am Tarzan
T is BAAAAAACCCKKKK!!! And this is the episode all about me jumping back into the world of musical theatre after a long hiatus. From my early days of community theater and a shocking accident during a dress rehearsal to my recent role in the musical Tarzan with Four Seasons Theatre in Logan, Utah, this episode is a heartfelt reflection on the power of following your dreams, no matter the obstacles.
Prepare to be moved as I share the transformative experience of embodying Tarzan. You'll hear about the intense preparation, including studying gorilla movements, and the deep emotional connections formed with the cast. I delve into the bittersweet moments of rekindling my passion for theater after moving to Texas, balancing my fitness career, and the support of my wife, Victoria, in making the seemingly impossible decision to return to the stage. This chapter of my life was filled with challenges and emotional highs, all culminating in an unforgettable opening night.
Finally, get a backstage pass to the emotional rollercoaster that was the final performances. From the unique pre-show rituals, the camaraderie among the cast, and the poignant final scenes, to my attempts at making my co-star break character, every moment is vividly recounted. Relive the heartfelt farewells, the special bonds formed, and the transformative power of theater that made this an experience of a lifetime. This episode is more than just a return to the stage; it's a celebration of perseverance, passion, and the magic that happens when you dare to chase your dreams.
https://www.instagram.com/fitperceptionspodcast/
https://www.instagram.com/thomas_belliston/
What is good friends? Oh, my goodness gracious, it's been a very long time. It's been a very, very, very long time. Welcome back to the Fit Perception podcast. I'm your boy T. We're back in the studio. It's been a hot second since February, since February 4th, I believe, was the last episode we dropped. Um, and that's just too long. That's just too long. But you know what? Your boy's been crazy busy. It's all good. He's been living his life. He's been living a dream. So, um, anyway, I am very excited to be back.
Speaker 1:I've been wanting for a real long time to do this and so, that being said, the reason I haven't been doing the show is because I was in a musical. I was in Tarzan in Utah. I believe I brought it up on the show previously. I don't remember it's been so long, but we're back and I'm very excited. Remember it's been so long, but we're back and I'm very excited. I've got lots of plans for this show to make it more fun, more interesting, more entertaining, more hopefully useful to you guys, but today is gonna be a little different than the previous episodes, so if this is your first time joining in, this is not how the show normally is going to go. Usually we do fitness stuff and world stuff and philosophy stuff and all that. But today I am just going to be talking about my experience in Tarzan. I hope it's entertaining. I hope you get some laughs out of it, some something out of it. And I hope it's entertaining, I hope you get some laughs out of it, something out of it, and I hope that I can do this without falling apart, without crying horrendously, I don't know.
Speaker 1:Seven, eight years old, I have been obsessed. Like my whole family is music based. Like everyone in my family either plays an instrument, sings, writes music, does something musical. So, like growing up, music was just a part, a huge part of my life. And, that being said, I was in my first musical when I was, I believe, eight. I was Winthrop Peru in the Music man and from then on it was crazy. I was like I was in musicals all of the time. I did the Music man three times. I was in. That was just like when I was a child. I was in. That was just like when I was a child.
Speaker 1:I was in operas, I was in musicals, I was in plays, just consistently. And it was kind of weird because it wasn't anything that was forced on me. It wasn't anything that was really pushed, it was just something that I just did. I did sports, I did theater, but I never really did it via school. I always did it via community. Community theater was big where I grew up in Utah. There's a lot of theater companies. There's a lot of really, really good theater companies. So it was just kind of like what I did growing up and I really really enjoyed it.
Speaker 1:Now let's fast forward to 2000. So, like I did it all through my childhood, I did it my senior year of high school. I did it. I did three or four shows. Immediately after high school, I did a show I helped.
Speaker 1:A helped a company was just starting up in where I grew up and it was during that show that I chopped off my fingers. If you didn't know that, I am missing my parts of two of my fingers on my left hand, my, uh, parts of two of my fingers on my left hand, um, and it was. It was during. It was the dress rehearsal week of this show, um, for this company that was just barely starting. I think they had done one, maybe two shows, um, and so brand new, figuring it out, starting this company. It was amazing and that is the same company. I bring that up because it's the same company in which I just did Tarzan, so I've been associated with this company. It's called Four Seasons Theater in Logan, utah. I've been associated with them for a very, very, very long time in Utah. I've been associated with them for a very, very, very long time. Now, let's fast forward all of that. So just a brief little background of I love theater. Guys, you have to understand that theater was and is a huge, huge, huge part of my life. I love theater. I love musicals, everything about them. I love the costumes. I love the choreography, I love the fact that it's live performance. I love singing. It's one of the passions of mine. So, that being said, let's fast forward to 2017.
Speaker 1:I had recently been married about a year and I knew that we were going to move. I was in my senior year at USU, as the mascot and on the cheer squad, and I knew that, following this, we were moving. I didn't know where, but me and Tori were going to peace out and get out of Logan and I didn't know if it was going to be like move just a couple hours away. We didn't know if it was going to be like move, just a couple hours away. We didn't know if it was going to be move international. We didn't know if it was going to be move states. So there was a lot of just like unknown Anyway. So this opportunity comes up and I it was. It was a interesting situation. So lots of unknown. I'm in my senior year it's crazy, you know, senior year is wild trying to make sure that you don't die during the semester. And I was already insanely busy with work and with school and doing Big Blue, the mascot and cheer. My schedule was insane.
Speaker 1:Now this opportunity comes up with Four Seasons to do Tarzan. I hadn't done a show with them in years. I hadn't done a show with them since I did West Side Story, where I chopped off my fingers. I did West Side Story, where I chopped off my fingers. I'd been to a lot of their shows, I'd watched them, but I hadn't auditioned.
Speaker 1:And this opportunity came up and I was like, oh, that would be so fun, that'd be so cool, wasn't serious about it, like at all, wasn't serious at all. Just because I knew like, oh, dude, your schedule's insane, dude, like there's no way that you can make this work. And then one of the brothers who started the company, danny, reached out and he was like hey, man, I think you should really audition, it would be really cool, are you going to? And I was like I don't know, man, it would be insane schedule. And he's like, well, I think you should just try to see what happens. I was like, okay, cool, yeah, no doubt Um wasn't treating it seriously. And then auditions were like the following week, like that's how unserious I was. I wasn't prepared at all. Um, and then so if you've listened to the show, I've talked about this multiple times, talked about this multiple times.
Speaker 1:When your boy locks in to do something that he wants, he goes full throttle and doesn't, doesn't, lose, right, okay, so that sounds super vain. It came out really vain. It wasn't supposed to come out that vain. Um I, I make sure that I do everything possible, every ounce of effort, every stone, like I do everything to make sure that I get what I want. So this opportunity comes up to audition and I, like legit, decided on what song I was singing the night before. Um, I was. That being said, I was debating between like two or three songs and I finally choose a song. I go to the auditions and when I walked through the door I was like, oh, I'm going to get this part, this is mine. And it wasn't. It wasn't anything that had to do with anyone. I didn't see anybody that like was like oh yeah, competition. No, this was like oh, this is mine, I'm going to do this song from Aladdin, proud of your boy.
Speaker 1:I did the um, the monologue from the show, the lines that they needed me to read Um, and then that was it. It was great and uh. And then you get callbacks. So you do the audition and then, if you do well in the audition, you get callbacks. And so I was just waiting and waiting, waiting. Finally I get the the.
Speaker 1:I think it was an email or a text or something that said, uh, congratulations, you made past auditions, we'd like to hear you in callbacks. Which was a Saturday, um and uh. So I was like, okay, cool, bet. And that's when I just like turned the jets on and I went and I studied, uh, like, I watched videos all night long of of gorilla walking and uh, um, just like how gorillas act and how apes uh move, and I started to like copy them and started to do that. Um, anyway, fast forward to callbacks and go in there and me being who I am very confident, very loud personality we get into callbacks and I rip my shirt off and start acting like a gorilla. So that's cool, low key, embarrassing. Looking back, whatever, it's fine. Um, okay, so I make the role um of Tarzan in 2017, um for this show and it like from the start of the show, it was so special, it was so fun Um with like from the from the first rehearsal, uh, with Jane, um and and the directors, so fun, so much fun and and getting to know the cast and making costumes and going over to people's homes and and creating costumes and creating these scenes in our minds that would translate on stage.
Speaker 1:It turned out to be something way, way more beautiful and with more depth than I ever thought. Like it's Tarzan, it's a freaking Disney show, like it's just fun, right, but it literally like changed the way that I view people and changed the way that I view relationships, because if you haven't seen the show, shame on you. Number one, jk, but number two, it's about a little boy who's raised by apes. I think everybody basically knows the story of Tarzan Raised by apes. A girl and her dad are scientists, come in to the jungle out of nowhere and he's like who are these people? I don't understand human beings. I've only seen apes before.
Speaker 1:And then he falls in love with Jane, the girl, and then there's this conflict of like oh my gosh, am I a gorilla? Am I a human? I don't know what's going on. And you just see, like this turmoil of this kid who doesn't understand who he is, doesn't understand why life gave him this hand, is confused about what he feels, is confused about who he's around. So he has, you know, all these different little relationships with his mom, with his gorilla mother, with his gorilla father, now with this girl that he doesn't understand what love is, and understanding the relationship with the villain who hates him for no reason, and so there's all these little relationships.
Speaker 1:And then you have the relationships with Jane and her dad, and you have relationships with the gorilla mother and the gorilla father, and there's all these little beautiful pictures and moments throughout the show that, like, changed the way that I view relationships, changed the way that I view people, and so it really became a very, very, very special show to me. Beyond just being a show, it just changed who I was as a person, which hadn't really happened ever in a show with me before. I've been doing shows since I was seven and they were all special in their own way, but this literally changed my thinking and philosophy on people. So it was really, really special and I was heartbroken when it was over because, in the midst of rehearsing for this show, my wife and I um decided to move to Texas, uh, and it wasn't like we didn't move during the show, but we, we, um got the um offer to move to Texas, um, in October and the show was over in June. So it was kind of like hard, like, oh my gosh, this could be the last time that I see these people. This could be the last time that I perform. I don't know what the future holds, whatever and so it was a very special, heartbreaking moment to do that show, not knowing if I would be able to do anything else like that again.
Speaker 1:And then we moved to Texas and I did not do any theater. I hadn't done theater since I've been here in 2017. So I mean, we go to lots of theater. You know, go back to New York occasionally and go to Broadway. I'm still obsessed with theater New York occasionally and go to Broadway. I'm still obsessed with theater. I absolutely love it, but it didn't really fit into doing what or fit in with what I do for a living, which is teach fitness, right.
Speaker 1:So let's fast forward to probably well, I guess it's been about a year. Probably, well, I guess it's been about a year, been about a year, maybe a year ago and my good friend and director, um, from the previous show, the Tarzan, that I was in in 2017, reaches out and he's like hey T um, you know it's been a while Like he and I had maintained very, uh, sporadic contact. Um, still very good friends, um, but it hadn't been anything that we were like talking to each other every week or whatever. Um, it just kind of died out, just cause that's how some things go. Um and uh, you know we went through COVID and they went through their whole thing with their, their theater company and strained times during COVID, as well as everyone else, um, and so he reached out, uh, probably last, yeah, probably about last year, last, last summer, um, and he was like hey, we're thinking of of doing Tarzan again, just like running it back. Um, and uh, he's like I just thought you should know, there wasn't any pressure of like, hey, you should do this or hey, what do you think? But he was like, hey, we're thinking about doing Tarzan. What do you think?
Speaker 1:And y'all, when I tell you that my heart dropped, like it was like an anchor got put around my heart and sank to the bottom of the ocean. It was like out of nowhere, like I hadn't thought really about that show in a long time. And the second he brought it up. All of those feelings and all of those memories like hit me like a freaking tidal wave and smashed me into the rocks and it hurt, dude, it freaking hurt. And the reason it hurt wasn't because of like, oh, I missed that show. It was because I was like, oh, somebody else now gets to do that and I don't and I don't mean that in like a selfish like mean, like, oh, they get to, and I don't type of way. I mean like my heart hurt in the sense of, oh, I remember how beautiful that experience was and now I don't get to do that and I'll have to watch somebody else do it and enjoy it, and that sounds kind of like really rude. I get that, but it's real. That's that's what I felt and I texted him back.
Speaker 1:I was like, oh my gosh, man, that would be incredible. I'm so happy for you guys, but also I'm so sad because I won't be able to do it. Um, and just because, like dude, I live in Texas, it's in Utah, there's no way that's plausible for me to just go and do that. You know, I have a family to provide for. Um, I have multiple jobs, I have multiple streams of income that I have to make sure don't go away. And, um, so fast forward to I want to say, like October, november of last year.
Speaker 1:And he reaches out again. He's like hey, just putting this out there, what are the chances that you could come audition? And it wasn't like a force, like, oh gosh, you should do this. It was literally a question what are the chances, what's the possibility that this could happen? And I was just frank. I was like, hey, man, there is literally nothing more that I would like to do, like I can't think of a single thing that I would like to do more than to come and do this show. But I just don't see it happening. I don't see, logically, how we can make it work. I don't see, statistically, how we can make it work. The numbers aren't adding up, but I said, if there is even a sliver of a chance that we can make this work, I will try.
Speaker 1:And then he and I just stayed in contact um fairly frequently about what what it would take to make it happen. Um, what would have to go down to make it happen? Um, and then I started to actually, around Christmas time, I really started to think about it like, could it be possible? What would I have to do? So then I go and my wife God bless her she's a frickin angel. She puts up with all of my antics. I'm like you guys know this, I'm a crazy person. I'm off the rocker, just shoot from the hip. I have an idea, bang, it happens. I try to go for it. So I'm kind of a tough person to to be in a relationship with, cause I just I just do stuff, I just go, I just do things. Um, and a lot of time it doesn't make sense. A lot of time it's just kind of like where did that come from, dude? So shout out to Victoria because she's an angel for putting up with me.
Speaker 1:But so it's about Christmas time theater here in Houston with JJ, and we're sitting there and, uh, we she and I had been talking about it. She's like I don't know, like of course I'll support you if it's something that works out, great, but don't do anything stupid. And I was like I won't do anything dumb, I won't put you or JJ's you know um livelihood in jeopardy or anything. Uh, and we're sitting there and, uh, I hadn't really made a decision yet, like I hadn't said yes or no. And we're sitting there watching Cinderella and I started to feel what I was, what I had felt on stage on Tarzan, uh, all those deep emotions that make me very, very, very emotional. Um, and I started to cry in in Cinderella.
Speaker 1:Um, it was during the the bows, and I I started getting a little teary started crying and she just leaned over and she goes you're going to do it, aren't you? Oh, my wife knows me so well and I couldn't respond because that thing in my brain clicked. It's such a weird thing, you guys. Oh, my gosh, I don't know what it is, but it happens where I was like I'm going to make it work, I'm going to do this. And not only am I going to do this, and not only am I going to do it, I'm going to be Tarzan. I don't care. I don't care who auditions, I don't care what happens, I will be Tarzan. End of story.
Speaker 1:And again, it sounds vain, fam, it sounds cocky. I'm not trying to be cocky, but it's just something that clicks, dude, it's just something that clicks on and I just go, this is it I'm that clicks on, and and I just go, I'm, this is it, I'm, I'm gonna do this, um. And so she was right, she was very, very right. She said you're going to, aren't you? And later I said yeah, yeah, I'm gonna make it work, um, and she's like, all right, well, don't be stupid. I was like, yeah, I'll try not to be. Uh, so, um, I was very wishy-washy I will say that with the director, cody and everyone else. I didn't want anyone to know that I was doing this other than my wife.
Speaker 1:And then, so auditions were in like February. I want to say February or March February? Yeah, february, february. I want to say February or March February, yeah, february. And so I start thinking about it. I start talking to Barry's and say, hey, if this works, this is how it will have to work. On my end, I will be here Monday through Thursday or Monday through Friday morning and I will have to probably fly back to Utah to rehearse on the weekends. And I was very upfront with them, very transparent, you know. I asked them hey, if this isn't going to work, I need to know now so that I don't get anybody's hopes up, so that I'm not lying to anyone. And they said, no, no, it's fine, we'll make it work. So shout out to Barry's for being so amazing to work with, and it helps that they have people in New York who are on Broadway, that this happens a lot, and they have people that do TV shows and have to peace out. So it wasn't anything that they hadn't done before. And they're like, hey, as it gets closer, just give us full transparency on the rehearsal schedule, on the show schedule, on the time off that you'll need, what we can do. So that's all they asked for is full transparency. So let's get to February of this year.
Speaker 1:Um, I did not know if I was going to fly back for auditions or if I was going to, um, uh, send in a video audition, um, and I didn't. I literally auditions were on a Thursday, right, yeah, thursday, um, a Thursday evening, and I didn't decide if I was flying out until Monday, like I did. I did not, I didn't know, I had no idea. Um, and so I, to the point of, like I put together a video audition, like I made one. I have it still and so I did that Also, also, also, also, rewind a little bit your boy has been teaching on a microphone yelling and screaming at people for five years.
Speaker 1:Okay, his vocal cords are not good, they're just not good. So when I made that decision, like when it clicked, I was like I need to go see an ENT now. So I, I made an appointment to go see an ENT ear, nose and throat doctor. Um, and I go there and I walk in and I knew the doctor. She had come to my classes before, like she, she knew who I was, she walked in. She's like, oh, she's like, yeah, you can't do what you do if you want vocal cords. So you know, I did the whole scoping thing where they put a camera down my throat and we look at my vocal cords, talked about going to vocal therapy and I was like, hey, doc, I will do whatever it takes, I don't care.
Speaker 1:So I dropped down in classes at Barry's. I went from 15 classes to 12 classes. I asked for three full days off of Barry's, so I didn't teach Tuesday, thursday or Sunday to give myself vocal breaks, like when I say I did everything. I did everything, fam. I have a vocal humidifier, I did vocal therapy, I got vocal steroids, I went all out to save my vocal cords so I started sounding way, way, way more like I used to when I did a lot of musical theater and it was wonderful. It made my heart so happy to sing again. And then, so, that being said, I've been doing all this therapy, I've been taking care of my vocal cords. They're still not 100%, you know, but we're way better than we were before.
Speaker 1:And then that week for audition rolls around and I was like you know what, screw it, I'm just getting a ticket, I'm going to be there. That week for audition rolls around, and I was like you know what, screw it, I'm just getting a ticket, I'm going to be there, um. And so I bought a ticket to to go to this audition, um, and I didn't tell anybody other than the director. The director was the only person that knew. And there were people, um, back in Utah, who I knew that had said that knew that Tarzan was happening, like, oh my gosh, are you coming and coming. And I was like no, I just straight applied to him, uh.
Speaker 1:And then, um, so I, I fly in, uh, I teach Thursday morning, um, because I had to sub some classes, and then I fly in Thursday afternoon. And I got there about two hours before the audition was supposed to happen and I was tripping balls, fam. I was so nervous, um, I had just flown three hours. I'd gone 1500 miles for an audition, not knowing if I was going to get the role. You know, like I had that thing switch my brain where I was like yes, I have it, and then, right there at the audition, I was like my brain where I was like yes, I have it, and then, right there at the audition, I was like I don't know if I have it. Um, so anyway, I, uh, I go and I do this audition much like I did last time Um, walk in, sing the song, rip my shirt off, do the monologue, uh, and then I go and do a dance audition. When I go to the dance audition, I see a lot of people that I know, lots and lots and lots of people that I know, um, some of them from the last show, um, were doing it again. Um, some of them from childhood that I hadn't seen in I don't know over a decade, uh and uh it was.
Speaker 1:It was very, very strange, very, very strange. And I'll be honest, I'm going to be very, very honest it was weird because people knew who I was Meaning. They knew that I was Tarzan last time, and so when I actually showed up to auditions, people were like what the fuck, dude, like, why are you here? Kind of like hesitant, like this is weird for you. We know that you live in Texas, why are you here? Type of thing. So there was some hesitation, I felt it. It was palpable, not in a rude way, I don't mean that anybody was rude, nobody was rude, everybody was super, super sweet but there was this energy of like, oh, this guy's here, like of course he's going to fly in from Texas, of course he's going to get it, you know, which is not what I wanted at all, um, because that puts on unwanted and on unreasonable pressure on the directors, which is so unfair, anyway, so the audition went well.
Speaker 1:The dance audition went well, I don't know, that night or Friday morning, I don't remember get a message saying we'd like to have you for callbacks tomorrow evening, which is Friday evening. So, oh you guys, this is where I start to. I get goosebumps. This is where it starts to get real. So I'm staying with my parents who live in Logan and they're like, wow, it's so cool that you're here.
Speaker 1:What do you think happened? I was like dude, I don't know. Um, I have no idea, I can't believe that I'm actually going through with this. Uh. So, um, friday rolls around and I just kind of hang out, I go work out, I get, you know, kind of ready. I'm just like in this weird zone. I just sat on my dad's porch for like fricking an hour and a half watching hummingbirds, like it was so whack man, it was so weird. I was in this weird state of mind anyway, um. So, uh, the callbacks, um were Friday evening and I go to the, to the school where we were holding them, um, and I walk in and I had, I knew some of the people that were there. Um, uh, some of them were my good, good friends from high school.
Speaker 1:Um, and shows, and then there were some people that I had no idea who on earth they were. I had never met these people in my life and the way callbacks work, at least for this show. I don't know how it works everywhere, but if, at least for this show, is everybody who's there for callbacks for Tarzan, for Jane, for the gorilla father Kerchak, the gorilla mother Kala and the other lead roles are there to do some scenes together so that the directors can see how actors and actresses play or act together rather than just doing solo. Oh, you were really good as Tarzan, but maybe you weren't great with that Jane or with that Porter or with that Kala. So you have to do scenes with a bunch of different people, because there's a bunch of people that got callbacks. You know you have three or four, you know, um. In my case there was only one more guy that got called back for Tarzan, um, and I believe there was four. One, two, three, yeah, four people called back for Jane, um.
Speaker 1:So you have to act with all of them in different scenes. Uh and uh, you have to. You have to watch everybody else act, which is kind of intimidating, kind of weird. But I was kind of settling in. I love the audition process. I uh once like I get really nervous until I'm auditioning and then it's game time, baby, it's showtime and I actually really, really like it.
Speaker 1:So the callbacks start and I'm kind of just hanging out watching everyone perform and then we start doing these scenes, me and Jane, and so, like everybody else, like we did the scenes with Kala and we did the scenes with Kerchak, and we did all scenes, kerchak, we did all these things and then all those people left and it was just jane and tarzan, um, so there's four janes and two tarzans and, uh, we start doing these scenes with the janes and um, I, I knew two of them and I didn't know two of them. So two of them, I had done shows with a bunch and I had grown up with them some. Uh, one girl was my neighbor, uh, another girl was a good friend of mine from high school, um, so acting with them was very easy. It was very fun. It was a good time, cause I hadn't seen these girls in over a decade. So, um, and well, one of them I hadn't seen in a decade. The other one I was in Tarzan with last time, uh, but anyway, um were both of them. I don't remember Both of them might've been in Tarzan anyway, um, so I, uh, I started acting with them. It was very fun, very, very fun.
Speaker 1:Um, and then another girl who was Jane was great. And then, fam, this is bonkers crazy sauce. So I had no idea who this girl was. I didn't know anything about her. I'd never met her, I didn't even know her name, dude. I mean we had gone around and said our names, so like I knew her name then but like you know, your boy's not great with names I didn't remember it. And we start acting together. When I say that I have never had this happen before in my life, it had never happened before in my life.
Speaker 1:We started doing this scene where it's the first time that she sees Tarzan, this crazy shirtless, almost basically naked dude from the jungle. And we start doing this scene and it was effortless, like it was beautiful. We start acting and then it wasn't acting, it was just the scene, Like it was it. And I had this moment where it's a very you could say it's an intimate scene.
Speaker 1:I guess you could say that there's this moment where I'm trying to explain to her what my name is and obviously I've never spoken English before, so I'm just saying my name over and over again and she's not getting it and she's trying to explain that her name is Jane and I'm just saying my name over and over again and she's not getting it. And she's trying to explain that her name is Jane and I'm not getting it. And so then there's this moment where she says stop it. And she puts her hand on my chest and she goes Tarzan. And then she puts her hand on her chest and she says Jane, and then it clicks with me. Ooh, fam, I'm getting emotional, um, and and I go, this realization hits me and I go oh, tarzan, I repeat it, I say Tarzan, I touch my chest, and then I reach up and I touch her face. I step in really close and I touch her face and I say, like, kind of under my breath, I say Jane.
Speaker 1:And in that moment, fam, I knew for a fact that this girl was going to be Jane, and I had, I was pretty confident that I was going to be Tarzan, but I knew, I knew that this girl was going to be Jane. She was just so effing good at it, like she just embodied what Jane was, anyway, or who Jane was. Rather, it was crazy. I'd never had that happen before. So I just knew. I was like, oh, this girl's Jane, regardless of whether I'm Tarzan, this girl is Jane, period. End of story. Um, and so callbacks are over and, um, everybody is just like, oh yeah, so fun, woo, party's over.
Speaker 1:And I'm driving home and uh, I literally fam, I live or my parents rather live seven minutes tops from this where we did the callbacks. So I get in my car and I kind of was like, oh okay, I did everything that I could and now it's out of my hands. So I was like really at peace, like I had no anxiety, I had no stress, I was just at peace. I was like, um, anxiety, I had no stress, I was just at peace. I was like, oh, wow, cool, it's over.
Speaker 1:Um, and so I'm driving home and I get about three minutes into this drive and my phone rings and it's the director, it's Cody, and uh, he's like, hey, can you face? And I was like, dude, I'm I'm driving. He's like, oh, okay, you FaceTime? I was like, dude, I'm driving. He's like, oh, okay. So I was like I can talk, Let me pull over for a second. So I pull over and he goes hey, I have a question for you. And I was like, okay, cool. And he goes who was your Jane? Who? Who was your Jane? And like that was like legit what he said. Who was your Jane?
Speaker 1:And there's this moment of silence and I go, hey, cody, does this mean I'm Tarzan, tarzan? And he goes, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. But like who is your Jane? I was like, hey, man, hey, how about? Like tell me, I'm Tarzan, first Lead with that one, bro. Oh, anyway, so yeah, yeah, yeah, anyway. So who's your Jane? So, oh my gosh, and I'm on speakerphone. I can tell I'm on speakerphone and I was like everybody's listening, right. And he's like, yeah, yeah, everyone's here, the whole directing staff was there. And he's like who is your Jane? And I was like, well, I was like can I tell you? Before I just say that, can I tell you what I think? And he's like, yes, absolutely.
Speaker 1:So I was like I think that this person did great, I think that this person was good with this, I think that this person showed this. I said, but without a doubt, hands down, brighton needs to be Jane, period, end of story. I was like, if she's not Jane, I don't know if I want to do Tarzan Like she's Jane, man, um and uh. He's like, oh, really, why? And? And I was like because it wasn't acting dude, like that scene that we did was so real, like she's 100% Jane, um, and I obviously feel like I should be Tarzan, but I was like she is Jane, hands down, dude, um, because she, she just did it effortlessly, so effortlessly. It was amazing. And uh, and he goes, oh good, that's what I think too. I was like I'm glad we're on the same page, yay. And then I was like can I guess who I think all the other characters are going to be? And he's like, yeah, go for it.
Speaker 1:And so I guess I was like I think Cameron should be Turk for the same reason, when I was acting with him, it was very easy, it was just right off the bat, really, really good chemistry. Um, I was. I said I think, uh, kerchak, um, uh, needs to be Caden, who he was, the the dad gorilla's name is Kerchak. He was the the Kerchak in the last show. Um, so it's kind of cool. I was like I think he did amazing, said I think Lauren needs to be Kala, the gorilla mother. I was like I've never seen anyone so sincere acting with a child before. I think it was incredible, um, uh.
Speaker 1:And I think I was on the fence with, with Porter, who's Jane's dad, and Clayton, um, but I said I think I think Joe would be a very good Clayton, but I don't know about Porter. And he's like, wow, that's everyone that we think too. So cool, your boy's a director, what's up, he knows what's good, anyway. So it was crazy. I was like, ok, wow, so I'm Tarzan and we're doing this. So I'm Tarzan and we're doing this, um, so I go and I and I was like, hey, man, we should like go get lunch tomorrow and talk about this. So I go and I have lunch with him and his wife.
Speaker 1:Um, I went over to their home and had and had lunch, uh and uh, we kind of just discussed the whole thing Like, dude, this is how it's going to go down. This is insane, how this is going to go down. Wild, wild, wild, wild. So that's the audition. And then I go home and I tell my wife, hey, I got the role. I tell my team hey, I got the role Heads up, it's about to be an insane three or four months. Um, I will let you guys know the rehearsal schedule as soon as I have it. Uh, and I, I asked the director like, dude, I need that rehearsal schedule stat I need it, like by tomorrow, um.
Speaker 1:So they put that rehearsal schedule together, fam and, and it was nuts so, in the sense of I didn't know how I was going to make it work, like legit, didn't know how I was going to make it work. So I got this rehearsal schedule and I was like, hey man, like I'm going to be there as much as I possibly can, but I there's some that I'm just going to have to FaceTime or zoom in, um, I can't be there every time. And so they shout out to the director team, um, for actually making this work. Shout out to Cody and and Mindy and Melissa and Afton, um and EJ, uh, for really putting a schedule together that actually worked for me. And I was like here's with that. I told him flat out.
Speaker 1:I was like, hey man, I'm really really nervous because I don't know how I'm going to have any sort of chemistry with this cast at all and I don't want that. I told him my fear any sort of chemistry with this cast at all, and I don't want that. I told him my fear. I was like, dude, I'm really worried that they won't like me as their Tarzan because I'm not able to be here and put as much time into it as they will be, because I knew for a fact I know how much time goes into making a show work. It's so many hours. I know how much time goes into making a show work. It's so many hours, um, and, and part of those hours is just spending time with the cast so that you build relationships, so that you are comfortable around each other, so that you enjoy each other, um, that you know each other, so when you're on stage, it's it's a family of people that's on stage, not strangers working together. Um, so I told him that flat out.
Speaker 1:I was like, dude, I'm so nervous, I don't know how I'm going to make this work with the cast. That's what I'm nervous about. I don't know how I'm going to make it work with the cast. And he was like you know what, we'll figure it out, it'll be okay. Um, you know, just just be there as much as you can, make sure, like, just reach out to them, we'll make it work. And so fast forward a month to the first rehearsal. And I well, the first rehearsal was via Zoom, with the cast, just reading through the lines, which I was like this is insane if this is how we're going to do this. I was just like this is insane if this is how we're going to do this, but fast forward even farther to our first rehearsal.
Speaker 1:So I fly into Utah Friday morning after I teach I literally teach three classes speed to the airport, barely make my flight by like 10 minutes, um, get on this plane, get a car, drive up to Logan, um, and then I have a few hours before rehearsal starts, so I go get some food. I go to rehearsal, um, and uh, it was me and Jane doing scenes together, and again, I didn't know this girl. I had no idea who this girl was, but I just knew that she was supposed to be Jane, and so she comes in. I was like Brighton, what's up? Run over, give her a hug, and she might. I don't know if she's going to listen to this, but if she does, sorry. She was like who the is this kid? Like he's wild, and so she was a little bit hesitant. She was a little bit and and absolutely no judgment. I would totally be the same way if I was in her shoes. Like I don't know this dude, like who does he think he is? So she was a little bit nervous, a little bit withdrawn, which is totally fine. I'm just not that way. I'm very outgoing. People know that I'm very loud.
Speaker 1:So we get into this, this scene, and and we just hit it, like, like I said, fam, like it was, there was no effort, it was just like when we got into the roles and got into character, it was effortless. It was so easy. And so we get through one scene and it went great. And then we start getting into it. Guys, we did three scenes, three full scenes, three full blown out scenes in one afternoon. Like that's how easy it was to act with, with, with this girl, um, and and how easy it was for um, for us to follow the, the direction from Cody, um, and just right out the gate, like. So.
Speaker 1:So Mindy, who is the stage manager and or the production I don't remember what her title was but she basically made sure that everything went the way that it was supposed to. She made all the notes for blocking, she made sure that everybody had what they needed, everybody knew what was going on. So she kind of ran the show while Cody was directing it. So she's there, I'm there, brighton's there, he's playing Jane and Cody's there and in that afternoon I was like, oh, these are the coolest people in the world, these will be my best friends, like these are going to be my people forever, um, and so we get through that first afternoon I'm talking big scenes, fam, like big scenes, uh, massive, massive scenes that are that are kind of like the crux of the show. We got through three of them in one afternoon, uh, which is almost unheard of, kind of like one afternoon, uh, which is almost unheard of, kind of like that's really insane.
Speaker 1:So, um, and then the next day, uh is an all day basically, rehearsal, from Saturday early morning to all the way through the day into Saturday evening. So, uh, we, um. And then that night I went to a show that four seasons was doing. They were doing, um, anastasia. So rehearse all day and then go to a show in the evening, um, amazing, amazing or not in the evening, in the afternoon, uh, amazing show, incredible performances, um, but it was kind of like, okay, once the show's over, it's Tarzan time, like it's, it's our time, and so that those first few rehearsals were really hard, really demanding, because I was working with people that I didn't know. I knew Cody, but I didn't know Mindy, I didn't know Brighton, I didn't know any of the other cast.
Speaker 1:So I went into this with the mindset of, like I have to go full throttle and show this cast that I have their back, that I'm going to work just as hard as they are, if not harder, to make this show incredible. And so, right out the gate, I was trying to talk to people, I was trying to make this show incredible, um. And so, right out the gate, I was trying to talk to people. I was trying to make sure people understood that like I was serious about this, that I wanted to be here, that I knew that it was a special thing, um, and and tried to make people as comfortable as possible.
Speaker 1:So, first, rehearsal gets done. I fly home Sunday morning, Um, and I was like Holy cow, this is this, is it? Like we're doing this? This is crazy, um. And so then you know, that's kind of like what it was for three months fly out almost every other every other weekend to to rehearse, and big chunks of time on rehearsing. You know, uh, cause there wasn't a lot of time to waste. We had to get rehearsals done in Friday, saturday, like that's what we had to do to build an entire show.
Speaker 1:Um, so we, uh, we started doing this and and there were some rehearsals that I was just like dude, I don't know how this is going to work. This is absolute chaos, absolute madness, you know, and and the cast was having choreography rehearsals and dance rehearsals during the week, like Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Thursdays, and then I would fly in on Fridays and we would put those dances in the scenes and we would put the scenes on the stage and it was dude, nutso's. I don't think this has ever been done before like this. It was crazy. Um, actually, I do, I do, I lied, I do.
Speaker 1:Um, it was a Saturday rehearsal where we were putting the show. Cause we had done all of our scenes. Um, jane and me and Turk and the principal roles had done all of our scenes. Um, jane and me and turk and the principal roles had done all of their scenes. We had, we had, we had staged them or blocked them, we had run through them multiple times, um, we had videoed them. Um, and so our scenes were done and we just needed to put them with the other scenes, with the cast and we it was a Saturday rehearsals, an all-day rehearsal, and we get into it. We're running the show from top to bottom, from start to finish, and we start the show. And up to this point we hadn't rehearsed together as a cast, like we hadn't ever like sporadic here and there the cast had been together with Jane I had been with Jane and Porter or Porter had been with like. So it was just like all over the place. We hadn't ever actually put it together Um, and we start doing the show like start I had.
Speaker 1:I was watching scenes I had never seen yet, um, just cause I hadn't been there for the rehearsals. Um and uh, we start getting into the show, um, and we get to the part of the show where um Kala is kind of consoling little Tarzan um, who you know is like 10. Tarzan um, who you know it was like 10. Um, cause he's very upset. He's been kicked out of the, the gorilla family um, by the father Um, so he's just like mom. Why am I different? What is going on? And yo, when I tell you I cried, bro, I cried. I don't think anybody saw um, I cried. I don't think anybody saw um, cause I was sitting far back so I could watch it. Um, but I was like, oh made this work and you did what you needed to do, but this show is so much bigger than UT. Like, you are a part of it. This isn't your show. You get to be a part of something like this. Sorry, getting a little choked up, anyway. So I had that feeling the first time we were running through the show and Jane and I start acting together on stage, and it was weird.
Speaker 1:Up to that point, it was so hard to get these scenes to work, sometimes just because I was not connect, like I wasn't connected to these people at all. Um, I was, you know, texting them. Sometimes, occasionally I'd be able to get on zoom, but like it was just like every other. Weekend is not enough to make chemistry with someone, not enough to build a relationship. Um, but then and I don't know, I did not get permission from her to tell this, but she, oh well, sorry, brighton, I hope I have your permission.
Speaker 1:Um, we start acting and she just let go. She just let go. I don't know if what she let go of, I don't know if it was she was nervous about something or if she had hesitations about something, but she just let everything go and it was like the audition. She was Jane, she was 100% Jane, um, and and from that moment on, she was Jane, like period, and I got to be Tarzan, um, and it, and it clicked and we became very, very good friends, um, very close, uh, in a, in a not inappropriate way, but like a brotherly, sisterly, like you're my family now, like I've got your back always, um, which was incredible it was. It was like barriers, like walls just came down, boom, and from that moment on I was like okay, the show works, the show works, I don't care what has to happen, the show works period.
Speaker 1:Uh, and which is insane to say, like I don't think you guys understand how insane that is to say with with only, I think I had 10 rehearsals before we opened um, dress week, tech week, um, literally I think I had 10 rehearsals, um, and then it was like tech rehearsal, dress rehearsal, full show runs. It was insane, you guys, unbelievable, um, and and while I was at home, I would get on the Stairmaster, while I was working out, I would get on the Stairmaster and watch all of the recordings that we would, because we would record all the scenes and I would watch every single one of them multiple times. So I I mean, I was putting hours of watching this show in to learn lines and to learn blocking and to remember spacing and all this other stuff. Um, so it was. It was insane. So, let's, I'm so sorry this is taking so long. Actually I'm not sorry at all, I don't care, uh, but uh, if you're still with me, congratulations. Thank you for sticking with me. I hope this has been entertaining and fun. Um, cause it's something that's very special to your boy. Um, so fast forward to dress rehearsal week.
Speaker 1:Um, I uh again didn't know if I was going to fly out to Utah or if I was going to drive out to Utah, because I knew that once dress rehearsal started, I wasn't coming back to Texas. I wasn't going to come back to Houston. I just couldn't make it work. There's no way. It's a 24-hour drive 23 and 48 minutes. So with gas stops and pit stops, it's over 24 hours. So I'm getting all packed up. I'm supposed to leave Tuesday morning, so I pack up everything on Monday, get it all ready to go, I go and I teach a couple clients Tuesday morning. I come home, I load it up, I put all my suitcases in, get everything put in the car, grab my little dog, rudy, say goodbye to Tori and JJ.
Speaker 1:And about 9.30, 9.45 in the morning I peace out, I start driving and I won't bore you with the drive, cause it was really stupid, boring Um. But I mean, dude, I was pounding caffeine like a crazy person, um, and I drove it straight through. So I didn't, I didn't stop, um, I would stop for gas, I would stop for food, uh, stop to let Rudy pee. But that was it. Drove all the way through, um, and it was fine. Like, honestly, it wasn't bad. Listen to podcasts, listen to books, listen to music. Uh, listen to my lines. Um, except for the last three hours were tough. Last three hours were tough. Uh, I blew a tire about 45 minutes out from when I was supposed to get there, um, and I was in a canyon with no service so I couldn't call a tow truck. So I just drove the last 45 minutes on a completely flat tire. So, anyway, that's a whole other thing.
Speaker 1:Uh got there Wednesday mid morning, um, went to my parents house and crashed uh hard, slept for about five hours and then went to flight training. So we had to go do flight rehearsal on wednesday, um, and flight rehearsal is fun, but it's also very tedious. It's very boring, um, because you have to go through every inch of every scene that has any flying in it and and take the guys who fly you um, in the wings. You're attached to some ropes and cables, um, and your flight flying across the stage is all up to the guys in the wings of the stage pulling on the ropes. So if they pull wrong it's not good. You can get really injured and you can injure other people. So flight rehearsal is very tedious. It's very important, but it's very tedious, very long. So get very, very close to people during that time. You get to hang out with them, you get to know them, you get to just sit and talk. So I got closer to the stage manager, mindy, I got closer to Cody, I got closer to Brighton and we became very, very, very tight group of four people and so fast forward through the flight trainings. Great, everybody was wonderful, it was amazing.
Speaker 1:And then we get to dress rehearsal week. We get to tech week. We start doing the dress rehearsal. We start running through the whole entire show because there were scenes that we still hadn't done, we still hadn't put them together. So, yay, we get through. And opening night is Thursday, we get to Wednesday, fam. And opening night is Thursday. We get to Wednesday, fam. And we still haven't run through the whole show without stopping.
Speaker 1:So when I tell you I was terrified for opening night, I was out of my mind. I was so nervous. We hadn't run through the whole thing once. So opening night was it. Opening night was where we see what we had made works. It was insane, fam, crazy.
Speaker 1:I remember going back to my parents' home Wednesday night before opening night and they're like how was it? I was like, guys, I do not know how we're going to pull this off. I don't know, I have no idea how tomorrow's going to go. It's either going to be incredible or it's going to be a storm. Uh and uh, they're like, really, I was like, yeah, just pray for me, it's going to be crazy.
Speaker 1:So, that being said, we get to opening night and it was amazing. It was so good. Not a single thing went wrong. Everything went the way it was supposed to. Every scene worked. Everybody remembered the choreography. Everyone remembered their lines. All of the technical aspects worked. The flight worked. Everybody remember the choreography. Everyone remembered their lines. All of the technical aspects worked. The flight worked. It was so good, so good, so freaking good, and after that, yo, it was just the greatest experience of all time. Just the greatest experience of all time, um. And so the show itself was beautiful, right Like it was a masterpiece. The set pieces were wonderful, the, the people who were in the roles were perfect. The cast was so tight. Everybody bought into the show. Um and uh.
Speaker 1:I remember I remember we got together pre, um, pre opening night. This was, it's called a cast call, so we get together and we do vocal warmups together. Everybody's in the room, um, everyone's in costume and ready to go. And uh, the, the director Cody goes um, he says a few words, just get people hyped up, and he goes T, do you want to say anything? Um, and, and I was like sure, and the second I started talking, I lost it, fam. I started sobbing like weeping tears, um, and I was just saying, you know, like guys, this is, this is an incredible show that we've created. Um, and I want everyone in this room to know how grateful I am to do this show and for for how hard everyone's worked, and I want everyone to know that someone in the audience will have their life changed every single night because of the work that we've put in, um, and and I truly meant that that that this show changes people's hearts. It changes people's minds and it's because of the way that we put the show together. So I was just weeping like a crazy person and then I kind of pulled myself together and we did the cast call and we did the opening night. It was beautiful, it was beautiful.
Speaker 1:And then after that, like I said, me and Brighton and Mindy and Cody were were very close. I mean, we had to be, we had to work closely together to make this work. And we started doing this thing where we would come together before the show, before everybody got there, before the cast was there, before the cast was there, before the crew was there, and we would turn on a speaker and we would just listen to our favorite musical songs from Waitress and from well, I mean from Tarzan, for sure from the Great Gatsby, from or not the Great Gatsby why can't I think of it? This is going to drive me nuts, anyway. So we would just listen to great music and we would sing and we would laugh, and then the cast would come and we would be in this amazing mood and we'd sing and we would laugh, and then the cast would come and we'd be in this amazing mood and we'd get them hyped up, and then I would have to get my head put on, and what I mean by that is because I'm basically nude on stage.
Speaker 1:I had to put my mic pack on my head and pin it to my head and then put my wig, my Tarzan wig, on top of my mic pack. And, fam, when I tell you it was painful, I mean, like there were times where, like I had to take so much ibuprofen just to not cry. It was so painful, um, and and not in a way that's like oh, I can't handle it Like it was just it hurt. It was just it hurt a lot, um, which was fine, it was. It was what had to be done to make it work, and I'm so grateful that it happened and it was beautiful, um, but, man, it was painful and it took forever to put on, cause we'd have to wrap my head with Coban and and like a bald cap, and then we would pin that into my hair and then we'd put the mic cap on and we'd co-band that down, which is basically the stage version of duct tape.
Speaker 1:So you put it on and then we'd pin the mic pack to my hair and then we'd put the wig on. We'd have to pin the wig to the mic pack and the co-band and then we'd have to glue the wig to my head. So all in all it would take about 30 minutes to put the wig on and then we would have to paint my body and get it dirty and and make it look jungle-esque, um, and then I have to go do flight call where I get it hooked up and make sure everything was working. So all in all, it took like 45 minutes to an hour to get ready, um, every night. So I had to have those little pre-show song time like sing-alongs, otherwise it was hard to get through that getting ready process.
Speaker 1:Anyway, so then we'd do the show and it'd be incredible and we'd feel all the emotions and people would love it and they would laugh and they would cry and they would scream and I was amazing and there were so many precious moments on stage with, with the gorilla mother and with my the ghost memory of my real parents and Jane and Porter. And there's one moment where, um, I'll, I'll give you two little, two little inside things, uh, on stage that happened. That are very personal, um, but you guys know how we get on here. It's all good. You know me, um, and.
Speaker 1:And so one one um scene that would always, always get to me is there's a moment, right at the very end of the show, when Jane is leaving with Porter, her dad, to go back to England. So she's leaving Tarzan, and it breaks Tarzan's heart. Right, he just found this girl, but he's gone through some things and he knows that he can't go with her. He has to stay with the gorilla family, and so he runs off. This is the final scene. He runs off and or runs onto the stage to say goodbye. So he runs on and he kisses Jane, and then he, he walks over to the professor, her father, and he, he says professor, goodbye. Like this, is it man? Um, and then, oh, my goodness, fam. So if you know me, you know this, fam.
Speaker 1:So if you know me, you know this is something that I want more than anything in the world. Um, I've talked about it multiple times in previous episodes, um, about what I want people to say about me when I'm not here anymore. Um, it's hard, uh, um, and, and that's just to be known as a good person who, uh, more than anything, more than more than he made a lot of money, more than he did a lot of stuff, more than he built these businesses. I just want to be known as a good person, um, and there's a line that happens right as Tarzan is saying goodbye to the professor and the professor says Tarzan, you are truly the ultimate discovery. I'm bashing his lines apart, but he says you are the ultimate discovery. And he puts his hand on my shoulder and said you're a truly good man. Whoo Ah.
Speaker 1:And every single night, fam, every single performance, I would get choked up. The man who was playing Porter his name is Nathan, unbelievable, unbelievable performer and when he would look me in the eye, we'd make eye contact during that moment and I could tell that he meant the words and it would get me. Every single night I would get choked up, um, and, and it was, it was crazy, cause it was in that moment, it was like a mixture of tea and Tarzan um, to hear that and it would, it would hit me so hard every single night, um, so that's that's uh story number one, very, very special. I will, I will never, ever forget that Um very special moment on stage Uh, and then the, then the. The second one is sweet and funny. Um, it's in the same scene.
Speaker 1:So Brighton is an unbelievable performer. She is so good, like I can't. I know, I'm like woo all over. I can't stress enough. She is amazing. She's so good and on stage she would just shine. She's a born performer. She knows what she's doing, very professional, and it was so easy to act with her. It was so much fun, um, because the crowd ate it up, like when we were on stage together, the crowd could tell we were having fun, um, and that there was chemistry on stage and it was working and it was amazing, um, and it was just fun. Um. But also, brighton is not not emotional. She doesn't get emotional and I'm very opposite, I get very emotional. We all know this Um and uh.
Speaker 1:And so I told her one night I was like hey, I'm going to get you to break on stage. I'm going to get you to break on stage. Either I'm either going to get you to break character and you're going to laugh, or you're going to break character, you're going to cry. And she's like yeah, good luck. And I was like OK, bet.
Speaker 1:And so every single night I would try to do something to get her to break in one of the scenes and the the the scene that I thought would be the easiest to do, that is the final scene, when we're saying goodbye, because I say goodbye to the professor and then I turn around and I have to say goodbye to her and there's no words. There's no words. I turn around and she puts her hand forward to shake it and I do our signature like palm to palm hand, and every night when we do that, I would come up with something to say, something to try to get her to break, either to get her to to laugh or to cry, cry, um. And so I it was, it was stuff like um, and and I it wouldn't be, it wouldn't be um, you wouldn't be able to hear it over the mic cause I wouldn't say it out loud, but I would mouth words like um, I'm going to miss you, or or um, please don't go, um, or I can't do this, or you know things like that, to just kind of like get you. And I think it never really worked at all because she really she's a professional. I can't get her to break. But the last night, the last night. I think I might have got her I need to text her and see but I, we, we get really close and I said this is it. I might not ever see you again. You again, um. And then that made me cry. I was trying to get her to break and I broke. This is final night and I was a wreck and just could not handle it. Um, but anyway. So those are. Those are two stories, um and then um.
Speaker 1:After the shows um are probably my favorite memories from the entire experience. We would go out and we'd take pictures and we'd shake hands and we'd talk to people from the audience and then we would go back to the green rooms and we would just get un-costumed and dressed down and take the wig off and the mics off, and the whole cast would do the same thing. And then they would leave and me and and Cody and Mindy and Brighton would stay um, sometimes for a long time, sometimes for a short time, but we would just kind of decompress and we would talk about it and we would um, we would sometimes we'd turn the music back on and we would sing again Um, and then we would just talk about what we're going through, about life, about our thoughts, um, and those are the moments that I will cherish. I'm not going to talk about them, but those are the moments that I'm going to cherish the most is being there with people that aren't friends anymore, that aren't blood family, but that are like my people, that at the drop of a hat, I'll be for them, be there, be there for them always. Um, you know, got really really close with them, um, and, and that's why the show is so special is because that's what it's about. It was about relationships. It was about, um, putting love and putting time and putting effort into other people and the relationships that you have with them.
Speaker 1:Um, and and fast forward to the final, the final closing show show. I was an absolute wreck, like, I got there and I knew it was going to be hard. I knew it was going to be tough, but we get going and we treat it like any other rehearsal or any other performance. We do our little pre-show sing-along and we're happy and it's all fine. And you know, I brought the girls flowers and cards and, um, and wrote cards for the cast and gave it to them and it was very sweet, very fun.
Speaker 1:Um, and then, uh, we get together to do this, this pre pre-show cast call, and I told Cody I was like hey man, will you do me a favor, um, and play the song for good from wicked, which is a very. If you don't know the song, turn this off right now and go listen to it and then turn this back on. Um, it is so good, so so good. Very tender, very sweet song, talking about how, um, no matter what happens with people, no matter how far you go, how distant you become from these people, you've been changed and you've been changed for the better, you've been changed for good. And so I had him play that.
Speaker 1:And so we get together with the cast and everybody's a little bit emotional, but nobody wants to fully let go of anything. And so we start sitting there and Cody starts talking. And then Cody starts crying and I start crying, and Jane starts crying and people in the cast are a little bit teary and Cody was like turns it over to me. He's like hey, do you want to say anything? And I couldn't get words out. I was crying so hard, I just couldn't speak. And so I was like man, just play the, play the music, it'll, it'll say everything that I want to say. And so we played the song and that dude, it was like a feeling came over that cast that was so special, um, I have a little video of it that I'll keep forever.
Speaker 1:Um of everyone was just in tears, um, cause we had put together something and everyone knew that we had put together something that was so special. It wasn't a normal show, it wasn't a a normal cast, it wasn't something that happens all the time. It was very, very special. It wasn't a normal show, it wasn't a a normal cast, it wasn't something that happens all the time. It was very, very special, um. And so I was sobbing, like uncontrollably sobbing, um. And then we go out and we open the curtains and I start crying again. I could not handle it, um. And then I finally get my crap together enough to do the show. The show goes beautifully, we finished the show, I start crying during bows. My sweet wife is there, and so I was bringing flowers to everyone, um.
Speaker 1:And then I walk off stage and I had to sit down for a solid like five minutes cause I was uncontrollable. I was so weepy, like I was just crying, um, and I just couldn't handle it, like I just knew that this was something that would never happen in my life again. And I know that sounds dramatic and I know it sounds like oh my gosh, you're so, like whatever. But like this isn't a normal show, like it wasn't something that happens with every musical, it wasn't something that that happens ever. Um, to have this, this level of depth to a show and this caliber of people performing, it is just I, it's, it's unmatched, it is unmatched. There are no words that will describe how incredible it was.
Speaker 1:Um, and so I was like uncontrollable, uh, and so finally, about five, 10 minutes later, I'm able to kind of wipe my tears and go back. And I know I had to go back and see people cause I had family there, and and so I go back and I take pictures and I see people and it was amazing. Um, and then we go back and people start striking the set. The cast is still there and I get all on Tarzan, take the wig off, take everything off. Um and me and we call ourselves a core four. We me, brighton, mindy and Cody um are just kind of like quiet, like there's no words, and so I was like well, guys, this is it.
Speaker 1:I got to peace out, and so I packed up all my things and I put them in the car and oh y'all when I tell you, saying goodbye to those three was one of the hardest things I had to do. It was so hard because I knew that I would be able to stay in contact with them and I knew thatness would be gone. Because you know, in the moment all of that emotion and all of the feelings are there, and then, when you're gone, time separates those feelings, time deadens those feelings. And I knew that I wouldn't be as close with Brighton, and I knew I wouldn't be as close with Brighton. And I knew I wouldn't be as close with Mindy. And I knew that the relationship with Cody would still stay tight, because me and him are very, very close, but it's still. We're apart and texting only gives you so much communication. And so it wasn't. I wasn't as sad that the show was over as that those relationships wouldn't be as close ever again.
Speaker 1:And that was the hard part, that was the tough part to give so much to those relationships and then know in the depths of your heart that that level of relationship won't ever happen again. Um, and and not that that it can't or or that it is isn't possible, but it's just time. That's how life works. That's how it is, um, anyway. So I say goodbye to those three and I get in my car and the second I drive away. I just start sobbing. I was so, so heartbroken, um, and then I drove to Houston. So I had to teach Monday morning.
Speaker 1:We finished on a Saturday afternoon, um, and so, with all of my feelings and all of my heartbreak, with all of my feelings and all of my heartbreak, I, uh, I peaced out and I drove back to Houston another 24 hours, and it was so much harder driving back than driving to Utah, I w because I was just so sad. I was so, so sad. I probably cried off and on for about five or six hours, um, and you're like Whoa, dude, get your life together. You know, yeah, I get it, yeah, same, but yeah, it was just something that changed my life forever, forever. And it helped me realize the person that I used to be back in Utah when I was doing all the musicals, and how much I enjoyed that version of myself and how I wanted to bring that back to Houston.
Speaker 1:Um, so, if I seem a little different and I seem a little bit more, uh less like intense Thomas that we're used to of like, ah go, team, let's get it. It's because I, I like that me, I like that version of me too, but the best version of me is the person that that is a little more emotional, that's a little more attached, um, and so, that being said, that's going to affect this show a lot. I'm going to be bringing in a lot more emotion to the show, a lot more personal thoughts on more than just fitness. So get ready for that. It's going to be good. It's going to be very, very good.
Speaker 1:So that is my experience with the incredible show Tarzan, with my wonderful friends, uh, who I love very dearly, um, and and are going to come visit um, and I will go visit them, uh, but yeah, I just, all in all, I do have a, a final takeaway. So if you're used to the show, you know what this is. If you're not, um, this is the portion of the show where I give you something to think about, give you something to ponder on, give you something to do that will change your life, because I know it will, because it's changed mine. All you have to do is implement it. So your final is take the opportunity always. Take every opportunity always, because you don't know how your life will change if you don't take those opportunities.
Speaker 1:I didn't know if this was going to work doing Tarzan, I didn't know if it was plausible, but it was an opportunity and I took it and I am a different person now. It completely changed my life. Lot of those in my life of just take the opportunity. Stop thinking about how you're going to make it work and just take the opportunity and then make it happen. Don't worry about how. Make it happen. Take the opportunity always, and that's the show. Take the app. Take every chance you can to take every opportunity possible and your life will be so much more beautiful and so much more worth living. Um, I love you guys. Thank you for tuning in. I know it was a long one. Thanks for bearing with me. Um, we'll be back next week with more of the normal stuff. Um, but yeah, this is the fit perception podcast. I'm your boy T hashtag. I'm your boy, tarzan. Um, and I'm out Bye.