Cary Shields' One Man Show "I Shot the Albatross"

[Platypus]

Posted: 8/12/19 at 4:34pm

I know it’s frowned upon to like Rent around here but I still have a huge sentimental attachment to the show and some of the performers. So if anyone else here shares my sentiment, you may be interested in this.

Last week I saw Cary Shields’ one man show “I Shot the Albatross” in Toronto (https://calendar.lula.ca/lulalounge/detail/1407/1565303400000). In the 1 hr 45 min show, he tells the story of his journey to Broadway and his struggles after he disappeared from Rent. He was backed by a rock band and Dominique Roy (Mimi in various tours) – teenage me giggled at seeing a former Roger and Mimi together again. He starts with the story of when he got his first Rent audition in Toronto, after his mother wrote an agent a letter pretending to be him. He talks a lot about his time with Rent, including his first performance on tour, getting offered the OBC of Taboo and Rent on Broadway in the same day, right through to the infamous backstage fight with Mayumi and where he disappeared to after that… At times he was absolutely hilarious while at other times he described his mental health struggles in painful detail.

His stories of his adventures and his darkest moments are interwoven with a collection of songs, which are a combination of his own original songs (which are pretty decent rock songs) and covers. His voice is beautifully suited for Billy Joel’s New York State of Mind. I was thrilled that he also included One Song, Glory, complete with a toned down version of the original staging. It was so wonderful to hear him sing that song again. He sounds better than ever. It had been so long since I had seen him perform that I couldn’t remember if he had any acting skills, but I found his storytelling to be captivating and the comedic moments had me laughing hard. I also have to commend his honesty – it can’t be easy to talk to a room full of people about the darkest moments in his life.

The audience was mostly filled with friends and family of his, and a few random fans (which is the category that I fit into). A lot of people that he talked about in the show were in the room, which was cool, and at one point he thanked them for being the reason that he’s still here. It was a one-night-only type of event, but based on the professional photos and videos that were being taken, I got the feeling that one of the main goals of the night was to create promotional materials (and raise some funds) to further market the show. So if he does take the show any further and you are a fan of his, I would recommend checking it out.

[DoTheDood]

Posted: 8/12/19 at 4:53pm

Platypus said: "I know it’s frowned upon to like Rent around here but I still have a huge sentimental attachment to the show and some of the performers. So if anyone else here shares my sentiment, you may be interested in this."

I thought most people liked Rent here? I get some people don't like it, but I've never seen anyone go after someone else who likes the show on this board. Even if there are, you do you and enjoy/talk about the shows you like, some people here are just negative.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 8/12/19 at 5:10pm

Thanks for the post! Also, I think the Rent backlash around here disappeared years ago.

[Platypus]

Posted: 8/12/19 at 5:44pm

LizzieCurry said: "Thanks for the post! Also, I think the Rent backlash around here disappeared years ago."

You're welcome! I guess I'm still scarred from those days so I still felt the need to start with a disclaimer :). 

 

[Zion24]

Posted: 8/13/19 at 9:28pm

Cary Shields was an OK Roger, but his voice was always incredible. I still never understood exactly what happened with the Mayumi Incident, though I remember hearing about it at the time (and he was gone soon after). Good for him for working through it so openly and publicly.

And excited to hear Dominique Roy is still workin in. She didnt have the voice to play Mimi full time (and didn't get along with Manley Pope, do i remember that right?), but her performance and dancing were out of this world. A real talent.