does anyone care what I think

I was a theater reviewer for about twenty years; I retired in 2017. I loved writing about the shows I saw, and I loved hearing from artists about what I’d written, especially when they told me I had nailed their intention perfectly. I also liked hearing from civilians who read my reviews, again especially when they agreed or found them enlightening.

I focused on the indie theater scene in New York City, which is woefully underfunded, under appreciated and misunderstood. My reviews helped many of the artists involved with indie theater get much needed exposure, for which they were grateful, and of which I was proud.

But there’s a difference between writing about art to call attention to it (which is what I did for those twenty years) and writing about art to satisfy some inner urge. This second thing–admittedly pure self-indulgence–is what I am doing now, here on this blog.

Hence the blog’s title. I have no illusions regarding the answer to the question it poses: with a teeny tiny number of exceptions (my partner Arthur, my sister Nita, maybe one or two others) that answer is no, certainly not.

The question that logically follows is: do I care if anyone cares? And the answer, honestly, is: no. I am doing this for myself, to return to the vocation (avocation? I never remember which is the right word) I have long felt called to. I am seeing a lot of movies these days (hooray for senior citizen discounts!) and reading a lots of books (hooray for being retired and having lots of free time). Thinking about them, processing them, is a good thing for me to do. Blogging is a good thing for me to do–I like to write, and having a sense of purpose surrounding the writing is useful and invigorating.

So, to whomever may actually read this: enjoy. Feel free to comment (don’t necessarily expect a reply however). This is for me. If it provides any value to anyone else in the world, that’s a lovely and entirely unlooked-for bonus.

I plan to write about movies, television, books, and theater. I am not planning to write reviews but rather reactions to or think pieces about what I’ve seen and read. I am excited to get started!