THE FIGHTING QUAKER CHARITY EVENT
After reading my own preview of this special fundraising event, I decided that I must attend. It sounded like fun, (which I was correct about,) but much more importantly, it benefitted a great cause.
The festive lobby decoration that greeted us. Photo by Karen Salkin, as is the one above.
Actually, any visit to North Hollywood’s El Portal theatre, whose walls are always adorned with interesting art pieces, is appreciated, but even moreso when it benefits a worthwhile organization, which, in this case, is the Mendez National Institute of Transplantation Foundation. As I mentioned in my preview of this event, its purpose is to raise “awareness for kidney disease and organ donation,” and advance “research, education, and awareness around those situations.”
The Fighting Quaker is the title of the play we saw that night, but there was so much fun on both sides of it, which is what made it an “event.” So I’m going in order of the evening. It began at 6PM, and there was already a big crowd in front of the El Portal in North Hollywood before the doors even opened. I was so happy to see sooo many people show up to contribute to the worthy cause.
The organizers were wise to do the reception first. The mingling, along with the food and drinks, put everyone in a great mood for the show. And the cocktail party was done just right. It made great use of all the parts of the very big lobby. There was an excellent assortment of Fat Sal’s sandwiches to fit every taste, including falafel for the vegans. I’ve been strictly an Ike’s Sandwiches girl for many years now, but I’ve also always wanted to try Fat Sal’s, so this was perfect for me. Each sandwich was just the right size to be able to try different varieties or be totally satiated with just one. And I so appreciated that they were clearly marked as to what exactly they are. There were also a trio of spot-on beverage stations—one with soft drinks, one with mixed drinks, and one with wine that my friend Roz said was delicious.
The cake and cookies for after the show. Photo by Karen Salkin.
After the appropriate amount of time, we went into the big theatre there, (there are three in that one edifice,) to see the show. The reason for The Fighting Quaker being presented at this time is because the 250th Anniversary of America is coming up on July Fourth, and this is a very patriotic story that I’m sure few people know. At over an hour, the play was a little too long, especially because it had been promoted as being just forty minutes, but it was very well done, and informative about a piece of this country’s history that I doubt anyone has ever considered before. It’s the story of Timothy Matlack, the man who hand-inscribed the official copy of the Declaration of Independence in his beautiful handwriting in 1776.
I was glad to learn the tale because I’m a big believer in good penmanship. As a former elementary school teacher, I’m always upset that cursive writing is not taught anymore. How will people growing up with that dearth of knowledge ever be able to sign their names? I hate that! So I’m glad this play is lauding that skill now.
Photo by Karen Salkin.
Roz and I could not believe how much work was done on this production for just that one performance! That’s how much the producers wanted to get that story out! Roz was especially impressed with the digital screen which was the on-stage backdrop. It really added so much clarity to the narrative.
The end included something that was amusing by accident. The cast started singing a song that nobody knows; it was either an original one or some obscure historical ditty. And they indicated that we should all sing along! To a song none of us had ever even heard of! That brought back a fun memory for me because I had done something similar on the very first holiday episode of my former TV show, Karen’s Restaurant Revue. At the end of it, I said, “Let’s all sing Happy Christmas,” and proceeded to try to lead the audience. The only thing is…there is no such song! I believe that I was thinking of Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, but even that one would have been hard to sing with a group. My audience looked confused for a second, and then we all just burst-out laughing!
That comparable little snafu of The Fighting Quaker left us chuckling as we exited, as well, which was the perfect way to move on to the post-show activities. We went back into the lobby for theme-decorated cake and cookies. And then the VIPs, (which it looked like the entire assemblage was, happily making more money for the charity,) moved over to one of the smaller theaters on-site to receive a few gifts. The main ones were a choice of pretty pashminas for the women and handsome neckties for the men. We also received a sparkly little bag of product samples.
Outside the theatre at the end of the evening. Photo by Karen Salkin.
And then, as we left the theatre, the actors were out front, speaking to any guests who were game for a convo, and providing fun photo ops. You know I love a multi-part event, and this was definitely that!
And to remind you, the entire evening benefitted the Mendez National Institute of Transplantation Foundation. You can find-out more about the organization right here: www.mnitf.org.
