Performance Anxiety

Anthony made his stage debut last night, and I’m sure all the reviewers present (mom, dad, grandma and grandpa) will agree it was a stunning performance, noteworthy for the sheer range and nuance of raw emotion that was put on display.

I’ll admit I was skeptical when Anthony’s school sent home a flyer informing us students in the nursery through Pre-K classrooms could perform in the annual Christmas show. I’m as proud a mother as the next person, but I’ll be the first to admit Anthony’s performance capabilities are limited. If this were a beauty pageant, while I maintain he would come in AT LEAST in the top 10, his options for the talent portion would be limited to rolling over, sitting for 10 seconds before toppling over, and eating. As he was expected to be on stage without my over-protective hands nearby to catch him, the first two were clearly out. And as I’m not THAT much of an exhibitionist, option three also had to be nixed.

Still, last week I gently asked Anthony’s teacher what exactly would be expected of him should he choose to take the stage (I didn’t want to be insulting...maybe she had some sort of elaborate baby chorus line in the works). Fortunately, she assured me all the babies would be asked to do is dress in holiday finery and sit on stage looking cute.

That, Anthony can do.

So, resplendent in his snowman sweater and black corduroys, the nervous little guy (something had to explain the previous night’s restlessness) took the stage last night with his adoring legion of fans in tow. I don’t know if the people who hand out the Tony awards were in the audience, but if they were, let’s just say the Josephsen family better clear some space on its mantlepiece.

Actually,we don’t have a mantlepiece, which is probably just as well.

However, the performance went fine, with the "stage bill" acknowledging that the nursery students would simply be "looking cute in their first Christmas show." They did indeed. Anthony and three of his tiny co-stars entered stage left in a tinsel-adorned stroller, and sat quietly -- I'm not kidding, not a peep from any of the four -- while the "big kids" sang Christmas songs.

Unfortunately, in some sort of freak of nature occurance, we were among the last people to show up at the theater (this never happens...the rest of Miami is chronically 10 minutes late to everything, while our Midwestern roots have us showing up 5 minutes early). Anyway, this rare situation means our photos from the actual show are limited at best. But on a bright note, my sense that all is right with the world was put at ease at the end of the night -- as we left following the brief program, a family was just arriving, and I heard the mom ask incredulously, "What, it's already over?" Yes, we were still in Miami.

Anyway, here are some pics from the evening's activities:

A long-range live shot of the show from the paparazzi -- or should I say PAPA-razzi

Will he thank mom when he wins his Oscar?

Anthony's bodyguard escorts him from the theater

Now we know what kept him distracted, happy and quiet during the show...