It’s the remarkable life 

Lived unremarkably 

Marked with bad decisions

Made for a moment of joy

The earnest Midwest boy 

Who’s desires rivaled a boy called Pan

                  A stranger was never a possibility

                  To anyone who crossed his troubled water

Speed is a way of life

That left so much ruble

The self-fulfilled prophecy 

Earned by the unfulfilled

We recently lost one of our own on Broadway, a shocking yet not surprising loss as he never believed that he would live to a ripe old age. He died of natural causes, but at an unnaturally young age. 

This is a stagehand, whom I worked with on several occasions, was an intelligent man. He unfortunately did not use his intelligence to guide him, but he let a social soul rule his house. There was no lack of drinking & recreation drugs. I think it gave him confidence to be the fun-loving guy. One might wonder if he was ever actually sober, or did he wake up with just a little buzz still aloft. Self-care was not a consideration.

This is not a unique trap in this business. We are social creatures who work at a job that can leave you buzzing. You are surrounded by talent and have audiences celebrating your work eight times a week. As a stagehand you have the potential to work both day and night and the financial rewards are intoxicating. “Work hard & play hard” is all too often an adage that is lived by and was certainly used by this colleague. 

This is not a cautionary tale. This man lived his life how he saw fit and NOBODY was going to convince him otherwise, but it still stings to know that he gave away so much of himself to recreation and won’t see another bow.

GodSPEED Eric Smith