I went to the movies again. I really like going to the movies. And this time, I recognized the name in the credits right away. So it was only a matter of figuring out which character in the film was portrayed by this person from my past.
The movie: Milk. It is a wonderful piece of filmmaking, absolutely carried by Sean Penn’s powerhouse performance. No, Sean Penn and I have never worked together. But I did know the name Brandon Boyce. Even though I hadn’t seen him in many years, it didn’t take long to realize he was playing Harvey Milk’s political consultant Jim Rivaldo.
Where did I know Brandon Boyce from?
Simple.
A quarter century ago, I costarred in a play with Brandon Boyce.
That’s me on the far left, with Brandon front and center.
And this time I really mean “costar.” Really. It was the West Windsor-Plainsboro High School 7th and 8th grade production of Meet Me In St. Louis!, performed on January 21 and 22, 1983, in Princeton Junction, New Jersey. In this non-musical version, Brandon portrayed Mr. Duffy, while I trod the boards in the role of Fred Gregory.
Brandon and I got along very well. We enjoyed singing along with the Stray Cats’ “Stray Cat Strut” on the dressing room’s boombox. I could never quite nail the timing on the song’s big finish, and Brandon always got a kick out of that.
He was a sweet, funny kid, and all these years later, it was fun to see him on the big screen. I’m proud of you, Brandon.
Oh, just to the right of me in the photo? Some kid named Ethan Hawke.
Jack Silbert, curator