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The First Screening- Thursday May 19th NYC
Three years.
Shoots in three states and “D.C.”.
Countless hours of editing.
Tweaking. Obsessing. Agonizing.
And now we were about to show Theresa Sareo- Alive Again for the first time. Our baby was about to finally be “born.”
How exciting. And how frightening.
NYU’s Hospital for Joint Diseases’ Loeb Auditorium is a lovely two hundred seater and the select audience of doctors, educators, and “cast members” greeted Theresa, director Rye Joseph and myself warmly as we entered. Graciously invited by Judy Goldberg at the facility, introductions were made. Hands were shaken. It all felt good.
But still the actual showing of the film loomed just minutes in front of us.
“I’m Evan Ginzburg, Associate Producer of The Wrestler with Mickey Rourke,” I opened to polite applause. “I met Theresa when I was a radio host at WBAI-FM. I loved her music but didn’t know her story. And what a dramatic story it is. I thought to myself, ‘This would make a great movie.’”
They nodded in agreement.
“We’re not here for a pat on the back,” I continued. “We want to get your constructive criticisms on the film.”
Clutching the questionnaires we’d prepared in their hands, I knew they’d be kind enough to do just that.
Theresa followed me and charmed the crowd as always with a brief hello. Glamorous, gracious, and in her own way regal, the moment had finally arrived.
Lights dimmed. It was on.
I purposely sat behind the entire audience. Hell, I had seen the film enough times already. I wanted to watch the audience.
And I did just that.
It was deeply moving to me to see that all the hard work has paid off. They cried. Actually, some sobbed. And they laughed “in the right places.”
It all felt so warm. So good. That a film about a woman who lost her leg to an impaired driver and went on to entertain and console Wounded Warriors and trauma victims, could actually evoke laughter was a triumph of sorts for us. We just didn’t want to do grim.
When the film was finished, the audience applauded at the end. And it wasn’t “polite applause.” It was a spontaneous, enthusiastic outburst.
When the film was finished, the audience applauded at the end. And it wasn’t “polite applause.” It was a spontaneous, enthusiastic outburst.
When was the last time I’d seen that in a theater? What a rush.
But we still had to face the audience in a Q&A. And hadn’t I asked them to be critical? We nervously braced ourselves for what lay ahead.
One scene clearly didn’t work for several audience members, and we saw the validity in their comments. There were also a few tweaks that needed to be done “here and there.” But person after person told us how inspired they had been by what they had just seen.
One viewer even said, “I want to go out and give more of myself in service.”
As we wrapped things up, the handshakes we’d gotten coming in from mostly strangers had now turned into goodbye hugs.
“Thank you for doing this,” one doctor told me.
An audience had somehow become a team of supporters.
It was all beyond perfect.
Screening number two lay just two weeks ahead, and then we will let our “baby” out into the real world shortly after.
Visit www.aliveagainmovie.com for updated information on Theresa Sareo- Alive Again.
Come to Gizzi’s Café 16 West 8th St. NYC July 15 7-11PM for our first movie promotional event as Theresa performs live- NO COVER. Curtis Schmidt and Ethan Hartshorn from the movie also on the bill!
Hosted by Evan Ginzburg.
July 15 Theresa Sareo Alive Again Movie promotion
7PM Theresa Sareo Alive Again clips
8PM Theresa Sareo performance
10PM Curtis and the Dilettantes featuring Theresa Sareo
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