Writen by Denise Yabiku
On some occasions, I’ve been fortunate enough to find myself in the right place at the right time. When I was seventeen, I found a weathered, timeworn paperback edition of The Catcher in the Rye, its classic deep red cover adorned with yellow lettering, in a secondhand bookstore. I bought it for almost nothing and took it home, where I spent the following hours completely immersed in J. D. Salinger’s masterpiece, spellbound by his voice and the voice of Holden Caulfield. I still love everything about The Catcher in the Rye, but to this day, I know I was very lucky to dive into this particular book when I was at the very particular age of seventeen. I was in the right place at the right time.
Many magical moments happened to me before that and ever since. There was Jules Verne’s universe of boundless imagination, for example, or the wise and melodic poetry of Wislawa Szymborska. It turns out magic is remarkably common for those who love words.
Last Saturday brought another unforgettable experience: a beautiful production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream here at EAC. I was awestruck by pure artistic excellence. In one of the most moving passages of The Catcher in the Rye, Holden watches his little sister Phoebe ride the carousel in Central Park and says he was so happy he could hardly explain it. He says: “God, I wish you could’ve been there.” I wish everybody could have been there.
I’m not even referring to how flawlessly the entire performance was rehearsed (here’s to Ms. Talitha Hansted!), or the obvious talent of our students (and faculty – including Mr. Gozzi!), or the intricate details of the production (Mr. Kuczynski keeps outdoing himself!), the live music (James and Mayra created such an otherworldly atmosphere!), or the vibrant staging (how stunning is our campus!). What I’m truly talking about, once again, is being in the right place at the right time. To witness a comedy so masterfully performed and staged beneath century-old trees, on a warm, enchanting midsummer Brazilian night, feeling a profound connection to countless audiences who have shared this same emotion around the world for centuries, through the timeless magic of Shakespeare’s words and stories – I was one of the lucky ones.
EAC PRESS 
We are lucky Giants!
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Having the opportunity to witness great theater productions and to have access to various book shows how lucky and privileged we are. Once I saw the production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, I was awed at how well directed and well executed everything was. From the scenery and props to the actors.
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