Tragedy in Montford

This past weekend, in your wonderful city of Asheville, I lost my new best friend, Darren Marshall. On the same evening, to the chagrin of my girlfriend, I fell in love with another woman, Terra Currie. Both these events—and so much more—took place at the Hazel Robinson Amphitheater during the performance of Romeo and Juliet by the Montford Park Players.

Darren, who played the brash and boastful Mercurio, was a fellow with whom I would love to have a few pints and dialogue long into the evening at one of the excellent microbreweries for which Asheville is known.

The fair Juliet, played by Terra Currie, almost stole my heart, and would have done so if my girlfriend, Mary, hadn’t broken the spell with a playful elbow to my midsection while I was sighing at Juliet’s loveliness.

Montford is truly a gift to the people of Asheville—no such place exists in the metropolis of my hometown in Atlanta. To see Shakespeare for free, under the stars, performed by a variety of talented actors and actresses of all ages, was a cluster of blessings that I did not seek, but wholeheartedly received. Your community is so very rich in culture, and the quality of the performing arts is to be admired. Shhhh! I promise not to bring too many of my friends in Atlanta to see the Montford Park Players.

I hear Cyrano De Bergerac is next on the playbill. Maybe Cyrano and I could do a pub crawl before his next performance. Cyrano, they say Jack of the Wood has a particularly good summer ale this time of the year. Bottoms up to Montford!

— Roger Dillon
Duluth, Ga.

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