“Alvin, I Am Speechless”: An Evening with Alvin Epstein
Andrea Velazquez ’18 / Emertainment Monthly Staff Writer
“I felt quite comfortable,” said Alvin Epstein about hearing his own stories read to him and the crowd sitting before him at Emerson College’s Semel Theater. His dear friend, Jonathan Fried, who read excerpts of a book they created together, Dressing Room Stories, smiled with a hint of relief as he sat next to his longtime colleague and close friend.
The duo had just concluded a delightful evening of storytelling centered around the incredible life of a legend in American theater. Their book, the pair explained, was the result of an intricate collection of short conversations that took place over the course of many years, usually backstage, on tours, or in a dressing room. Fried heard his first story from Epstein twenty-two years ago (or eighteen, “depending on who you ask”) and at the time never imagined the tradition would become a project he would one day work so hard to assemble and publish. The collection of stories is so vast, Fried believes, that they represent perfectly the evolution of a man as a person and as an artist.
The book is set up so that the reader feels just like Fried felt throughout all those years: just a man listening to one story per night in a dressing room. From listening to all the adventures recounted so expressively, one can conclude Mr. Epstein’s life is full of humorous, honest, compelling, and extraordinary moments. The first story took the audience back to little Alvin’s childhood, when he had a fascination with images, magazines, and art.
The next one, a little darker than the previous story, fast forwarded to World War II and described how Epstein got to travel Europe by being a part of the American troop’s theater group. The shocking yet most hilarious parts of the evening, however, came when Fried read how Epstein stole a piece of Hitler’s toilet as a personal souvenir, only to lose it several years later when his stepmother cleaned the house’s closets and thought it was a useless piece of marble.
Following the unbelievable account of Epstein’s European undertakings, Fried enlightened the audience on the different roles Epstein portrayed. From Samuel Beckett’s Lucky in Waiting for Godot to working with Orson Welles, it was evident to all in the room that the man in question did extraordinary things with his craft. However, when the names of the famous celebrities were read, Epstein maintained an air of humility, and it was clear he regarded the experiences with these people as wonderful opportunities to pursue his passion rather than chances to boast about where his career had taken him.
At the end of the reading, Fried, once again moved despite how many times he has heard the stories, exclaimed, “Alvin, I am speechless,” to which Epstein replied with satisfaction, “Good.” In a world of Hollywood success stories, it is difficult to come across an authentic and wonderful one as Alvin Epstein’s story. His is one of truthful love for the art of theater and performance, told from the endearing perspective of true friendship. Their book will come out in the near future once the final editing is done, and the world beyond Emerson’s walls will get to enjoy the beauty of Alvin Epstein’s unbelievable life.