4 Drinks In And Happy

It was the night we were all waiting for and it took us by surprise. Ever since the "p.s. See you in Toronto" that unfortunately wasn't possible, and the hopes that it would come true in other cities, we were finally surprised by the presence of Billie Joe Armsrong at our final show in Costa Mesa.

It would be so easy to pretend that I wasn't as excited as I was when I found out he was there. "Billie's here, did you know" Leslie said as we were walking downstairs to the dressing rooms after the show. "Yeah, he got here just as 'Novocaine' started". Whaaaa? Of course I didn't know... I was doing a show at the time.

This whole process has been dream come true after dream come true for me. Becoming a member of Actors Equity, not only meeting but having the chance to work with Michael Mayer and Tom Kitt and all the other amazing creatives behind the scenes, playing the Ahmanson in Los Angeles, travelling the country and calling a stage my "office". We had the pleasure of meeting Mike Dirnt, the bassist of Green Day, when he came to see the show in Los Angeles. Several celebrities came to see the show, and a ton of my friends and family (maybe most important of all) were able to see this show that I'm so proud of.

And then the man who started it all, the face of Green Day, the man who's words touched the angsty hearts and minds of millions, comes for a surprise visit. How can I even pretend to contain my excitement? No, I wasn't that fangirl who couldn't speak around him, or the one who wanted to ask questions about his career and fame and family life. To me, people are people no matter who they are or what they've done. But I was the person who was thrilled when he said that we did the show justice. There's not much more that we could have hoped for. All the hours that Michael and Johanna and Loren and Steven have spent showing us what this show is about have all been worth it. All the work we've put in has been worth it. This all may sound quite sentimental, and maybe it is, but there's no point in pretending you don't feel proud when you've done your job right.

And not only did he come see the show and meet all of us after, but he also came out to the dive bar we've been enjoying for the past week to chill out for a bit. What a lucky bunch we are.