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October 1, 2002

My Dinner With Andrew

Not so long ago my family and I embarked upon a trip from Seattle to Washington, DC to visit my in-laws. It just so happened that the night we flew in there was going to be a Star Trek convention at a hotel near the airport. Andrew Robinson and Alexander Siddig had written and were staring in a play about Garak and Bashir that was going to be performed that evening. Our plane was supposed to land at 5, the con was a 10 minute drive away, and the theater performance started at 7. Couldn’t work out better now could it?

Well, the plane was delayed and didn't touch down until nearly 6:30. I literally ran through the airport to the car rental shuttle, then ran to the counter, got my car info, ran into the bathroom to change into nice clothes, and ran upstairs to get my car. Now it's 15 minutes to 7.

I got totally lost going to the hotel but still managed to arrive at the hotel at 7. I ran up the stairs from the parking lot because the elevator wouldn’t comply. There was no sign of a registration desk, nearly 200 people were seated in the room, and since I bought my ticket online I had no idea where to sit. I pled my case to a random guy with an official looking badge, and as it turned out he was the host and owner the convention. A few minutes later he called me onstage to tell me my table number.

I was at table 13. It was then that I knew my evening would be a success.

As we ate our dinner various Trek stars mingled around the room shaking hands and posing for pictures with the diners. I was supposed to meet a woman, my favorite fanfic author, beforehand but I was so late she had already gone in. Just before the performances started I saw a woman that fit her description and luckily it was her.

First Chase Masterson sang 2 songs; one funny, "Latinum is a Girl's Best Friend", and one off her soon to be released album, "Peel Me a Grape". Then Ethan Phillips said he’d tell four funny jokes but that it would take him about 20 minutes of joke telling to get there. The fourth time he got the crowd really laughing he sat down. Next up was Robert Picardo who read a scene he had written in which Harry Kim gives the EMH a real stomach. At first he’s delighted, but then he discovers all the sounds, smells, and sensations that having a stomach entails. He finished by singing a funny parody about how no one loves Voyager now that Enterprise is on set to the tune, "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" even managing to rhyme Dracula with Bakula.

Before the play began I headed toward the bathroom only to find Robinson and Siddig standing right there rehearsing! Well, I didn't want to bother them and break their concentration, but I was a bit giddy.

Then came the play itself. It was over 90 minutes long and took place in a time after the finale of Deep Space Nine. Fortunately I had reread “A Stitch in Time” the on the flight because the play referenced many people and places that only appear within it. Somehow they were both in this place called the Vinculum where time and space overlaps. They spent a lot of time interacting with other characters such as Bashir’s father, Tain, Palandine, and Sloan and then analyzing these encounters. At the end Garak has Bashir say over and over that he loves him to test a theory. This got a big reaction from the crowd. Garak realizes that the Vinculum is a place where they can communicate without the universal translator and hence the subtleties and nuances aren’t lost. The reason for the Vinculum encounter becomes clear at the end of the play when we find out that Bashir is now somewhat reluctantly working for Sloan.

After the play my fanfic friend introduced me to other fanfic authors that I knew of through reading their work online. They had scheduled an Andrew Robinson fan club meeting for early the next morning and invited me along. I was so tired that I almost declined but instead agreed and returned at 8:30 the next day utterly exhausted but enthusiastic. I had never been to a fan club meeting and had no idea what to expect.

I went up to a room where there were 15 people sitting all over the beds and floor facing a chair. About 15 minutes later Robinson arrived. It was totally surreal. He knew nearly everyone but me by name, and all about them as well. For over an hour we all just chatted about the world, politics, and our families like he was an old friend and I suppose to many of them he is just that. As we talked he would sign whatever people had brought for him, and fortunately I had my copy of his book with me. He asked me if I'd actually read it, since I hadn't broken the spine.

Maybe it was the fact that he's married and older that made him so relaxed, but it was quite unexpected. I can't imagine any of the Original Series or Next Generation people agreeing to meet 15 fans in a hotel room. Then a most unexpected thing happened. When it was time for him to go he asked if anyone could give him a lift to the airport. Everybody else wanted to head to the convention so I said I would take him.

During the short ride back to the airport I was thinking, “This day has been totally surreal and it's only lunchtime!” He would say something and I’d hear it as Garak, but when I looked over at him there was this very nice bearded man sitting there. He kept thanking me, asked me about my kids and Seattle, and said that he's hoping to direct a play there in the near future. I just couldn't get over how he had agreed to let a strange fan drive him somewhere. Of course, you could flip that around and say that I agree to drive a strange man around.

I kept feeling that I should be telling him how much I liked his portrayal of Garak and how his portrayal had inspired me artistically, but our conversation was so much more intimate than that. His sincere friendliness totally broke down the actor/fan barrier, and it would have ruined the moment to rebuild it.

When we got to the airport I helped him unload his luggage, he hugged me goodbye, and thanked me again for driving him. All the way home I had a face splitting grin.

thanatos