McGuire on Walton's World

Listen to Bill Walton's Podcast. He mentions and praises McGuire. Listen to the whole podcast, its pretty cool. His McGuire coverage is about 10 minutes in.

Links about production

Here are some links about McGuire in Atlanta during the Final Four.

Marquette Hoops

Sports Illustrated

Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Preview)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Review)

The Sidewalks

The sidewalks were being rebuilt in the Buckhead area where our hotel was. It seemed like the sidewalks were 8 feet off the ground. And there were potholes...in the sidewalks. I thought about putting a cash bond on Cotter in case he tripped and twisted his ankle.

I thought I heard Coach Tom Izzo of Michigan State say he had it happen to him when he appeared on a CBS Final Four pre-game show.

MARTA

MARTA is the public transportation system in Atlanta. We bought passes that allowed for unlimited riding. Very convenient. And easy to use.

The only glitch was Sunday night, after 9pm, when we tried to get back to the hotel. There was some train switching, so it took some time. Still less expensive and probably just as fast as a cab.

End of the Night Quotes

Heidi M-S: "The earths crust is not right here."
Cotter: "We've taken this play to another level"
Stephen H-M: "There is a banana in my bag."
Heidi M-S: "Dumb _ _ _."

Political Side-note

The chief of staff for the Atlanta Mayor was at the 5pm show.

He was very gracious and at the post-show talkback he was very complimentary and said the City of Atlanta was proud to be able to host such a fine production.

More on Bill Walton

After talking with Cotter, he said Mr. Walton really liked the show. He passed on his card to Cotter and called him one of his new friends.

Cotter (and I) both feel Bill is one of the better basketball announcers. He is a straight shooter with a good sense of humor.

Interesting side note: Bill told Cotter that Bill named his son Luke (who now plays for the LA Lakers) after Maurice Lucas, former Marquette basketball star who was coached by Al. Bill and Maurice became best friends when they played together for the NBA Portland Trailblazers.

Raves from Tim Brando

CBS broadcaster, Tom Brando, who I didn't spot in the lobby, couldn't stop raving about the show. He couldn't thank Dick and Cotter enough for their work.

Heidi Meuller-Smith

Heidi, the director, was a rock for the whole project. Through her collabration with Cotter and Dick, she helped craft a show that has affected anyone who sees it.

Talkbacks

Dick has done a great job at the talkbacks after the performances. The entire audience for both shows today stayed to hear his insight on the project and to hear other Al stories.

Who is at the evening performance

Marquette center from the 77 cahmpionship team Bo Ellis and his family saw the show.

CBS broadcaster Clark Kellogg was here.

And coaching great Eddie Sutton.

Reflections on the matinee

While eating lunch Farmerie had this thought on the matinee: "People were the most receptive I've ever heard them. This run had the greatest amount of laughers, clappers, and criers. The audience was nuts, and it made me happy."

Roberts said this: "The audience was enjoying the show to a new level. Dick stood in the lobby after the show and almost everyone stopped to shake his hand and tell him how much they loved it. One guy gave him a game program from the 1977 Championship game. And another told Dick he never expected to cry at the Final Four. Amazing show!"

Coach Smith

Coaching legend Coach Dean Smith congratulating Dick Enberg. Coach Smith seemed to thoroughly enjoy the show.

Bill Walton and Cotter

Basketball great Bill Walton congratulating Cotter on this afternoon's performance.

Grocery store

I found the store the G-town fans I mentioned earlier pointed to. And I was able to get some beer.

I just don't understand why they were on the other side of town with a 12 pack of beer.

Guess who showed up to our 1pm show

Sitting back stage waiting for the show to start.

While waiting in the lobby, I saw CBS broadcaster and one of Mr. Enberg's colleagues - Lesley Visser.

Georgia Tech Head Coach Paul Hewiit is here.

Basketball great and ESPN announcer Bill Walton is here.

And....... and former North Carolina head coach, the great Dean Smith.

The Final Four Games: So Close...

Here's a picture of the Georgia Dome. (It's from the outside, because we didn't make it in.)

We thought this was amusing. There were lines for the boys and girls to enter the dome.

Here, we also witnessed a high speed chase of security gaurds after some guy. We can only assume the culprit is still at large with some inebriated person's tickets.

We watched the first game at Centennial Park a few blocks from the Dome. It was a mini Summer fest.

There was a stage with two large screens projecting the game. Ludicrous performed a concert, but food was a larger priority for us, so we headed back to the hotel.

More night time scenery. (Just outside the Dome.)

We beat the crowds to the MARTA

Kate thought it would be nice to take a picture of our experience.

This was taken as she fell onto the tracks she didn't realize were right behind her.

McGuire set again

Here is the set with some of the stage lighting on it.

Chester is just as joyful

I am really pleased with the Alliance Theatre tech table. This is where I sat when setting the lighting cues. The table went away quickly and easily before the audience was let in the theatre.

Farmerie joyful

Farmerie (MU projectionist) is happy she finished her Theatre History quiz on time. She believes she received an A for her effort.

Projector

We used two of these massive projectors that gave us nice clean and bright images.

They are so big they take an hour to shut down.