Meeting Matt

I met Matt back in Intro: Performance at the UofW. I was fresh out of high school and ready to meet some new people and, most importantly, study theatre. Well, I wasn't there to study theatre per-se right off the hop. I was more into film, but thought an Intro acting class was definitely a must. And what a GREAT class - so many people that have gone on to do amazing things!! (well, dancing Kim was a little scary, but I think she was only there for 2 classes - that girl sure made an impression if I remember her with such vividness this many years later.) It opened up the door to where Matt and I are today - running our own company and being active members of the theatre community.

But, I was not so horribly grown up at the time, and my first thoughts of Matt in a romantic sense came from when my dear friend Arwen and I ranked the boys in the class on a scale of 1-10. Yes, we did that. Now, I'm not going to lie, Matt was not my highest score at the time. But I do believe this was before his improv. of Hedda Gabler in which he did a fabulous George Tesmen. So, at the time he was in about my top 3rd - a cute blond haired, blue eyed, very talented, incredibly smart guy who I grew to know more and more over the years. It turned out that we were not only part of the same intro class, but were then in the same lab for Style and Genre, got into the Honours program in the same year ... and had many evenings of theatrical revelry!

It was during rehearsals for Lysistrata that I knew that eventually I was going to have to tell Matt that I liked him ... romantically. Anyone who has ever had a crush on a good friend will know the mountain of complications that can happen when this goes badly. It wasn't until a supper break when Matt didn't join the rest of us but stayed behind to talk with a very cute female member of the production team, and someone said "maybe Matt will ask her out", and my heart landed firmly in my intestines that my brain went "CRAP! That can't happen! He shouldn't go out with her, he should go out with YOU!" and I knew I'd have to suck it up and go after him. CRAP!

Luckily, one very great Halloween party later - when Matt zoomed into the room on roller blades, wearing ski goggles - we ended up outside on the balcony alone. It was very romantic, and we started our journey as an official couple.

It hasn't always been rollerblades and opening night excitement and bliss, but the years have left me knowing that Matt is my lobster and the one I hope to stroll down the beach with when I'm an old lady. I know we'll be the coolest old couple in the neighbourhood, so move onto our block if you can!