Where Are We Runnin'?
I hope that everyone gets to experience one of those surreal NYC moments. You know, the times when you are clinking glasses at the same party as Donald Trump and Mayor Guiliani. Or seeing a blockbuster movie being filmed in front of your apartment. Or even walking through Gramercy Park at dusk, when the flowers are blooming, the crickets are starting to chirp, and you can actually smell nature at it's best (and I'm not referring to bodily functions.)
I feel lucky to have had many magical New York moments; one in particular occurred last year. I had received a random email alerting me to an upcoming video production of a Lenny Kravitz video, looking for extras. They were shooting the "Where Are We Runnin'?" video on an early Sunday evening at the Hammerstein ballroom. Figuring the worse that could happen was I showed up and it was a fluke or too crowded, I embarked to the ballroom, sister Jessica and friend Robyn in tow.
Being the superstar that she is, Robyn donned her Dior sunglasses and a funky jacket: she needed to stand out in the video. Jessica and I wore bright red tank tops. When we got to the ballroom we saw we were in for a treat: a nice long line. But alas, we were allowed in and were ushered to the sixth floor, where the stage was.
At first, we were not permitted to come within 10 feet of the stage, and had to line up behind the rope, pretending that we were fans at a Lenny Kravitz video. The next thing you know, the ropes were removed and people were charging the stage to be as upfront and personal as possible. We scored. While not in the first row, we were less than 5 feet back. Mind you, people were pushing and screaming, and there was no music, or worse, no Lenny Kravitz.
Then the most incredible thing happened: Lenny walked out on stage. He talked to us. He sang to us. He had that long straight hair at the time and was wearing spurs and a fringy vest. He still looked hot. The video was shot of us cheering him on at a concert while he was onstage "performing" to the music. They even gave out a handful of disposable cameras to take pictures during the concert.
Our whole "video extra" experience lasted about two hours. And when the video came out a few months later, if you play it in slow motion, you can see Robyn's hand in the air, and a glimpse of my sister's hair. And maybe, but we're not sure, you can see me wave.
I feel lucky to have had many magical New York moments; one in particular occurred last year. I had received a random email alerting me to an upcoming video production of a Lenny Kravitz video, looking for extras. They were shooting the "Where Are We Runnin'?" video on an early Sunday evening at the Hammerstein ballroom. Figuring the worse that could happen was I showed up and it was a fluke or too crowded, I embarked to the ballroom, sister Jessica and friend Robyn in tow.
Being the superstar that she is, Robyn donned her Dior sunglasses and a funky jacket: she needed to stand out in the video. Jessica and I wore bright red tank tops. When we got to the ballroom we saw we were in for a treat: a nice long line. But alas, we were allowed in and were ushered to the sixth floor, where the stage was.
At first, we were not permitted to come within 10 feet of the stage, and had to line up behind the rope, pretending that we were fans at a Lenny Kravitz video. The next thing you know, the ropes were removed and people were charging the stage to be as upfront and personal as possible. We scored. While not in the first row, we were less than 5 feet back. Mind you, people were pushing and screaming, and there was no music, or worse, no Lenny Kravitz.
Then the most incredible thing happened: Lenny walked out on stage. He talked to us. He sang to us. He had that long straight hair at the time and was wearing spurs and a fringy vest. He still looked hot. The video was shot of us cheering him on at a concert while he was onstage "performing" to the music. They even gave out a handful of disposable cameras to take pictures during the concert.
Our whole "video extra" experience lasted about two hours. And when the video came out a few months later, if you play it in slow motion, you can see Robyn's hand in the air, and a glimpse of my sister's hair. And maybe, but we're not sure, you can see me wave.
posted by Does Debbie @ 12:09 PM
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