Shakespeare in the park can be brutal. I have appeared in King Lear with tornado sirens blaring and The Tempest in a cold snap wearing only tights and a smile. I have been bitten by mosquitoes during twelve Twelfth Nights and endured wandering alcoholics.

Then came Mark.

In I Hate Hamlet I was the psychic real estate agent for a soap opera star appearing as Hamlet in Central Park. Mark played the ghost of John Barrymore who was accidentally summoned by my character, but only visible to the soap opera star played by my friend Tom.

Mark stood between me and my blocking each time I had to cross the stage. He did this knowing full well that I wasn’t supposed to “see” him. Tom, in the meantime, was trying to act his way out of a paper bag (he was well cast).

One night after a backstage warning I plowed into Mark on route to my purse. He retaliated by grabbing me around the waist and being quite frisky while I pretended to be unaware of him in front of a live audience.

Sadly, we saved the show.