11 Comments
User's avatar
Kevin Sessums's avatar

I am now in Stratford-upon-Avon in a cafe waiting to check into my hotel at 3 and proofread this more carefully instead of sleepily as I did last night before posting it. Sorry about the typos and even getting the title of the play wrong at the Almeida. It was Otherland, not Otherworld. And thanks - a deeply felt one - to those of you who stick with these rather long weekly letters and read them to the end because I really do put a lot of thought into them as I try to weave it all together. Thanks for subscribing as well. These columns three to four times a week make up this late-life iteration of life mostly lived as a writer. Thank you for making it possible for me to continue doing so in a financial sense. Substack has put the discipline of deadlines and a job back into life. I not only needed that. I missed it too. I love a deadline. And I love writing. It's really all I have left.

Expand full comment
Linda Stefkovic's avatar

Thank you for sharing your experiences with Sidney Poitier. At age 70, he is also a treasured icon in my life. I recently watched the 2022 Oprah co-produced documentary, "Sidney." I will be watching it again. And maybe again.

I love your writing. But Dear Kevin: it is not really all that you have left. You have all of the living you do so fully and joyfully, which yes, connects infinitely to your writing ("Everything connects.") but it is a living breathing organism all its own too. I thank the Powers that you share it all with us.

Expand full comment
Christina Johnson's avatar

And…all of that love is obvious and gives all of us a reason to smile. Twenty years ago, I saw Liz Calloway in a very intimate venue and was enchanted!

Expand full comment
Michael's avatar

You resonate so completely. These posts are wondrous. Forever grateful.

Expand full comment
curtis thortsensen's avatar

Thank you for posting Liz Calloway and

Julian Ovenden s performance , I love them both and was jealous when I heard that you saw them perform together . Also I have a huge crush on Julian .

Expand full comment
Robert C Montano III's avatar

I, too, once sat next to Diahann Carroll at dinner--at Mortimer's. We talked until closing. I am still in love with her.

Expand full comment
Barbara Connelly's avatar

What wonderful stories & memories you shared in this post.

And how lovely to be in Londen so filled with so many artistic pleasures. Thank you for your beautiful writing. ⚘️

Expand full comment
Amie Elizabeth White's avatar

I love the 'rather long weekly letters' and having the chance to experience the city through your eyes and mind, coupled with the anecdotes about the people you meet along the way. I also call Kilburn home, so your walks down to town via Marylebone etc. are steps I take myself, making your newsletter all the more interesting. Are you planning to see My Master Builder when it arrives in April?

Expand full comment
Kevin Sessums's avatar

thanks so much ... alas I will be leaving on April 2nd for Porto and Tangier in the coming months but will be back in October

Expand full comment
Norine Jameson's avatar

I am profoundly moved once again. Thank you

Expand full comment
Mitchell Baker's avatar

Another great installment.

And I have pulled and saved these lines. So apt for this moment:

"Lack of empathy is not only a signal for sociopathy, but also for fascism. It doesn’t run on a parallel track though. It’s on the same one."

Expand full comment