FROM THE BENCH
The Beauty of
the Bard Show
Hon. Sarah L. Doyle
Chief Judge,
Georgia Court
of Appeals
Some time in the late 90s, Cathy
O’Neil came up with the brilliant
idea to charge lawyers money to
watch other lawyers sing, dance,
and perform skits. She called it the
Bard Show. When try-outs for its
third iteration came around, a good
friend who can really sing– Teresa
Bonder–called and convinced me
to try out. "They need dancers," she
said.
That year I ended up performing in
just a Lakers jersey as a Gold Club
dancer alongside Lisa Moore and
Cathy. Despite that scene, I can’t
help going back for more. Over the
years, I have had the pleasure of
performing as a lip-synching Britney Spears, an accused criminal
defendant in Cell Block Tango (from
the Broadway musical "Chicago"),
and the always important character: back up dancer number 3, 5, or
6. This year I got to be "FBI #3" to
Judge Robert McBurney’s "FBI #5."
We just concluded Bard Show 12
called "Mock the Vote," possibly the
best Bard Show ever. Over the years,
I have met some amazing judges
and lawyers who I would likely never
have encountered in practice. While
Don Samuel (criminal defense attorney) is a long time cast member,
my first show also included criminal
defense attorneys Eddie Garland
and Bruce Harvey–who without
Cathy’s approval and against her
specific directive infamously decided to dance across the stage to join
22
November 2016
a wedding/merger scene presided
over by attorney Jeff Brickman.
I first met my colleague, Judge Chris
McFadden on set. I was mesmerized by his performance as a backup
dancer/rapper to Peter Varney’s
version of Eminem. No one could
forget quartets sung by Stan Smith,
Michael Caldwell, David Schaeffer, Kevin Wilson, and/or Teresa
Bonder, or the songs sung by our
leading ladies, Adele Vespa, Susan
Atkinson, Hope Kenyon, Courtney
McBurney, and Elizabeth Story, just
to name a few. I also had the pleasure of singing and dancing with
the now deceased Judge Rowland
Barnes and his wife, Claudia, the
only non-attorney cast member allowed on stage!
It is hard to put in words how fantastic it is to be a part of this show.
The production and directing staff,
not to mention the music directors, are second to none, tirelessly
working to make sure that the rest
of us know where to be and when.
Over the years, I commented on
the script, choreographed dance
numbers, and assisted with direction. Other years, I just showed up
to dance; but, in every production,
no matter my role, I have had the
benefit of working with and learning from some of the best attorneys
and judges in the State of Georgia
(and beyond).
The level of commitment to this effort is immeasurable. We have had a
performer lose a finger (Marc Clark)
and one try to pass a kidney stone
(Kevin Wilson) or simply throw up
on show day (me). All still got up on
stage and performed. When you
rely on someone to catch you in a
dance move or show up for practice
nightly for weeks on end, you learn
who you can depend on. And isn’t
that the end all, be all of professionalism? I trust these cast members.
I know they can be depended on,
and hopefully they know they can
depend on me.
There are other benefits as well.
When I was a young litigator and
showed up in Judge Jackson Bedford’s courtroom, I knew him as
just a regular ‘ole cast member, and
I wasn’t so fearful of what might
happen that day in court. Not that
I would win, but that I knew I would
be treated fairly. And now when I
see a cast member’s name on a brief,
I have comfort that I can trust the
facts and law that they cite.
The beauty of the Bard Show is not
only that it is fun for the cast and
raises money for a good cause, but it
is the ultimate CLE on professionalism. It taught me (and hopefully
the others) to be dependable, to be
courteous to those I am working
with, and to respect other people’s
time. I highly recommend it to the
rest of you.
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