As usual, Shakespeare had it right when he said, "All the world's a stage/ And all the men and women merely players." When we think of this quote, it often stirs ideas of the many roles we play throughout our life - student, worker, sister, brother, son, best friend and so on. It reminds me of something a little bit different though.
Whenever I hear this, I think not of the roles I play myself but instead about the roles of my supporting cast.
Like all good shows, my life has its regulars - co-stars who frequently appear alongside me and have a significant affect on my story. Among the leads are my parents.
Naturally, as the show's original creators and chief financial backers, they play a major part. The rest of my family also habitually appears, and of course, there are those good friends without whom the show would be incomplete. This large group of people includes some pretty vibrant characters - Southerners with Andy Griffith-esque drawls, fast-talking Northerners, computer geeks, hypochondriacs, flirts, creative, artsy types, bargain-hunters - just to name a few. These people stir up all kinds of action - so much, in fact, that the antics of the three other girls I live with alone would be enough to fill several plays.
It is these main characters that keep my life entertaining and yet, like any good show, what really makes the program is the smaller details. For me, those details are found in the less prominent characters, ones that pop up irregularly and often don't have speaking parts. In college especially, I have begun to notice just how much of a difference these "extras" make. Sometimes they may only come by once to supply a laugh.
Since coming to U.Va., my cast of regular background characters has greatly expanded. Possibly only because I walk the same paths to class or encounter the same people in my major, there are more and more recognizable faces of people I don't know or regularly interact with every year here. Yet my daily life would be much more monotonous without the familiarity of some of these faces. I am certain that everyone has people like this. Often, though we don't actually know them, we have nicknames for these regulars, such as "Ponytail guy," "White-clothes girl," "Pen-chewing man," etc.
During my first year, there was "Phone boy" and "Sexy cowboy." "Phone boy" was a boy that lived in my dormitory and always was talking on his cell phone on the front stoop of our door. It hardly mattered when my friends and I left because he was assuredly always out having a heated discussion on the stairs. Meanwhile, "Sexy cowboy" was this guy who we always seemed to pass near Cabell Hall our first and second years. His character was so named, obviously, because of his rugged good looks and the well-worn pair of cowboy boots he constantly had on his feet. And these are just two specific examples among many. I am sure that if you thought about it, you too would have numerous people who you don't really know but have encountered so much that you have given them some kind of pet name.
The funny thing about these people is how integral they are to our personal plots. Although we never actually meet or interact with them, they are crucial to the setting of our life stories. How dull my days would be without these regular appearances and the occasional comic relief and comfort they provide. Sometimes all your story needs is the boost of a familiar face. Whether it is the chuckle I got the first time I saw "Sexy cowboy" looking very bizarre in sneakers or just the simple comfort I derive from seeing all the recognizable faces, my tale is more interesting because of these characters.
What they say about the theater is true in life as well. When it comes to making a great production, there are no small parts.
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