Swami Krees I have known

I've seen quite a few productions of Christmas at the Juniper Tavern in the past 23 years, and three portrayals of Swami Kree stick in my memory.

• Steve Smith played the swami in the original production (and on TV), and he also directed the stage play. His portrayal is my favorite.
• In a revival in the 90s, the swami was played by an actor weighing over 300 pounds, which gave the character a nice Buddha quality.
• In a production in Greensboro, NC, the actor playing the swami got diagnosed with cancer shortly after being cast -- and his deterioration was remarkably swift. By the time the play opened (and they flew me out for opening weekend), he was weak and had an active understudy. He decided scene by scene whether he'd have the strength to go on stage or if the understudy would perform. Given the theme of death in the play, I found the experience of watching him over-whelming. An experience I'll never forget.

Interestingly enough, I played Swami Kree myself in the staged reading that introduced the play to the public. Actually two of my new plays received staged readings on successive weekends. The other, Song of the Salmon, never got produced. JT went on to become my biggest hit. Go figure.

My dear friend the late Ger Moran saw the staged reading and always said that I was his favorite Swami Kree. I attribute this to the fact that he'd smoked some pot before seeing the reading, and therefore everything I did was hilarious.