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In Reply to: You must realize then that posted by Acheick on July 26, 2002 at 00:08:14:
I almost hate to tell this story, because I'm 100% sure it will be used against me some day.. but what the heck.
Regarding not becoming like Berg...
When I was right out of college, I started a group called "Roadshow Players" that did threatre for children. We went from place to place and did a half our show for kids. We would perform at libraries, orphanages, birthday parties, a home for mentally retarded adults, a home for asthmatic children, Children's hospital, summer camps... basicaly anyplace where there was a captive audience of kids.
Over the few years I did that, I developed a core group of young people (young like me, 18-24) who would literally do anything I asked them to do. I was their director. If I told them to talk across the stage and jump up and down, they would do that. If I told them to rehearse for twelve hours without a break, they would do that. If I told them to go out and get me lunch, they would do that. They were volunteers, but they worked harder for me, than they did at their jobs.
In reality, I treated them very well, and I did not abuse these people, and that is probably the reason they respected me enough to do what I said. I really didn't ask them to do unreasonable things. But, in time I did realize that if I did ask them to do unreasonable things, a certain number of them would probably do it.
Then, before anything really sinister could happen, I got busy trying to make a living and quit the group. I'll never know if I really could have developed into the leader of a theatre cult. My guess is, that I could have. I still run into some of those people from time to time, and many of them tell me that working with Roadshow Players was the best, most productive thing they ever did in their lives. After that, it was just about showing up at work every day. That always surprises me, because we are all in our 40's now, and I've had the chance to do some pretty interesting things since then.
But, I do think that some people who find themselves in control of a number of young, impressionable people, would cease on that opportunity.
I had mine, and I didn't do it.
