Blake, our Musical Theatre trained bartender and photographer, provided us with these pictures to wish you a Happy New Year! 
yay! a café that felt like home. veteran café cast members (garry, eric, sher, amy, nathan, bonnie et moi) that had rehearsed together consistently. menz completely tricked out for h'ween so the atmosphere was so appropo. even the tv got turned off (and those of you who know, know 'zackly what i mean). cozy, candle-lit tables peppering the dance floor. patrons of the fan, friend, family and unfamiliar forms. thank you so much to all. so appreciative of having an audience.
raymond who brought a friend who found inspiration for a documentary in one of the rants. amy macA who fought the call of her bed to come and see what the café was all about... subsequently inspiring the idea to have a mt. a reunion at a café!
darrell having a busy busy (read: great) night serving at the bar. keeping focus at the table in a quiet, dramatic, real monologue despite nearby showtune belting. rants about mice, herpes and halloween. keelin already busting a gut on the first line of daBig ensemble scene. running out of time with orders left to fill for latercomers, the dj graciously waiting to set up for his dance party. a new patron drinking it all in and reflecting that sometimes he couldn't tell who was acting and who wasn't - in a good way.
As part of the Go North! Festival celebrating the North End and the amazing community of artists and small businesses there, DaPoPo put on an all-day Café buffet at The Good Food Emporium.
One particular tour was greeted with the beautiful chorus of "Sunday" from our production of "Sunday in the Park with George" Then a rapid fire sonnet, a monologue from "Apocalypse 2006" and a scene from our adaptation of "RUR" and they were out the door to the next stop on the tour.
Meg dropped by on her way to the last performance of her show "Honey & Jupiter" but we couldn't entice her to perform. Bonnie organized us all and jumped into the fray when the big groups came.
lucky enough to be accepted into this group of eager and adventurous performers without question. An enthusiastic smile and a “this is Kristi, she’s cool” from one was enough to let me fly with the flock. Yeehaw!
It was an encore performance for Café DaPoPo a la Bob and Lori's on Thursday evening, and what an evening it was. With many of our Café stalwarts tied up (gloriously) with Biography (great show, go see it), it was a brand new sort of Café experience. Steven Bourque, Andrea Dymond, Chris Ferrilll and myself (Keelin Jack) returned after hiatus of various lengths, teaming up with newcomers Andre Dumont, Meghan Hubley and Annie Valentina to create a pretty successful night of theatrical treats, if I do say so myself.
After that, I may not be the best person to comment on the overall feel of the Café, as I was running back to back scenes and monologues from this point onward. I can say, however, that everyone seemed lively, happy and entertained. There was a steady flow of orders, and a lot of new faces... great to see.
Highlights include: the interruption of a highbrow Shaw scene by a random off the street looking for the bathroom (it was oddly appropriate... thanks to the ladies who ordered it, for their sense of humour); the Big Ensemble Scene, Everyman, and the audience members participating with their interesting interpretation of "penance"... a.k.a. what to do when you are handed a scourge; a new Happening "3 Monkeys" from returning Master of the Happening - Steven Bourque; delicious food provider and Bob and Loris proprietor Paul Rogers stepping in to provide us with a lovely rendition of "Ich grolle nicht"; and the ever in-the-wings Bonnie making her Café debut as an actor, complete with knitting and Southern accent, in a scene from Crimes of the Heart.
Then you've got to find a space to rehearse and present your productions, 
This was a new, but temporary venue for the monthly „theatre à la carte“ event staged by this talented and innovative group of actors, vocalists and musicians. I was not at any of the previous evenings at Mollyz Diner, but friends told me that this modern-looking coffee shop is a larger and less intimate space. Nevertheless one was well aware of what was going on at the tables in the vicinity of one’s own and the pace at which orders were being filled was quite extraordinary. Once it a while I was curious enough to get up to go and see what was being served up to the customers in other parts of the room and to take photographs of the interaction between the actors and their audience. People seemed to be enjoying themselves immensely.
A tired and dispirited waitress dressed in pink came and sat down at table next to mine to complain about her lot in life. 
A heartrending ballad was performed by a lanky youth wearing a scarlet sheath dress and a black leather necklace with spikes. 
On my way back from visiting the washroom I saw a man hiding behind a tree, with a hand puppet emerging from the leaves, singing an operatic aria. 
Another pair, accompanied by a keyboard sang a number from a musical by Stephen Sondheim.
There were popular song solos, rants and raves, one-act plays, bedtime stories with cuddly toys and lots more to choose from on the menu. 
In another unforgettable scene involving cross-dressing, a hairy Katherine was wooed with considerable verve and ardour by a smooth-faced Petrucchio. I should have like to have seen and heard everything on the menu that night, but that is why one should attend Café DaPoPo evenings more than one time – it’s constantly changing. I have a bit farther to travel than some, but I’ll certainly try.
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Excerpts from Four Actors, The Modern World and 13 Ways and we miss Shtev though Kim tries as the creepy german kid. A nod to Pip and Shtev as we open with a performance of "Pi.".JPG)
An ensemble number to start it off and to almost end it seemed appropriate, though we must try not to stand in a line like that again (!) and the finale a first-draft-special-for-the-cafe Bedtime Story, "Juliard Hears the Call of the Jungle," penned and read by Kim. Augmented by Keelin's sublime inspiration to lead remaining patrons to a carpeted area to sit on the floor with their respective stuffed animals.
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