If you love theater, you become very familiar with loss. Not just because so many plays have loss at their core, but because the art form itself is so ephemeral. You sit in a theater, experience something extraordinary, and then, poof, it vanishes. Unlike a favorite painting or poem or even a movie — you can't return to it. You can't go back and rewatch a favorite scene or savor a delicious stanza. Theater is more immediate and more fragile. If you love theater, you develop an appreciation and skill for savoring that immediacy and holding on to the things that move you. Because it's so temporary, you must be present now — before it's gone. As a lifelong student of the theater, that presence has helped me through challenging moments. I know how to hold on. How to commit. How to be present. For so many of us, this moment has been especially challenging. So much in the world and so much in our lives seems in the balance. We have become acutely aware of those things we value and find essential, especially in difficult times like these... and we feel the profound loss of those things that are gone. If like me, you've found KCRW to be one of those things you rely on, something that makes difficult moments easier to navigate, something so ever-present in your daily life you can't imagine living without it — if that's you, now is the moment to be present for KCRW. Consider making an extra gift if you can. Consider asking a friend if they're a member. Consider how much KCRW means to you and our community. Without that support and that presence, things we value become ephemeral (and not like a brilliant piece of theater). Thanks for reading and thanks for supporting KCRW. This is Anthony Byrnes Opening the Curtain on LA Theater for KCRW.

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