Inspirational Theater: "The Road to High Street"

I arrived at the Asylum Lab where Andrew Potter had fifteen minutes to load in – by himself. Anyone who has ever had creative aspirations should see The Road to High Street, wherein Potter plays the writer, director, raconteur, technical designer, video producer, musical score – all while being his own stage manager. A mild-mannered, unassuming Potter sits holding his guitar, manipulating a laptop on his right to project to the screen on his left. The guy can juggle. Seriously, he’s a busker. One video showed him juggling lawn chairs.

I didn’t know what a busker was either, but I’ll enlighten you: To busk comes from the Spanish to seek. The noun busker refers to a street performer seeking, well, an audience, and money. Potter recounts his 15-year career that started off, amazingly, living in a beer tank in San Francisco and on to touring in Europe and Japan. As he weaves through the stories on the road with his familial tales, we get to know a passionate, talented, tenacious man who’s still fulfilling his life dream by performing. This truly inspiring performance is like seeing a live documentary, only its subject is sitting right there in front of you. —June 24, 2013