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Let it not go unsaid for too long that I love Joey Fatone.
Every single time I see the man, I'm struck all over again by what grabbed me from the first publicity shot I ever saw. It's a vibe thing. I saw Lance first, and it wasn't even a question, but falling for Joey was entirely different.
Great smile? Check. Handsome? Definitely. But my first thought? How thoroughly personable he seemed.
Well, he hasn't done much to disabuse me of that first impression since then and has in fact added sweet, generous, adorably goofy, and kind to that assessment. And he certainly didn't break character tonight.
On the stage, off the stage, big groups or one-on-one, the man is an absolute class act with everyone whether he's known them his whole life or is just meeting them for the first time right that second. What's remarkable is how readily every single person responds to him - the ease and magnetism are immediate.
Most of this cast has known him for maybe three weeks but watching the performance and later backstage, you could tell how much they all loved him, how easy everything between them was. Backstage, they were all shmoozing between pictures, ribbing and joking around and more often than not spontaneously bursting into song all at once at the slightest provocation. During the play, Joey was smiling constantly and only stopped when the scene expressly called for him not to. The whole production felt like he could've been absolutely anyone at all up there, as unknown as most of the others who certainly didn't treat him any different. He acts in the same way that BT spins - have fun with me, enjoy what I'm doing for what it is not because I'm the one doing it.
And the fans. From grandmothers to little girls who barely reached his waist in height, the occasional guy, fans in various stages of being overcome with 'ohmygodit'sJoeyfrom*NSYNC,' whether they were nervous, beside themselves with excitement, trying to seem blase when walking up, they all walked away visibly happy - grinning, calmed, dabbing at their eyes. I can vouch for his soothing vibe, and that's before he puts his arm around you - you wouldn't know there was anything extraordinary about him if you didn't know there was something extraordinary about him. People who have no business putting on airs can feel artificially unapproachable - everything about Joey is genuinely inviting. The fact that he stayed to sign whatever people wanted him to, took yet more pictures, chatted with people and answered whatever questions they had for him after everyone got their cast pictures was mostly part and parcel of the backstage deal, but he did it all even with his family milling about and the late hour and having a matinee show tomorrow and there being really quite a few of us up there. He really did go beyond the call of professionalism, style and aplomb the entire way.
*
Sidebar, wherein I blather about my favorite dynamic duo:
The whole slash thing aside, the following are some of the big reasons why I love Joey and Lance in all their incarnations - I don't buy into the Lance as naive innocent when he joined the group characterization. He may have come from a (to whatever extent) sheltered household, but no seventeen-year-old kid is entirely clueless about himself or the world. Certainly not a popular kid who got himself elected to student council while also doing show choir, held several jobs, etc.
However, I do think *NSYNC was a new level he probably wasn't ready for in a lot of ways when it happened, for whatever myriad reasons anyone isn't ready to have their lives turned topsy-turvy and having to work harder than the already hard-working people around you to keep up. And the fact that, as you can see in their photographs together since even before they were being professionally done, he had someone as unconditionally loving, that Joey was there as whatever he needed him to be who just accepted and didn't need him to be anything more than himself, must've meant the world. And while Lance was/is certainly a capable and savvy boy, he doesn't seem like he'd ask for help or accept it unless it's foisted on him, not realizing how big something is until he's chest-deep in it and the possibility of digging himself out alone is a pipe dream at best. Aside from providing distraction and comic relief, Joey (and this goes vice-versa as well) seems to somehow make him more honest about himself to himself, where it's all right for there to be things that need fixing and be a good, confident person. Lance seems to make it okay for Joey to not have to have something clever on his tongue and returns the favor of not wanting him to be anything but who he already is. They just relax around each other, like anything is easier now that they're two against the rest of the world. I adore the way Lance's voice gets higher and quieter whenever someone brings up Joey, and the way Joey's gets slower and lower when they mention Lance, the way they both smile fondly at the same. In their photographs together, they're grinning, Lance practically glowing while Joey just mellows into himself (and usually Lance's personal space). It's at least a little remarkable, given how divergent they seem in personality in some ways, but it's all over them both and honestly warms my littlest toes to see.
That's my interpretation for whatever less than $0.02 it might be worth, and it's why I love those two together.
...
Fuck. I did not just make myself cry typing that.
Anyway, someday I'm going to thank him for making Lance as happy as he has and continues to. I thought about doing it last night, and in retrospect I could've when I was getting my picture taken with him and the cast, but it's something I'd like to have the chance to say in at least relative privacy. And he'll probably look at me weird and not have a single thing to say in response, but that'd be fine since I will've told him the one other thing besides congratulations and that he's a class act who deserves all the success in his coming future.
*
Fault him for what you will (and not necessarily wrongly, I'm under no false pretenses of chivalry here) but to me, the man is all heart. I could keep going but I fear it would only get progressively more cliched and trite besides still not doing any justice by anyone, so this is it for now. Show blithering soon to come.
Joey!
Great smile? Check. Handsome? Definitely. But my first thought? How thoroughly personable he seemed.
Well, he hasn't done much to disabuse me of that first impression since then and has in fact added sweet, generous, adorably goofy, and kind to that assessment. And he certainly didn't break character tonight.
On the stage, off the stage, big groups or one-on-one, the man is an absolute class act with everyone whether he's known them his whole life or is just meeting them for the first time right that second. What's remarkable is how readily every single person responds to him - the ease and magnetism are immediate.
Most of this cast has known him for maybe three weeks but watching the performance and later backstage, you could tell how much they all loved him, how easy everything between them was. Backstage, they were all shmoozing between pictures, ribbing and joking around and more often than not spontaneously bursting into song all at once at the slightest provocation. During the play, Joey was smiling constantly and only stopped when the scene expressly called for him not to. The whole production felt like he could've been absolutely anyone at all up there, as unknown as most of the others who certainly didn't treat him any different. He acts in the same way that BT spins - have fun with me, enjoy what I'm doing for what it is not because I'm the one doing it.
And the fans. From grandmothers to little girls who barely reached his waist in height, the occasional guy, fans in various stages of being overcome with 'ohmygodit'sJoeyfrom*NSYNC,' whether they were nervous, beside themselves with excitement, trying to seem blase when walking up, they all walked away visibly happy - grinning, calmed, dabbing at their eyes. I can vouch for his soothing vibe, and that's before he puts his arm around you - you wouldn't know there was anything extraordinary about him if you didn't know there was something extraordinary about him. People who have no business putting on airs can feel artificially unapproachable - everything about Joey is genuinely inviting. The fact that he stayed to sign whatever people wanted him to, took yet more pictures, chatted with people and answered whatever questions they had for him after everyone got their cast pictures was mostly part and parcel of the backstage deal, but he did it all even with his family milling about and the late hour and having a matinee show tomorrow and there being really quite a few of us up there. He really did go beyond the call of professionalism, style and aplomb the entire way.
Sidebar, wherein I blather about my favorite dynamic duo:
The whole slash thing aside, the following are some of the big reasons why I love Joey and Lance in all their incarnations - I don't buy into the Lance as naive innocent when he joined the group characterization. He may have come from a (to whatever extent) sheltered household, but no seventeen-year-old kid is entirely clueless about himself or the world. Certainly not a popular kid who got himself elected to student council while also doing show choir, held several jobs, etc.
However, I do think *NSYNC was a new level he probably wasn't ready for in a lot of ways when it happened, for whatever myriad reasons anyone isn't ready to have their lives turned topsy-turvy and having to work harder than the already hard-working people around you to keep up. And the fact that, as you can see in their photographs together since even before they were being professionally done, he had someone as unconditionally loving, that Joey was there as whatever he needed him to be who just accepted and didn't need him to be anything more than himself, must've meant the world. And while Lance was/is certainly a capable and savvy boy, he doesn't seem like he'd ask for help or accept it unless it's foisted on him, not realizing how big something is until he's chest-deep in it and the possibility of digging himself out alone is a pipe dream at best. Aside from providing distraction and comic relief, Joey (and this goes vice-versa as well) seems to somehow make him more honest about himself to himself, where it's all right for there to be things that need fixing and be a good, confident person. Lance seems to make it okay for Joey to not have to have something clever on his tongue and returns the favor of not wanting him to be anything but who he already is. They just relax around each other, like anything is easier now that they're two against the rest of the world. I adore the way Lance's voice gets higher and quieter whenever someone brings up Joey, and the way Joey's gets slower and lower when they mention Lance, the way they both smile fondly at the same. In their photographs together, they're grinning, Lance practically glowing while Joey just mellows into himself (and usually Lance's personal space). It's at least a little remarkable, given how divergent they seem in personality in some ways, but it's all over them both and honestly warms my littlest toes to see.
That's my interpretation for whatever less than $0.02 it might be worth, and it's why I love those two together.
...
Fuck. I did not just make myself cry typing that.
Anyway, someday I'm going to thank him for making Lance as happy as he has and continues to. I thought about doing it last night, and in retrospect I could've when I was getting my picture taken with him and the cast, but it's something I'd like to have the chance to say in at least relative privacy. And he'll probably look at me weird and not have a single thing to say in response, but that'd be fine since I will've told him the one other thing besides congratulations and that he's a class act who deserves all the success in his coming future.
Fault him for what you will (and not necessarily wrongly, I'm under no false pretenses of chivalry here) but to me, the man is all heart. I could keep going but I fear it would only get progressively more cliched and trite besides still not doing any justice by anyone, so this is it for now. Show blithering soon to come.
Joey!
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I saw Joey in Rent, but I sooooo wish I could have seen him in a production of this scale, something more "community theater" and DIY. I love that scale of things, and I can only imagine how much Joey was in his element working with people he's known for years. Mmmm. *g*
But also the JoLa love! I came into the fandom after the period where that pairing was in vogue, and I was kind of bummed because I totally love it, and nobody writes it anymore. But I completely agree with your assessment, and their relationship makes me really happy, even just on a non-slashy, friendship level.
Thanks so much for posting.
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A real review of Grease is still in the works, but honestly, I didn't go to the play for the play - I went for Joey, and this got posted first because sometimes I forget just how much I love the way he does the things he does. There's no not sharing his enthusiasm for the roles he plays.
It was very community theater, very low budget, and incredibly charming. And actually, most of the cast is new - some of them went to his high school, true, but they're more recent alums. Alfonso he's known since who knows when, his drama teacher (who directed him in the same play in the same role when Joey was in high school!) but other than them, I don't think he knew the rest of the cast before auditions. But they seemed really tight, even only having had three weeks together.
As for Joey and Lance, well, they're something of a passion around these parts. Sadly, I came into the fandom way after the All About the JoLa phase and apparently, a lot of the authors who wrote during that time are no longer in the fandom and took their fic down, which is so sad because you're right, no one writes it anymore and there's so little of it left as it is. I'm glad you think my blathering was at least somewhat merit-based. Really though, the love is all out there, in pictures, footage, etc. As dorky as it is, those two make me happy by making each other happy, which they do so readily and obviously.
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I'm glad you had a good time and I'm so jealous:) And not at all surprised at Joey's nature. A friend and I met him in an elevator at CFTC, and he was so nice and approachable. He totally made me forget to freak out, at least until it was over and the whole thing set in, lol.
Did you notice which family members of his were there? Just curious. Thanks.
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Aah, the JoLa. You've been around here long enough to know how I feel about those two. I wonder what draws people to certain pairings, but for me, it's largely based in the real canon that's laid down throughout the *NSYNC timeline between the two of them.
Oh! You were one of the elevator people! *g* Yeah, apparently that happened quite a bit over Challenge weekend, and so cool! :)
Aah, the Fatone family. His mom and dad were milling about talking to various people before and after the show, as well as his sister Jeanine (no clue about the spelling). Steve is reportedly overseas with Justin, which would hold with the Making the Tour for Striptified that we saw. His grandparents were there too, as well as a few others who looked related, but that's the extent of my knowledge as far as names.
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The Fatones are like that. I've seen a few people and I'm looking at them like "I'm sure they're related to Joey...I wonder who they are."
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The pictures we took aren't mine, they're with
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Ah, I see. Lemme know when she posts them, k? And hey, I don't care if it's flattering, I just wanna see it ^_^.
Btw, check out the icon. Nice, yeah? ^_^
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well, you made me cry reading it, so really, it's only fair! ;)
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