Audience of One: Stories of Stage, Screen, and Solitude

by Jodi Eichelberger

Jodi Eichelberger's first book of personal narratives takes you on a journey from the back alleys of his hometown in Boise, Idaho to the boards of Broadway. Since his career in the performing arts began as an itinerant puppeteer touring to schools, there has always been pressure to strive for bigger and bigger audiences. But in this collection, Jodi focuses on situations involving a single viewpoint. These solo audiences might be in crowded a stage manager viewing an infrared monitor at a sold out Broadway show, a man whose job is to watch the showers at a geothermal pool in Iceland, or a praying mantis in a lilac bush. Through these stories we journey from the Pacific Northwest, to New York, to Iceland, and to a factory town in China.The stories range from deeply personal to an insider's view of popular entertainment Jodi worked on such as the Tony award-winning Broadway musical Avenue Q, the popular children's television program Lazytown, and a below-ground view of the children's television character Elmo in the feature film Elmo in Grouchland.

161 pages, Paperback

Published November 20, 2023

Reviews

[A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this because my mom worked with the author on a few shows in Portland a good twenty years ago, and I got to meet him a few times when I was in my early teens and hanging out at rehearsals.

I enjoyed the book, but due to my editor-brain, I felt it needed a more thorough edit and some formatting adjustments. Since it's a collection of stories from the author's life using the theme of "audience of one," it does make a sort of sense for the stories to be in non-linear order, but I'm not sure that worked for each part of the book. The opening chapter is fantastic, though, and really pulled me in for the rest of the book.

[Z · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had purchased this book when Jodi first published it in 2023, but it wasn’t until recently that I saw it on our shelf and picked it up. Missing my friend Jodi, it was wonderful to hear these stories. I say hear because as I’m reading I can hear his voice telling them. The book is a wonderful peek into the life of a performer, detailing with wonderful description the many adventures and twists and turns of life. Thank you Jodi for sharing with us. The last few days I have been the audience of one to these chapters of your life. It has been a gift. ❤️

[Tawnya · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a delight!! I laughed and cried…and gagged a little. Haha. Don’t miss this wonderful book!