I witnessed something unusual today. It must be what it's like when two alternate realities collide.

I was off all afternoon, and I rambled out to see "Quantum Of Solace," which definitely holds its own within the action/James Bond/thriller genre. I arrived back at our hotel just as the cast returned from their afternoon performance. Simultaneously, a large and unusual group of visitors hit the lobby as well. Lots of squealed greetings, big hugs, and excited chatter ensued. I found myself wondering, "Who are all these NEW people?" And the visitors were seemingly doppelgangers for our cast: many dancers, with their characteristic posture, and the deadest giveaway: several Little People* whom I had never met. It's much too far along in the process for them to be replacing anybody, let alone several anybodies, I thought, leaving me perplexed.

The explanation: the show I'm traveling with has multiple companies in multiple cities. We're in Milwaukee, and tonight the nearby Chicago cast came to visit and watch the show. Some of our company has worked with members of theirs, and hence the excited reunions.

Myself, I thought I was in the middle of some sort of string-theoretical post-modern meltdown of the fabric of spacetime.

Christmas is magic, I guess.

* "Little People": The preferred term for people who are short of stature - in this show, several cast members who play Santa's helpers and teddy bears are LP's.