mode | read this urban german The world famous Berlin TV Tower, the tallest structure in Germany, is a supporting character in Litchfield County-based author Eric Schnall’s debut novel, I Make Envy On Your Disco.
T H E
M O U N T A I N S
98
Berlin Revisited Eric Schnall’s Debut Novel, I Make Envy On Your Disco, Is A Radiant Rediscovery Of Germany’s Capital—And Your Authentic Self. | By James Long
A
s with the ancient Greeks, I’ve always been a believer in fate and it tends to aim directly for me. A few weeks after graduating from college, I worked as a production assistant for a Broadway-bound play, A Meeting By The River, by the eminent British-American novelist and playwright Su mme r 2024
Christopher Isherwood and his long-time partner, acclaimed artist Don Bachardy. The play, newly adapted from Isherwood’s 1967 novel of the same name, united renowned Broadway producers, a Tony Award-winning director and a star-studded cast—but would ultimately be eviscerated by the Broadway critics and close after opening night. Although the Palace Theatre’s lights went dark with a humiliating and financial
finality, among the memories that have never dimmed for me are the occasions when I hobnobbed with Isherwood and Bachardy. After rehearsals, I’d sometimes accompany Chris and Don—and maybe one or two other famished cast members— for a casual bite where conversation would inevitably turn to the state of rehearsals, arguments with the director and stars over rewrites (there were many) and other complications that predictably arise when producing a new play. After dinner, however, with my youthful vigor yet unspoiled, I’d coax Chris and Don into joining other cast and crew late-night habitués at a nearby gay club, where center stage meant an illuminated dance floor under a de rigueur disco ball. Upon arriving, in no time I’d find myself dancing to Donna