“Two Weeks Until the Rest of My Life,” a story about making hard choices between career and true love is making its way to Thearc Theater in Washington, DC. The play is based on the novel, Two Weeks Until the Rest of My Life written by Harold T. Fisher, host of WHUR-FM’s The Daily Drum. The book was adapted for the stage by Paulette D. Harris, Artistic Director for the Paul Robeson Theatre (PRT) in Buffalo, NY and directed by Buffalo’s PRT theatrical staple, Mary Craig. The play which will run July 20 and 21 at Thearc Theater in DC, had a successful run in Buffalo, NY, with the Buffalo News giving it three out of four stars.
The Burton Wire had an opportunity to catch up with Harold T. Fisher to find out what motivated him to go from broadcaster to novelist to theater producer.
TBW: What inspired you to write the novel?
HTF:Â This was a dream, literally. Back in the early 1990s, I was asleep and dreamt the story, the plot and all of the characters from beginning to end. If you want to call that inspiration, then that’s what it was. It was not necessarily something I thought of in advance. Keeping in mind that I had been writing before, other things, but this particular story was a dream.
TBW:Â Why do you think so many black professionals have such a hard time finding love?
HTF: (Laughs hysterically) Honestly, I think that people have a tendency to focus too much on how to look on paper — our recipes, our pedigree — instead of looking toward compatibility. I believe wholeheartedly that looking for love never works. Love is where you find it. It will find you, but when you go looking for it, it’s never there. People need to spend more time focusing on compatibility; there has to be a common bond; there has to be true friendship. Even before true friendship, the people in question need to genuinely like the person and I don’t think that people do that. They’re more concerned with how the person looks, how much money they have and all of the things that are fleeting. All you have left is who that person is and even when the world changes, that will stay consistent.
TBW: How did your novel become a play?
HTF: It really was a bit of a fluke. A year ago (April 2012), I was flown to Buffalo by the African American Cultural Center (AACC) where the Paul Robeson Theater is housed. I was flown up there to attend a large book club where I was the guest. Paulette Harris who is the Creative Director at AACC in Buffalo, said to me that she would like to adapt the book to a stage play. She was the was the floor manager at WGRZ, when I was the news anchor years ago, so Paulette and I had been friends for many, many years. I knew she was serious and said fine and lets see what happens. Fast forward and she says we’re doing it.
TBW: What was it like the first time you saw the play performed live? How did you feel?
HTF: It was amazing because I had an idea of the characters how they sound and who they are; the play is different because I didn’t do the casting, but it was close. It was a wild moment for me when it came alive on the stage. Like most authors when you write novels, the characters are very real. They breathe, they walk, they talk and they feel real. To see something that I created come alive is incredible. It’s really hard to describe. It’s amazing.
TBW: Journalist, author, producer. What’s next for Harold T. Fisher?
HTF: (Laughing) Keeping my day job. I really am trying to find the time to finish my second novel. Trying to make sure that everything goes off without a hitch. I started writing my latest novel last year. It’s hard to find the time. I started it and I do a little bit of writing here and there. After the play ends, I’m going to get back to rwiritng. I want to finish the second novel. The characters are going to be darker and intense and the issues more important. It’s not going to be as lovable as this novel.
Two Weeks Until the Rest of My Life will run on Saturday, July 20 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. and on July 21 at 2 p.m. at THEARC Theatre is located at 1901 Mississippi Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20020.
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