My Dinner with Andre

Weekly wisdom to level up your creative life in 3 minutes, for free.

A SHORT STORY

Recently, I stumbled upon an interview with the actor Rainn Wilson, who shared the best piece of advice he ever received from a mutual teacher of ours—an incredible artist named André Gregory.

Rainn was grappling with a particularly cynical moment when André, without hesitation, grasped his arm and fixed him with a firm gaze. André's words were simple yet profound: "Stop it. Don't do it. Don't be cynical. If you're cynical, they win."

Rainn reflected on this transformative moment, realizing that nurturing hope and spreading joy is perhaps our highest spiritual calling.

André Gregory was known for his ability to inspire people. He gained fame for his 1981 film, "My Dinner with André," in which he sat down with his close friend Wally Shawn and shared transformative wisdom from his life experiences.

I first encountered André in 2003 at a Theater Against War demonstration protesting the Iraq War, and I was captivated by his presence. After the event, as fate would have it, I crossed paths with him on the street. My intuition urged me to turn around and strike up a conversation.

I did just that and later invited him to speak at my college through my student group I had co-founded to host workshops. This led to many dinners of my own with André.

Among his incredible stories, there are two gifts from André that I will forever cherish.

I recall him sharing a story about how he met the great director Jerzy Grotowski. André recounted, "A friend advised me to go to France to see Grotowski, so I went."

"You just went?" I asked. "What about bills, money?"

"It was simple," he replied. "I went, I said yes, and everything fell into place."

More importantly, André granted me permission to embark on my own hero's journey. In 2006, I reached out to him for advice on where I should explore in the world.

He suggested I go to Italy to work with his friends at the Workcenter of Jerzy Grotowski and Thomas Richards.

So, I went. I said yes. And everything fell into place.

What is a place in your life you need permission to say yes to?

A CREATIVE TOOL

I believe that part of understanding the power of AI is by making these tools fun and accessible. Enter BaiRBIE - a fun parody project that uses AI to make you into everyone’s favorite doll.

Here is my Ken version below.

Want to try your own?

Click here.

A PIECE OF ART

“For the Road to Santiago” by David Whyte

originally published in Still Possible

For the road to Santiago,
don’t make new declarations
about what to bring
and what to leave behind.

Bring what you have.

You were always going
that way anyway,
you were always
going there all along.

Grateful,

Michael