"Five More Minutes Till Going On, Miss Hamilton! Five Minutes! Five Minutes!"

                                 Those haunting words, darlings, are the voices heard in the head of Andrea Leeds, as actress Kay Hamilton in "Stage Door," as she ascends the stairs to what we know will be her suicidal jump from the window.  I am reminded of this, because, just three weeks after reporting the suicide of working man actor Stephen Brockway, (June 15!!!!) another suicide has taken place in the show biz community, in the theater, too, but a technician!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                   He was just 27 years old. He had graduated from the University of Illinois, with a degree in Lighting Design, and he seemed to have made a success in New York in a business where success, be it performance or technical, is hard to come by.

                                     Jason Lindahl was currently serving as the Video Technician on the currently running "Ghost: The Musical."  He had performed the same duties on "Spider Man: Turn Off The Dark," for a year, and with the recent Broadway revival of "Bye, Bye, Birdie" in 2010.
He also worked on the production of "Dreamgirls," as an Associate Media Designer, at New York's famed Apollo Theatre!!!!!!!!!!

                                        As we say, Jason had "made it!"

                                         But something was horribly wrong.  It is known what happened, but of course, what I, and everyone else I am sure who reads about Jason, wants to know, is why???????

                                          Jason reportedly went missing on Sunday, July 1. He was last seen in Astoria, near his home, at 34th Street (Queens) and Broadway.  Days before, he had sent a set of suicidal emails to some close friends, and in his home he left a handwritten suicide note.

                                            The first thing I want to know is why didn't these friends do something, as soon as they discovered the email?????  Or did they????????????

                                              His body is being examined to determine actual cause of death, but of course it is the why that most want to know.

                                                 Is there some kind of suicidal outbreak in the Theater Community???  First, Stephen Brockway, and now Jason Lindhal!!!!!   I am telling you, if a month or so from now, a third young person in the theater does themselves in, I will start to wonder.

                                                    What had been going on?  We may never know? But rest assured, darlings, as the Raving Queen, I have a few ins within this community, and if I find out anything definite, I will report back to you.

                                                        Because we cannot have talented young members of the Theater Community giving up.  During the 80s and the 90s, this community lost some of its best practitioners to AIDS. I hate to think what we are going to lose the future to now!!!!!!!!!!

                                                            Let us remember Jason and his family in prayer, and most of all pray that there are no more senseless deaths in this always emotionally and financially precarious community!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                                               Amen, honey!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!