What Do We Mean By Courtship Consultants?
Charm School is a twenty-first century romantic comedy told from the perspective of a guy who’s 700 years behind the times. He insists on conducting his love life the old-fashioned way. And we mean . . . the OLD . . . -fashioned way. The way things were done in the times of kings and queens and knights and peasants.
Nobody else on the dating circuit in modern Chicago thinks the way Professor Oren C. Watson does. Consequently, he’s a lonely man. But a lonely man on a mission. A mission to prove the value of chivalry to modern society. In other words, he expects the world to turn for his pleasure.
It’s this delusional man’s good fortune to befriend the owner of Chicago’s hottest nightclub — a man named Victor Vance; the only man in town able to see through Oren’s Don Quixote Complex, and willing to pull him out of it.
Brand Ambassadors
Essentially, Charm School is about courtship. More specifically, the dating process. Even more specifically, romantic attraction. And we’re not talking about one-night-stand attraction. We’re talking about forever attraction. What turns people on, to the extent that they wanna spend the rest of their lives together?
What inspires human beings — notoriously erratic creatures (Just look at our current President; he changes his mind on any given topic several times a day.) — to make that huge commitment? What drives us to seek that profoundest of human relationships?
We asked a few of Chicago’s brightest socialites — people who get paid to be sociable; e.g., life coaches, event planners, talent agents — to lead discussions in the comments section of each episode of Charm School. The opinions of our Courtship Consultants are entirely their own. But we welcome all fans of love, sex, romance, and marriage to these discussions!
Meet Our View-From-Below Courtship Consultants
Lauren Taylor
Lauren is a talent agent with Noam Shoam, having worked in film and TV casting for 25 years; not only in Chicago, but also in Atlanta and L.A. “Social and business skills are just as important as acting skills,” Ms. Taylor insists; who has mentored over 2500 performers, many of whom are now household names. Meaning they’re well known in their own houses.
So far, her favorite character in Charm School is Vic. “I’ve known so many hot crazy guys like that,” she says.
Justin Powell
Justin is the Creative Director at Chicago design giant Wall Space, Inc. He also writes for Chicago LGBTQRXIW~ Magazine. “Dating is tough,” admits Justin. “Regardless of sexual preference or identity. I’m glad I’m married!”
His favorite character in Charm School, by far, is Fin. “Fin is hot, hot, hot! I wanna have drinks with Fin at the Union League.”
Cindy Tuttle
Cindy is an event planner with Ball-n-Chain, Chicago’s premier one-stop wedding shop. Before that, she worked for several speed dating companies. Still single, “I’m in no hurry to settle down,” she says.
Her favorite character in Charm School is Loredana. “Loredana is my hero; she changed my life!” laughs Cindy. “After my last break-up, I swore I’d never date again. Loredana changed all that for me. And now I couldn’t be happier with the five guys I date.”
Guadalupe Esposito
Lupe owns and operates Which Fork Academy; which offers classes, seminars, and private tutoring in personal, professional, and cultural etiquette. “It’s important to know how to behave in any environment, if you want to make money and be happy,” says Ms. Esposito.
Her favorite character in Charm School is Oren. “I’m attracted to intelligent men. And I think I’m the only woman in the world who is.”
Stacey Pointer
Stacey is currently studying at Landmark to become a life coach. She says that all of her friends come to her for dating advice, even though she has much less experience than they. “I think they’re attracted to the fact that I don’t need a man to be happy.”
Ms. Pointer’s favorite character in Charm School is Patti. “I wish I had the guts to let it all hang out,” she laughs.
Episodes
1. Beauty School Dropouts
A bookworm and a womanizer start a charm school for young women. The students walk out. The guys blame each other.
2. When the Professor Met the Hottie
Oren and a guy friend attend a soirée at the Women’s Athletic Club. Oren dumps the guy friend for a stunning debutante named Eva.
3. When the Professor Met the Nightclub Owner
Eva goes missing. Oren wakes up from a blackout hangover with a tattoo he doesn’t remember getting. Finds a mysterious note.
4. The Bromance Begins
Oren discovers the truth about Eva. Vic introduces Oren to a whole new world at Club L’Enclave.