Man of La Mancha

Another review is up! The Cumberland County Playhouse is currently running Man of La Mancha through September 27th.

You can check out my official review on BroadwayWorld.com by clicking HERE.

GO SEE THIS SHOW! I've already been back to see it a second time. It's that good.

My Heart Aches for Murder Ballad

Today Murder Ballad is closing in New York. I never got to see it. I'm continually disappointed when a show I'm interested in closes before I can see it. None has bothered me as badly as the premature closing of Murder Ballad, which was supposed to run through September.

I have been thoroughly enchanted by the cast recording and the entire idea of the show. I've been saying for months that I would see it before it closed.

But just a few weeks ago, they announced a premature closing for today. And I wasn't able to make it to New York in time to see it.

I hope that it becomes popular with regional and community theatres. I want the chance to be able to see this show in some form someday. But I suppose only time will tell. Until then, I have to console myself with the cast recording (which is phenomenal, by the way!).

In celebration (or mourning) of the closing of Murder Ballad, I spent my morning making a batch of cupcakes inspired by the show. I wish I lived close enough that I could have seen the show and maybe even delivered these cupcakes to the cast. Instead, I'll share them with my co-workers, who won't get it, but will love that I baked. I'll be sure to tell them they should thank the show. :)

I also find it interesting that it's an Idiot date today. One of the dates mentioned in American Idiot when Johnny writes letters throughout the show. Today's letter was from Johnny to Whatsername, played by Rebecca Naomi Jones on Broadway. Even though Rebecca left Murder Ballad last week to be a part of The Public Theatrer's Shakespeare in the Park musical version of Love's Labour's Lost.

If you haven't been lucky enough to discover Murder Ballad yet, you can still check out the cast recording on their website and I'm including a video below of the title number of the show. Get into it!

Legally Blonde: The Musical

I went to see my third production of Legally Blonde: The Musical over the weekend. The FOURTH if you count the one that was on Broadway that they filmed for MTV. :) 

You can find it on stage at Chattanooga Theatre Centre. 

You can read my review on BroadwayWorld.com HERE. 

The King & I

The King & I plays at The Cumberland County Playhouse through August 30th. There's still pleanty of time to catch this show...but not too much time. :) Get on it. Go see it. 

Read my review for Broadway World by clicking HERE. 

Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson

It's only open until July 12, but Bloody, Bloody Andrew Jackson, now playing at Chattanooga Theatre Center, is a great show!

Read my review on BroadwayWorld.com by clicking HERE.

One Year

There are a million little things that have been going through my head for the past few weeks. Actually, to be honest, off and on for the past year. But as time has passed on, it’s become more frequent. A year ago today, I was in San Francisco. I was with my best friend. I’d met some people who have come to be great friends in the past year. And I was waiting. Waiting for what I knew was a goodbye to the first national tour cast of American Idiot.

In a way, it was a goodbye to the show itself. I’ve seen the second national tour cast three times, but for me, it isn’t the same. The magic and joy I felt the original Broadway cast and the first national tour cast brought to the show I loved so much is no longer there. For some, I’m sure it is. And I’m glad it gets to continue on in its journey and to have new people experience it. But my time with the show has ended.

It’s funny how much this show has come to mean to me. Not just for the show itself, but for the experiences I had because of it. And the people it brought into my life. I’ve made friends I’d have never met otherwise, been places I’d probably have never gone, experienced music and theatre that would have escaped my radar….all because of American Idiot.

There are days when I’ll hanging out at home by myself, cleaning, or cooking, or watching TV and I’ll suddenly think of a friend that’s on the other side of the continent.  I’ll see something on the internet that reminds me of something a friend likes. I’ll be listening to something on the radio and someone will say something that makes me laugh….not because of what they said; but because it reminds me of something one of my Idiot friends said.

I woke up this morning with this on my phone.

Last year, when we were waiting for our trip to San Francisco, I started a countdown on my phone. When it was over, I left it up. I couldn’t bring myself to take it off (it’s been on two subsequent phones since the original). And this morning it was official. It’s been a year. And yes, that’s a picture of the cast of the first national tour in the background. I thought it was appropriate, no?

If I had my way about it, I’d stay home today. In the dark, with ice cream and Idiot cast recordings and mourn. Sadly, I have to go to work. But it won’t stop me from thinking about it all day. I’m grateful for my experiences. I’ve got a few more stories to tell. A few more inside jokes with my best friend. A lot more new friends.

It’s been a year, but Idiot, and the year I had with my new friends, my travels, and the first national tour, will be in my memory forever.