Timelessness and Spontaneous Theater-Going Gone Wrong

Okay… So, let me set up this topic with the retelling of the story of our Saturday (as I’ve retold this story a number of times already). It’s the end of the school year and our department hosted our Faculty, Students and Family picnic complete with barbeque, ultimate Frisbee and soda (hooray…). I ended up wearing shorts because the weather has really been up and down recently with snow in May and then sunshine days later. While the picnic was going on, I had the thought that Les Miserables was playing down in Colorado Springs (near where the picnic was) because a friend on Facebook posted that they were looking for someone to go with on Saturday. I always like the idea of attending the theater spontaneously (something I’ve done with Laura a few times now), and after looking at prices online, we figured we could go to the theater in person to try to get tickets. Sure enough, the Les Miserables poster was outside (a telltale sign that it must be playing there) and I asked for tickets for that night’s show.

While we were waiting for the show, I really wanted to try to find a pair of pants in town so that I didn’t look so disheveled since we were going to the theater (I already had hat hair and looked like I was coming from a ball game). We walked all over downtown and found two stores that had men’s clothing. However, both really didn’t have a decent pair of pants for the situation ($80 for hiking pants or $155 for suit pants were my only two realistic options). We ended up agreeing that the shorts wouldn’t be too big of a deal. So, we sat down to dinner at a brewery as we killed time before the show. When we were almost finished eating, I quickly looked at the tickets to double check the start time and realized they were not for Les Mis. They were, in fact, for the Colorado Springs Philharmonic’s Star Spangled Pops (no wonder why we were able to get center orchestra seats on the day of the show for only $55 each). We got the date wrong. After going back to the theater to explain our mistake with dates and found out that Les Mis wouldn’t be playing until the first week of June, we could only exchange the tickets for another Philharmonic event and had to pay full price for future tickets for Les Mis (balcony seats since it’s a members only night). Spontaneous theater-going gone wrong. “It’s an old song… it’s a sad song… but, we’re gonna sing it again and again”. We will definitely continue our attempts of spontaneous theater-going in the future.   

So, long story short, the next Broadway musicals we will see are Hadestown and Be More Chill on June 1^st. We’re coming back to see Les Miserables on June 5^th and are taking our kid/kids (we’ll see) to Wicked on June 9^th.  And… hooray… we unintentionally get to see the Colorado Springs Philharmonic production of “Bolero” this weekend.

In preparation of seeing a show, Laura and I generally listen to the OBC recording to get familiarized with the story. We’ve pretty much been listening to the cast albums of Hadestown and Be More Chill on repeat since we bought our Broadway tickets back in December before either show had even opened. The OBC of Be More Chill was just recently released earlier this month, which we listened to the morning it came out, and Hadestown won’t be released until after we see it on Broadway. With that background in mind, we started listening to Les Miserables in the car. I saw the national tour of Les Mis back in the 2010/2011 timeframe in Boston and remember not really knowing the story at all at the time and not really being able to follow the plot. Laura, on the other hand, knows every word of every song in Les Mis (similar to Rent, which we saw together back in February, and Phantom of the Opera, which we’d like to see together when it plays in Denver later this year), both of which, she has seen multiple times (I’ve seen both shows just once). When you look at a classic show like Les Mis, which is the 5^th longest running Broadway show in history, you get a sense of timelessness; that these shows reach audiences and speak to audiences regardless of time and age. These are the “old songs” as Hermes puts it. As we were listening to Les Mis, Laura even said something to the effect of this show being able to be retold in today’s time and backdrop (the single mother having to make really difficult decisions to try to provide for their kid and growing up in a sub-optimal set of circumstances).

So, what makes a show timeless? What are the qualities of a story or a production that are able to transcend time and reach audiences regardless of their backgrounds or upbringings (the stories that we hear “again and again”)? In talking about Hamilton, the former President, Barack Obama, said that it was a truly American story and embodies the American Dream. Certainly, there is some facet of life within that show that anyone can relate to whether it is the pursuit of something greater, internal drive and motivation, feelings of inadequacy and even feelings surrounding a relationship or bad experiences thereof. These are the things that speak to us in that case.

Laura and I saw Cats together shortly after we found out that her grandmother, who lived in Chicago, sadly passed away. Regardless of how “silly” or “story-less” people think that Cats is, in that moment when Grizabella sings “Memories” and of the time when she was beautiful then, I could see that Laura had tears in her eyes, that she related that story with the memory of her grandmother. The idea of timelessness in this instance not only refers to the overall retelling of a story or relatability in a broad sense, but rather in a relative one. Perhaps that’s true with stories and storytelling in general terms.

Laura and I are currently finishing up a book called “Enrique’s Journey” by Sonia Nazario about Honduran migrants and I couldn’t help but to think back to the story of Les Miserables. Particularly, I drew the parallel between Fantine working tirelessly and selflessly to provide for her daughter Cosette while she lived away from her with the story of Lourdes making the difficult decision to illegally migrate to the U.S. to provide for Enrique. Both had to make incredibly difficult decisions to provide for their children and were forced to make decisions of care for them while they were away. They wanted what was best for their children even though they weren’t in a place to be the ones that could give that to them in that moment. Fantine called on Jean Valjean and Lourdes called on Enrique’s paternal grandmother. That story seems timeless and an “old song” or repetitively perpetuating through time as well. In fact, in 2006, when the book was published 48,000 migrant children tried to come to the U.S. to find their long lost parents. Enrique, himself, struggled with leaving his girlfriend Maria Isabel pregnant with their soon to be daughter, Jasmin in Honduras. And, the cycle continues.

Hadestown, nominated for 14 Tonys and which is the retelling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth, follows the same pattern. It’s an “old song” but has been described as “prophetic”, “eerily apt for the time” and relevant and relatable to today’s audience. I’m looking forward to seeing the portrayal of Hades with our current political backdrop even though Anais Mitchel wrote the music nearly a decade before.

We flew to Chicago the day of Laura’s grandmother’s funeral and the underlying tone of Laura’s memories and the retelling of family stories of her grandmother were so beautiful to me; that those stories too paint this setting or perspective through which we think. This is one of the great things I love about Broadway musicals; that we are able to relate to these stories, to use them as context for our lives and to adopt empathy for the people and characters involved. This is something I hope to see more of in the future.

Also that morning, before we boarded the plane, and hopefully something that provided a bit of levity for Laura, we were able to download the OBC of Be More Chill, which was just released that morning to listen to on our flight to Chicago. There is some debate about how it relates to the original cast album, but it has definitely been growing on me as I hear it again and again.

Les Miserables, as it turns out, will be the first Broadway show that I’ve seen more than once. It is most definitely timeless and relatable, even to think of it in the context of and draw parallels to the American Revolution portrayed in Hamilton. We tell and retell these stories again and again and they truly encapsulate Hermes’ idea of the “old song”. What is interesting and unique in all of these instances is the means through which we relate; that we all have a piece of the story to bring in. I’m looking forward to our trip to Broadway and the shows stacked up for us to see when we get back. I look forward to taking out kids to shows so that they too can be part of the experience and learn the importance that storytelling has in building our own perspectives. Most importantly, I look forward to hearing their own connections to the stories and to hear the relative connections that we will make in those moments when we see them. 

So Much Has Happened…

I began to think after writing my first post about Broadway that so much changes and quickly in the Broadway world. It’s almost like following a sports team where players get traded up and down, new developments happen on the road and teams win and lose. In the Broadway world, it seems like as much changes in the same relative timeframe (actors and actresses make or don’t make certain casts, shows open and close and nominations and releases occur etc.).

Back in December, I traveled down to Texas to see my 7-year-old son play the lead in the play “A Holiday Moosical” and stayed with my old college roommate. He introduced me to All Arts TV’s “Broadway Sandwich” series on Youtube in which the host, Garen Scribner, follows an actor or actress between their Saturday matinee and evening performances. At the same time, I was extremely interested in the prospect of travelling to New York to see a real Broadway show and was listening to the original Broadway cast album of “A Band’s Visit”. I was intrigued by the idea of seeing an original cast, especially one of a production that won 10 Tonys (“Hamilton” won 11 for comparison). I thought how cool it would be to see a show like that with the original cast and be able to say that you’ve seen it, as if you had buy in and were growing up with the show as it developed.

For Laura’s Christmas gift, I wanted to purchase Broadway tickets to see “A Band’s Visit” and set up a small trip over a weekend to New York. With the idea of “Broadway Sandwich”, however, I was now determined to travel to New York and see two shows in the same day. So, we would see “A Band’s Visit” and another show which, at the time I didn’t know much about. I also bought tickets for the same day for “Be More Chill”, which hadn’t opened on Broadway yet at the time, but would star Will Roland, who originated the role of Jared in “Dear Evan Hansen” (we saw the national tour in Denver last October for Laura’s birthday). Different from other shows about to open, “Be More Chill” already had a cast album of its pre-Broadway cast, which we listened to on repeat for a bit.

So much has happened… After buying tickets for both shows (one that had won 10 Tonys the year prior and one that had not yet opened, but already had a tremendous following), we learned that “A Band’s Visit” would, in fact, close on Broadway on April 7^th, 2019 (the tickets were for the June 1^st matinee). So, we needed to find another show. I was a bit stuck on the aspect of Tony wins; that, if a show wins a Tony, it must be very good (like picking up a book that’s won the Pulitzer prize). I Google searched predictions for the 2019 Tony nominations and stumbled on a blog where one person said to not discount “Hadestown”, which I read in my head as “haids town”; that it had far-fetched plans, at the time, of opening on Broadway later in 2019. Like “Be More Chill”, it also had a cast album of its pre-Broadway run and a concept album by Anais Mitchell. After listening to some of the music and seeing the website, I bought tickets to the show way before its opening day.

So here we are… The 2019 Tony nominations, which will take place on June 9^th (over a week after we make our pilgrimage to Broadway on June 1^st), were released today and “Hadestown” leads the pack with 14 nominations (a nomination nearly in every category). “Be More Chill” only has 1 nomination (best original score for Joe Iconis). While I am personally happy for “Hadestown” because I absolutely love the concept and the way that it’s a story that can resonate with today’s audience, I thought that “Be More Chill” was robbed. I read an article about this idea and the author pointed out that the social media craze and fanbase is really “not enough”; that the fanbase was adolescents and the nomination committee was not. This made me think that there are definitely different veins and movements of Broadway. There may be a divide that’s developing between the newer, edgier shows that don’t fit the Broadway mold which have underground followings and iterations and developments of the former (not to say that “Hadestown” is old-school, but it does follow two parallel love stories and is the re-telling of the Orpheus and Eurydice tale).

We saw the 20^th Anniversary Tour of “Rent” when it was up in Greeley, CO and it made me think that it was the edgy show of its time even though it does show its age today. We also recently saw the national tour of “Cats”, which seems to follow the same vein. It seems like a show will emerge that is much different than anything before it and change the landscape. Regardless of the opinions around “Cats”, which set my expectations relatively low going into the show, it really accomplished incredible feats with respect to lighting and costumes and choreography. These shows accomplish something that future shows build on and it’s interesting to see those interconnections. Not really related, but a neat thought I had… the sets of “Rent” and “Cats” are incredibly similar…. The old junkyard, which really sets the mood for the cast of misfits.

Whenever anyone asks me about what I thought of a show, my first response is (and I know that I sound like the “Broadway Bitches” when I say), “So good!”. It is interesting, though, I’ve heard a few interviews of people leaving shows and, when asked about their thoughts of the show, say that they wish Donald Trump could see it. This happened with “Come From Away”, which we took our kids and parents to see when the national tour came through Denver over Thanksgiving, and “Hadestown”, which we plan to see in New York in June. One approaches the idea of taking foreigners in during a time of crisis and one talks about building walls and freedom. Very interesting times indeed.

I am looking forward to the original Broadway cast album of “Be More Chill”, which will be released this Friday (the opening song “More than Survive” was pre-released today) and for our trip to New York in June. Meanwhile, so many developments happen, so many moving pieces to the Broadway mosaic. I’m looking forward to following this ever-changing landscape and hypothesizing about the way that these movements correlate to the current social and political environment. So much has happened since my last post, but so much more is yet to come.

Why Broadway? I'm an Engineer!

Here I am, on a trip in Arlington, Virginia for no reason related to theater. I'm on a work trip and had the idea to start a blog about theater. But why? I am a 31 year old man. I am an engineer. I have two undergrad degrees in Computer Science and Computer Engineering, a Master of Science degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering, and about 10 years of experience in the military. So why am I interested in Broadway?? Why am I fascinated with theater as an art and form of expression when I've been raised in this science and engineering atmosphere?

I've probably seen more shows in recent times than the average person, and for some reason I just can't get enough. Even writing this now, I'm wondering... what's the big deal? Why am I interested in this? And, by the way... I am married and together, we have three kids. I'm probably not the person you would expect with this recent fascination. I'm sure more stories of my life will hopefully come through in this writing, but let's just stick to the idea of this blog for now.

To start, I am interested in theater for many reasons. I love the music, the magic that happens with a live performance, the lights and technical technique, the often social issues that come through in the acting and the story and so many other things. Particularly, I love the personal experience that each person in the audience receives and is part of; that by attending a musical or a play, you bring your own history into the interpretation and are moved by it differently than perhaps the person next to you. It provides such a different feeling than other art forms such as watching a film for example.

There are so many aspects that I'm looking forward to bringing into this and where we go with this will be an exciting adventure, something that explores this art form from a unique perspective as an engineer and hopefully brings interesting insights and outlooks into the spotlight. Hopefully, this isn't just for the theater nerds, although I can't say that I am one, that maybe these ideas that we develop will transcend other cross sections of people as well.

Here I am, an engineer on a business trip, thinking about theater, wondering why I'm so fascinated and looking forward to exploring this medium with you.