You either love musicals, or you don't.
I DO! I DO!
At the ripe age of 7, I remember my Mother saying to me, "I'm taking you to see The Sound Of Music".....at first I thought she meant at the movies, then she said, "Not the movie, the musical play" I remember being very excited, and we had to drive into Los Angeles where I saw my first show at The Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. I remember sitting there in the dark theater, watching live singing and dancing and being quite mesmerised by it all. From that very memorable afternoon, I was hooked on musicals. I have since seen about 53 different shows, and some of my favorites, I've actually seen multiple times. I also collect CD's from musicals, and have a pretty large collection. And just so you know, the Tony Awards are like a "Gay High Holy Day" for me!
On my 18th Birthday, my Mother bought me tickets to see EVITA in Denver. It was a 140 mile drive to Denver, and it took the entire day, but I was a very HAPPY 18 year old. To this day, EVITA is still my all time favorite show, and I've seen it 5 times...(soon to be 6!) When I moved to LA at age 19, I started seeing everything that came to Los Angeles. My first trip to New York City, at age 26, I saw several shows and it was a dream come true to be sitting in a NYC theater on Broadway.
In London (1987) I was able to see 7 shows in 10 days. I saw Phantom of the Opera, before it came to the US. Seeing that show was a big deal for me. Tickets were impossible to get, but I took one whole day and waited in line from 8am until 4pm when I got tickets for the 8pm show. Top balcony (and there were three of them), last row, corner seat, and it was broken! But I didn't care, I stood there for two and a half hours watching in total disbelief of what I was seeing on that stage. That boat floating on the water....quite simply, magical! I will never forget that experience.
In April I'm taking Joe to NYC for 11 days (for his 50th Birthday) and I've already got my tickets to see the new EVITA (with Ricky Martin)! Joe has never seen the show, and I'm excited for him. I also hope to see some news shows like How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying, Spider-man Turn Off The Dark, and Once. We shall see. I usually go to TKTS (tickets) in Times Square, (that only sell "day-of-the -proformance-tickets"), and buy whatever they have that I'm interested in. It's a great way to get tickets at half price.
A friend, who shall remain nameless, who does not like musicals at all, and thinks the notion of people breaking out in songs is very silly. Funny....I imagine myself breaking out in song all the time! I think it's perfectly natural. After all, wouldn't it be great if your life was a musical?
Now, I know I'm not a fascists dictator's ambitious wife, a good witch, a stage mother, a confused Mormon, an aging movie queen or a murderous barber....but you never know what the next great musical will be about.
So, just in case they want to make a musical about my life, you can bet I'll audition for it. I'm sure Cheyenne Jackson will get the part....but you never know!
