It’s been a busy month, so I apologize for the lack of posts. My best friend was in town and I went to the Tony Awards. I cheered on Team Kinky Boots! They picked up 6 Tony’s, including Best Musical!
Speaking of Kinky Boots The Musical. I went for the 16th time this week. Hey! It’s the first time post-Tony’s ... so no grumblings and rumblings from the peanut gallery who thinks I’m coo-coo for cocoa puffs. While it was my 16th time, it was something brand new for the woman next to me.
One thing I love about the theatre is that you get to meet people from all over. That is very true here in New York, where many of the people that go to theatre are here on vacation. However, many people travel from New Jersey as well. This woman had done just that. So, what makes her so special? As she settled into her seat she turned to me and told me it was her 45th Birthday! Not only that ... it was her first musical! I told her she was in for a treat, explained her “partial view” wasn’t so partial and that she would love Kinky Boots. Naturally, the next question was, “You’ve seen this before?” She got giddy like a girl on her first day of school when I told her how many times I had seen the show! So we discussed the characters, “Martha” the mullet (a factory worker wears a mullet which I have named “Martha”) and different Broadway discount ticket websites.
As “Don” came out and the music started I knew this was going to be the best Birthday present this woman ever gave herself. It was like Christmas in June for her! Her reactions where priceless! She tugged at my shoulder to point out things to me! I think she gasped and had her hands over her mouth in awe of what she was seeing for much of the first act! When the first act ended she was definitely saying “Yeah!” So were the 5 women behind me and the mother and son in front of me. My new friend next to me turned around to the women behind us and was like, “Oh my god! This is amazing!” Then she pointed to me and was like, “She’s seen it 16 times!” I always get the, “Why?” and “Are you rich?” questions. Going to the theatre in New York is not ... let’s say ... inexpensive. I always respond with a laugh. Anyway, the ladies behind me gushed about the show. We chatted for a bit and then the mother and son (from Detroit) in the front row came back. No, they hadn’t gone to the bathroom. They literally bought out the entire merchandise display (minus the socks that are still out of stock)! I think I persuaded everyone to by a hoodie too. The hoodies are like butter! They are soft, silky and smooth. I digress. So the mom tells us how her young son is an aspiring actor and wants to be on Broadway. Then she pulls out her phone and shows us a picture of her son with Hugh Jackman! Turns out Hugh had mistaken her son for his son because they look alike. Hugh took a picture with the boy so all three could laugh about it one day. Moments later Act 2 began and we entered the Land of Lola again. My new friend cheered wildly. The whole second act was her gasping, crying and applauding. The woman behind me even gave Stark a standing ovation after his big solo.
So, yes. I’ve seen the show a lot. This time I saw it a bit differently. I saw it through the eyes of a woman ... from New Jersey ... who was experiencing her first musical. As the ovation ended she turned to me and said, “Thank you. Thank you for sharing my Birthday with me. I get it.”
That’s the thing about Broadway, where the community is so close. You are with people who get it. Who realize what they are seeing on stage is something they won’t experience anywhere else in the world. There is only one Broadway. There is only one Great White Way. It brings people together from all corners of the world. For those two hours we experience the best the theatre-world has to offer. We experience the same thing ... and we get it.
