Today, the Guv and I journeyed to New York City to see Rent on Broadway. It was exhilarating -- the end of a long, long wait, an almost-twenty year wait, actually. And the show? It was worth the wait. I would see it again, and again, and again, though not as often as Louise Woodward saw it.
In any event, my expectations of a Broadway show were surpassed in some ways, but not in others. I thought the theaters and theater-goers would be, well, fancy. Not so! As we had decided to walk from Penn Station to the show, I opted for cords and a sweater, and I was overdressed. The theater was pretty run-down, and the seats narrow and uncomfortable. But the music -- oh, the music! -- it was electrifying. I was expecting Rogers and Hammerstein and ended up with loud rock music (thank God!). Tamyra Gray played the role of MiMi, and the girl can B-L-O-W. My favorite singer, though, might have been Michael McElroy playing Tom Collins; his reprise of "I'll Cover You" after his lover's death nearly brought me to tears. Truly, I have never heard such singing nor seen such acting. Now I know why the tickets cost so damned much!
With regard to the show, I can understand why it is coming to an end, fantastic as it is. The issues that it deals with are very mid-90s. I kept thinking of my college years at Wesleyan during that time frame -- and it seems like the characters are people I knew. Perhaps that's why I enjoyed it so much! In any event, the show ends in NYC on June 1, so, if you haven't seen it, it gets my heartiest recommendation. The subject matter is not appropriate for children or staunch conservatives, but none of those read my site anyway.
And now, I can say that I've been to Broadway, and I'm going back... Mamma Mia, anyone?
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