The Return to New York, Part Three

We have finally reached Part Three.  My very favorite part.  This is the entire reason that I make the trip to New York City as often as I can.  This is what has fed my soul for as long as I can remember.  This is Broadway.  For my entire life, my dream was to do musical theatre on Broadway.  I even based my future earnings in my Senior Econ class on that dream.  There was never a doubt that that was what I was going to do.  And then life happened.  I still do theatre; in fact, I am in rehearsal for my first show post-pandemic as I type this.  I have come to terms with this.  Come to terms and compromised by devouring as much New York theatre as I possibly can.  Now, as I have said throughout the previous two posts, the concentration of available shows offered to me on this trip was not as plentiful.  But it was still Broadway, and it was still wonderful.  (Just a head’s up for all our readers who don’t give a fig about theatre, feel free to skip this last post.  The takeaway will be that it was exceptional, and I can’t wait to go back for more.)

I am not one for leaving things unplanned.  Generally speaking, the dates that I go are centered around a specific performance opening or a particular actor shining in a role.  This time was no different.  Originally scheduled to open at the beginning of the pandemic, “The Music Man” lead by the very famous Hugh Jackman and the incomparable Sutton Foster was the inspiration for the dates of the trip.  The Music Man holds a special place in my heart.   I played Marian in a production in my hometown when I was 24.  Not only was it a wonderful experience with the best of Harold Hills but it was also the last show that I was a part of before my mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  After her diagnosis, there was never a time when the tragedy of her demise wasn’t in the back of my mind.  This show was the last when I was truly without that.  It is a bright spot in all the darkness that invaded my life with her death.  This made it such a perfect choice to be the show I returned to Broadway with.  I was certainly ready to have some time in the bright spot again.

The show opens with a scene of traveling salesmen in a train car. This is original rap number in a musical. Long before Lin-Manuel burst onto the scene, Meredith Wilson wrote a fantastic device that with the cadence and speech of the number, the motion of a train and the sounds of the stream train are provided by the actors themselves.  This opening number is so clever because it holds the weighty task of setting the scene and background exposition, we learn about the changing of the times, the “modern” inventions that are pushing progress ahead, and, of course, scalawag Harold Hill and his “band scheme”.  Opening numbers are so important to draw the audience into the story and this unusual and whimsical “rap” catches the eyes and ears of the audience immediately.  And then, of course, there is the reveal at the end of the song that Professor Hill was on the train all along, privy to all of the disparaging talk and enlivened by the challenge of proving them wrong.

The thing about seeing movie stars live on stage is the audience is enraptured with the fact that the famous person is in the same room, breathing the same air as the normal people.   It often yields lengthy entrance applause and not necessarily earned effusive ovations.  And it draws focus from the truly talented Broadway greats.  This certainly held a small twinge of concern when thinking about it, but knowing Mr. Jackman’s resume which has included not only host of the Tony’s but also a Tony winning turn in “The Boy from Oz”, leading roles in London (“Oklahoma” for anyone who is interested.  And I saw him in that too.) and movie musicals, he felt like not just a famous movie actor but a theatre actor as well.    And before long, the joy he exuded in each step, note, and smile totally captivated me.  From what I understood the reviewers hadn’t been overly enchanted by Jackman’s performance, harkening back to, and comparing it to the performance of the original Harold Hill, Robert Preston.  From what I understand and have sort of seen, watching the 1960’s film version, he is generally assumed to be the pinnacle of the role and all others are held to that standard.  Unfair really, as it is the actor’s job to create each role with their individual experience and skills so each time it is played, the character is different.  Hugh Jackman was his very own Professor Hill.  He played the role with a twinkle in his eye and an ever-present mischievous smile.  He played one of the world’s most famous con men as a sprightly rogue, enjoying every part of the role.

Before I got the chance to learn all about being “Iowa Stubborn” “The Music Man” was not at the top of my list of favorite musicals.  And then I got the opportunity to play Marian and that all changed.  Instead of moments feeling cheesy and dated, I found them nostalgic and quaint.  The purity of the humor was a welcomed break from the harsher story telling of modernity.  And this Broadway revival found the perfect balance in all these moments.  There was such fun and charm woven into it all.  And no one achieved it more so than the inimitable Sutton Foster as Marian the Librarian.  Marian can sway into the boring, bitter spinster trope so easily (even I can admit that my Marian was a little too far over that line), but Ms. Foster is such an incredible actor, she may have been the most dynamic and interesting character on that stage.  She finds a way to give such compelling levels to the female lead of the show.  Things that felt so natural and easy but that I would never have thought of.  She made Marian hilarious, sensitive, and so, so loveable.  Watching her was a delight and a privileged.  This show had me totally entranced.  I laughed, I cried, I cheered, and tried very hard not to sing along.

Like I said, I like to have my shows mapped out, knowing who I am going to see and when is so integral to my anticipation.  On my docket next was to be the new Broadway production of the Stephen Sondheim classic, “Company”.  Then, “Six”, the 90-minute rock concert featuring the six wives of Henry the Eighth and on my only two show day, which is definitely a rarity, “Plaza Suite” and “Intimate Apparel, A New Opera”.  “Plaza Suite” is a classic Neil Simon play, featuring the married duo of Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick. Rounding the trip out with an opera was new experience for me.  After the fact, I threw in a matinee of Disney’s “Aladdin” to fill one of the empty spots.  Usually, my dance card is chock full of musicals with the occasional play sprinkled in here and there and this time around the selections were so varied, so different, not only in style but also in subject matter and style.  A cornucopia of diversity.  Despite not seeing as many as I would have liked, I was able to see such a medley of variation.  My theatre cup was entirely filled.

Check back soon for a bonus post rounding out my theatre thoughts.