It's been a long time coming....

How long has it been?  Two months?  Hmmmm.....a lot can happen in that amount of time.  In my case, that would include four trips to the theatre, one dance experience, and my first half marathon!  So, before I start rambling about how nice the weather has finally turned, let's get started with the recap.

This one wasn't necessarily high on my list of "must see" shows, but the opportunity came along, so I took it and dragged Von along for the ride.  Those who know me well, know that I'm a huge fan of the TV show, Frasier, so seeing this musical with Kelsey Grammer was kind of exciting.  He was a big draw for many people it seemed, from the rousing applause he received when he came on stage.  He had the role of theatre producer to Matthew Morrison's JM Barrie, and he was a big presence in every scene he was in.  This was definitely one of the lighter shows I've seen and, maybe I'm remembering this incorrectly, but I seem to recall the movie version of this story being fairly dramatic.  Some of those elements remained, but rather than leave the audience with an effectively dramatic moment, they decided to provide an epilogue that tied everything up in a tidy box.  I left feeling like they had missed an opportunity.  The show was entertaining, but nothing to leave a lasting impact.

Now, another musical I saw definitely provided those dramatic moments I relish when I see a stage production.  Fun Home is the story of a graphic novelist who is looking back at her life and how her father's hidden secret, which he wasn't really all that great at hiding, impacted her youth and adulthood.  While Finding Neverland used child actors that were dripping with saccharine, Fun Home found young actors that were able to convey confusion, curiosity, and longing.  The stage was in the center of the theatre space, with the audience surrounding the action.  This made it a much more intimate experience and helped to draw me into the story even more.

A lot of times, the songs tend to pull me out of the action of the show and they can make the story feel less impactful, but that wasn't the case with this one; it really seemed to enhance the experience.  I saw this one with an old friend of mine, Thom, who I hadn't seen in over 15 years!  He's quite the theatre guy, which could help to explain the why I appreciated this one so much; he could look at the story critically and explain why it worked so well.

The next two shows I saw, in no particular order or preference, were comedic plays that brought the humor, but with one also bringing some thought and insight about the subject of death.  Before we go dark, let's start in the light.  The 39 Steps is a farce from the unlikely brain of Alfred Hitchcock.  They throw a reference to every Hitchcock movie in some way or shape, and they definitely bring the laughs in a story that isn't as important as the characters' interactions with each other.  Each scene is like a one-act play and can stand alone as a comedic ribbing of noir films and 50s era thrillers.  I've seen this one a couple times before, but it just doesn't get stale to me.

Hitchcock even makes his typical cameo in the play, yet in a very un-typical way.  There's no point to the story, it's just a lot of fun and, sometimes, that's why I go to plays or movies.  Does it always have to have a point?!

That brings me to Hand to God.  The title would suggest something pretty conservative, but this is anything but that!  The playbill recommended no one under 13 see this one without a parent, but I'd have to say this was more like an R-rated movie, so I would think anyone under 17 might need to be with their parents.  Because, this one will bring up lots of questions......  Like, how do two puppets have sex?  Can they make little puppet babies?  If you've seen Avenue Q, you'll be fairly well prepared for what's taking place in this one.  Although, this show is more about the impact the puppet has on the humans in the story.  It's used as a device to deal with death and actually becomes more sinister as the story continues.  Is the boy with the puppet on his hand possessed by an evil spirit or is he so broken from losing his father that he can no longer relate to people without using the puppet as a buffer, albeit a cursing, rude, and violent buffer?

The puppet says things we'd all like to at times, but refrain from because people would take offense.  The puppet doesn't care, I mean, why should it?  It's really a lifeless bit of fabric until someone sticks their hand up its butt and makes it talk.  I digress....

Ultimately, these four shows are vastly different, but, considered together, they really are what Broadway is all about.  They encompassed the traditional musical, envelope-pushing courage, and dynamic story-telling.  While one was a bit of a disappointment, all four are why I am continuously drawn to seeing live stage shows, they're engaging and being that they're live, each show can be vastly different from night to night, so you never know for sure what you're going to get.

Speaking of not knowing what you're going to get, I have to mention this show I saw last month, called Flexn (that's right, don't get your spellchecker out, that's the way it's spelled).  This was put on at the Park Avenue Armory, where I've seen a couple other shows before.  This one was all about dance and how it can be used to communicate stories and convey conflict and challenges we face in our lives.  I'm a big So You Think You Can Dance fan and Flexn had the potential, for me, to be an exciting night showcasing some fantastic dancers.  I was not disappointed.

Before the show, there was a panel discussion about minority youth and education, specifically about how those who don't have the same opportunities as those in more affluent areas have their only choice being go to school or go to prison.  Nothing was solved in the hour-long discussion, but some consciousness was raised and, hopefully, more action can take place as a result to help those who need it avoid the destructive path to incarceration.

Once the dancing began, that theme continued as the stories the dancers told reflected on their cultures and their daily experiences as they try to survive in their urban homes.  They told tales of violence, drugs, and seemingly little hope left, but ended the evening celebrating their lives and how their choices have brought them to this place, where they can show people another way.  It's no surprise the group behind Flexn is called The Dream Ring Experience.  They provide young dancers with the opportunity to follow their dreams and realize they can shape their lives however they want to, they don't have to fall into stereotypes.

Maybe that thought of how we can dream bigger and accomplish more than we expect of ourselves is what pushed me to do something I would have thought impossible, even two years ago.  Two weeks ago, I ran my first half-marathon in Brooklyn; this was 13 miles of mental olympics that ended up being something I'm truly proud to have accomplished for myself.  While training for this was a challenge in itself, the fact I finished has been the validation of the journey I started when I moved to NYC.  I started off just wanting to lose weight, but I'm becoming more interested in what running can do for me from here.  I guess you can say I've caught the running bug, which I find pretty funny, since I used to see runners and think they were crazy for doing it!  "Who wants to work that hard?!"  Now that I've got my first big run under my belt, I'm on the lookout for other challenges to tackle.  I've just completed the Color Run this weekend, and next month I've got two more runs on deck.  There's no stopping me now!

AirBNB Brooklyn Half

Color Run 2015

 I hope it won't be too long before I write again, but I can't make any promises.  Til then.......