FLASHBACK SPECIAL: On With The Show

 

I've been reticent to include these live shows in my rundown of attended performances since, as you'll soon see, I remember so little about them. Memory's a bitch and these were quite a minute ago. But I figure if I can dedicate three full posts to the half-backed prince of a show I partially saw Sunday, we can chalk these guys up as "done and did," throw it up on the wall, and call it a day.

December 1983

42nd Street

Three good friends from HoJo's. Mike P., Michelle and I. Took the Amtrak from Providence and stayed three nights in midtown Manhattan. The weather was cold but very mild...perfect for lots of walking and sightseeing. First night our big plans were a Broadway show. I think the first for any of us.

We chose "42nd Street." Not sure why. Perhaps due to a package deal, perhaps do to its razz-matazz "big show" promise, couldn't say. Gotta say I think I generally liked it but I do recall that at the time I wasn't as big into Broadway musicals as I would be in later years. In fact, I recall that the combination of a full meal at Mamma Leone's and the warmth of the theatre on this cool winter's evening... I did indeed nod off. Not sure how much of the show I actually watched. I do remember the big shiny dance numbers "42nd Street" and "We're in the Money" though. Who could sleep through them?

April 1992

CATS

Back on Broadway, this time with Wayne. It was a debate between this or the newly released RENT which I was in favor of and David, Wayne's cousin and our host for the weekend of our stay, sided with me as he'd read the rave reviews. Wayne wanted to be a cookie-cutter tourist though so CATS it became. Ugh. I simply hated it. It was a matinee and by the early '90s both those conditions made this one of the least attended plays on the Way. Half a house, if that. And most of them old lady tourists. The cast was like, what, the eighth replacement? Nobody known and for good reason. They couldn't sing, dance, act or even avoid smelling slightly moldy. Was that their decade old costumes or their unwashed starving actor bodies? I think I caught a whiff of Jellicle Cat booze breath every now and then as they pranced through the aisles as they do. Or was that my breath? I was having quite the broo ha ha that weekend pilfering David's stash on the sly and all... just a week or so before Smashing Glass don't ya know!

February 1994

Phantom of the Opera

My friendship with Wayne had become a bit more strained by now but we were still roommates (for a couple more months anyway) and were still friendly so we decided to enjoy a night out at the Providence Performing Arts Center for the touring performance of Phantom. At least I knew this ALW piece wouldn't be a skanky ol' pussy, I'd heard too many good things. Sure enough it was quite good. PPAC did an awesome job with the decking out of its relatively small venue to accommodate a big old "falling" chandelier too. Kudos! Unfortunately, I've seen this show in both filmed stage performance and the Hollywood movie several times since so I can't separate the memories anymore but I'd guess it must have had a good overall impact on me since I did indeed see the show so many times since. And the music... I kinda think I even bought a soundtrack cassette sometime in the '90s so, yeah, the music of the night got in me.