Broadway is more than just community to me. These are moments that make broadway worth it...
dressing up to go there whether community based or not
the conversation before the show starts about what I hope to see
receiving the playbill or booklet when being let in
hearing the orchestra practice their notes before the show starts
feeling gitty before the show starts when the announcer talks and the curtain opens and the lights dim
immaculate theaters that embrace the notes of the show
The awaited song that brings the show to intermission that gives me goosebumps
15 minutes conversation at intermission
excitement when the lights flicker to return to your seats (I'm the type that stays there posting a picture on my social of the playbill and about what a great time I'm having with my mom as caption)
Standing ovations as the cast bows to the adoring audience
long lines at the bathrooms and backstage lines
waiting backstage with playbill in hand with the hopes of getting a signature or photo
eating early in the day because after the show it's to be expected that I will get home late
leaving with a sense of enchantment as I replay the scenes in my head and sometimes imagining myself as one of the characters because I believe the entertainment is powerful when its live .
Going to see shows gave me the best memories with my mom who recently died from cancer that had come back. It would make us gitty with joy like little girls. It was one of the last things we did before she was hospitalized than hospice for a day or two than she passed. Our last show we went to was called The Last five years at a community theater. I mention this only because she got us tickets because she knew I liked it and she wasn't as familiar with it as I was. The Broadway play that was really a exciting moment for us was when we saw Les Miserables in NYC and got a chance to go backstage with one of the cast members. We even go to meet Ramin Karimloo! I doubt he would remember us but he made our whole experience of traveling to NYC worth it. Even though our time was short with him he sparked a special moment with my mom and I that I would never forget. As polite and humble as he was I still to this day can't believe we had the honor meeting him. My mother and I were so elated that we forgot to ask for his signature but was able to get a photo. We even went the wrong way to our hotel due to our realization of us finally meeting own of our Broadway favorites.
I saved a few playbills and lost my copy to find out she saved them all (including the ones I was missing) in her box of with her last letter to me you the one that starts with "if you're reading this, that means I went passed away...." but because my mother was my mom she said she went to be with my dad and the heavenly father. I wasn't totally surprised she saved them because she was the one who introduced me to broadway and that was just something we were passionate about. What surprised me was that I didn't know my mom was sentimental and would hold on to them and mentioned she cherished the musical outings the most in her last letter. The musical songs were so involved in ours lives that not only did we sing them when we wanted, I remember that I sang a song during my last moments with her when she was no longer responsive. I still got to say my goodbyes but its the songs that gave me comfort at the moment.
So broadway is more than just show tunes and a community.....it's like a 2nd home.