Broadway lights

September 24th

I have a lot of dreams — some simple, some elaborate, some might happen if all the stars align the right way, some will never come to fruition. In the last category is my dream to sing and dance on Broadway in a musical together with Sutton Foster… Well, sometimes before I fall asleep, in my head I go through this musical number and dance routine above and imagine myself there on stage being applauded. It is rather a pleasant dream.

Musicals were never close to my interest in music for many years. Real, serious theater — of course, was in my interests. Dramas of Shakespeare, Ibsen or Strindberg, or existentially absurd plays of Beckett, Ionesco, or Mrozek were always a deep and profound experience for me. And I felt this way until I went to see my first Broadway play — “The Green Bird” directed by Julie Taymor. I was invited there by my then fiancé (soon to be wife) so I felt I had no choice but to go since it was important for her. And I absolutely loved it, and after that one play I was a convert, and since then I have become a huge fan of Broadway theater and musicals. It actually became a tradition for us and some of our friends — first to choose a musical we wanted to see, then the restaurant where we wanted to eat (and always there was an argument if we should have a meal before or after the performance), then how we will get there (who will drive? Or should we take a bus or train into the City). Only after all that, there was a Friday or Saturday evening, or Sunday matinée to enjoy it and everything else New York City had to offer. I miss those times a lot.

I think I’ve seen this video above at least 50 times, and every single time I discover something new there — a small move by a performer on the left in the third row or something like that. Every single time I’ve seen it, I was in awe of everyone there in this rehearsal. The countless hours that had to be spent to achieve this fluidity in the movement to this flawless choreography. The sheer athleticism of dancing and moving and singing at the same time. The enjoyment on all faces when everything comes together in perfect unison at the end. It is just a rehearsal, but it is a downright brilliant perfection of stage performance.

And yes, I do have a thing for Sutton Foster and her classical beauty and her perfect voice and the way she can be saucy like that —