Shows Galore

  Hey friends so my building's internet has been having huge issues this past week.  Between the network going down completely and sporadically kicking people off every 30 seconds, it has been hard to have the patients to work out a post.  Supposedly its fixed, but it's not... but I've decided I owe to my loyal readers to work through this challenge!   Today's post is to share a little about some incredible broadway shows that I've had the privilege of seeing the past two weeks.  Most of them have been work related, but I also have been getting lucky at some student rush and lottery rushes which have enabled me to get some incredible seats at super cheap prices! In particular I want to share about two shows that are distinctly different yet both breathtakingly amazing.

  Let me start with In The Heights a new musical that has received endless praise and a tony for best new musical.  This high energy show tells the true story of a young latina woman, Nina Rosario, and her family's struggle to pay for her education.  The show is packed with great actors, incredible hip hop and latin dancing, and the passionate yet honest music of today's realities.  To top it off this incredible cast has taken their success to a new high by using it to create a scholarship for deserving students to help them reach their dreams of higher education.  To help fund the scholarship the cast is auctioning off amazing prizes (even a walk on roll in the show, and dance lessons with the show's choreographer!).  Bid, apply, or find out more at www.GradutateToNewHeights.com. 

  Wicked... I mean I probably don't need to say much more, right?!  People from all walks have been shouting the praises of this show for years, but I proudly stand along side them today as I tell you this is a must see.  The story, the set and costumes, and the most incredible music that has graced the great stages of New York!  And if you haven't seen it, I encourage you to do like myself... resist the urge to you tube the best-of's, or to ask you one friend who's undoubtable seen the show 5 times already... in fact, try not to find out anything about the show.  Let this cast take you on the adventure of your life as you are taken behind the scenes of the beloved Wizard of Oz, to find out the true story of the Witches of Oz.  I guarantee you'll not only love the show, but its end you'll have found yourself awe struck, singing along, and more than anything wanting it to begin again!  This was the show that all of my students repeatedly said, "This is the best show I've ever seen!"  and trust me they've seen a lot!
  These are must sees for any of you the next time you get to the Big Apple!  And don't forget to plan your trip a little ahead of time.  While ticket prices can be expensive, paying full price should always be your last option.  Rush, Lottery, and even going TKTS in time square are all ways that the savvy show goer can see the best of what New York has to offer without breaking the bank.  Playbill.com is a great resource to find out information cheap ways to get tickets.  Oh and always invite your friends, cause that makes everything more fun!

Billy Elliot the Musical

    Even though we were held up by traffic and a bus driver who wasn't too sure exactly where we were going, we were able to get into our seats right as the lights began to dim.  Within seconds of the first note being played the crowd was completely silent.  Looking across the aisle all I saw were my students on the edge of their seats and eyes completely captured by the show unfolding before us.  

   Set in Durham, England, the set was strikingly familiar to me from my time spent living in Sheffield.  The hard edged cast with their northern english accents and coal smudged faces, snag your attention with an intensity that is literally palpable as they include you in the struggles they face as coal workers on strike desperately fighting for livable wages.  Adding to this conflict the show centers upon a family of four.  An aged grandmother who is loosing her memory, a older brother wanting to find justice while learning its true costs, a father working desperately to take care of his family alone, and then there is Billy- a young eleven year old w

ho discovers his giftedness for an art form that is completely alien to world.  All of them grieving the loss of the mother that was the family glue, embroiled in a highly political strike, money is tight, emotions run high, and from this crucible Billy discovers ballet.  

   Of course many of you have realized I'm talking about the incredible Tony Award winning Billy Elliot.  A truly amazing and inspiring story that had my laughing, crying, laughing again, and truth be told crying again too!  This remarkable story is a must see.  And if you're not able to get to Broadway or London anytime soon to see the musical, do yourself a favor and rent the movie. I fell in love with it long before the show was written.  As we got on the bus to head back home my students couldn't stop talking about the incredibly moving experience they had just had:  "That was the best show I've ever seen!"     "I want to see that again and again!"   "The dancing was great, the music was incredible, the story was breath-taking, it was the best kind of art!"   "It takes a truly good show to make me cry from both laughter and emotions!"

   And remember to be yourself in all you do, be true.  -Billy's Mom