My Comfort Shows
(Photo: Liz Lauren)
Especially after the last year, many are looking for comfort in the media to escape the real world. Nowadays, people will often say that they have comfort TV shows or movies. These forms of media will often be used as a form of escapism from the reality the person has to face. The same statement can be said for theatre shows as well. Ask most theatre fans, and they will tell you a show that returns them to a nostalgic time in their lives brings great comfort. These shows can amplify and connect with their feelings, whether it's feelings of joy or discord.
I have several shows that fall into this category, shows that take me back to a simpler time or just put a smile on my face. I have been fortunate enough to be a part of some of these shows, others I have just watched from the audience, like the Principal in The Prom. Either way, these shows are a part of me. While there are many I could list, these are the shows that are my top comfort shows.
The Wizard of Oz
Of the shows on this list, The Wizard of Oz is the one I have known the longest. This musical is the piece of art that has intersected in my life the most. I got to play Auntie Em when I was in 5th grade. I've seen the show on tour with the Andrew Lloyd Webber music added. I visited museums about the material and people involved in the various adaptations. Heck, I even own shoes that are ruby red and silver (book readers know), along with a rug in my room hanging up from the original movie poster. So, to say I am a fan would be an understatement.
Finally, I take comfort because the show has made me into the artist that I am today.
When I was in third grade, my music teacher put on the movie for us. It was the original The Wizard of Oz from 1939. I looked around the room, saw all of my classmates staring at the screen, and mentally thought to myself, "I want to do that." I wanted to act and create magic that would cause an audience to be entranced by the final project. While the statement has evolved over the years, I still often wistfully dream about creating something that will outlast me. To this day, hearing Somewhere Over The Rainbow still makes me pause and smile.
Into The Woods
I like to say that this is the show where I "got it." Where I understood theatre and why people did theatre. Like Wizard of Oz, I remember watching this show when I was in sixth grade and was upset that I couldn't watch what happened next due to the bell ringing right as Chip Zen's Baker began to raise his knife against The Wolf. After that moment, I fell down the theatre rabbit hole, where theatre became part of all of my educational and professional goals. Whenever I doubt my ability to do theatre or create anything, I open my Spotify and play this album. It calms my fears, and my confidence soars once again. Plus, it is just fun to belt Agony at the top of my lungs, as it gets me in a better mood.
As I have gotten older, I have also related to the messages from the show more. Mainly the line "sometimes people leave you halfway through the wood." I often remember this part of No One Is Alone after significant life events such as graduations and funerals. It reminds me that people leaving is an unfortunate part of life. Usually, you won't get to say goodbye. However, others will join our journey throughout the woods. Some will become an essential part of your journey in ways you never thought possible. So, you have to keep going. Because of this show, I have been able to walk through the woods we call life.
The Importance of Being Earnest
Every once in a while, I go over to my bookshelf and crack my script open from The Importance Of Being Earnest. On the surface, it is just a play with a man trying to live a double life. However, for me, it was the end of a chapter in my life. It was the last drama show I did in high school, minus the musical. It ended up being the last time I was on stage with two of my closest friends. I played Lady Bracknell; it was and is the most challenging character that I have ever played. After struggling with this play and this character for months, hearing that applause during Act One as I exited the stage made it feel all worth it.
Hunchback of Notre Dame: The Musical
The rant show. The show I can talk about for hours on end. Ask any of my close friends from college or my parents, and they will tell you that they heard me rant about this show with a passion. Hunchback is personal for me for multiple reasons. This show was the first Disney theatrical show I loved that never made it to Broadway. The show made me fall in love with tech; the set, light, costume, and direction were just so beautiful. I still try to figure out how they got the lava/red curtain off the stage seamlessly. When the 2016 album hits my ears, I can't help but stop and listen. It brings a tear to my eye that I will never see the cast do this production in person.
9 to 5: The Musical
I will admit of the shows on this list that 9 to 5 is the only one here due to memories rather than the musical itself. Personally, if it weren't for these first-hand memories, I would skip this show and this album. Instead, I let the album play and let the memories flood. I think about the pride that surged through me when various cast members nailed their songs for the first time. I think about all the craziness that happened onstage and off and laugh. This show was the first time after a show's completion that I did not tear myself to shreds regarding my stage manager abilities.
Hadestown
Of all those shows on my list, this one is the most recent addition. The musical can be played anywhere or anytime. I found it by accident too. Funny enough, Wait For Me started to play as I wrote this article. I have too many memories of this show to list here. One that sticks out, however, involves the Broadway version. The memory is in regards to seeing the show with my dad. Neither of my parents are theatre people. So a musical based on a traditional Greek myth with New Orleans-style music thrown in was going to be something different for my dad to be exposed to. His face at the end of Wait for Me will stick with me for years to come. My dad actually "got it" with this show as I did when I watched Into The Woods. Granted, he isn't jumping into the theatre world and performing Shakespeare anytime soon. But, I feel that he does understand what I do better because of this show.
The musical's message also speaks to me in a way that few shows have. It directed me to trust your gut rather than the doubt that creeps into your head. If not, you could end up hurt in more ways than you ever thought possible. The other thing that sticks out to me is the line that comes with the show, "To The World We Dream About And The One We Live Now." Last year was a trainwreck, to say the least; it seemed that nothing good was happening, according to the news. However, I noticed that there were small moments of goodness poking through like a flower in the pavement; many people working together to make the world a better place. This may be a little naive of me, but it gives me hope. Hope that things will get better. Hope change will be done and not just fake performative activism. Hope for a better world.
And there you have it; there are my comfort shows and the reasons why. What theatre shows are your comfort shows? Leave them down in the comments below. Thanks for reading!