Defying Gravity

This beautiful young lady is my niece. She just turned 14 last week. We celebrated by going to her very first Broadway show. I met her and her mom (my sister) in the City and we had a nice meal. Then we went to the show. What show? Wicked. It was really beautiful and fun. Catchy tunes (listen to Popular and see if it doesn't get stuck in your head, go on, I dare you), amazing sets and costumes, cool little twists in the story, nice message. I cried a little at the end of the first act, and got choked up at the end, surprise. Good times.

Oh, maybe you're wondering what that thing she's standing in is. That's Glinda's "bubble," the one she makes her entrance in at the top of the show. You see, when I mentioned to my theater friends that I was taking my niece to see her first show and that her first show would be Wicked, they managed to arrange for a backstage and onstage tour. Of course, I didn't tell her that was going to happen until we were at the stage door. SURPRISE!! You should have seen her face. So, big love to Cat, Kai and Mr. Doug for making this happen. And special thanks to Jordan the sound engineer for being a very gracious host/tour guide. It was so freaking cool. And yes, if you happened to walk past my little office on Friday, I was listening to the soundtrack on a continuous loop. (I would apologize to my coworkers, but sometimes, what they are listening to drives me bananas too. I didn't say it sucked!). I purchased a sweatshirt for my niece (don't know if she's taken it off yet) and baseball tees for my sister and me that say "defy gravity" (must wear a bra with this tee or else it's just a little bit sad). It meant a lot to me to be able to do this for my niece, who is also my god daughter and everything I wish I had been at her age. I'm hoping we can make it a tradition, which means I'm going to have to remember to invite my mother next time or risk catching hell again. Apparently, having a photo op with Jon Secada is not enough.

Speaking of Mr. Doug, after three plus years working on Wicked (click here for his hilarious and touching highlights of this gig), he's moving on, who knows where, but I know it's going to be wonderful. Good luck with whatever your next adventure may bring. I hope the wind blows you this way soon, so that we can catch up over some Malaysian food. And keep making those mixes! Oh, about this picture, yeah, high-larious.