First edit was the night I got back from the show, so extra raw emotions ahead…

I just watched my very first broadway show and words won’t suffice to describe all the emotions I’m feeling right now. This is my new favorite New York minute. I had watched Hamilton on Disney Plus sometime last year and was so enthralled by it, I could only imagine the invigorating sensation the audience must’ve felt upon seeing it live! Now, I no longer have to picture what it’s like as I just experienced it!!

Broadway was closed due to COVID last year and when I was still relatively new to living in the city, I once walked around Times Square, spotting some interesting sites including a few theaters, some I <3 NY stores, and the infamous ball that commences every new year - there’s actually a clip of it in my ‘Highlights of a recent past’ vlog, when the billboard spelled out ‘welcome’. Speaking of Times Square, I don’t remember the last time I was there at night, that place is the epitome of ‘the city never sleeps’. You can so easily forget its night time because the lights from the billboards alone are enough to confuse you for a good second or two. Anyways, the person I was walking with mentioned how awesome the whole broadway experience is and I quickly took a mental note of that and placed it at the back of my mind.

fast forward a year later>>>

My first ever Broadway play was: Thoughts of a Colored Man. I had received an email earlier in the week notifying me of its viewing - I honestly thought it ought to be amazing, but didn’t think to go as I had never seen a play live on Broadway before and even though I really wanted to, I didn’t make any plans on exactly when. Coincidentally, one of my favorite people came to town and asked me to see the play with them and I immediately agreed to it. In hindsight, I’m even more grateful I went because if not then… then when?

The play was so poignantly and beautifully written. The acting, the symbolism, the lights, the music; everything was unforgettably impeccable. The story follows the journey of the principal characters, highlighting the joy, lust, passion, unhappiness that life can bring, and how it relates to the their experiences. Even though they came from fairly distinct backgrounds, there is a strong similitude that binds them all - what it means to be a black man in America. I won’t give much else of the story away, I hope you’ll go see it someday. It will be running through to March next year; you absolutely won’t regret it!

So there I was, in the ever-alive Times Square area, speechless after such a breathtaking show, holding back tears emanating from the emotional depth of each character’s laudable performance. It truly was surreal. I’m so glad I went.