The Magic of the Stage

I am so lucky to have grown up around the stage.  When I was little, my parents played in orchestras and ensembles, so I learned to be an audience member quickly! When I moved to the states I started singing in the choir and also began to appreciate being on stage.  The thrill of performing with others is incredible, but once I started being part of the musical theater program in high school, I began to understand the true magic that comes from a stage.  It isn't about being the center of attention, the star, or even the person behind the curtain.  It is about the emotions.  It is about the beauty of connecting with others and telling the audience your story.  It is about watching the reactions from the people who went through this journey of emotions with you . It is the feeling you get when everything clicks.

As I watched Mary Poppins on Friday night, I realized how hard it is to explain how I feel while I'm watching a show.  When I try to figure it out, I always look back to the time I watched my high school perform Kudzu.  It is one of the funniest musicals I've ever seen, yet I cried.  I'm not sure why I cried.  Maybe it was the incredible accompaniment played by the actors themselves, maybe it was their voices, maybe it was their acting skills, or maybe it was the joy that the cast radiated.  As I watched Mary Poppins, since I knew the storyline, I was able to focus on pin pointing what made me feel the way I feel about musicals.  As I teared up AGAIN, I realized that it wasn't her flying, the tap dancing on the ceiling, or the two 10 year olds that commanded the stage and sang their hearts out.  It was the audience, it was the joy, and it was the bond between the emotions that the cast and the audience were feeling.  This might not make any sense, but I think that this is why I keep going back.  Two very smart people once told me that the reason we sing and dance on stage is because the emotions are sooo big that we don't have another way to express them.  Here, on Broadway, I get to witness this time and time again.  I get to hear incredible voices, watch young talent develop, and share emotions with hundreds of people that I've never even spoken to.  Here, I get to watch the magic that a stage brings and that is why every time it keeps getting better.