A little #tbt for you…

One of the first things my mom noticed about me right after I was born was my long fingers. She knew her little girl would play the piano — and she was right. I started at the ripe age of eight and played until I was sixteen.

They say you should live with no regrets.

Well, I live with one…

Looking back, I never would have given up letting my fingers dance across those beautiful keys. Yes, I am bragging, I was good. Music is definitely a niche of mine and was a big part of my life from the age of eight until eighteen.

Besides banging out the theme song to Mission Impossible, 

the music of Phantom of the Opera was my favorite.

“Think of Me”

“Angel of Music”

“The Phantom of the Opera”

I strongly disliked practicing. However, I loved to zealously play when my parents were not home. And I would even sing…

Oh, if the walls of our previous house could talk.

I would belt out those three songs (and others), while playing the piano — my dogs were the only ones to experience those mini concerts.

Needless to say, experiencing the Broadway play, The Phantom of the Opera was more than just a night out embracing the arts.

Words cannot do the set and stage justice. Each scene was elaborately decorated with detail; it was as though you stepped into nineteenth century Paris. The architecture of the staging and props combined with the intricacy of how the pieces moved from scene-to-scene was amazing.  There was one large circular piece used throughout the musical that allowed each scene to revolve into the next. 

It took us from the theater — to the street — 

— to the dressing room — to the Phantom’s lair. 

Of course the costumes were at the same caliber; 

there was not one detail forgotten.

I do not want to give too much away… but how can I not mention the music??

Since
our seats were near the top, I was able to see into the orchestra pit
and watch the conductor’s every move. I still knew every word by heart
and the talent exuded on stage was powerful. Each individual sang with
such emotion and hit every note. I was thouroughly impressed with the
soprano women & men who effortlessly jumped octaves without hesitation. 

The
presence that was radiated from the stage gave you chills; it is
amazing how a masterpiece written over one-hundred years ago and still
make that impact. 

Obviously, I loved it. The music has always held a special place in my musical soul and it was amazing to finally experience it in it’s true form, as the way Gaston Leroux & Andrew Lloyd Webber intended… (giving both credit here; Gaston was the original writer & creator, ALW brought it to life and allowed it to receive the credit it deserved)

The entire company of The Phantom of the Opera did a phenomenal job with the production and the Straz Center was quite the exceptional host.