A Tale of Two Musicals

Seeing Les Miserables at the Queen's Theatre in London in 2010

When I was in high school I watched a PBS special about the making of a new musical called Les Miserables.  The toast of London's West End was about to make its debut on Broadway and composers Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg were interviewed about the process of bringing Victor Hugo's masterpiece to the stage.  I was fascinated!  I distinctly remember them talking about how they wrote the song "On My Own," because they needed a powerful opening to the second act, and it instantly became my favorite song in the show (I still judge every production by how the actress playing Eponine sings this song!).  To say that I became obsessed with this musical would be an understatement.  I bought a copy (on vinyl!) of the Original London Cast Recording and listened to it over and over (much to the dismay of my family) during every waking moment.  I wanted to see Les Miserables more than I wanted anything else in the world!  When I was in college I had the opportunity to go on a study abroad trip and I knew that I would be in London for a week.  I tried everything in my power to get a ticket but it was sold out!  My heart was literally broken at the thought that I would be in London and wouldn't be able to see it.  Before I left for Europe, my Dad gave me a newspaper article about London's West End which said that you could very often get tickets to sold out shows on the day of the show in kiosks located throughout the city.  I found one in Piccadilly Circus and learned that there were tickets available for that evening but I would have to buy a block of four.  I didn't have a lot of money but such was my mania to see this show that I immediately bought all four.  When I got back to my hotel I asked a friend if she knew anyone who wanted to buy the other three tickets.  A man staying in the hotel overheard me and offered to buy them on the spot.  He even offered to let me ride with him and his family in their taxi to the theatre and, because I was so visibly excited about seeing the show, he bought me a program (which I still have!).  Words cannot describe how I felt when I first heard those opening notes!  To this day, I still get goosebumps when I hear them.

In January I watched an interview with Lin-Manuel Miranda on 60 Minutes about the staging of a new musical called Hamilton.  This story about the life of founding father Alexander Hamilton set to rap and hip hop music performed by a young and multiracial cast left me spellbound!  The song "My Shot" instantly became my favorite when Miranda said it took him a year to write because he wanted it to be the best song it could possibly be!  To say that I am obsessed with this musical would be an understatement!  I immediately downloaded the Original Broadway Cast Recording and I listen to it every day on the drive to and from school.  I want to see Hamilton so much!  Next month I am going on a theatre trip to New York City and I tried to get a ticket but it is sold out for the next year!  I would be brokenhearted to be in NYC and not be able to see it so, since I am a little bit more savvy than I was in college (not to mention I have a little bit more money), I eventually found a ticket on StubHub.  It cost the equivalent of the gross national product of a small country but such is my mania to see this show that I didn't hesitate to buy it.  I am so excited and I don't know how I am going to wait five weeks before I leave!  I know that it will be the experience of a lifetime just like it was seeing Les Miserables for the first time!