Six The Musical - Brooks Atkinson - February 29, 2020 8pm
Well. It has been a full year since I have seen a show on Broadway (although my last show was February 29th so I can't even call it truly a year to the day). I never thought I would go this long without seeing a Broadway show since I started seeing theater regularly. When I think of all the new shows I was supposed to see in the past year, I wonder if any of them will be coming back but also when we can finally have theater back in our lives in general. I digress, now I want to take a look back and remember this incredible day and the amazing show I did get to see.
Six the Musical has become one of my all-time favorite shows. It started by listening to Seth Rudetsky interview Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss on SiriusXM On Broadway and play a few songs from the show. I immediately downloaded the concept album and started following the show. If I’m being honest, I may have even investigated planning a trip to London just to see the West End production! I also started telling all my friends they needed to listen to this show. One night in particular I was in LA for work and met up with one of my close friends who is also a theater lover. Sitting in a mall parking garage, I played the first song for her and she was hooked. Then, magically, the next morning, it was announced that Six would be coming to the US for a national tour on the road to Broadway, starting with a production in Chicago. We immediately made plans to go see it together, and I got to see the show for the first time at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater. And it was better than I could have ever imagined. I then convinced another theater-loving friend to join me on a trip to Boston, where we saw the show at the American Repertory Theater.
I was so excited to see the Broadway production. As soon as it was officially announced, I bought tickets (with yet another theater-loving friend, as this is a show that needs to be shared!) to see it in previews, knowing I would be going to see it multiple times. The day of the show, the energy in the theater was exactly what it should be, like going into a concert venue where everyone knows and loves the band that is about to play. And the show was even better than before. The upgrades to the set, costume, and lighting design were fabulous and the actors were just as incredible!
But, we all know what happened next. The following week, it was announced one of the ushers at Six had been diagnosed with COVID. Broadway was continuing, but without the stage door experience. Things were starting to get tense in the US and some shows were cancelling performances. And then on March 12, the opening night of Six, the world shut down, and Broadway shut down with it. I remember watching the Instagram takeovers that day of the cast and creatives for Six getting ready for opening night. And then after the announcement, they all just stopped. I knew this would be bad, but I don't think any of us could have imagined we'd still be here almost a year later. I am hopeful that the light is shining at the end of this tunnel and we will be able to be back in a crowded theater, feeling that incredible energy and watching these fantastic performances soon. Until then, I will continue to treasure this memory of the last Broadway show I saw in 2020 and know that I will do whatever I can to be back in the house the first night back. What an incredible experience that will be.
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