Yesterday I posted Playbills from the 1966 and 2006 Broadway productions of "The Apple Tree." My Wordless Wednesday post featured a very young and handsome Alan Alda in the 1966 version.
I originally wanted to post a trilogy of Alan Alda plays (Art, QED and The Apple Tree) but couldn't find the Playbill from Art. Yes, I am crazy about that Hawkeye, science-loving, happily married guy.
My husband is a collector of sorts. He has cartons of 1960's Topps baseball cards, piles of championship New York Knicks NBA programs and every T-shirt, sweatshirt, pajama bottom and baseball cap from The University of Wisconsin.
He also held onto most of the Playbills from Broadway shows that we've seen together since we met in 1985. As I look through each cover, it reminds me of our life together, and the events that were happening in our lives at the time we enjoyed each show.
It's no surprise how many Neil Simon plays we saw. To us, he is a playwright extraordinaire: Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, Laughter on the 23rd Floor, The Odd Couple (the female version - ugh), Barefoot in the Park (1996), Promises, Promises (2010) Rumors and Lost in Yonkers.
I love musicals. When I was 8 years old my mother brought me to my first play, Fiddler on the Roof. We sat in the third row orchestra, and I felt as if I lived in Anatevka.
I was hooked for life.
My husband always insisted he enjoyed only plays and didn't care for musicals. I couldn't understand how anyone could feel that way, especially because he is so crazy about jazz.
I made the mistake of taking him to see Will Rogers' Follies starring Keith Carradine when our friends were in town from Wisconsin.
Big mistake. It was awful, and he kept reminding me of it.
But I remained undaunted, and dragged brought him to more musicals despite that debacle. Les Miserables. Jersey Boys. Fiddler on the Roof. Guys and Dolls. South Pacific. He enjoyed them all.
Need I say more?
The play that was the one of the most meaningful to me was The Producers. Growing up, my brothers threw barbs around that I later found out were quotes from the movie The Producers starring Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder.
When The Producers came to Broadway, my brothers and I decided to get tickers for the three of us and our spouses. We were excited to see Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick in the Mel Brooks zany comedy.
The show was a smash hit, and getting good seats wasn't easy. The best we could get were three seats in one row and three behind them. My brothers sat in front of me, and I clearly remember that while I was laughing, I watched their heads and shoulders moving in every direction as they roared with uncontrollable laughter.
Broadway holds special magic, the kind that everyone should experience at least once in a lifetime. So if you decide to go, do me a favor. Get me an extra ticket, because I'm about due to see another show.
What was the best play you ever saw?
Thanks for the wonderful post Cathy! I love Broadway shows. I try to see several when I visit New York. Great memories for sure!
So many memories! Sitting so close to the stage i could see Jerry Orbach's spit when he enunciated. Yul Brenner's final run of "The King and I". Sitting in the front row with my 5 yr old daughter as she sang along with "Cats" and how the cast interacted with her.
But my favorite memory will be last May when my now 20 year old daughter and I went to see Cinderella. We had a magical day in the city and crossed a couple of things off her wish list. I lost my job a few months later and now I am moving 700 miles away. It seems like it will be a long time before we have that experience again.
My all-time favorite musical is still Guys and Dolls, but my favorite that I actually saw on Broadway was A Chorus Line. But truthfully it's like asking a parent which of their children is their favorite - I love musicals!
We also have saved our Playbills, and my parents have saved theirs. They have about two dozen huge binders and I can't even begin to imagine how many are in there. It is one of the gifts that I am so grateful for, that my parents introduced me to Broadway when I was seven years old.
Fiddler was MY first play, too, and my mom also brought me! Thank goodness for moms!
I love all these! What a fabulous collection. I wish I had started saving my Playbills earlier; now I have two Playbill books filled with them. But those oldies are the best ones, aren't they?
What an amazing collection! And what great memories these bring.Fiddler on the Roof was my first musical and I loved it 🙂
I saw those versions of Les Miz and South Pacific! I don't think I could pick just one as best. Probably nothing will ever hit me like the original Rent, though.
Wow you have seen a lot of amazing shows! I think my faves were Rent and Les Miz, but I haven't seen as many as you!
Hi Cathy, Oh I am just kicking myself that I didn't keep all mine! I've seen so many plays over the years, because I like you live near NYC. I've seen a lot of yours above, my favorites are all the Sondheim plays (Sunday in the Park w/George, Into the Woods), also loved Evita, Man of La Mancha, 1776, Fiddler, Once....oh so many plays! This is a fun walk down memory lane. I wish they'd revive Man of LaMancha so my kids could see it, I just loved it. Thanks for the memory jog!!
I used to save all my Playbills and I finally threw out most of them. I still have a few from my all-time favorites like Les Mis, the original Pippin and Wicked with Idina and Kristin (we're on a first name basis). Your piece brings back so many great memories and makes me want to get on a plane and go to a show!
Cathy, this post brought back a lot of memories of my dad. After he passed away, I found a drawer stuffed with every Playbill from every show he'd seen! Sadly, his "office" (what we called the shack in the back) had taken on a musty odor, and all the theater books and mementos carried it too. My dad was a high school drama teacher (I think we've had this conversation online)and later a professor of theater at the college level. He used to bring groups to London every year to see as many shows as they could. I loved seeing your collection! A lovely way to tell the story.