Theater Going

Rocky and I attended a performance of The Book of Mormon Wednesday evening, September 4^th. Downtown Chicago for a 7:30 curtain call required dog sitting arrangements, dropping her off at family, returning home, preparing for an evening out, then driving in rush hour traffic from 4 to 5 pm. Safely parked in the labyrinth of the Loop, we hobbled over to the theater, spotted a restaurant across the street, and gratefully found ready seating.

A very nice supper of roasted lemon chicken with pan roasted potatoes, we walked around State Street once the rush hour pedestrians were safely in their buses and trains. First time we had walked downtown streets in a long time, maybe 4 or 5 years! Such is retirement and the aging process that causes us to shy away from such adventures we once did so often.

Awaiting the opening of the theater we made acquaintance with two young theater students. One was an aspiring actor and the other was a theater tech major. Both talked theater non-stop and really knew what was happening on Chicago stages. And New York of course! Very pleasant relating to college students after so many years absent from that arena.

Theater staff noted our physical status and easily helped us to our seats via elevator and encouragement!  Lots of laughs along the route. Once seated in the lower balcony (nose bleed minus 2 degrees), and learning to sit without benefit of parachute or seat belts, we settled back and drank in the crowd and architectural wonder of the old theater. Our view of the stage was full, a bit of an angle, and nearly perpendicular vertically. Exhilarating! Scary a little.

The performance started on time with a blare of music, a loud group sing, and dance. A diorama of biblical scenes leading to the discovery of John Smith and the gold printing plates of the Book of Mormon, quickly immersed us in the totally farcical spoof of the Mormon church and anything religion related to it including Judeo-Christian traditions. Unheard of was the Muslim quarter, which on second thought, was probably a public safety policy statement!

The show ran two and a half hours including intermission. Laughter was spontaneous and frequent. The audience was pleased and fully entertained. The plot of the production was simple and easily predicted but the timing and comedic direction was good fun. Shock value was served several times throughout the show and heightened audience reactions. Naughty is often a good spark to public laughter, don't you know!

The crowd was easily of average age under 30. Numerous retirees like us dotted the congregation but immediately missing were middle age folk. Perhaps they were the commuters running for trains and buses we observed while dining at street level. The youth were up to the rigors of theater going, especially on a work night, while the retirees had plenty of time and lots of staff to help them get along. So all was fine and dandy. Clearly, though, the script was designed for a young crowd hungry for spoofing church traditions - any church!

Wending our way home was easier than I had prepared for. The crowd mostly parked in the same garage as we so they kind of swept us along our way! Paying the garage fee was electronically efficient, and we easily rolled onto an elevator and found our car in no time. A quick exit to street traffic and then on our way home. At 10 pm and after the route was fast and snag-free. We were in bed and asleep by 11:15, and that even gave us enough time for pills and catching up with emails!

This morning the knees, hips and feet are a combination of sore and numb. But we await another time to experience this hubbub afresh.

Thanks to family who gave us the Ticketmaster gift cards nearly 3 Christmases ago. Although we took our sweet time deciding on which production to attend, we had nearly 3 years of glorious shopping theater reviews and internet listings of possible productions. We considered every venue, ease of traffic routes and available parking. And we planned the expense as well. $200 for the evening but the gift cards totaled $100 so the net cost was possible.

It was a good time, even for senior citizens like us. A good time we want to repeat ~ need to repeat!

Cast, take a bow!

September 9, 2013