When it came time to plan my college visit to NYU, I was just as excited to tour the campus as I was to see a musical. I was definitely a JC and Justin girl, but I was still bummed (and a little weirded out) that the show went on with Joey in the hospital for Pneumonia. My friends and I went to San Antonio to see the NSYNC “No Strings Attached Tour”, but there was no Joey Fatone dangling on any of those marionette strings. Being a teenage girl in the early 2000s, I was an equal opportunity boy band fan. You can safely assume that the girl working towards a career in the music business found her way to a LOT of concerts. I thought going to NYU would help me knock out two of my biggest dreams, to live in NYC and work in art. A former mentor and boss called it Midwifing Dreams, and I’ll never think of a more appropriate title for my own aspirations. It wasn’t curing cancer, but it meant something to people and to me, it made a difference. Music was my life and I wanted to major in music business to help other people get their art into the world. My childhood was by no means idyllic and perfect, but I was quite sheltered. We moved our way up to comfortably middle class by the time I was looking at colleges and planning my future. I was raised by an immigrant single mother with a serious determination to improve our lot in life. My step-dad grew up on Long Island, and I never complained about visiting the grandparents because it always meant a day trip to the city for museums, musicals, and meals we talked about long after we’d returned home to the suburbs. It’s always been a magical miracle for me, and I’ve toyed with the idea of living here for my entire adult life. I love street art, architecture, museums, delicious food, people watching, window shopping… you name it, NYC’s got it, and I want it.
I’ve been in love with New York City since I was a very little girl. Jonathan Larson completely shook the foundations of my heart almost 20 years ago with RENT, and tonight Lin Manuel Miranda and the most incredible cast did it again with the BEAUTIFUL cinematic interpretation of Larson’s debut play, Tick, Tick… Boom! I was frighteningly slow to discover both of these brilliant works, and I somehow started with the last and ended with the first, but within seconds of the opening numbers I knew I’d never be the same again. I think it is a relatively unique experience for lightning to strike twice, twenty years apart. Art has a way of moving people, and creating passionate lifelong fans. I can’t imagine there are many people in this world who haven’t experienced love at first sight with some sort of art- be it a song, film, show, painting, sculpture, or even delicious dish. Sometimes you find something that completely changes the way you see yourself, the world, and what you thought was possible.
0 kommentar(er)
