Broadway, Books, & Birthdays!

I love the month of June for two reasons. First, it’s my birthday month and second, the current Broadway season culminates with the Tony Awards. Both my birthday and the Tony Awards occur around the second weekend of June. To me, it’s the best weekend of the year. I was born a Broadway baby. If there is anything in this world that comes close to my love of books, it’s Broadway and theater.

This week I celebrated my 33rd birthday by seeing The Prom. It was incredible! The show was so funny and endearing. It was the perfect to show to not only celebrate my birthday, but also Pride month! Even my husband who is not a theater person, loved it.

I’ve seen about 36 Broadway shows (so far) since my first show, Beauty and the Beast in 1995. The Prom broke my top seven favorite musicals of all time.

Here’s my current list of top seven favorites:

Once
Hairspray
Hamilton
Waitress
Something Rotten!
The Prom
South Pacific

I actually have tickets for two more shows this month – Kiss Me Kate and Come From Away. By the end of June, I’ll have seen seven shows in the first six months of 2019. It’s a personal record for me!

If you’re a big Broadway fan like me, I have a few book suggestions.

If you’re a fan of everyone’s favorite thespian –

Gmorning, Gnight! by Lin-Manuel Miranda – This book is so wonderful. It’s a compilation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s tweets of encouragement he posted at the beginning and end of each day and sweet little illustrations. Whenever I’m feeling a little sad or need some encouragement, I open this book to a random page and read whatever’s on it. My mood is instantly lightened.

If you want to read a 2019 Tony nominee –

To Kill a Mockingbird is currently playing at the Shubert Theater. I wrote all about the production and deep love of the book here!

If you’re still on the waitlist for some popular productions –

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child – I didn’t see this on Broadway, but I read the play and loved it. Check out my post here.

Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow and Hamilton: The Revolution by Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jeremy McCarter – Lin-Manuel wrote Hamilton the musical based on the biography by Chernow. Hamilton: The Revolution is a backstage look and the groundbreaking, revolutionary musical.

Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich is a novel inspired by the Broadway hit from the show’s creators.

My pairing suggestion is your favorite pre-show drink. Mine would be a beer from The Mean Fiddler in NYC.