Last Wednesday night Justin and I went into New York City to see Hamilton on Broadway. Yes, yours truly got to see the pop culture phenomenon that is Hamilton before creator, composer and star Lin-Manuel Miranda left the show and we are so happy we did.
So, how did this Hamilton journey begin? Let me start from the beginning... After listening to numerous Still Untitled podcasts where Adam Savage gushed about Hamilton,
Justin (Not me) decided to listen to it and instantly became obsessed
with it. He became so obsessed that one night in bed, after an evening
out drinking he lamented over how impossible tickets were to get and how
much he wanted to see the show -- It was so funny that I found the need
to tweet about his first World problem (Which you can read here).
Fast
forward to Friday, June 3rd... Lin-Manuel Miranda announced he would be
leaving and his final performance would be July 9th. The news just sent
Justin into Hamilton madness (Like
he called me while I was at Toni's house going "I think I'm going to do
it... I'm going to do it..." and me I'm like "Do what? Kill yourself?
What are you mumbling about?" and he finally said "I'm going to do it!
I'm going to buy us tickets to see Hamilton for this coming Wednesday" and that was that) and he "spent more than he is willing to admit" on a pair of rear mezzanine tickets for us to see Hamilton before Lin left the show (And I'm not going to lie, I'm so happy he did).
Prior
to Justin purchasing the tickets I refused to listen to the cast
soundtrack because I saw Justin's twitchy obsessed behavior. But once he
bought the tickets I decided that I should become familiar with the
music before seeing the show and that is when I realized what all the
fuss was about. The soundtrack is absolutely amazing -- I've honestly
been listening to it everyday since he purchased the tickets.
Fast forward to Wednesday... Justin and I went into the city early to meet up with Day to have dinner and drinks at BEA in the theater district.
After an awesome dinner and another round of drinks at Señor Frog's (Because we are classy like that) we parted ways with Day and we headed over to the Richard Rodgers Theatre. Where once inside we spent a glorious three hours enjoying the awesomeness that is Hamilton.
Since
seeing the show I've had a bunch of people come ask me if it's worth
the hype or what-have-you and I can honestly say yes, yes it is totally
worth it. I am absolutely in love with Hamilton,
I cannot wait to see the show again (Which we will be doing again on
May 10th next year) and I will be listening to the soundtrack for a long
long time.
If you you've seen it, I'd love to talk about
it with you. Or if you haven't and have any questions about the show,
feel free to ask because I've been getting tons of questions from people
I know and people who have overheard that I've gone.
FUN FACT: We have friends who are bragging to people that they know someone whose seen Hamilton. Which is just the funnest thing ever.
As I mentioned in passing in my Stuck In My Head | Gloria Estefan post back in September, I was invited by On Location Tours to pick out and go on one of their tours with a guest for free. So I asked my sister if she wanted to join me and when she said yes (She rarely says no when I ask her to be my
guest to random events), we set up a whole sister day in New York City based around going on their NYC TV & Movie Tour and seeing On Your Feet: The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan on Broadway.
If you follow me on Instagram you know that we went and had our sister day a little over a week ago and here's how everything was...
Because we had to be at the meeting spot in front of Ellen's Stardust Diner by 9:45am for the tour Kris and I caught a decently early train, which we were glad about because we were able to get ourselves some coffee and it left us with a little wiggle room in terms of getting to where we needed to be. And can I tell you, it was good thing we had that wiggle room because for some reason the subway was running wonky. The line we needed was running on a different track and it took us a little while to realize that.
After we figured everything out everything was good. We got to Ellen's with time to spare, we waited on line with the other tour attendees and chit chatted with each other before we were escorted to the On Location Tours' bus which was waiting for us across the street by our tour guide.
Once on the bus our guide introduced himself, told us about the tour we were taking and showed us a little video of with Willie Garson talking about what it's like to film a movie/television show on location in a city like New York City before we were off.
The tour, which lasted about two and a half hours, brought us past site where various movies and television shows had filmed over the years all over New York City and included stops at Columbus Circle where scenes from I Am Legend (2007) were shot, the FDNY Hook & Ladder 8 Firehouse in Tribeca that was the home of the Ghostbusters’ (1984) Firehouse, as well as the Greenwich Village apartment that Monica, Chandler, Joey and Rachel lived in in Friends (1994-2004).
I'm not going to lie, at first when we started the tour I was a little unsure of how I'd feel about it because I'm from New York and I go into New York City frequently. But as soon as we started all of that went away. I learned some pretty interesting facts about some of my favorite movies and television shows that I didn't know, and got to experience the city in a way that I never had before.
So over all the tour was really pretty good. The only thing that would have made it better is if I totally was unfamiliar with New York City, and that's on me. But yeah, if you are interested in film and going to be visiting New York City I highly recommend checking out what On Location Tours has to offer.
After the movie tour Kris and I wandered around a bit trying to figure out what we wanted to eat before heading over to the Marquis Theatre to see the matinee of On Your Feet: The Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan -- Which was amazing, we both loved it and would totally recommend it if you enjoy Gloria's music.
Once the show was over we hopped on the subway and headed downtown to have Cuban food in the village at Cuba. And can I tell you, we ordered so much food. It was great.
When we were done stuffing our faces we hopped back on the subway and headed uptown to Penn Station, where I caught a train home and she waited for her boyfriend because they had plans in the city for the rest of the evening.
It was such a great day. I love doing randomness with my sister and I can't wait for our next little random sister date day.
As you may or may not know, I work one night a week. So that means I get to lie in bed and watch various morning shows one day a week. Well, while I was mindlessly watching morning shows this morning I saw a commercial for a Gloria and Emilio Estefan musical that is starting next month called Get On Your Feet. Needless to say I'm very excited about this because I grew up listening to Gloria, especially her 1992 Greatest Hits album (I literally had it on cassette tape in my Saturn up until the day I cleaned it out to get rid of it) and 1993's Mi Tierra.
So because of all of this, I've made plans with my sister to see the musical (It all actually worked out really well because we were already going into the city October 24th because I was invited by On Location Tours to take a free tour with them and she was joining me, and the tour happens to end an hour and a half before the first show of the day) and was listening to Gloria in the car all morning. Thus I have a mixture of her songs stuck in my head currently. But the one that sticks out to most is "Music Of My Heart" with N'Sync (You all know I how much I love N'Sync). So here is the music video for that...
FUN FACT: I danced with my father at my wedding to the song "Mi Tierra"
L is for... L-O-V-E by Natalie Cole and La Vie Boheme from the musical Rent.
My grandmother had the LP of Natalie Cole's Unforgettable With Love and I remember her playing it when I was a child. This song is one of those songs that reminds me of my grandmother who passed away several years ago.
L-O-V-E
L is for the way you look at me,
O is for the only one I see,
V is very, very extraordinary,
E is even more than anyone that you adore
Love is all that I can give to you,
Love is more than just a game for two.
Two in love can make it,
Take my heart but please don't break it.
Love was made for me and you...
[Instrumental Interlude]
L is for the way you look at me
O is for the only one I see
V is very, very extraordinary
E is even more than anyone that you adore
Love is all that I'm gonna give to you
Love is more than just a game for two
Two in love can make it take my heart and please don't break it
Love was made for me and you
Love was made for me and you
Love was made for me and you
I love the music from Rent. I am still super sad that I haven't seen the show on Broadway.
La Vie Boheme
Who died?
Our akita
Evita
Mimi- I'm surprised
A bright and charming girl like you
Hangs out with these slackers
(Who don't adhere to deals)
They make fun -Yet I am the one
Attempting to do some good
Or do you really want a neighborhood
Where people piss on your stoop every night?
Bohemia, Bohemia
Is a fallacy in your head
This is Calcutta
Bohemia is dead
Dearly beloved, we gather here to say
our goodbyes
Dies Irae - Dies Illa
Kyrie Eleison
Yitgadal V' Yitkadash (etc.)
Here she lies
No one knew her worth
The late great daughter of Mother Earth
On these nights when we celebrate the birth
In that little town of Bethlehem
We raise our glass- You bet your ass to-
La Vie Boheme
La Vie Boheme
La Vie Boheme
La Vie Boheme
La Vie Boheme
To days of inspiration,
Playing hookey, making something
Out of nothing, the need
To express-
To communicate,
To going against the grain,
Going insane,
Going mad
To loving tension, no pension
To more than one dimension,
To starving for attention,
Hating convention, hating pretension,
Not to mention of course,
Hating dear old mom and dad
To riding your bike
Midday past the three piece suits-
To fruits- To no absolutes-
To Absolut- To choice-
To the Village Voice-
To any passing fad
To being an us- For once-
Instead of a them-
ALL
La Vie Boheme
La Vie Boheme
AHHEMM
Hey Mister- She's my sister
So that's five miso soup,
Four seaweed salad
Three soy burger dinner,
Two tofu dog platter
And one pasta with meatless balls
Eww
It tastes the same
If you close your eyes
And thirteen orders of fries
Is that it here?
Wine and beer!
To hand-crafted beers made in local breweries
To yoga, to yogurt, to rice and beans and cheese
To leather, to dildos, To curry Vindaloo
To Huevos Rancheros and Maya Angelou
Emotion, devotion, to causing a commotion,
Creation, Vacation
Mucho masturbation
Compassion, to fashion, to passion
When it's new
To Sontag
To Sondheim
To anything taboo
Ginsberg, Dylan, Cunningham and Cage
Lenny Bruce
Langston Hughes
To the stage!
To Uta
To Buddha
Pablo Neruda, too
Why Dorothy and Toto went over the rainbow
To blow off Auntie Em
La Vie Boheme
Sisters?
We're close
Brothers!
Bisexuals, trisexuals, Homo Sapiens,
Carcinogens, hallucinogens, men,
Pee Wee Herman
German wine, turpentine, Gertrude Stein
Antonioni, Bertolucci, Kurosawa
Carmina Burana
To apathy, to entropy, to empathy, ecstasy
Vaclav Havel- The Sex Pistols, 8BC
To no shame- Never playing the fame game
To marijuana
To sodomy
It's between God and me
To S & M
Waiter...Waiter...Waiter
La Vie Boheme
In honor of the death of Bohemia an impromtu salon will commence
immediately following dinner...
Mimi Marquez, clad only in bubble wrap,
will perform her famous lawn chair-handcuff dance to the sounds of iced tea being
stirred.
And Mark Cohen will preview his new documentary about
his inability to hold an erection on high holy days.
And Maureen Johnson, back from her spectacular one-night engagement at the
eleventh street lot, will sing Native American
tribal chants backwards through her vocoder, while accompanying herself on
the electric cello- Which she has never never
studied.
And Roger will attempt to write a bittersweet, evocative song
That doesn't remind us of 'Musetta's
Waltz'
Angel Dumott Schunard will model the latest fall fashions from Paris while
accompanying herself on the 10-gallon plastic
pickle tub.
And Collins will recount his exploits
as an Anarchist- Including the tale of
his successful reprogramming of the
MIT virtual reality equipment to self-destruct as it broadcasts the words:
'Actual Reality - Act Up - Fight AIDS!'
CHECK!!
Excuse me- Did I do something wrong?
I get invited, then Ignored all night long
I've been trying- I'm not lying-
No one's perfect, I've got baggage
Life's too short, Babe, time is flying
I'm looking for baggage that goes
with mine
C is for... Cell Block Tango from the musical Chicago and Conga by Gloria Estefan.
You'll have to pardon me, I've had the Cell Block Tango stuck in my head since Tuesday nights episode of Glee. I've blasting it in my car for days now.
Cell Block Tango
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
He had it coming
He had it coming
He only had himself to blame.
If you'd have been there
If you'd have seen it
I betcha you would have done the same!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
He had it coming
He had it coming
He only had himself to blame.
If you'd have been there
If you'd have seen it
I betcha you would have done the same!
Pop.
Six.
Squish.
Uh-Uh.
Cicero.
Lipschitz!
You know how people He had it coming
have these little habits that He had it coming
get you down. Like Bernie. He only had himself to blame.
Bernie liked to chew gum.
No, not chew. Pop. Well, I If you'd have been there
came home this one day and If you'd have seen it
I am really irritated, and I betcha you would
looking for a little sympathy Have done the same!
and there's Bernie layin' on He had it coming
the couch, drinkin' a beer and He had it coming
chewin'. No, not chewin'. He only had himself to blame.
Popin'. So, I said to him, I If you'd have been there
said, "Bernie, you pop that If you'd have seen it
gum one more time..." I betcha you would
And he did! Have done the same!
So I took the shotgun off the wall
and fired two warning shots...
...into his head.
He had it coming
He had it coming
He only had himself to blame.
If you'd have been there
If you'd have heard it
I betcha you would
Have done the same!
I met Ezekiel Young from He had it coming
Salt Lake City about two years ago He had it coming
and he told me he was single He only had himself
and we hit it off right away. To blame.
So, we started living together. If you'd have been there
He'd go to work, he'd come work, I'd mix If you'd have seen it
Him a drink, we'd have dinner. Well, it was I betcha you would
like heaven in two and a half rooms. Have done the same!
And then I found out, He had it coming
"Single" he told me? He had it coming
Single, my ass. Not only was he married. He only had himself
...oh, no, he had six wives. To blame.
One of those Mormons, If you'd have been there
you know. So that night when If you'd have seen it
he came home. I mixed him I betcha you would
his drink as usual. Have done the same!
You know, some guys just can't hold their arsenic!
Hah! He had it coming Pop, Six, Squish, Uh-Uh,
He had it coming Cicero, Lipschitz!
He took a flower
In its prime
And the he used it Pop, Six, Squish, Uh-Uh,
And he abused it Cicero, Lipschitz!
It was a murder
But not a crime!
Now, I'm standing in the kitchen Pop, Six,
carvin' up the chicken for dinner, Squish, Uh-Uh,
minding my own business, Cicero, Lipschitz!
and in storms my husband Wilbur, Pop, Six,
in a jealous rage. Squish, Uh-Uh,
"You been screwin' the milkman," Cicero, Lipschitz!
he says. He was crazy Pop, Six,
and he kept on screamin' Squish, Uh-Uh,
"You been screwin' the milkman," Cicero, Lipschitz!
And then he ran into my knife! He ran into my knife TEN TIMES!
If you'd have been there
If you'd have seen it
I betcha you would have done the same!
Mit keresek, enn itt? Azt mondjok, hogy lakem lefogta a ferjemet
en meg lecsaptam a fejet. De nem igaz, en artatlan vagyok. Nem
tudom mert mondja Uncle Sam hogy en tetten. Probaltam a rendorsegen
megmagyarazni de nem ertettek meg...
Yeah, but did you do it?
UH UH, not guilty!
My sister, Veronica, and I did this double act He had it coming
and my husband, Charlie, used to travel He had it coming
round with us. Now for the last number in He only had
our act, we did these 20 acrobatic tricks in a Himself
row, one, two, three, four, five... To blame.
Splits, spread eagles, back flips, flip flops, If you'd have been there
one right after the other. Well, this one night If you'd have seen it
we are in Cicero, the three of us, sittin' up I betcha
in a hotel room, boozin' and havin' a few You would
laughs and we ran out of ice, Have done
so I went out to get some. The same!
I come back, open the door He had
And there's Veronica and It coming
Charlie doing Number Seventeen He had
-the spread eagle. It coming...
Well, I was in such a state of shock, I completely blacked out.
I can't remember a thing. It wasn't until later, when I was
washing the blood off my hands I even knew they were dead.
They had it coming
They had it coming
They had it coming all along.
I didn't do it
But if I'd done it
How could you tell me that I was wrong?
They had it coming
They had it coming
They had it coming
They had it coming
They had it coming
They took a flower
All along
In its prime
I didn't do it
And then they used it
But if I'd done it
And they abused it
How could you tell me
It was a murder
That I was wrong? But not a crime!
I love Alvin Lipschitz He had it coming
More than I can possibly say. He had it coming
He was a real artistic guy... He only had
Sensitive...a painter. Himself t
But he was troubled. To blame.
He was always trying If you'd have been
to find himself. There
He'd go out every night If you'd have seen it
looking for himself I betcha
and along the way You would
he found Ruth, Have done
Gladys, The same!
Rosemary and Irving.
I guess you can say we broke up because of artistic differences.
He saw himself as alive and I saw him dead.
The dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum
The dirty bum, bum, bum, bum, bum
They had it comin'
They had it comin'
They had it comin'
They had it comin'
They had it comin'
They had it comin'
All along
All along
'Cause if they used us
'Cause if they used us
And they abused us
And they abused us
How could you tell us
How could you tell us
That we were wrong?
That we were wrong?
He had it coming
He had it coming
He only had
Himself
To blame.
If you'd have been there
If you'd have seen it
I betcha you would have done the same!
I'm really lame and I love this song (I actually love all Gloria Estefan's Miami Sound Machine stuff and I listen to it when I'm alone in my car). It's the whole Cuban thing.
Conga
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger
Don't you fight it 'til you tried it, do that conga beat
Everbody gather 'round now
Let your body feel the heat
Don't you worry if you can't dance
Let the music move your feet
It's the rhythm of the island, and like the sugar cane so sweet
If you want to do the conga, you've got to listen to the beat
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger
Don't you fight it 'til you tried it, do that conga beat
Feel the fire of desire, as you dance the night away
'Cause tonight were gonna party, 'til we see the break of day
Better get yourself together, and hold on to what you've got
Once the music hits your system, there's no way your gonna stop
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger
Don't you fight it 'til you tried it, do that conga beat
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger
Don't you fight it 'til you tried it, do that conga beat
Come on , shake your body baby, do the conga
I know you can't control yourself any longer
Feel the rhythm of the music getting stronger
Don't you fight it 'til you tried it, do that conga beat
While I was searching for library articles to post I stumbled across a review for a musical by Joking Envelope called Sexy Librarian: File Under Rock Musical. Obviously I think the idea of a musical about a librarian is awesome and I wanted to share it because I know if I live in Minneapolis I'd totally go see it.
Synopsis From Joking Envelope: A meek librarian lives in quiet frustration until she finds an ancient tome with a horrible spell andtransforms herself into a beautiful monster. Whip off your glasses and shake out your hair forthis stereotype smashing twist on the classic Jekyll and Hyde tale. A rock musical about fantasy,obsession, appearance, and rockin’ the bookmobile after hours. Featuring a live band, originalmusic and some of the top comic actors in the Twin Cities.
Here is a link to their press release for those of you interested.
So, how did this Hamilton journey begin? Let me start from the beginning... After listening to numerous Still Untitled podcasts where Adam Savage gushed about Hamilton,
Justin (Not me) decided to listen to it and instantly became obsessed
with it. He became so obsessed that one night in bed, after an evening
out drinking he lamented over how impossible tickets were to get and how
much he wanted to see the show -- It was so funny that I found the need
to tweet about his first World problem (Which you can read here). 
