Student Blog: 10 Shows I'd Travel in Time to See

A few days ago, one of my friends sent me a TikTok asking what shows I would choose to see if I had 3 comp tickets and a time machine. I liked this concept, but decided to make it a list of 10 instead of 3. For one, 3 shows would make for a pretty brief blog, and this way, I don't have to narrow my choices down as much. So without further ado, I present to you my carefully curated list (I quite literally took 3 hours to decide on just 10 shows):

The Musicals

1. Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 (2016 Broadway Cast)

I have been obsessed with this musical since my senior year of high school. I forced multiple friends to listen to the entire cast album straight through with me just to show them how beautiful the music is. I think Dave Malloy is an absolute genius. Every musical he writes is cooky and unique. I mean come on, that crunchy yet gorgeous harmony that Natasha and Mary sing together in "Natasha and Bolkonskys"? A masterpiece. Not to mention the light design, the direction, and the interactive and intimate nature of the show. The reason I chose the Broadway cast in particular is because Josh Groban, and I don't think that needs further explanation. I was very upset when Great Comet closed and would give anything to have seen it live.

2. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2016 Production in Denver)

As you will soon discover from the rest of my list, I am a huge Sondheim fan. I have been since around 4 years old when I would watch A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum almost every day. Sweeney Todd, specifically the Denver production, changed my life and quickly became part of my personality. I have never been more in love with theatre than I was watching the show for the first time. I say first time because I went back a month later and saw it again. I loved it that much. Until that show, I had a very short list of musicals I actually liked (mostly just Sondheim). I found them campy and annoying for the most part, but this one was definitely not that. It was dark and haunting but still very funny. I decided to give musicals one more chance because obviously, they weren't all just flashy dance numbers and love songs.

3. Gypsy (2008 Revival)

I love Sondheim; that has been established. I also love that this musical centers around strong, proud, loud women. Gypsy Rose Lee is a burlesque dancer, and she isn't ashamed of it. She went from a family where she stood in the shadow of her sister to finding something she was genuinely good at and enjoyed. That's pretty amazing. I love the 2008 cast mainly because I love Patti LuPone. In her memoir, she talks about the cast of Gypsy being one of the closest casts she's ever been a part of. They were like family. On closing night, the two kids playing Baby Louise and Baby June began to cry during the opening number they performed with LuPone, and during a part in the choreography where they weren't facing the audience, LuPone wiped the girls' tears away. Seeing a performance by a cast that bonded would be a magical experience.

4. Sunday in the Park with George (1984 Broadway Cast)

Sunday is my all time favorite musical. I cry every single time I hear the title song. Again, Sondheim musicals are *chef's kiss*, but this one in particular resonates with me. It exemplifies the struggle all artists go through when trying to stay true to themselves in their work and proves just how powerful a tool art is in expressing oneself and becoming an outlet for feelings that can't be put into words. While yes, there is a filmed version of this show available, I would love to experience it live and in person.

5. Bright Star (2016 Broadway Cast)

I am realizing as I write that a lot of the shows I want to go back for happened in 2016. Weird. Any who, no cast album can ever make me as genuinely happy as Bright Star. The music is just so fun. It makes me want to dance around and sing along. Plus, the orchestrations are gorgeous. I saw Bright Star at the Phoenix Theater in Indianapolis my first year of college, but I would love to see the Broadway version. The songs bring back a lot of happy memories of late nights in dorm rooms.

6. Spongebob Squarepants: The Musical (2017 Broadway Cast)

This is probably a surprising show to see next to everything else on my list. Trust me, I was surprised too. Now, I do have my problems with it. I don't think the songs go together as well as they could, and it's definitely a little gimmicky, but nonetheless, I genuinely enjoy it. The first time I watched this musical, I was pretty much forced by my roommate at the time. The recorded version was being aired on tv; I was not happy to be watching it. I am not ashamed to admit that I can be a bit of a snob when it comes to musicals, but by the end of the show, I was crying. It had more layers to it than I was expecting. There were undertones of antiracism and acceptance of others, and the finale when the whole town came together really tugged at my heart strings.

The Plays

7. Yellowface (2007 Off-Broadway Cast)

I read this play for a class this past year and loved it immediately. Usually, I don't love reading plays. It's not how they are meant to be enjoyed, and they often come off as flatter than they would be if seen rather than read. This one, though, was such an enjoyable read. I read it in one sitting because I just couldn't put it down; I'd love to see it performed. As a creative writing minor, my favorite genres to read as well as write are memoirs and works of creative nonfiction, so Yellowface combines my love for theatre with my favorite literary genre. The play also had me thinking about what race really is for days. The narrator of the play left the audience, or readers in this case, with no clear answer to what race is and how to go about casting people in a racially accurate way. It's an interesting play that brings up important discussions that still need to be addressed within the theatre community today.

8. Every Brilliant Thing (2019 IRT Cast)

This play is one I have already seen live, but I enjoyed it so much I would go back and see it again and again. I saw it performed at the Indianapolis Repertory my first year of college. I was awestruck. It is a one person show where the main character lists everything brilliant in the world that makes life worth living. The show is about the struggles of depression, but it's also funny and has wonderful moments of improv and audience interaction. I left the theater making my own list and thinking about the beauty found in even the smallest things.

9. The Things I Know to Be True (Frantic Assembly Production 2017)

I saw a recording of this play on Digital Theatre Plus, and let me tell you, I sobbed the entire time. It is a very powerful and real play. The dialogue is interwoven with monologues directly to the audience and etudes of abstract dance and music. Even with abstract elements, it felt so familiar. The problems faced by the main characters are problems being faced by people every day. I wish I could have been in person to see this show. I know the energy and emotion of the cast would have been palpable in the theater.

10. Premiere of any Sarah Kane play

New Brutalism is an incredibly intriguing genre of theatre, and no one does it quite like Sarah Kane did. Every work she wrote was raw and poetic. I've never read anything quite like it before. It is also incredibly graphic, and though I am a bit squeamish, I feel this longing to know how on Earth her plays were staged. This urge can't be cured with a quick Google search because videos of her shows are widely unavailable. Kane's plays are otherworldly; their shock factor burns themes into your brain. They are shows you carry with you forever, and that is something I want to experience.

Well, you've reached the end of my list. What shows would you travel in time to see?