Bag of Randomness for Friday, April 26, 2019

  • Last night I took WifeGeeding to watch Hamilton at The Music Hall in Fair Park. As we approached the entrance we ran into our old friend Roger Staubach. Well, at least to me he felt like an old friend. It’s funny, for the last several years I’ve been working on implementing several tenants of stoicism in my life, trying to set apart feelings and emotions and think more rationally and logically, mind over heart. All that went out the window when I saw Captain America. For the next half-hour, I couldn’t think straight, put together a coherent sentence, or walk in a straight line. I checked my FitBit and my heart rate was elevated for the next ten minutes.
  • I asked Mrs. Staubach if she would be kind enough to be in the photo. I’ve heard so many great things about her, I really wanted her included. After the picture, she asked what district did I live in. I told her we lived outside of Dallas but we’d vote for whoever she told us to vote for. She then politely requested we ask any of our friends who live in District 13 to vote for her daughter for Dallas City Councilmember.
  • In case you are wondering, Roger Staubach smells like freedom, but not just any kind of freedom, but the sweetest and most heroic kind with a slight twist of liberty and patriotism mixed in.
  • As for who took that photo of me and WifeGeeding, I’ll just let you take a guess. (You don’t really have to guess, I’m being rhetorical.)
  • After the photo was taken, a high school or college age girl approached me and asked, “Who was that, some kind of famous politician?” I wanted to respond by simply stating, “Captain America,” and walking away. I also was tempted to tell her that he played football in that big stadium over my shoulder called the Cotton Bowl and detail how he won the Heisman Trophy as a cadet in the Naval Academy, served our country in Vietnam, won two Super Bowls (one of which he was MVP), is an NFL Hall of Famer, a better Catholic than the Pope, a recent Medal of Freedom recipient, and the holiest and most humble figure in all of Dallas. But I simply told her he’s the most legendary Dallas Cowboy and she replied with, “Oh, okay, thanks,” and walked off.
  • I lucked into some really good tickets for a reasonable price. Ticket prices changed throughout the hour depending on the demand at the time you visit their website, I simply found the night there wasn’t as much demand and bought them at an odd hour. We were only ten rows from the front, inside aisle seat, side section. To my surprise, Mr. and Mrs. Staubach sat ten rows behind us, but in the center section. Also making an appearance two rows in front of us (but also in the center section) was Emmitt Smith. Between us three, we won five Super Bowls.
  • Some musicals have spoken dialog between musical numbers. Hamilton is not one of those. I’ve seen a handful of musicals, but this is the only one which kept me engaged the whole time. And the woman who planed his wife had perhaps the best singing voice of any stage performer I’ve ever heard.
  • The stage, or set, was quite simple. However, it did have an embedded rotating or slowly spinning floor, like a huge lazy susan. It was really neat seeing how it was used to add emphasis to certain parts.
  • It may be a musical about Alexander Hamilton, but Aaron Burr the better musical numbers.
  • The entire cast is made up of minorities, except for King George who was portrayed by the sole white person. The sole Asian in the show played George Washington, which I didn’t like at first, only because I thought Washington should be taller and older, but the actor eventually won me over.
  • WifeGeeding had a great observation about all the songs King George sang, the music had traces of The Beatles.
  • As well received as this musical is, I don’t think the older generation will like it, but that’s okay. What I do like is that it’s a musical for my generation, the ones who grew up with R&B, pop, and saw the creation and evolution of hip-hop and rap. We are the ones who will really appreciate it. This isn’t Oklahoma or Guys and Dolls, something traditional and connected with the past. This is something defining of our generation and a glimpse of the future of theater and something we can call our own.
  • It’s a crazy weekend for me in regards to emotional investment and entertainment. It started with Hamilton last night. Today it will be watching the latest Avengers movie, and I’m sure there will be a handful of deaths in which I’ll have to say goodbye to some characters I’ve been attached to for the last decade. And, on Sunday, Game of Thrones will have an epic battle and I know for sure I’ll have to say goodbye to some characters I’ve also emotionally attached to. See, I do this thing in which I try to relate to the characters as much as I can to get into the story, I relate their struggles and any adversity they go through with similar events in my life and then I feel as if I know what they are going through. And that, in a weird sort of way, gives me motivation and hope that I can endure and conquer adversity just like they did.
  • I think it’s amazing how this musical started as an experimental or concept hip-hop album by Lin-Manuel Miranda. The first time any hint of what was to be was performed at the White House by a young-looking Miranda in May 2009, and some folks even laughed at the idea and performance.
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4 Responses to Bag of Randomness for Friday, April 26, 2019

  1. Old Guy says:

    Took my oldest daughter to see Hamilton on Broadway in 2017. Even though I am older, I thought it was the best musical I have ever seen but I did have to practice listening to rap beforehand. My daughter was smart enough to send the songs in advance (with lyrics) so I would be able to follow. It is simply not the way I am accustomed to listening to music but it was great.

    Also, I enjoy your blog!

  2. RPM says:

    Holy cow! A pic with Staubach is quite the prize and at Hamilton no less. Funny coincidence. You and I have the same number of SB rings! What are the odds?

  3. Sharon says:

    Totally understand what you are saying about relating to characters in movies and books! I do the same thing. Think that makes us Empaths … being able to relate to others’ feelings so strongly that we feel it ourselves. Can be draining sometimes! And, I am probably one of the few people not to have seen Hamilton or even hear any of the music.

  4. Bryan B. says:

    “But I simply told her he’s the most legendary Dallas Cowboy and she replied with, “Oh, okay, thanks,” and walked off.”

    At least she didn’t reply with, “Tony Romo looks pretty old.”

    I couldn’t work out Hamilton this time around, but I’m hoping to catch it in Fort Worth next year. The music is great even if you haven’t seen the musical. I love the rap battle songs and they would probably be even better in the context of the full musical.

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