Back to Broadway

It's only been a week and I'm already back in the city that never sleeps! I had an early start to my morning waking up before my 8:30 A.M alarm and got ready to leave right away. I'm not quite sure how I was able to do this since I stayed up until 3 A.M. talking to my friends and couldn't fall asleep until 4, but it all worked out I suppose. I didn't have time for breakfast, so made myself some taro tea to bring in a travel mug for the bus ride. I arrived at the Greyhound bus terminal at around 9:45 inexplicably full of energy and got in line hoping to board soon. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

It was around 9:50 when the ticket scanner told us that our bus would be 15 minutes late and I decided to practice my French on Duolingo. Those 25 minutes went by quickly and I turned to the women standing behind me to check that we were all in the same boat. It turns out that these two women would soon become 2 new friendly faces! I heard them talk about getting to a show on time and sparked up a conversation when I told them I was heading to see one as well. They were heading to see Choir Boy and I came to see Cody Simpson starring in Anastasia. When one of the women went to ask what the hold up was, I continued conversing with the other one. I discovered she has a 30 year-old daughter who is a Temple alum (what a small world!) and grandkids as well! She is originally from Maryland, but she has been in Philadelphia for the past five years and was actually born here in Philadelphia. This pair of lovely ladies happened to be an aunt and niece duo spending quality time together. I was extremely shocked at how young the both of them looked, I assumed they were either best friends or sisters! I saw them once again in the bathroom and wished them a great rest of their day. I love to meet new people and I hope that one day in the future our paths cross again!

At 10:45 we were finally able to board and we had a smooth bus ride to NYC. The bus ride went smoothly and I spent most of my time writing and doing homework. I took this time to get caught up and relax. Although company is always enjoyable for me, I really love travelling alone as well. It makes me feel more independent and free. Since college started I've only traveled with my parents over break and I've felt more like an adult because of how separate my life is now from my parents and I absolutely love it!

My seats were in the mezzanine, but they were actually quite spectacular! For $49 not including fees, these were an unbelievable steal! I was only five rows from the front, but the stage was so close and I could see every performer so clearly. I was one seat from the aisle on the left, so whenever the actors were on stage right it was a bit hard to see them, but that's the small price you have to pay. I spent over an hour in December deciding whether or not I wanted seats in the back of the orchestra section or the ones I ended up getting and I was extremely happy with my decision. If I had gotten the other seats I would not have been able to see nearly as well at all because the balcony of the mezzanine blocks the upper view if you're all the way in the back. I couldn't believe how lucky I got!

I had no idea what to expect about the musical. I had heard great things about it, but I didn't have a single clue as to what the plot was about. Right before the show started, I heard someone in a row behind me say that it was about a lost Russian princess and that made me really excited to discover the rest. Now I don't want to talk too much about the musical because I highly(!!!) recommend for any musical lover to see it for themselves, but it was truly fantastic from the score to the costumes and beyond! It was much more dark than I expected it to be and was surprised that there were so many children there. The story was based on the legend of the only potential survivor of the Romanov family assassination during the Russian Revolution. I have no doubt that the children in the audience were still able to enjoy the musical because of the overall experience, but there were definitely some references and some inappropriate humour that they could not have caught on to.

I was so impressed by Christy Altomare's vocals! She has such an incredible range and her voice was powerful yet still dainty. I was also especially stunned by Cody Simpson's vocals because, like most people, I had only ever heard his voice singing pop songs. Every song was so different from the last, but the storytelling was truly outstanding! When the performance concluded, I was left in awe and wished it didn't have to come to an end. I usually like to get mugs from musicals I go see, such as Phantom of the Opera and Hamilton, but they were all sold out of the mugs–they were even colour-changing!

Nonetheless, I was eager to try to meet Cody Simpson along with some other cast members! I hurried outside to get a spot behind the barrier outside of the stage door. I met the actress who played young Anastasia and Christy Altomare, but unfortunately these were the only two that came out to meet fans and give out their autographs. Christy was so unbelievably kind and sweet, not to mention very tiny as well! I'm only 5'2 and she is smaller than I am! It's crazy how she didn't look so small on stage to me at all–I just assumed Cody Simpson was that tall! Once I got her autograph on my Playbill and told her how much I admired her vocals and her performance she even reached out her arms to give me a hug! It was definitely one of my favourite times meeting a cast member. After I had my exchange with her I tried to get out of the way so that others could have the chance to meet this wonderful woman. I lingered for a bit hoping that Cody Simpson would make a surprise appearance, but I realized quickly that it would take at least another half hour for Christy to make her way down the long line of people waiting to see her.

I left and went to Starbucks a bit to get out of the frigid weather and also grabbed a bite to eat. I got my usual turkey pesto panini and stood while charging my phone. Once I finished eating, I thought I could walk around Sephora and let my phone charge a bit more. I had forgotten how big the Sephora was in Times Square and I had to resist from adding to my already large collection of makeup. Once I had walked around the store a couple of times and did some swatches on my hand, I decided it was time to go back and see if there could be a chance that Cody Simpson would come outside. Unfortunately, this was not the case, so I decided to go sit in one of my favourite places in the area that happened to be right around the corner.

The second I walked in, I was greeted with a very pleasant surprise! Nope, not Cody Simpson, but actually one of my best friends from high school! At first I was very startled at hearing my name and seeing a large figure right in front of me since I was in the middle of posting something on my Instagram story. I hadn't seen my friend Will since winter break and it was such an amazing coincidence that we happened to run into each other in New York City of all places. I stayed in Philadelphia for college and he goes to Princeton, so it's like the perfect middle place for us to have met! We only had about 10 minutes to catch up before his bus had to leave, but it was still great to be able to catch up during that time. He actually happened to be on a trip with Princeton because they get discount tickets to Broadway musicals and he was watching How to Kill a Mockingbird in the theatre right next to mine! What a small world! Once our 10 minutes was up, we gave each other a huge hug and he was off to catch his bus. I took out my phone again to wish him a safe trip home and then took a seat on a bar stool in front of the window.

I had about an hour and a half until my bus was supposed to leave, so I took this time to write about my day here and also catch up on my homework. This time passed so quickly and once again, I didn't want to part with this beloved city. My bus ride was quite smooth again and I ended up napping this time on the way home. Unfortunately, it was raining quite heavily when I got back and I was certainly not prepared. Last week, it was snowing and this week there was rain. It seems I don't have very good luck returning home from New York City. I just couldn't wait to get home to eat, see my roommates, and then fall back asleep. Once again, New York City was such a pleasure, but I'll be back before you know it!

#codysimpson #anastasiathemusical #broadway #newyork #nyc #weekend #timessquare #empirestate #closingnight