I'm Not Throwing Away My Shot — Twenty Ten Thirty

We did it! We crossed the threshold to 2021, and 2020 is officially in the rear view mirror! For this post, I’m still living in 2018 (continuing to chip away at my back up of list write ups), and reminiscing about a time when we could all safely gather for LIVE THEATER PERFORMANCES!

I grew up with an appreciation of theater and musicals, a love shared by my parents. In my youth, I saw Phantom of the Opera, Miss Siagon, and Les Miserables (among others), and listened to soundtracks on repeat. I have zero singing skills, but that didn’t stop me from belting out big numbers when no one was home. When I moved to Chicago in my 20s, one of my favorite annual tradition was attending the Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier each year with my dad.

B did not grow up attending theater in the same way that I did, but over the years he’s accompanied me to several shows and developed his own level of appreciation for the performance arts. In 2018, we took a weekend trip to Chicago to see Hamilton, and it was 100% worth the hype.

We saw Hamilton again in 2020 — pandemic style — streaming Lin Manuel Miranda’s performance via Disney+ on our movie theater screen in the basement. It was an uplifting way to spend a few hours in the doom-and-gloom of the year.

I miss attending live theater, and I hope we see its safe return later this year.