Gettin’ Carried Away

After spending 12 long years on Broadway, Rent left the Nederlander Theater in New York City earlier this past summer. The first time I heard about Rent, I was 13 years old. I was sitting in my family room, semi-watching TV and playing on the computer, when all of a sudden, I hear the words “no day but today” being passionately sung by a small chorus of people. I didn’t see the commercial, but the melody stuck in my head all day. I watched the same channel hour after hour, hoping to catch a glimpse of the commercial I had missed.

I eventually saw the commercial, advertising Rent, the new hit Broadway musical that was going on tour for the first time. I begged my mother to take to see it. However, after doing some research, she found that the content was not very appropriate for a young teenager, so she would not allow me to see the show. I was heartbroken. Little did I know, I would eventually see it more than 10 times.

The first time I ever visited New York, I was told I would be seeing a Broadway play. I was 17 years old, and the year was 2002. Rent had already been playing for 5 years, so I was not sure that would be an option. From the day I learned I was going on the trip, I wished, hoped and prayed that I would be able to see Rent. A month later, my prayers were answered, and I saw the show just before the 4th of July weekend.

Since then, I have seen the musical in both New York City and Chicago. I was also lucky enough to interview one of the stars of the original production and the film adaptation, Anthony Rapp, for my college newspaper (that’s another story I will share in a later post). So when I heard about how the Nederlander was closing its doors to Rent earlier this summer, I was crushed.

Two weeks ago, I was randomly on MySpace when I saw an ad that read “RENT: 4 NIGHTS ONLY!” My jaw dropped! For the first time in Broadway history, a live stage performance of a hit musical was filmed and it was to be released in select movie theaters for four nights only in September. I bought tickets on-line, and on Thursday, September 25, I headed to the Tivoli Theater in Downers Grove.

So what does this tiny excursion have to do with travel? In the end, it all comes down to this: passion, randomness and flexibility.

1. Passion: The lyrics of every single song in Rent mean a lot to me. I had to see the show at least twice a year, I sing one of the songs from the show at Karaoke every week and at some point during every day of my life, I think about the life lessons the show taught me. And because I am so passionate about this play, I was willing to drive a bit of a distance to see it.

2. Randomness: I found out about this one-of-a-kind movie screening because I was randomly looking at someone’s MySpace profile page. You can find out pretty much anything on the Internet. And sometimes, you might not even be looking for something, and you find out something worth your while! It’s kind of like looking for a cheap flight… you’ll always find one when you are not desperately searching for it.

3. Flexibility: I have a pretty flexible work schedule, so right when I found out about this one-time-only showing of Rent, I was able to grab for the “movie” knowing that I had the time to see it. And since it was only playing at select theaters, I also had plenty of time to drive a good 45 minutes to an hour away from home to see it.

I’m going to take a break from talking about New York… I have other things to tell you!

Baseball is ending soon. And with the way the Chicago White Sox are seemingly giving it up to the Minnesota Twins, I am not fully confident that the Good Guys in Black will give me the Soxtober I have been waiting for all season. While I nervously wait on pins and needles, I eagerly anticipate hockey season!

I purchased a nine-game season ticket plan for Chicago Blackhawks games. And while I have been to the United Center several times, I have never really ventured around the surrounding community, nor have I spent much time in the Loop on a game day. On a game day, I would love to spend they day in the city, buy some fan merchandise at Hawk Quarters and stroll through Millennium Park on a crisp, fall day. There’s always something to do in Chicago.

Even if you live directly in a metropolitan area, there is no possible way you could have dined at every bistro and shopped at every boutique! Restaurants close, new ones open. Sports bars turn into chic nightclubs. Parking lots turn into unique clothing stores. The point is… you have to get out there and exlpore! Check out sites like City Search, Time Out and Metromix!

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It is official. I am going to Nashville in January! The fact that I love country music is not the only reason I am excited for this trip. Traveling to Tennessee will push my “U.S. States Visited” count up to 20, making me almost half-way done with my goal! My only qualm about this getaway is that it could be cancelled or postponed because of a standard Chicago blizzard. However, seeing that I traveled to and from Italy in December, 2005 with little problems, this is a risk I am willing to take. I really hope that Tom Skilling has some promising weather reports for me next year!

Yankee Stadium
River Avenue & E 161
New York, NY 10001

Since the first pitch was thrown there in 1923, Yankee Stadium has hosted over 6,500 baseball games in a park that currently accommodates a little over 57,000 fans. There is so much history inside the stadium, and I feel privileged to have attended several baseball games at this legendary ballpark.

Yankee Stadium was one of the first sports facilities in the United States to be given the title of stadium, which, in Greek, means a place that holds footraces. While most venues are called parks or fields, Yankee Stadium was originally designed to be a multi-purpose venue with a quarter-mile running track (now warning track). The baseball stadium has been used for other sporting events, such as boxing, professional football, college football and soccer.

Although the stadium was rebuilt in 1974, much of the original structure was retained and re-used, preserving the idea that this was the same Yankee Stadium where Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Mickey Mantle played ball. Some of the updates over the years included:

Lights
A brand-new roof
Wider, more comfortable seats
New bleachers
Fresh paint
Additional restrooms
Extra parking

You may remember my mention of Babe Ruth in one of my earlier posts. The Great Bambino may have started his career with the Red Sox. However, his successful career with the Yankees made Ruth a legend and helped begin the team’s winning history.

In 2006, the Yankees organization began new construction on a $1.6 billion stadium in public parkland next to the current stadium. The 2008 Yankees have not advanced to the post-season this year, making tonight’s game against the Baltimore Orioles that last game to ever be played in Yankee Stadium. The new home of the Yankees is expected to open for the 2009 season, which begins in April. I guess I have another ballpark to visit!