It was a beginning to look a lot like Christmas around the Veigel-Gaudette house at the end of February/ beginning of March.
That’s because Wyndi and I decided the major gifts last Christmas should be experiences. She got me tickets to Beetlejuice the musical as it came through Dallas while I got her tickets to a live show with the professional dancing cast of Dancing with the Stars. Since we surprised each other with tickets, we got the bonus surprise of the ticket dates being six days apart.
On Feb. 25 we saw Beetlejuice in a packed matinee with an audience age between 5 and 95- all there for a funny and not family friendly show.
I think the regular Broadway Dallas crowd realized this shortly as Beetlejuice started calling out audience members in standup comedy-style narration that went through the show.
The show was incredibly impressive aside from a technical hiccup where one microphone’s feedback elicited a deafening noise throughout the theatre for about 15-20 seconds- just long enough for minds to wonder if it was intentional or how long will it take to fix.
The professionalism was evident though as all the players stood still and started up as soon as the techs fixed it.
As a show Beetlejuice has some drama, a lot of humor, fun props (yes, there is a sandworm) and lighting and really good music.
What was impressive to me though was just the cast as a voice actor with cartoon experience played the title ghost, an understudy showed flair as Delia and a recent high school graduate and newcomer played Lydia and stole most of the show.
Most people associate Broadway specifically with New York but these traveling shows give extra opportunity for talented actors to follow their dreams and move audiences across the country.
As we had just seen the community performance of Dublin High School One Act Play’s performance of Jekyll and Hyde, I couldn’t help but think this was great for actors of every background to follow their dreams.
It was a fun show and I’m glad I shared it with Wyndi.
I was even happier to see the look on her face as we watched Dancing with the Stars Live though. She has watched the show for two decades and we were about to be married when they announced the tour dates. As such, I couldn’t resist getting VIP tickets that gave us some more time with the cast and a meet and greet/ photo session. This of course came with seats close to the stage.
Wyndi admitted to not thinking about what she would say to the cast members until 20 seconds before getting in a hug with Britt Stewart. I was very awkward as I shook Britt’s hand and said, “You’re my favorite!” This was right before I shook Emma Slater’s hand and said, “You’re my other favorite!”
I actually did walk away impressed with every one of them though as I like the show pretty well when Wyndi and I watch it. The experience is so much better in person with the dancers that spend their lives training and practicing though.
I could tell Wyndi thought the same as I looked over at her and saw how transfixed she was as a lover of the show and dance in general.
It was a great feeling to be able to provide that for the woman I love. The dancing on the stage was captivating to me but not as much as that smile.
—Paul Gaudette is the managing editor of The Dublin Citizen. He can be reached at publisher@dublincitizen.com