1st on Broadway

Times Square, New York, May 2005 - An experience I will not forget. Firstly, because I went to New York, saw the Statue of Liberty, Ground zero, and Manhattan, and secondly, because for the first time in my life I watched a world class musical on Broadway.

Andrew Lloyd Webber's productions have always evoked huge responses, and I knew why, when I saw The Phantom of the Opera at The Majestic on Times Square. I had earlier seen two of Andrew Lloyd Webber's productions enacted by an Indian cast - Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and my personal favorite Jesus Christ Superstar. However watching The Phantom of the Opera in New York was something else altogether. Here the theatre halls are booked for months for this one show, and the stage is modified to suit the musical's requirement, not anything like that in India, which at best make use of huge props that to an extent simulate the grandeur of a musical but fall short in terms of quality and realistic execution. It’s not that I doubt the capabilities of Indians, but there is not a strong enough theatre culture here as it is in say New York or London.

Nevertheless, going back to my Broadway experience, I can never imagine forgetting that experience; just fell in love with theatre. With goosebumps all over at every crescendo and a passionate streak at every decrescendo my attention to the experience was complete. There has always been a secret desire to be part of a musical myself and get accolades for my performance; and as the song in Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat goes "Any Dream will do", for me any part will do.