Neil

It went something like this:

                        Scene: In a motorhome parked at Yetter’s Diner in Northern New Jersey some years ago. The lady is admiring a pop-up ad that appears as she scrolls through Instagram.

                        Paula: “Can we go into the City and see that Neil Diamond musical?”

                        Don: “Sure we can! I love Broadway!”

                        Que: Interlude Music…. (for an extended time)

                        Paula: “I heard that the Neil Diamond musical is closing on Broadway, I think our chance to see it just went Kaboom!

                        Don: (oops!) Looking at the availability of tickets to a popular play that is closing…. “Ahh, sorry babe, that’s not going to happen.”

                        Paula:  ☹

                        Don (an avid watcher of Romper Room when he was a lad) puts on his ‘Thinking Cap’ and starts to plan his Master Stroke. Remembering that they live in a house on wheels that can travel anywhere at almost any time, he scours the Internet for locations that the Touring Company of, “The Neil Diamond Musical -A Beautiful Noise” will be at.

                        Success!

                        And what to his wondering eyes should appear,

 But a performance of his Quest,

 In Fort Lauderdeer!

(Poetic License invoked)

                        “Hey! This is great!” (Don exclaims to himself not wanting to get “anyone’s” hopes up) “Let’s see when it’s going to be there! Hmm…. Ok…. we’re leaving on the Cruise on December 1^st, getting back on January 21^st in Fort Lauderdale…. It opens on January 21^st…. OPENS ON JANUARY 21^st!!!??? FORT LAUDERDALE!!!??? This is awesome! I’ll get tickets for Opening Night and surprise Paula!!!

                                    And so, the saga continues with Paula eventually in the Know as too many Logistical Determinations needed to be arranged to keep this a Total Secret.

                        A few nights ago, was the Opening Night for The Neil Diamond Musical: A Beautiful Noise at The Broward Center for The Performing Arts.

 We stayed in a residential-type hotel/condo place that was within walking distance of the venue. This was planned (obviously) which severely limited the selection of hotels because this one is the only one within walking distance, especially at night. It is called flow, (yes, little ‘f’) and it even has one of those rooftop infinity pools. The best part is that it is located on the ‘River Walk’ of Fort Lauderdale which is really nice!

We had dinner at a little café-style Italian place which was possibly the most authentic Italian place we’ve ever been to right down to the items and their preparation and cooking. They even had heavy Italian accents!

            The Broward Center for The Performing Arts is located on the New River, specifically on the cool-sounding ‘Sailboat Bend’ section of the Riverwalk. Designed in 1991, this project was a true collaboration of the entire Fort Lauderdale community and it’s # 4 ranking of most visited venues in the USA gives credence to that partnership back in ’91. The 2,658-seat Au-Rene Theater (the largest of four venues at the Center) is as legitimate a theater that you will find anywhere. Think the larger Broadway theaters, complete with those Boxes that line the walls, and you will get the picture.

            Ok, the stage has been set, the performers are warming up, all we need to do is add the most critical element of any performance and that is the audience! Because there is no ‘performance’ without at least one person in attendance! Have no fear, the patrons are here and en masse! Visualize, if you will, 2,658 rabid Neil Diamond fans. If you do that then you have seen 2,658 folks that average around 70 years old (us!) who cannot wait for this to begin. Yes, do the math, and you will find that age group being the most prominent as it was us that were there from the beginning of his career!

            If you have seen this show, then you will know where I am coming from. Without spoiling anything, the show centers around some therapy sessions that Mr. Diamond had over his career, and through these sessions, the genesis of most of his songs is revealed, very effectively I might add.

            The young man who portrayed Niel Diamond (then) is Nick Fradiani, who won American Idol back in Season 14 so we know that he can sing. What we all don’t know is that when he was just four years old, his parents brought him to his first concert which was (you guessed it!) Neil Diamond! I know… you can’t make this stuff up! He channels Mr. Diamond so well that it is impossible (?) to discern the difference between the two when he is singing, right down to that signature gravelly-toned voice that we all know and love. This is not an exaggeration! When I listen to music, most of the time I do it with my eyes closed (except while driving) especially when a singer is involved such as, contestants on The Voice. I like to concentrate on what’s important and shut out the rest. So….. during the show, when I closed my eyes and listened, all I could hear was Niel Diamond coming through loud and clear…. and I have seen him in-concert back in the day!

            Obviously, there were no photos or recordings allowed so I’m afraid that you are just going to have to take my word for it 😊

Audience participation was sincere, and thankfully only apparent at the appropriate times, no one “interrupted” the performance unless invited to and that was when the theater was “transformed” into a concert from years ago and we were the concert goers. That held true throughout the performance until the raucous-nano-second-instantly-delivered standing ovation at the culmination of the second act. Then the fun started. The reprise of the participation-encouraged Sweet Caroline was both loud and sincere, as you might expect!

            I hope that I have been successful in at least trying to relate the fantastic performance that we witnessed that night. If this Production comes to a Theater near you, run, do not walk, to your nearest Internet-Providing Device and with credit card in hand get yourself a few tickets. Then you too can say… “Niel Diamond? Yea, I know him, he once sang to me and told me his story.”

                        +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Scene: An older couple walking at night along the Riverwalk in Fort Lauderdale, just outside the Broward Center. The lady is obviously enthralled with what she has just witnessed.

Paula: “That was really good! I mean really, really, really good!”

The man, clearly relieved that the lady is happy stops admiring the boats along the Riverwalk and replies:

Don: “Yea, that was about as good as it gets!…..it’s a good thing that we waited to see it!”

Paula:  ☹ (sigh)