I may handwrite a version of this post in my journal because the experience meant that much to me & I’d like to remember it for the rest of my days. On Thursday evening, I took myself on a date, to a long awaited concert at 54 below. I have included a picture of the Supper Club that hosts cabaret shows each night. Now, before I moved to New York, about five years ago, Jeremy Jordan did a solo show at 54 below. I watched videos of that show on youtube from my home in Nashville and dreamed one day i’d get to hear him sing in person. It was also five years ago that my dad passed away. His voice brought me a bit of peace and I can’t tell you exactly why or how, it just did. It was that year that I moved to New York. He posted last summer that he would be doing a solo show that fall the week after my birthday in November*. Now, the show ended up being postponed to this past Thursday, Feb, 20, 2020, one day after the anniversary of my dad’s death. I had a good day at one of my part-time jobs and decided to go all out for the evening. On my stroll to the little theater, I passed my all-time favorite dancer, Melanie Moore, from the show So You Think You Can Dance. She was the hair inspiration to my big chop back in 2010 and also represents a very bittersweet time in my life of struggle and hope. I took that as another little gift from God. I got there about an hour early, sat at the bar, and ordered myself HANGER STEAK + FRIES. Yes, I did! Would you believe that when the lights dimmed, he started the show right beside me. He smiled at me and continued singing a Florence and the Machine song. He said it was the first solo show he’d done there in five years. The rest of the show was a mix of cover songs, musical numbers (Newsies!), songs from SMASH, a Disney Princess Medley and stories of being a part of gettingThe Greatest Showman greenlit (his take on that viral Hugh Jackman video).
The theme of the show was about him being a first-time dad to his 10 month old daughter and sharing some of his most personal memories with her. Y’all know I was wiping tears from my eyes (& cheering like a lunatic) within the first 15 minutes. I hesitate to even write anything about this because it doesn’t even come close to capturing what I felt. Music is perhaps the only thing i’ve experienced that has the ability to transcend time. You may disagree and that’s okay, but I was somehow in two places at once on Thursday night. Reliving the pain of the past and the bliss of the present. It was a cold walk to the train after the show, but I strolled through Times Square marveling at the reality of my life here. Thank you for supporting me the way each of you do. God knew what he was doing when he put each and every one of you in my life.
*PS. I recently discovered that Jeremy Jordan and I share a birthday!
