Playbills

This really has nothing to do with Thanksgiving, and it seems like such a Blogging 101 sort of post, but I’ve seen so many Broadway shows lately that I thought I’d go through my Playbills and take stock of them all. I have a Playbill for every show I’ve ever seen. Well, okay, I cheated a bit — for the first two shows, I dug through my mom’s collection a few years later and pulled out the extras.

Some Off-Broadway shows have Playbills, too, and those are included. There are only like two of those, though.

Anyway — for no other reason than the fact that I want to do it — I present to you my entire collection of Playbills.

No, not Playboys. PLAYBILLS.

Without further ado:

Peter Pan — July 1980

Barnum — January 1982

Annie — March 1982

A Chorus Line — December 1983 (my 10th birthday)

Singin’ in the Rain — February 1986

Starlight Express — June 1987

Coastal Disturbances — June 1987

Jackie Mason’s “The World According to Me” — September 1987

Anything Goes — December 1987 (my 13th birthday)

Phantom of the Opera — March 1988? (I know I have the Playbill somewhere but I can’t find it right now)

Me and My Girl — April 1988

Carrie — May 1988 (signed by Betty Buckley, Linzi Hateley, and Gene Anthony Ray — how much do you suppose this is worth?)

Broadway Bound — June 1988

The Heidi Chronicles — July 1989

Gypsy — July 1990

Jerome Robbins’ Broadway — August 1990

City of Angels — August 1990

Lost in Yonkers — August 1991

Nick & Nora — November 1991

Falsettos — May 1992 (first show I ever saw by myself… how fitting)

Guys and Dolls — May 1992

The Will Rogers Follies — July 1992

Conversations With My Father — December 1992

My Favorite Year — December 1992 (my 19th birthday)

Kiss of the Spider Woman — March 1994

She Loves Me — June 1994

Show Boat — August 1995

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum — January 1997

Chicago — March 1997

Rent — June 1997

The Last Night of Ballyhoo — July 1997

The Life — December 1997

Ragtime — June 1998

The Beauty Queen of Leenane — October 1998

The Scarlet Pimpernel — November 1998

Art — November 1998

Far East — December 1998

Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk — January 1999

Electra — January 1999

Fuddy Meers — March 2000

A Moon for the Misbegotten — March 2000

The Music Man — April 2000

Betrayal — January 2001 (ok, it’s actually a “Stagebill”)

Bloomer Girl — March 2001

The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife — July 2001

Tick, Tick… Boom! — July 2001

Proof — July 2001

The Play About the Baby — July 2001

The Producers — September 2001

Hedda Gabler — October 2001

45 Seconds From Broadway — October 2001

Mamma Mia! — November 2001

Noises Off — November 2001

You’ll notice it’s kinda spotty in the mid-90s. Keep in mind that I spent the better part of eight years in Virginia, though. You’ll also notice it’s picked up greatly in the last several months. That’s because I live up here now!

Anyway, this is nothing compared to my mom’s collection. Hers goes way back to the 1960s. Her collection is a treasure trove for any theater buff.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
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