A night at the theatre, part 1 - Slice of Life Challenge, Day #9

March 9, 2018

Recently I've had the pleasure of taking both my oldest niece and my youngest nephew to see a professional musical. They are brother and sister, but I actually took them each on their own to see a different show, when tickets kind of just showed up in my lap.

I took my niece to see Hamilton in downtown Chicago. I had already seen the musical a year prior, as I'd taken my mother for her birthday present. I absolutely loved the show, and have been trying to get the $10 lottery tickets since then. One day, just like any other, I got an text message saying, "Congratulations! You've won the chance to purchase Hamilton lottery tickets" (or something to that extent.

I was shocked. I was giddy. I'm sure my mouth dropped open and I started furiously typing to order the tickets online through my phone. Luckily, this was for a Friday night show, so it wasn't even as if I'd be out on a school night (you know I need my sleep!). I thought of the possible friends I could invite - I have a lot of friends that love the show, but a lot of them had seen it, and I wanted to take someone who hadn't.

I texted my friend Robyn. My nephew Caleb. My friend Johanna. I called my sister and randomly suggested I take her 10 year old daughter. (She was pretty annoyed that I didn't invite her, but she's seen it twice!) No one really got back to me before my sister had asked her daughter, who said she wanted to go.

I wasn't convinced.

Sometimes my niece can be particular about things. You know if she is not happy. She's got the sulkiness gene that runs in our family (I probably have it, too). I was worried she would be bored and ruin my big night out. My mom mentioned that the show was really long (which I never thought, but I guess it went pretty late). I realized I had already invited her, so I just asked to speak to her on the phone.

"Do you want to go see Hamilton with me tomorrow night?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" She said.

Ok, that convinced me.

The next night, I hurried home after school, got changed, and went out to pick up my niece. I wanted to pick her up in time to go out to eat beforehand - have a real "girls' night." She was all ready when I got there, dressed in a cute dress and with her Magnus Chase book in hand for the boring ride downtown. My sister took a picture of us inside and then on the doorstep (kind of reminded me of prom!). We were on our way.

Traffic was bad. It took over an hour to get downtown and then we had to find parking. She was getting antsy and hungry. I was, as well. Finally, we parked in a random building and ran to our food destination: Berghoff's.

I love Berghoff's. When I was in high school, our choir field trips downtown would include a stop at Berghoff's restaurant. I love how it's like an old restaurant from the late 1800s. Nothing flashy. No furniture or signs on the walls. We were running short on time, but we could do it!

My niece seemed to enjoy it. She had a burger and fries, and a huge glass of milk in a big glass mug. I had lovely Sauerbraten. And then we asked for the dessert menu. We would splurge on dessert.
I let my niece pick out the flourless chocolate cake and it was divine. I could tell she agreed with me, by the way she asked about the mint leaves, and the raspberry coulis, and ate every last bite. We were in a hurry now, but we had time!

We got to the theater at the perfect time - about 10 minutes before the show began. Our seats ($10/each!!!) were in the SECOND ROW. Immediately, my niece said, "I won't be able to see anything!" When we sat in our seats, so close to the raised stage.

But I had a trick up my sleeve!

A coworker told me you could get booster seats from the coat check at the theater, so we hurried downstairs and got two booster cushions; one for each of us. I sat on mind and she sat on hers, but she still wasn't tall enough. So I gave her mine. She was happy. Then the show started.

We were SO close to the actors! We could make eye contact. We could see their spit come out with their explosive consonants. We could see their sweat from the stage lights. I saw my niece's eyes light up and she smiled broadly. This was going to be fun!

I won't go into the details of the performance - it was amazing, of course. My niece loved every minute. Her favorite character was King George, and she requested listening to his songs on the way home, which is a big win. She liked it so much that now my five year old nephew and three year old niece dress up as a king and princess and sing his "Ba-da-da-da-da..."

After the show, we hurried back the garage, which was deserted. We talked about the show, listened to King George, and, of course, she fell asleep right as I turned onto her block. When we got inside, she talked about it with her family and went to sleep, and I left on my own way home.

I was so pleasantly surprised by the fun we'd had. You never know how kids will react to the city, or a show, or food at a restaurant, even. We made the best of the whole night and I was so glad I took her to see the show, because I think she will definitely be looking forward to the next. And so will I.

Later in the month, I'll contrast this with taking her brother, who is five, to a show.


(note: I think this is a boring slice, but I had no idea of what to write about! But I did it!)