“Don’t Stop Believin’” Reflections
"I wish there was a way to know you were in the good old days
before you actually left them."
- Andy Bernard. The Office.
This week, we closed Act Two's first summer concert, "Don't Stop Believin'": The Ultimate '80s Tribute Concert. We started rehearsals in May, and there was just an aire of joy, light-heartedness, and fun in the theater throughout the rehearsal process. Even though the world around us seems to be crumbling, inside 315 Winchester Road, there was a lot of laughter, community support, and even healing through the music and the moments we shared.
The word "nostalgia" seems to have been floating around rehearsals for "Don't Stop Believin'." Nostalgia can be defined as "a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations." It is the perfect word to describe the songs we sang and the moment we experienced in this concert.
I was in Kindergarten and early elementary school during the '80s, so I didn't experience the teased-out hair, the neon everything, or the Madonna-obsessed fans. I grew up in the '90s and, to be honest, didn't even want to do an '80s concert! But as Kandee Arencibia and I put together the songs for this show, I began to see a pattern unfolding. A pattern of remembering the past and almost wishing we could return to a simpler time.
As Kandee and I weaved together the songs and the singers, I found myself looking back to the past, to the '80s and '90s of my childhood, but not in a morbidly introspective way, but in a way that allowed me to go back to move forward.
The Cast of DON’T STOP BELIEVIN’.
Cameron Robinson and I sang a song in Act Two called "If You Say My Eyes Are Beautiful." It was sung by Jermaine Jackson and Whitney Houston and released in 1986. I remember sitting in a restaurant in my hometown of Long Island when I first heard that song. I was maybe nine years old, and it has never left me. To sing it with Cameron over 30 years later was a dream. It took me back to that little girl in the restaurant and allowed me to look at the last 30+ years and reflect on the mistakes, regrets, highs, lows, successes, and failures. Singing that song allowed me to go back in order to see the lessons learned and take them forward.
The nostalgia of this concert launched me into the present and to an understanding that right now, we are living in the "good 'ol days." One day, we will reflect on this time and remember the "good 'ol days" of 2022. And while it may not feel like it, we will miss these days.
As I was sitting backstage on our closing night, I was determined to soak in every moment. So I made it a point to put the phone and the camera away and enjoy each second. It was beautiful and peaceful, and I was present to the world around me, if only for a few hours.
This concert was a healing concert for me and many of the patrons I spoke to as they left the theater last weekend. It brought us back to a time long gone, so we can look forward with hope for a better tomorrow. Sounds cliche, I know. But I believe that the best is yet to come. Somehow, we have to believe that, or else, we can very easily sink into despair.
Actress Annette Funicello once said, "Life doesn't have to be perfect to be wonderful." I think she was correct about that. Right now, as imperfect as it is, we are in the good 'ol days. Let's savor them, live in the present, and try to make today better than the yesterdays.
To everyone who volunteered, performed, came to the concert, was a part of this moment . . . thank you.
You shared a memory and you gave us a moment to live in the "good 'ol days" before we actually left them.
