I’m very glad you’re here with us tonight. If you look to the back of the theatre, you’ll probably see some redheaded kid smiling. That kid’s me and I’m smiling because I’m overjoyed at the fact that you chose to be here and we get to experience this show together. You didn’t have to take time out of your probably busy schedule, drive to the Bacchus Theatre, and spend your hard-earned cash on tickets to see HTAC’s production of It Shoulda Been You… and yet you did. I think that’s pretty special. It’s not something I take for granted.
This is probably many of yours’ first time seeing this show. It’s only been about two years since its original Broadway run, so it’s still relatively fresh. I think that newness, though, is a part of what makes this piece so exciting. It’s fun to see a play you don’t know with music you haven’t heard yet and have nothing to compare it to. If this is your first time, then I hope you enjoy this performance and all of its twists, turns, surprises, doors, flowers, panini stations, and host of zany characters. And if this isn’t your first time, then welcome back to the mayhem and don’t spoil anything for others.
If nothing else, I hope you at least get a few good laughs from our time together here tonight. We’ve all got stresses in our lives, so why not sit back, relax, and enjoy some wholesome comedy, am I right?! Truthfully, though, I find this show more than just funny. While farcical and hilarious, it is also endearingly moving and surprisingly empowering. At its core, this is a show about love—the love between a family, the love between friends, the love between romantic partners, and the love of oneself. It sounds cliché, I know, but I promise this show is anything but ordinary. You’ll see what I mean pretty soon.
As you’re watching, you’ll probably recognize many of the people in your life in these characters. Maybe you have or know of a Judy—someone loving, but overbearing and judgmental with a biting wit. Maybe you are a Judy, in which case… oy! I’m sure you have an Aunt Sheila and Uncle Morty. I know I do. Maybe you know a Jenny—someone who is feeling less than beautiful. Maybe we all have a little bit of Jenny in us. Maybe you’re feeling like Jenny right now. Or maybe you’re a Rebecca—anxious, confused, and striving to be “perfect” (whatever that means). This show is a lighthearted showcase of all the dysfunction that is family, and all the perfectly imperfect ways we live out our love for one another.
If we’ve done our job, then hopefully by the end of the show you walk away feeling just a bit more beautiful and thoughtful towards the meaning of family. I’m a believer in the transformative power of theatre. It has the capacity to change lives and I believe this 90-minute musical comedy is no exception.
I’d like to make it known that Bacchus would be one huge smoking crater right now if it weren’t for the efforts of our wonderful production staff, our beautiful rehearsal staff, and the brilliantly gifted cast and crew of It Shoulda Been You. You people amaze me and I thank you for being my brains, especially when mine wasn’t always working.
Thank you—production team and audience alike—for making this night possible and please enjoy It Shoulda Been You.
Michael Crowley,
Director
