This was spectacular… fascinating, dazzling even. It was such an astonishing performance that I know and believe with all of my heart that I have never seen any show or production … It was just phenomenal. Nothing has mesmerized me more. Within my small amount of experience and in my opinion, I can say that “An American in Paris” topped Les Mis, Rigoletto, Macbeth, and all of the monuments plays and musicals that I have witnessed in the astonishing country of England. For starters, the music had me grinning from ear to ear for basically the entirety of the performance. (FEMALE, if my music is on the loudest volume and I can still hear you, there is a problem. I cannot focus… thanks boo) The play is set in Paris, France and the time frame is during the reconstruction era, just after the second world war. It’s a realistic, comical, quirky, and loveable story of love and life. Not only was it relatable, but it kept me alert the entire time and for a person that gets distracted extremely easily, this was great. There were tragic scenes and instances in which I felt moved to yell, laugh, or just speak obnoxiously loud in reaction to what I was seeing. You see, Jerry Mulligan (my fellow American) is an army veteran that is living in Paris after the war because he missed his train which would send him home. He wasn’t too excited about going back to America. The war was an atrocity in his life and going home would probably mean him having to relive it also I don’t believe he felt very heroic at this point. Shortly after missing his train, his eyes paused upon seeing a beautiful lady. This chick makes eye contact with my man Jerry, then runs away
Shortly after missing his train, his eyes paused upon seeing a beautiful lady. This chick makes eye contact with my man Jerry, then runs away como una loquita. He befriends a composer (who narrates the story in the beginning and is another American) working in a café that same day (or so it seems) and then makes another friend at the café that same occasion. This other friend is French (and the American dudes proceeded to jostle him about his English. When I saw this, I chuckled. I’ve seen some Americans in my life think that they entitled because they’re American. Some of my friends and acquaintances are “know-it-alls” and they go around correcting people’s grammar, use of terminology, and making fun of the accents. I hate that. Yes, I am 100% American. Yet, I also have another enriching and exotic culture running through my veins and I know how tricky language barriers are and how stumped people feel when their English could be better. Regardless of Jerry being a typical American, I still loved him. He’s been through crap, can dance, and is an artist. Oh, and the man is gorgeously created. 😉 The name of the girl is Liz. Jerry continuously sees her everywhere he roams and he chases ruthlessly after her. She refuses him, like any morally sound, responsible, and sensible woman. After all, Americans guys are just goofy guys with a smooth, charming, and flirtatious personality… too adventurous to be taken seriously… right? [*chuckle chuckle*] Throughout their encounters, it’s easy to catch that their sound connection is inevitable and once Liz finally agreed to meet with him, they danced together, agreed to not talk about the war and “coincidentally” fell in love. This quick love is funny. It’s usually too perfect to be real in our crazy world. Tsk tsk… It’s a typical but wild illusion we all have as young ladies. We have all fantasized about it at least once in our lifetime. Ever since we’ve been little niñitas, we’ve been told that one day we will see someone who is magnificent, handsome, and perfect: a total Prince. This Prince will come and be with us forever, love us entirely, cherish us, and most of all he will be someone with whom we can have fun with as we skip off into the sunset in a field of daffodils and marigolds.
This quick love is funny. It’s usually too perfect to be real in our crazy world. Tsk tsk… It’s a typical but wild illusion we all have as young ladies. We have all fantasized about it at least once in our lifetime. Ever since we’ve been little niñitas, we’ve been told that one day we will see someone who is magnificent, handsome, and perfect: a total Prince. This Prince will come and be with us forever, love us entirely, cherish us, and most of all he will be someone with whom we can have fun with as we skip off into the sunset in a field of daffodils and marigolds. Liz, is a strong individual that has chosen to make sound judgments with her life and she has chosen to not give up throughout it. I like Liz. She was talented, strong, and a splendid character. I would love to be loved sure, yet it would be great too, to make a positive difference in my community like she did. My story will be significant one day, and it’ll be great! Anyhow, Liz, having been a young woman who has been through crap, is reluctant to do and try many new things… I don’t blame her. You see, she’s a Jew, her parents were arrested, she knows not where, and she’s torn between what she should do in life and what her heart desires to do. She has responsibilities she must attend to and it would be harmful to her to let her guard down for this silly naive American fellow who has seemingly no conception of time, space, or common necessities… or would it?
Should Liz have been more susceptible to getting to know this guy or not? Was it alright that she seemed to be a coquette with all these other dudes? Hehe… let me not get ahead of myself. So she agrees to meet with lovely ol’ Jerry they have this lovesick ordeal going on; for a short while. Life gets in the way, like us Americans like to say and he temporarily dates another rich American, she gets engaged to his friend “the French guy” Henri, and the other pal Adam ends up falling hard for Liz. At different points in the play, I love each and every one those guys and I want them all to end up with Liz. It’s a bit unclear to me near the end of the story who exactly ends up with her. (As in I’m not sure if she leaves Henri to be with Jerry or she stays put with her fiancee) Yet, I find that all irrelevant. Regardless of love and feelings, those three guys had their squabbles and disagreements but ultimately they loved each other more. In the way I see it, they did not let any disputes over a girl (someone they all professed to love) change their character or lead them to make any brash decisions. One caring young woman had such an impact on their lives and they all used that “love” for good. Pure love flowed within each of those four people and that love carried on in different ways. I felt a little bad for Adam on occasions, but he ended up having the privilege of sharing his love for Liz for the rest of the world. He made a legacy out of her through the ballet and got to keep her in that way, although his friend kept her physical presence around him. “Be content in life Luce.” I said to myself, smiling from the inside of that vehicle. I am blessed. You are blessed, we’ll all be blessed. Now, all that’s important is to hold onto what you’ve been blessed with, with a grateful heart, and cherish things while you have the chance to do so. It was the day of my little sister’s birthday and although I missed her like crazy, I am beyond glad I spent the day as I did! Art in the afternoon and music in the evenings are my favorite ways to do London.
J’ai Un Sourire. I have a Smile. My heart was content that night. I felt no such thing as lonesome and only warm fuzzy feelings of hope and contentment filled me up inside that night…(:
Through My Specs 