Avenue Q - It Doesn't Suck To Be Me

I saw Avenue Q with the $25 Orchestra seats ticket deal tonight. Great seats - 11th row on the right - what a deal!

All 5 of us loved it. It has very very very smart writing, deceptively delivered by...puppets! It was interesting to watch audience reactions, especially those of people who didn't get the show at all. I think there was a block that simply could not get beyond the fact they were watching puppets, and that somehow delegitimized the whole thing in their eyes.

The writers have packed the show with a lot of cleverly handled wisdom - much of it obvious truths that are so close to our eyes that we tend not to see them. Most of the songs deal with these ideas and are surprisingly thought provoking. Examples:

"What do you do with a BA in English?" Or ART for that matter...

"Everyone's a little bit racist" Oh yes

"The internet is for porn" True and LOL

"There's a fine fine line..." between love and wasting your time. VERY true and profound.

"For Now" - everything is just for now. not tomorrow. not yesterday. This is a concept that turned my life in the right direction several years ago, and so many can't grasp it. I loved that it was such a key message in the show.

The whole thing was just overflowing with wisdom, and is delivered in such a funny way, that it is like a lesson you don't realize you're learning. You can tell it is an homage to Sesame Street as well. From the Bert & Ernie and Cookie Monster-type characters to the screens that have various animated lessons "5 nightstands, 3 nightstands, 1 nightstand...ONE NIGHT STAND." lol and a riff on the Electric Company with two silhouettes speaking parts of a word that join to form a longer word.

My favorite characters were the Bad Idea Bears, two pastel, Care Bear-type animals who show up and encourage others to always make the wrong choice: "why get the six pack when you can get the case? You are saving money by buying in bulk!"

Oh, and it's dirty as hell. The puppets cuss like sailors, have sex (that you see) and tell very raunchy stories. Genius!

This guy next to me said stone faced the entire show, as did a few in front of us. Meanwhile I was screaming, laughing, clapping and hooting. I had such a good time and was just so comfortable.

One of the most notable songs is "It sucks to be me," sort of an homage to the times where we all whine about our personal miseries. Right now, it really doesn't suck to be me, and it hasn't for a while. Over the past six months or so, there have been numerous times where I've paused and thought, I just feel very comfortable in my skin and am really enjoying the opportunities that come my way. This has been years in the making to get to a point like this.

I am very much not rich, I have pets that can be a handful, I don't have a lot of freedom to travel, and I'm not finding time to do as much art as I would like, but I have had so much laughter lately, and I generally feel good about what I do, who I am and how I'm living life.

I DID understand the wisdom the foul-mouthed puppets were spouting and I feel so grateful that I do. It has made all the difference.