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Destination Diaries

Mary Poppins:  The Review

Louisville, Kentucky

marypoppins

By:  Angela Ash

The first time I was lucky enough to see Mary Poppins was in London's West End.  I thought to myself... how undeniably fantastic!  One minute I am sitting in a theater gazing at beautiful backdrops of St. Paul's Cathedral, and the very next I am actually out on the sidewalk, standing in its shadow.  I won't even embarrass myself to tell you just how long I sat on those steps, waiting for an eager pigeon to approach for a photo opportunity.  I'll give you a hint.  It was longer than five minutes.

So it was with this vision in my mind that I climbed the steps to the Kentucky Center for the Arts.  It was a beautiful day.  Our young jounralist-in-training, Kendyl Rae, was completely beside herself.  She had no warning that she was going to see Mary Poppins, even though she had been singing "Feed The Birds" for two weeks without any prompting or otherwise rational explanation.

The buzz of excitement was definitely in the air.  You could feel it, like electricity... or magic.

Opening for a packed house, nothing was left to be desired.  From the smile on an older woman's face when Mary Poppins first "appeared" on stage to Kendyl Rae's shriek of glee when Burt "took a special stroll", the surprises kept coming.

Allow me to quickly point something out.  When attending a Broadway play in New York or London, where the production is actually in residence, there is PLENTY of time to insert all of the special effects, bells, and whistles.  With a traveling Broadway production, things are much different.  It takes a very talented team to pull off what one would come to expect from, quite specifically, Disney.

However, they pulled it off, and quite fantastically, I might add.  There were surprises around every turn, and some even defied the laws of gravity.  There were so many ooooh's and ahhhh's that I lost count.

The story of Mary Poppins adapts wonderfully to theater, and the subtle twists and turns in the plot actually adds more character to an already beloved tale.

If you have not been able to attend a production of Mary Poppins yet, head over to Broadway Across America to find a listing in your town, or to see what else may be hitting your city.  Also, Mary Poppins is currently showing in New York, and information may be found on the official Mary Poppins site.

As always, merchandising was an A+.  I left with a magic carpet bag and a replica umbrella.  I secretly hope that it will allow me to fly.

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As I sit outside on the steps of the Kentucky Center for the Arts, which I must add is a GORGEOUS place to catch a show, I find that I am happy and sad all in one pulsating emotion.  There is that "good aching" in my chest, as when something extremely wonderful has occurred, but you will have the memory of that night forever.

Now just one thing will make my night complete.

"Here, pigeon pigeon!"