Paul & the Great American Musical

I once devoted a post to my husband, claiming that he knows everything.  I forgot to mention his lack of knowledge in the area of showtunes and related topics.  For as often as he randomly breaks out in song (ala the musical theater genre), you'd think he'd be more familiar.  He spontaneously makes up songs about the mundane, the ridiculous, the absurd.  He will take a hip-hop song & turn it into a 40's jazz standard on the spot.  I mean, he will occasionally even break out a little Danke Shoen, but that's only because it was in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, I'm sure.  He will even bust a move pretty often.  Granted, it's usually the Robot, but that counts in my book.  My book that nobody reads.  But I digress.

The point is that Paul has very limited knowledge of musical theater/ movies, despite his propensity for acting like he lives in one.  I blame his mom.  She recently confessed to me that she does not like The Sound of Music.  I love my mother-in-law, but I yelled at her before I even had time to think.  I blurted out something like, "WHAT?!  WHO DOESN'T LIKE THE SOUND OF MUSIC?"  It actually made me physically angry.  So, I don't think Paul was exposed to the basics of musicals as a child because his mom does not enjoy them.  This is a tragedy.  A true injustice.  An injustice that I feel I need to correct.

Paul has taken me to a couple of musicals in the theater district in Pittsburgh because he knows how much I enjoy them.  I LOVE going to any of the theaters in the city.  It's so exciting!  He enjoys making me happy, so he sometimes indulges my love of theater.  I think he also enjoys the shows.  He seems to.  But he usually complains about any combination of the following:  uncomfortable seats, people kicking the back of his chair, fear of being chosen for audience interaction, etc.  Despite these issues, I feel the need to find ways to heighten his appreciation for the performing arts.  It's kind of a mission.  Hey, I might even make it a resolution for 2011!!!  Oh, that will be FUN!!  For me anyway.  Perhaps movies are the answer.  Yes, live performances are more exciting, but it's not practical to take him to very many plays.  Movies are his thing.  We're always watching movies.  Think he'd notice if I threw in some classic musicals here & there?  Probably.  But too bad.