A Day of Culture

We had a wonderful, relaxing day of CULTURE. Uh huh. Culture, i.e., we were inside two different theaters to watch two different plays.

{In the Beginning}

In a spectacular staging of the biblical account of creation, Sight & Sound opens the all new original production, In the Beginning. Be there as the Garden of Eden appears before you - the waters, vegetation, and animals of the newly created world enveloping the Millennium Theatre! Experience God's pleasure at his most awesome creation, Adam and Eve, and the complete beauty of their unbroken relationship with God.

With special effects that surpass all you've previously seen on Sight & Sound stages, In the Beginning promises an experience beyond your imagination. Enhanced by magnificent staging, stirring musical compositions, and captivating live and animatronic animals, the stage will spring to life with the phenomenal story of creation!

Ok, I just copied the text from the website of In the Beginning, but in a word: Spectacular is a perfect description for the play. We didn't have the greatest seats, having to crane our necks at times, but the Garden of Eden was just gorgeous on 3/4 of the entire theater. Yes, it was a wrap-around sort of stage, and the actors were using the entire place, even the aisles. It was a HUGE place and even for the matinee show at 12 noon, the place was PACKED!!! Sure, a lot of senior citizens, but there was a lot of youths and kids in there, too.

Very moving play. I was moved to tears when Adam and Eve were lamenting over the death of Abel, whom Cain killed. One of the most beautiful parts of the entire play was the special relationship between God and Adam. It was truly something to see, this relationship of the first man and his Creator. It was so pure, so extraordinary, so believable, the love of God truly shining and reflecting His glory.

There were some parts that the play was a little bit forced (according to Stella and Japa, hehehe), but all in all, you MUST see this play when you are in Pennsylvania. You MUST! For $45, it was totally worth it!

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We had a few hours to kill before the second show, so after a very late lunch at the Hershey Farm Restaurant and Inn where we had their delish (but a bit expensive) buffet including the famed Amish Shoofly Pie and Whoopie Pie, we went shopping at the nearby outlets! We didn't want the time to go to waste, now, would we? Hehehe.

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{Broadway's Best}

Show stopping moments from America's greatest musicals --- Broadway is more than just a street. It represents the music and magic of American artistry. In the same tradition, this show pays homage to all that is Broadway. You'll enjoy songs from the great tunesmiths like Berlin and Gershwin, memorable moments from classics such as Showboat and Les Miserables and highlights from modern pop-driven musicals like Jersey Boys and Movin' Out. Don't miss this unforgettable tribute to a uniquely American phenomenon... Broadway.

And for the next 2 hours, we would be entranced by the familiar and not-so-familiar songs of Broadway's Best. I was getting a tad bit sleepy in the beginning since I was so tired from all the driving I did, but as we neared the end of the first part, I sat up; the songs that were being sung were songs that I actually KNEW! Hehehehe. It was uphill from then on.

The pianist/musical director/arranger was Charles Ancheta. Sounds Pinoy to me, eh? Hehehe. He's from Australia and looked chinito. But his name was definitely Filipino. We didn't bother asking him, since we all rushed out of the theater to go straight home. It was such a loooong day!