Describe “The Notebook The Musical” in five words or fewer: Beautiful. Emotional. Relatable. Even funny.
It has all the ingredients for a rich story of love and loss that spans generations and was perfectly adapted to the stage for the Dr. Phillips Center’s Broadway in Orlando series.
The musical is based on the 1996 bestselling novel written by Nicholas Sparks.
It opens with Noah Calhoun, an older man, reading a love story to an older woman, Allie, in a nursing home who has Alzheimer’s disease. As the famous novel and 2004 Blockbuster movie go, the woman is actually Noah’s wife, and he’s desperate for her as he says, to come back to him.
I was fortunate enough to see The Notebook at the Dr. Phillips Center on opening night with one of my closest friends and am so grateful that I did.
I can honestly say this is my favorite musical of the season and now one of my favorite musicals of all time. I would go back and see it over and over and over again if I could.
The songs and singing were powerful, and the acting was absolutely outstanding. The entire cast rightly deserved their lengthy standing ovation after the performance.
The musical switches between their youthful days, when Allie, who came from a wealthy family, was forbidden to see lumberman Noah, to years later when they chose each other and began their life together. Aaron Ramey, an understudy who portrayed older Noah on opening night, did an amazing job bringing to life a never-ending devotion to his beloved wife, portrayed by Sharon Catherine Brown.
At times, there was not a dry eye around me.
Thankfully, there were plenty of lighthearted moments, too. If we can’t laugh, we’ll just cry even more. As someone who’s worked in the news business for 26 years, I pride myself on the ability to keep my feelings in check; a master at compartmentalizing emotions, but man, that lump in my throat was nagging at me, and my eyes were awfully watery.
Whether it’s forbidden love or the mortal realization that comes with aging, it’s a tale that everyone can relate to in one way or another-- some painfully more so than others. I know for some people in the audience who’ve experienced similar love and loss due to this devastating disease, the story was even more heart-wrenching.
As I was leaving the Dr. Phillips Center after the show, I couldn’t help but notice that I was feeling similar to how I felt after seeing Kimberly Akimbo, only times a million. Grateful. Grateful for family, friends, loved ones, and good health. What more could you ask for?
For more information on showtimes and tickets, click here.
[WATCH: ‘The Notebook The Musical’ cast member talks Orlando stop]