Spamalot vs. Sabres

We were unable to catch the Sabres game last night due to having purchased tickets for Spamalot months ago. There was no doubt, however, that the Sabres were on everyone’s mind inside Shea’s. Up until the start of the show I was following the open thread over at bfloblog.com and checking the score at Yahoo Mobile on my Treo, and much to everyone’s increased anticipation the game was still scoreless when the cast took the stage. The nanosecond intermission arrived, cell phones came flying out around the theatre to get updates, and at the start of Act III II, the score was unchanged, but the tension level was certainly increasing.

While I personally didn’t feel it was appropriate to be checking the score during the performance (actually I was warned not to by my wife and our friend, Lauren) others were. Midway through the killer rabbit scene, the murmurings began. Hushed, excited whispers emanated from throughout the audience, “Sabres won!!” A quiet wave of excitement and relief washed over the audience, and I’m certain that more than one person thought to themselves, “We’re not dead yet! We’re getting better!”

Spamalot far exceeded my expectations. Honestly, I’m not a big fan of British humor. I’m not sure I’ve ever watched an entire movie start to finish in one sitting. However, the key scenes are certainly known to pretty much everyone with a pulse. I am, however, a big fan of musical theatre, having participated in several shows with many different roles. I thought Spamalot was well crafted to cater to not only the MP fans, but also to those who are simply theatre aficionados. There were not-so-subtle references to Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Andrew Lloyd Weber, divas, Broadway itself, and, um, Jews. You really should see it for yourself. Tickets are still available.

Immediately upon walking out of the Shea’s lobby, the sound of car horns aplenty honking “Let’s Go Buff-a-lo!” filled the downtown air. The Electric Tower was bathed in blue and gold, theatre-goers and Sabres fans mingled on Main Street. Beauty, comedy, and victory – the perfect Buffalo trifecta.