10 Brilliant Things about "Every Brilliant Thing"

"#761 Deciding you're not too old to climb trees"
That was my line in "Every Brilliant Thing" last Saturday night at the Vintage Theater.

Though I'm tempted to make that count as "having a part in a play".. number 23 on my own 60 until 60 list, that will be a last resort measure.

The play was described this way in the Goldstar ad I got in my email box:

"1. Ice cream. 2. Kung fu movies. 3. Burning things. 4. Laughing so hard you shoot milk out of your nose. 5. Construction cranes. In Duncan MacMillan’s Every Brilliant Thing, a young boy attempts to ease his mother’s depression by creating a list of all the best things in the world. As the list grows with him into adulthood, he learns the deep significance tracking things worth living for has had on his own life. This heartwarming play made waves on HBO in 2017. Now, it makes its regional premiere at Aurora’s Vintage Theatre. See this heartwarming exploration of depression and the lengths we’ll go to for those we love."

Well, making lists is right up my alley! I've been inspired by 1000 Awesome Things and make lists every week in my journal of the good and the not-so-good. The good list is always much longer than the not-so-good. It's become second nature to notice all those quotidian moments (Note: The word, 'quotidian' is on my 'things that make me happy list'!)

Even though I'm tempted to share a long, long list of quotidian moments that have made me happy just this week, I'll try to stay on topic here, and give you a list of 10 brilliant things, just about the play!

1. Going to the play alone, so I could fart in the car. (It turned out, I was really gassy that night!)
2. Even though the play was listed as 'sold out' on Goldstar, when I called the theater, they said it wasn't really sold out... just the Goldstar discount tickets were sold out.
3. The ticket agent offering to give me the ticket at half-price ($16 instead of $32!)
4. That the Vintage Theater was this cute, small, theater so really easy to see and hear everything!
5. Having a part! "761. Deciding you're not too old to climb trees!" (I had GREAT delivery! What an actress!)
6. The awesome acting by John Ashton
7. Audience participation - the vet, the father, the school counselor, and the love interest - pulled in to adlib with no rehearsals.. and the endearing results from the shy, the bold, and the talented
8. The feeling you get from a drama that makes you both laugh and cry.
9. A play that deals with the difficult and tragic topic of suicide and mental illness, reminding us of our own vulnerabilities, while at the same time, reminding us of the simple joys of every day life.
10. The invitation to add our own brilliant thing to this board:

Yes, I really loved the play. It wasn't a "Happily Ever After" fairy tale (I love those, too), but one that dealt with the very deep topics of death, depression, love, and life.  I almost didn't go to this play because, despite my attempts to find someone to go with me, no one was available. It was in Aurora (quite a distance) and I don't like driving at night.

I could have gotten all mopey...  poor, poor me... no one to go with...  (I have had that little pity party before) but I'm happy to report, going alone didn't phase me a bit! In fact, it was first on my list of brilliant things..  'cause, ya know, sometimes it's just better to be alone!