A song can take you back instantly to a moment, or a place, or even a person. No matter what else has changed in you or the world, that one song stays the same, just like that moment.
— Sarah Dessen
On a cold Sunday morning in Bristol in 2006, my friend and I were walking past the closed theatre doors after a night front row at Cats, tired and sad and tingling with that strange post-theatre-echo - drained and buzzing with energy that we didn't know what to do with all at once. We were sad to be leaving the show and the cast behind, knowing we would not be back for a long time and that the cast change was fast approaching. So, we got our iPods out. That day, during the course of the long drive home, we began compiling a playlist of all the songs which captured that strange feeling best; captured the coldness of a morning walk after the magic of a show the night before, reminded us of the stage door highs as well as the bittersweet feeling of waking up the next morning, reminded us of the giddy pre-show dancing, the silliness of whispered conversations before the lights went down in the theatre, the fuzziness of post-show recaps sat on hotel beds or in half-empty hotel bars and of the odd quietness of the late night and early morning after being at the show, lying in bed with the light of streetlamps outside, listening to the world going on as normal. The Stage Door Playlist was born, and I have been adding to it ever since. A lot of the songs are very memory-specific these days, songs which don't necessarily describe stage door but remind me of a particular time or capture a mood or that are just favourites of mine and make me smile when I need it on the way home, but the songs here are ones that I think can apply to anyone in love with the theatre, the stage door and indulging in hotel room singalongs and wistful train rides home.
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Sunlight through the trees in summer, endless masquerading...
These are the best songs to dance to or make you smile pre-show, the happy singalong songs and the perfect songs to get ready to, even the songs to soothe your nerves on a long journey to the theatre or build your anticipation for the show, they're all here in my Stage Door Playlist's Masquerading Endlessly Mix. Find my top picks by hovering over the album covers in the gallery or browse the full playlist including lyric highlights via the tab below.
When the dawn comes, tonight will be a memory too...
From bittersweet and nostalgic to the grateful and amazed - My Stage Door Playlist's Dawn Memories Mix contains some of my favourite songs to spend the post-show haze listening to, be it late at night as I'm soaking in the bittersweet haze or the next day's sleepy sadness on the journey home - they're also the first songs to turn to when I feel like reminscing over special stage door memories. Find the songs by hovering over the album covers in the gallery to see my top picks or browse the full playlist including lyric highlights via the tab below.
For more of my theatre trip ideas and experiences then feel free to explore My Theatre Diary.
If you can't find the answer to your burning theatre questions on this site or if you simply want to know more about anything you read here, please feel free to get in touch through my contact page or find me on social media.
If you can't find the answer to your burning theatre questions on this site or if you simply want to know more about anything you read here, please feel free to get in touch through my contact page or find me on social media.
