The Premature Demise of The Delta Nus
It’s been a helluva pandemic.
I always jump into a project heart first and with a burst of energy, but I’m not always great at follow-through.
Queue the Delta Nus. My sister and I conceived the idea on our way to a musical theatre music festival and it had so much potential. We jumped right in, making lists of what needed to be done, creating a logo, putting together a website, and then another and then this one, because we wanted to get it right. We wrote bios and made social media accounts and reached out to people on- and off-Broadway that we hoped to interview. This was our passion and access and a way to be a part of something we both loved.
But then the pandemic happened. And I was working 16 hour days. And my sister was busy with her stuff. And then she entered a serious relationship, which meant even less time for projects. And I was busy with other projects and friends and other things.
And theatre wasn’t happening.
But theatre was happening. We caught live streams and digital concerts and pro cuts of our favourite shows. We sang karaoke, screaming off-key through Sondheim and Schwartz. We read the news and every once in awhile we wrote a post or posted a video and we even did one interview via Facetime, although I never did write that.
But theatre was also not happening. Virtual events were not the same as being in a theatre. Toneless tunes were not the same as hearing professional belts. And so life and other things took priority and the Delta Nus fell to the wayside.
I saw my first live performance in June of 2021. Times Square Alliance put on a Songs for Our City 2021 and the adorable and brilliantly hilarious Billy Recce was performing a song. We love Billy, so of course, we were there. I think I cried. I’m pretty sure I did. Seeing people perform live was such a rush. It was so powerful. From there it was 54 Below shows and Shakespeare in the Park in the outdoor Delacorte Theatre and Green Room 42 and ElsieFest and off-Broadway parodies. Cabaret was slaking my lust for theatre at that moment, while I (and everyone else) eagerly awaited live theatre’s triumphant return.
“Pass Over” was the first Broadway show I saw in 539 days. March 11 to September 1.
Anyone else remember what happened on September 1? We got a little visit from Ida, but I sure as Hades wasn’t going to let a little hurricane stand in my way. The show was powerful and intense and wonderful and when I left the theatre, it was pouring and the streets were empty except for the graveyard of broken umbrellas. I went on a subway as far as I could and when the subway system shut down, I walked the last 3.74 miles home through the raging wind and lashing rain. It was totally worth it.
After “Pass Over,” my cabaret had a few other things sprinkled in. I went to see the off-Broadway show “A Commercial Jingle for Regina Comet,” which was sweet and funny and cuter than anything created during a pandemic had any right to be. I saw “The Little Shop of Horrors” off-Broadway with Jeremy Jordan (swoon) and Christian Borle (thunderous applause) and Tammy Borchard (swoon again). I saw “Yeah, But Not Right Now,” A.J. Holmes one-man autobiographical show, which included Darren Criss opening with 15 minutes of shaggy dog dad jokes. And I saw Drunk Shakespeare. Eh.
And then Broadway official reopened and I was spending my hard-earned paycheck on any and all tickets I could get my hands on. Freestyle Love Supreme, Girl From the North Country, To Kill A Mockingbird, Six, The Phantom of the Opera, Is This A Room, Dana H., Trevor the Musical, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, FairyCakes, Chicken & Biscuits, Slave Play, Flyng Over Sunset, Ain’t Too Proud… well, you get the idea.
I was so busy with theatre and work and friends and living life as fully as I possibly and safely could (being fully vaccinated and respecting mask mandates), that there simply wasn’t time to write anything, much less this blog. My sister was working full-time and had moved out of my place and in with her partner and there didn’t seem to be any life left in this blog.
So I wrote a goodbye post on Instagram and shut down the site.
But I was wrong.
Because theatre is still here and still thriving. And so am I.
I may not post often and I may have to change what I envisioned this blog to be (interviews with the movers and the shakers and access to my beloved show business), but it can still be a place where I express my love for theatre. It can still be a personal blog, if not a brand, and a place where I talk about my theatre adventures (coming in the next post) and my favourite theatre things and my opinions and my heroes. I can still post photos and videos and have fun with it.
It’s not what it was and it’s not what I thought it would be, but that doesn’t mean it’s nothing at all.
So here I am, officially reviving The Delta Nus. And I’ll post when I can, what I can. And I’ll have fun. And just keep an eye out because you never know when my sisters, (who still have access to this blog and social media), both biological and not, pop in to share.
Love you all,
Roxi
