Frank Wildhorn

Remember how Haley and I went to see Audra McDonald when she came to BYU? Haley wrote this awesome article for The Universe about it (http://universe.byu.edu/2013/09/11/five-time-tony-winner-wows-byu-audiences/). 

Apparently BYU is quite good at bringing in awesome performing artists because Haley, her parents, and I went to see Frank Wildhorn (and some incredible broadway singers) in concert last night. (Haley's writing another story about it, I'll post it when it is done.)

Frank Wildhorn is the composer of incredible songs/musicals (Civil War, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and Jekell and Hyde to name a few). He has written many other songs, but a lot of them are less well known. Still just as incredible, though.

It was truly amazing. First thing, Frank came out wearing a BYU hat and he wore it all concert. He kept saying how he was proud to be a cougar. It was cute. (For the encore the singers came out with BYU sweatshirts on. The quote of the night: Darren Ritchie in his sweatshirt, "I feel like a Gap model.") Throughout the night he played for three singers (Jackie Burns, Adrienne Warren, and Darren Ritchie) as they sang songs he had written. They sang songs from Jekell and Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Civil War, Wonderland, Victor/Victoria, Bonnie and Clyde, and a musical he is writing right now, Havana. There were also a couple of songs he wrote for Whitney Houston (one she never got to record) and the song Gold he wrote for the 2002 Winter Olympics. 

The entire night I was blown away by the incredible talent of the people on the stage. The genius of his songwriting. The vocal chops of the singers. The overall performance quality of everyone on the stage. They were real people with incredible talent. 

When Adrienne and Jackie came on stage to sing "In His Eyes", Haley started crying before they even started. She said in that moment she realized the incredible impact Frank has had on so many people. That song had changed her life, and she is just one person from a small town in Utah and his musicals are done all over the world. The song was so amazing I don't even have words to describe it. I'll just say this: I stopped breathing while they held out the last note because it quite literally took my breath away.

It was truly a once in a lifetime experience! I'm so glad I have such great friends to share such things with!