The only time I look at the news these days is in the morning when I read the scrolling headlines on two network news channels -- both with the sound muted. I don't want to hear the pundits picking things apart and guessing what was, is or will be part of any decision or event. I also read and - for the most part - avoid watching the video of talking heads or shots from the field. Television is an emotional medium -- video is more powerful than most stills, but there have been some iconic moving stills over the years. Sound and visual inputs push many buttons in viewers.
Today it was the scrolling headlines alone that brought me to tears. The scenes on the screen were horrific. I had to turn it off. What I saw was reminiscent of April 25, 1975 -- the fall of Saigon. Today it was the fall of Kabul. The panic and desperation people must feel in these moments is overwhelming to those on this side of the screen. I had a sliver of a glimpse of this when sitting in the audience of Miss Saigon at the Princess of Wales theatre in Toronto in the early 1990s.-- and I still don't really know what it would be like to be part of such a melee. The scene of the fall of Saigon occurred just before the end of an Act and the intermission. As the scene played out on stage, things suddenly reversed so that the audience became part of the people clamoring outside the embassy walls, as the last helicopter was leaving from the roof. When the curtains closed, the theatre was silent until a collective sigh indicated that we'd all been holding our breathe. Even leaving for the intermission was quieter than usual -- little chatter from people talking about the show thus far. It was an amazing experience for live theatre. I believe it showed me that this was something that I couldn't really understand without being part of it. Being part of an audience co-opted into the performance was the closest I could come. But this play made me think about this and the aftermath in a different light -- more emotionally than factually.
The song shared today comes from that musical. The tempo and orchestral background bring about a feeling of anxiousness and possibly panic. Keep safe. Enjoy!
The Fall of Saigon -- Miss Saigon
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