Loving Life: Dani Girl

Before the hype, I read the book "Fault in the Stars". I was crying like a lunatic backstage wallowing in inconsolable pain. This is why I didn't even dare watch the film. I thought it too heart breaking and masochistic. Then I saw an invite in my Facebook and got a first glimpse of Dani Girl. Bald beautiful Rebecca Coates,...... cancer. I am quite honestly a big fan of this actress so I  thought  it couldn't be all that bad. She was smiling in the photo after all.

The ads said it was a musical for the soul. So I came and watched it.  I left the theatre completely in love with the play. They spoke the truth, it was a musical for the soul. No it wasn't a praise the Lord Project. It wasn't  make them all sad for the cancer battles that are just unbelievably difficult. Neither was it a play who made fun of the cancer. I'll tell you what it was. It was actually not a story. It was more of sharing with a couple of hundred people a mental and emotional state of being.  Rebecca Coates took me to a place familiar. With her melodic voice and her youthful acting, she made me see MY life in a different perspective. In the play, her character tries to figure out Cancer. "Why does Cancer exist?". The answer is, it does because it exists as a stepping stone to something of value. You can never really figure out what life lessons something so bad can give you. The fact of the matter is, whether we recognize it or not, the good always measure more than the bad. Dani's cancer gave her a chance to see a whole other world out there. Yes it did put tears in her eyes repeatedly but it did give her an adventure with a friend. Dani's father left her but it was because of this that she felt how it was to be loved. The play made me emotional. They play made me laugh like a hyena. The play made me get mad. But most of all, it made me feel in love with life. I actually don't believe in "YOLO" because I associate it with people doing a bunch of stupid things. I believe in "You only live your life so BE AS BEAUTIFUL AS YOU WANT TO BE. BE GRATEFUL AS YOU CAN BE. BE AS POSITIVE AS YOU NEED TO BE".  The play was a beautiful reminder of my own life mantras. Sometimes things get so tough you forget even your own voice. 

Thank you Rebecca Coates for your honesty on stage. Thank you too for the beautiful music which filled my heart with  happiness.

Thank you Reb Atadero for representing all the voices in our heads. Thank you for that memorable latino show. It's like a youtube video that keeps on going on replay in my head. Thank you for making us laugh at you, and at ourselves. 

Thank you Luigi for being a hero. Enough said. 

Congratulations Sandbox Collective. You have transformed my adult self to a weeping 5 year old.  You have erased the sadness acquired from reading Fault in the Stars and replaced it with  hope and love. Thank you and more power. 

Directed by Toff de Venecia

Music by Michael Kooman

Book and Lyrics by Christopher Dimond
Pictures from  Sanbox Collective