When My Mother Went to Broadway

When My Mother Went to Broadway

Pull up a chair and sit awhile

September 7, 2026

Dear Friend:

Before my mother was married, she and her friends would occasionally travel to New York City to see a Broadway musical.

Can you imagine what that must have been like?

This was a very different New York from the one we know today. Broadway was in its Golden Age, and the names of Rodgers and Hammerstein were becoming synonymous with some of the most beloved musicals in America.

For my mother, these were more than songs she might hear on the radio or records she might listen to at home. She was there. She sat in a Broadway theater and watched the story unfold on stage, surrounded by the excitement of an evening in New York City.

Among the musicals that became part of that remarkable era were Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, and The King and I. Later came My Fair Lady, West Side Story, and The Sound of Music.

I find myself wondering what my mother thought as she sat in those theaters.

Did she dress up for the occasion? Did she and her friends have dinner beforehand? Did they talk about the show all the way home? Did a particular song stay with her after the curtain came down?

Today, we can turn on a television and watch almost anything we want. We can stream a movie, listen to an entire Broadway soundtrack, or even watch a recording of a performance from our own homes.

But there was something different about going to a theater and seeing a story come alive right in front of you.

And perhaps that is why these musicals have lasted.

The songs became more than songs.

They became memories.

For my mother, they were memories of being young, traveling with her friends, spending an evening in New York, and experiencing something special before life changed and marriage and family became the center of her world.

My mother was born in 1925. When I think about her going to Broadway, I try to picture her as the young woman she was then—not as the mother I knew, but as a young woman in her twenties, going to New York with her friends and experiencing a world that was still new to her.

When I hear songs from those old musicals today, I can't help but think about that young woman.

I wish I could ask her more about those trips.

What did she see?

What was her favorite musical?

Did she have a favorite song?

And what did those evenings in New York mean to her?

There is so much about our parents' lives that happened before we were born, or before we were old enough to understand it. We know them as our mothers and fathers, but they were young once, too. They had friends, adventures, dreams, favorite songs, and experiences that belonged entirely to them.

Maybe that's one of the things we discover as we get older:

The stories we wish we had asked about are sometimes the stories we treasure most.

Did your parents ever go to Broadway?

Or was there a musical—or a particular song—that became part of your family's memories?

Until next time, stay well, stay safe, and stay connected to those you love.

Be well,

Emma

Emma is the voice behind Sharing with Seniors, where every story starts with a memory. Through stories of family, friendships, music, traditions, hometowns, and life's simple pleasures, she invites readers to pull up a chair, stay awhile, and remember the moments that have shaped their lives.