I do have other interests, like musical theatre!

Okay, so at the request of Paula and Astharis, I'm also posting about other interests ... yes, I do have some! Today I start with musical theatre, fitting because I'm back in London for the rest of the week and whilst I'm there I'm going to see Billy Elliot: The Musical (if you spot a girl doing tour jetés down the King's Road or Cromwell Road, that will be me) and Thriller: Live (ditto, if you see a girl trying to moonwalk).

The first musical I ever saw on the West End was Fame - as far as introductions go to the West End musical scene, I'd say this is a good one to start with because (in case you've been living under a rock) Fame is all about students at a PA school who dream big and want to be performers. Brilliant, I loved it!

My *absolute* favourite musical has to be Mary Poppins (even though I've seen We Will Rock You more times - it's a close call for absolute favourite though). I saw this in the stalls, three rows centre from the stage - perfection - I swear, I cannot recall another solid (public) three hours where I had a constant perma-grin face. Scarlett Strallen was perfect as Mary Poppins! Great set, great score, great effects. It's the best!

Speaking of great effects, Lord of the Rings was utterly brilliant in that regard. I love The Lion King for its colourfulness; Chicago for its grittiness; The Phantom of the Opera for its magic. In fact, in the many musicals I have seen, there is always something I love... apart from one. I never thought I'd dislike a musical, but I changed my mind after seeing Les Misérables. It just didn't hold my attention and I felt bored throughout. Just me?

Anyway, the reason I love musicals? There's just something about them that makes me feel so alive through the exhilaration of it all; I feel captured, stirred and captivated from opening to end. Plus how entertaining is it to get to spend a few hours in a world where it is acceptable to randomly break into song and dance to share your worries and woes that inevitably arise. Musicals are utterly fabbity - they are like a fever to me - and I can't wait to get my next two doses (and all the doses that follow - I would like to see quite a few again, plus I've still not seen Avenue Q)!

Please tell me some of you are musical theatre fans? If so, what are your favourite shows? Are there any shows you are itching to see or would see over and over? Anyone been in a musical? Let me know! (And if you hate musical theatre, tell me why! Why aren't you embracing the flamboyance?)