My connection to professional musical theatre is foremost as a patron and fan. Fueled by participation in school and community theatre, including work producing, I founded Chicagoland Musical Theatre to celebrate the joy of the genre, to have a figurative front-row seat to the professional community, and try to help guide fellow patrons in deciding where to spend their entertainment budgets. I've come to feel part of the musical theatre community and celebrate the many friendships I've made.

My Top Five Musicals (as of this moment):

• Children of Eden, by John Caird and Stephen Schwartz

• Les Misérables, by Alain Boublil, Claude-Michel Schönberg, Jean-Marc Natel, and Herbert Kretzmer

• Evita, by Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber

• Wicked, by Winnie Holzman and Stephen Schwartz

• Pippin, by Roger O. Hirson and Stephen Schwartz

I choose musicals over straight plays because more often than not, I leave musicals feeling joy and hope while too many plays make me feel down. My favorites, even beyond these five, represent a variety of styles. I guess the shows I most enjoy share these qualities: memorable songs and lyrics; emotional depth; the possibility of "wow" production elements; and a personal memory that endears each of them to me.