Thomsen Talk: Well, we have a whole new year ahead of us.
While she certainly held the song in high regard, “Over the Rainbow” wasn’t actually Judy Garland’s favorite song. That honor goes to a “not nearly as famous” song, “Through the Years.” She sang it on television several times, one such time being on her weekly variety show. This particular episode was the “New Year Episode” (1964), and before she sang the song, she introduced it in the following way:
Well, we have a whole new year ahead of us. And wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all be a little more gentle with each other, and a little more loving, have a little more empathy, and maybe – next year at this time – we’d like each other a little more.
I revisit this little speech at the beginning of each year as a way to launch my approach to relationships. It’s so simple, yet exquisitely beautiful, and reminds me to move with patience and kindness and to seek to understand. As we move into yet another unparalleled year, I hope that you will find it helpful, too. An incredible gift that theatre gives us is, whether the participation is onstage, backstage or in the audience, the opportunity to learn more about why people are the way that they are, and we can become open to different ways of thinking.
Our 2022 season is packed with laughs and all “the feels,” and through it all, I hope that each show will spark a notion to ask questions and see the world, perhaps, a little differently.
Judy said it (and sang it) best, so I’ll give her the final word….