Winnie the Pooh Broadway Musical 

Deb's Review

I was very excited when I learned there would be a Winnie the Pooh Broadway Musical.  In my opinion, Disney had not been promoting Winnie the Pooh like they did in the 1990s and 2000s despite the fact that Winnie the Pooh was the third largest selling franchise just behind Pokemon and Hello Kitty.  Yes, Pooh even outsold Mickey Mouse.

The musical was going to be in New York and I had only been to New York once: to see the original Winnie the Pooh stuffies owned by Christopher Robin Milne at the New York Library.  I also had never been to a Broadway event.

According to my browser history, I visited the official Winnie the Pooh Show website pretty often.

As the musical grew nearer I started to plan our trip but quickly learned that travel restrictions would prevent us from going to New York.   I was really bummed until I learned the production was going to be in Chicago at the Mercury Theater after its run in New York.  Chicago is only a two-hour drive from Waukesha.  Perfect!  

By chance, our Florida friend, Nickyle, who is also a Pooh fan, was going to be visiting his family in Chicago the same weekend as the show.  He also got tickets and brought his Grandmother.

Gary found a place that was like an Airbnb for garages right behind the theater so parking was not an issue.  This was a good thing as our tickets were for a Sunday show and there was not much street parking.

We got to Chicago a bit early so I could find the candy store which was selling Pooh-themed snacks; Christopher Robin Trail Mix and a Rice Cripies Pooh face cookie.  Conveniently, Candyality, was right next door to the theater.  It was a cute little shop that reminded me of candy stores of years gone by.  It fit right into the "theater area" we were in.  There were other little shops and restaurants that were very warm and charming.  It was very circa 1970s.

About 30 minutes before the show we met up with Nickyle and his Grandma.  To me, it is always fun to connect with a person outside the normal environment you know them in.  Seeing our Florida friend in Chicago made me smile.

I have to be honest (because that is the best way to always bee).  As much as I love Winnie the Pooh I was skeptical as to if I would enjoy the show.