I was talking with my mom the other night about seeing the tour of Butterfly Kiss and how much I love the show. She understood and mentioned it was really important to have shows that made audiences feel good. I agreed with her and then had a think about her comments. I think we very often are interested in an audience's perspective and if they 'get it' or not, but I rarely think about how they are going to feel when they leave the theatre.
Of course we all want to create work that is meaningful and changes the world or adds insight. Having this conversation has made me think more about the effect a show has and not just what message is taken away. Luckily for my artistic self-preservation, Butterfly Kiss has several strong and powerful messages as well as many 'aw shucks' moments. It really is a lovely piece that I could watch again and again.
You can't ask for more than that!