All You Have to Do Is Dream

My best friend, Patchy, lives in Brooklyn and has for the last 5 years. He is a good guy that has stood by me through thick and thin. His number one job is talk to me on the telephone whenever I call. And he has lived up to his responsibility faithfully. We used to talk 3 or 4 nights out of a week but now we only speak once every two or three weeks. Earlier this week, he did the unusual, he called me.

Patchy rarely calls except when he is very excited about something. He was very excited. He was nearly busting at the seams. Why? He called me to tell me that he could not wait another 6 months for the release of the Dreamgirls film.

Patchy is a Dreamgirls fanatic. Not only has he watched any video labeled Dreamgirls on YouTube.Com but he took two trips to see the Philly live stage version back in February. He has Dreamgirls fever and it is spreading. He listens to the concert version everyday. The man has Dreamgirls fever and it is spreading. So, today I want us to go back to the day. Beyonce was just being born and no one had ever heard of this Jamie Foxx. Lets go back to when legendary stage director and choreographer Michael Bennett was still with us. When Jennifer Holliday was still fat. And Loretta Devine and Sheryl Lee Ralph (rumored to soon replace the fired Star Jones on The View) were relatively unknown.

The year was 1982. The first week in June. The same week that I graduated from the 8th grade and attended my Uncle Daryl's funeral, my eyes were opened when I watched Tony Awards that year and got my first glimpse of Dreamgirls.