I had seen those, though only parts of "1776", "Fiddler" and "Phantom". I kind of liked "Music Man" particularly because Robert Preston was so good in it.
I don't know whether you remember "Godspell" or not. The Broadway musical was already out and the soundtrack album was already done, and "Day By Day" was already a hit on the radio before I ever got into it. At that, I was never in the Broadway production. I was in the touring company based out of Chicago. A friend told me the guitarist had just quit on Saturday night and they were holding auditions Monday, then going on the road the following Friday. I never believed for a minute that I'd get it but I did.
I ended up playing all the guitar parts, 12 string parts and bass parts depending on the songs. They wrote me out a couple of cue sheets, so that when an actor said a certain line, I knew that was my cue for the next song. I never quit or got fired, but rode the show out till it ended I think in 1978. I was there at the "wrap party". I've still got some of the playbills with my name on them, some newspaper clippings and the 2 pages of cue sheets. I wish I had pictures of the show or at least the actors and musicians but I never knew of any.
The dedication of the actors and their professionalism amazed me and had a serious impact on how I looked at playing. In the afternoons they would rehearse the singing and dancing for a couple of hours, refining little details like how many steps they had to take to move a prop or do a dance step. Then that same evening they'd put on the hour and a half show. I don't think we musicians were quite as disciplined but we still had to be there for all of it.
It was my first real road tour and seriously affected everything I did after that. I learned so much from them. I loved visiting all the different cities. It was the dream of a lifetime starting when I was 19. Since then, I spent uncounted years touring, living in a thousand identical motel rooms with cottage cheese ceilings and bad artwork, being away from home for months at a time, seeing my yard looking like a hayfield, and everything in the refrigerator looking like a science project.
Not meaning to "brag" about it, but looking back on experiences I wouldn't trade for any other way of life. I could write a long and boring book about it. At this point, I'd never want to do it again. I might like to revisit a few of the places I'd seen, but they're too far away now. Once you've done it, you kind of lose interest in redoing it. I'm loathe to admit that I may be getting too old to be doing this, but I readily admit I'm too old to want to do it anymore.
Sorry this was so long. It's hard to stop reminiscing once you get started. As Bruce Springsteen wrote, "I hope I don't get old and sit around talking about it...but I probably will". John