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It's the end of the year, and yes, I admit it, I'm a mileage junkie! I needed 3000 miles to make Premier for next year. Better seating, preferential treatment for upgrades, whatever. But where to go? London was a possibility, but I didn't have enough time. What about New York City? I hadn't been since I was a kid and had been wanting to go. Phil goes there every year to stay with his sister and brother-in-law. So... a place to stay, people to hang out with, and cheap plane fare -- let's go!
I left the day after Christmas, and Kurt stayed home to bond with Coda. In four days we saw much of New York City, and took in 4 plays! I've got some recommendations for seeing plays in NYC based on my brief experience, which is shared below the itinerary.
Photos are up for all days.
|
Date
|
Destination
|
|---|---|
| Dec 26 | Leave for New Jersey |
| Dec 27 | New York City -- Midtown, Rockefeller Center, 5th Avenue, the Plaza, the Guggenheim |
| Dec 28 | NYC -- the Village and SoHo |
| Dec 29 | NYC -- You've got Mail! -- upper West side |
| Dec 30 | NYC -- Ground Zero and Wall Street |
| Dec 31 | NJ -- Short Hills Mall and travel home |
Theatre in New York City
We had no problems getting two-fer tix for Chicago at the TKTS booth in Times Square. We then went to the box office for several of the plays that had been recommended. Without exception, all had tickets available, though not all with the best seats. We had to be flexible on show times. The tickets are way cheaper buying them from the box office rather than from a ticket broker.
Here are the plays we saw and my impressions (ordered from my favorite show down). I've also included the ticket prices in case you're interested in going. All plays we saw were good.
|
Play
|
Price
|
Impressions
|
| Urinetown | $90 |
Okay, the name stinks. But the play (a musical) was fantastic! We had 1st row balcony seats -- because of the way the play was structured, it may be better to sit in the balcony than in the orchestra. Beware of sitting in the 1st row of the orchestra. What's the play about? I recommend that you just go see it. Don't read about it, don't listen to the soundtrack, and don't think about why it's named the way it is. The soundtrack is great, and the acting/singing was great. Both Phil and I loved it. |
| Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune | $85 |
This was an excellent play with a cast of two. (The movie, Frankie & Johnny, with Al Pacino and Michelle Pfieffer, was based on this play.) Edie Falco (Sopranos) and Stanley Tucci (one of my favorite actors) played the lead roles. The play was funny and touching and very well acted. We saw the second-to-last performance with these actors; starting in the beginning of the year, they'll be replaced by Rosie Perez and Joe Pantaliano. Again, this play I won't tell you much about, other than the beginning is a little bit surprising, and it's not a show I would take kids to. Two very enthusiastic thumbs up! |
| La Boheme | $46 |
This is an updating of Puccini's opera (to 1957) and is set in Bohemian Paris. The music is fantastic, the libretto in Italian, but the supertitles are quite creatively updated to be resonant with the times. Phil wasn't as enthused about it as I was, as he's not a big opera buff. But even if you don't like opera, go see it. Just get better seats than we had (we were in the 2nd-to-last row in the balcony). |
| Chicago | $45 | This was a very funny musical, with some outstanding performances. However, the music isn't that hummable; today, four days later, I can't remember a single song. Still, it's worth seeing if you haven't seen it! |