NYC Broadway help

[agnes!]

...recent closures will be bye bye birdie, finians rainbow and ragtime. they all close end of this month

I just heard about Ragtime closing over Christmas break and am very sad about it. One of my DD's teachers is in it and we had hoped to make a trip to see her...doesn't look possible now.

ETA: Just looked it up...Ragtime closes January 10th....dagnabbit.

agnes!

 

[Green Tea]

Travelzoo has some really good hotel specials right now.

 

[AmandaSparks730]

Ooh, does she like Phantom of the Opera? INCREDIBLE show. I saw a documentary on it on Ovation, and it's so cool. Very beautiful, incredible voices, great show (even dad loved it!)

In The Heights won the 2008 Tony for Best Musical--definately something to look into

 

[bobcat]

I don't think anyone has recommended High 5 yet.

http://www.highfivetix.org/splash.aspx

They sell discount tickets to museums, concerts, plays (not broadway) to teens and to their parents. Sign up for their newsletter.

This summer my two Ds visited the Gugenheim for $7.50 total. The regular price, with student tickets would have been $39 as I recall. But the High 5 museum tickets are 2 for $5, plus they let a parent tag along. Just be sure she brings a student ID.

When you're buying Broadway tickets, remember that Broadway theatres are much smaller than some of the huge venues in which the rest of us are forced to see traveling shows. The "cheap seats" in a Broadway theatre are so much closer to the stage than the cheap seats at my local larger theatre.
So don't feel like you have to splurge for the "best seats in the house." High up, but center, is fine.

Has anyone recommended In the Heights? It's WAY COOL.

I love broadwaybox.com.

We will look at the link. Any way we can save $ and see lots works for me!

In the Heights was another one we are looking at. Thanks for the info about the theaters. We will have to go with the "cheap" seats so it's good to know that we can still have a good experience. We saw Blue Man last trip and I was shocked at how small the theater was, granted it's off of broadway but I traded my ticket with one of my daughters friends so she would have a better seat and I was in the 3rd row from the back and I swear I could still see the color of their eyes LOL!

I would also consider, after getting the very best price you can find for a room IN the city, to do Hotwire or Priceline. We got a nice room at the W for a GREAT price a few years ago doing this (I think it was Hotwire we went with in the end.)

I wouldn't worry about traveling with your daughter in the city, even after dark. Be smart, of course, don't throw on lots of jewelry, flash alot of cash, etc. Wear your purse across your body. Stay in well populated areas. I travel to NYC alone on the train from CT several times a year...and have done so since I was about 12. I've never had a problem. Not even on very late night trains home.

And along the lines of Serendipity/Dylan's is Max Brenner's. Check out their sweets menu, really fun stuff! And Union Square is cool, they often have a farmer's market on the weekends in warmer weather.

http://www.maxbrenner.com/

Even with our last trip being with a school group we were on our own. I found Manhattan very easy to navigate and don't think we ran into the strereo typical "grumpy" New Yorker. We started out on the first ferry to Ellis Island and then worked our way north, both walking and taking the subway. It was a blast and I can't wait to do it again!

I just checked broadwaybox.com and you can get rear mezannine seats to In the Heights for $40 each. If I know theatre kids, they would rather see three Broadway shows from the back for $40 each than one from the front for $120 each.

I would really try to economize everywhere else (e.g. meals) and see three shows rather than one. If your hotel doesn't include breakfast, bring power bars or stop for a quick bagel. Grab a slice of pizza for dinner. With the money you save, you could see another show.

She would be in heaven to see as many shows as possible. Do any of the theaters have mid week matinees?

Food on the run is fine for us, it would be fun to do/see some of the restaurants mentioned but not a necessity.

Ooh, does she like Phantom of the Opera? INCREDIBLE show. I saw a documentary on it on Ovation, and it's so cool. Very beautiful, incredible voices, great show (even dad loved it!)

In The Heights won the 2008 Tony for Best Musical--definately something to look into

She loves Phantom! There are too many we want to see!

 

[krcit]

Most shows have Wed matinees.

 

[bamagirl@hrt]

One tour I've never done but heard good things about is a food tour of New York City. I forget which one it was, but just do a google search and they should just pop up. One of them is highly rated and sounds like a lot of fun.

As far as staying in Jersey City, just google the water ferry and you will be able to see the schedule. I don't think you'd have a problem getting back to your hotel after a show.

My husband & I did a food & culture tour of Greenwich Village in July 2008. It was WONDERFUL! It felt very genuine NYC & not as touristy as other things we did. We loved cannollis at Rocco's, pizza at Joe's, and cheese at Murray's Cheese Shop. We used foodsofny.com and the cost was $44/person. You get to sample foods at 6-8 different places. It still wasn't enough for a meal for my husband. He went back for more pizza and we both had another cannolli! The history, architecture, and pop culture of the area were very interesting too. I highly recommend it! They also have food tours of different areas of NYC if you'd prefer something different.

 

[JenM]

I just checked broadwaybox.com and you can get rear mezannine seats to In the Heights for $40 each. If I know theatre kids, they would rather see three Broadway shows from the back for $40 each than one from the front for $120 each.

I would really try to economize everywhere else (e.g. meals) and see three shows rather than one. If your hotel doesn't include breakfast, bring power bars or stop for a quick bagel. Grab a slice of pizza for dinner. With the money you save, you could see another show.

Totally agree with this - I've done two shows in one day a few times and it's a blast. I work in NY and live 30 minutes from the city, and I go in to grab discount tickets all the time, you don't have to get $120 seats to enjoy the show.

And add me to the list of people recommending In The Heights. It's a great show, and I saw it in the rear mezz and we saw everything fine. Rock of Ages also has rush seats for $37.50 up in the mezz, and those seats were fine too.

 

[The LK 4]

I'm seeing In The Heights next month in Pittsburgh - can't wait!

I'm bummed that both Altar Boyz and The Marvelous Wonderettes are closing.

 

[AllisonK]

I'm seeing In The Heights next month in Pittsburgh - can't wait!

I'm bummed that both Altar Boyz and The Marvelous Wonderettes are closing.

I'm EXTREMELY sad that Marvelous Wonderettes closed - I LOVED it haha (I saw it a few times lol) and Altar Boyz closing is sad, too (I saw it about 2 years ago - it was great!).

 

[cc1013]

I would HIGHLY recommend In the Heights. I saw it in NY and then again in Chicago. We had a group of 12 people in Chicago and everyone LOVED it!

 

[rkrivas]

Here's another tip that may save you some money, depending upon the timing of your trip:

Every February, Broadway has 'Kids Night On Broadway', where it's buy-one-get-one free for kids between 6 and 18 (i.e., for each paying adult, a child can go free).

In 2009, the group extended this to year-round, where the first Tuesday and Wednesday of each month was a Kids Night on Broadway and tickets typically went on sale about 2 months before the performance dates (i.e., July tickets would go on sale in May).

There's a website for Kids Night on Broadway, but it doesn't mention if the same year-round availability will apply to 2010, but it's something worth watching.

 

[AmandaSparks730]

We will look at the link. Any way we can save $ and see lots works for me!

In the Heights was another one we are looking at. Thanks for the info about the theaters. We will have to go with the "cheap" seats so it's good to know that we can still have a good experience. We saw Blue Man last trip and I was shocked at how small the theater was, granted it's off of broadway but I traded my ticket with one of my daughters friends so she would have a better seat and I was in the 3rd row from the back and I swear I could still see the color of their eyes LOL!



Even with our last trip being with a school group we were on our own. I found Manhattan very easy to navigate and don't think we ran into the strereo typical "grumpy" New Yorker. We started out on the first ferry to Ellis Island and then worked our way north, both walking and taking the subway. It was a blast and I can't wait to do it again!



She would be in heaven to see as many shows as possible. Do any of the theaters have mid week matinees?

Food on the run is fine for us, it would be fun to do/see some of the restaurants mentioned but not a necessity.



She loves Phantom! There are too many we want to see!

It depends on what you want to see. Fun show, go for Avenue Q or Mamma Mia!. Beautiful, moving show, go to Phantom or Next To Normal.

Funny, I was just thinking about Legally Blonde: The Musical. It was a fun, cute show.

 

[bobcat]

Well we are thinking of going between Memorial day and the 5th of June. I need to see if it makes a difference one week to the next, we went the week after memorial day last time and it was fleet week. Not sure if that makes a lot of difference in hotel prices in a city as large as NYC.

I'll keep an eye on the Kids night on Broadway. That could be the difference in which week we go.