Theatre newbie help please :)
 

I'm a complete theatre newbie, the only time I've been to anything is when the high school took us to Phantom.

I'm looking at booking tickets to Oliver through lastminute.com (I don't want to rely on getting a ticket at the tkts booth). I'm a bit confused by the seating. The tickets are set up as top price, second, third, fourth and fifth price tickets. However, the seating chart shows stalls, grand circle, upper circle and balcony.

Where might first and second price tickets land me? What's the view difference between these? The website does not tell me the exact seats, the theatre allocates seats at time of booking for the best available at that time.

I picked Oliver because I've seen it suggested quite a few times, is there a different show that might be better for a newbie? I'd give ideas for what I like but I really don't know. :)


Thanks for any help!

I believe the Royal Drury Lane Theatre sells their tickets in price bands, A,B,C,D,E. In the stalls (ground level) you can have tickets in A B or C bands, depending on how close you are to the stage. In the Grand Circle your price bands are A or B. In the Upper Circle your price bands are B or C. In the Balcony the price bands are D or E. So -- if you choose top price (A) you will be closer to the stage on the ground level, the Stalls, or closer to the stage in the Grand Circle (American 2nd story). If you choose the second level (B) you could be in the middle of the Stalls or the back of the Grand Circle. If you choose the the third (C) you can either be at the back of the stalls or the back of the Upper Circle, and so on. Does that make sense?

In comparing lastminute.com with the theatre's website there doesn't seem to be a big price difference between the two at the top level, at the second level there is about 18gbp and again not much difference at the third level. If you were going to go for the 1st or the 3rd I would just call the theatre directly and choose your seats.

We saw Oliver! and enjoyed it. We sat in the first section of the stalls, so price band A I believe. If you're a newbie I'm sure you'd enjoy any of the BIG shows, Lion King, Wicked etc. To be honest, I'm not a newbie, but I still love pretty much anything I see!

Have fun!

I used http://www.theatremonkey.com/ to choose seats 2 yrs. ago.

I can only think of one west-end musical that has disappointed me (We Will Rock You). Do you have time for more than one?

Thanks for the advice. I'm having fun with theatremonkey.com, it makes a lot more sense than the way lastminute.com was showing things.

I'm still trying to decide if I want to spend that evening at a show when I'm not even really sure if I like theatre. :) At this point it's pretty well a choice between Oliver, Annie Get Your Gun, and a london walk. I hate to spend $100 on a show I'm not even remotely sure I'll like.

Is Annie Get Your Gun at the Young Vic theatre any good? I remember liking the story when I saw it on tv a few years ago.

If those are your 3 choices of how to spend an evening, I would choose Oliver. It's Dickens so at least it's more culturally authentic than a wild west musical! Are you familiar with the music? You might try getting the soundtrack first and then deciding if it's worth it. It's better to spend 15 bucks and find out you don't want to listen to that for 2 hours than to spend more money and find out the hard way. And if you do like it, you won't feel pressured to buy a souvenir cd because you will already have one at home.

The Royal Opera is doing La Boheme in late December (I think I read you were going in late December?)

https://www.roh.org.uk/whatson/produ...aspx?pid=10621

Don't know if that appeals to you, but thought I'd throw it out there.

Of your three options, I'd go with Oliver. I have really enjoyed all the London Walks I've been to so far, but you don't sound as though you're stuck on the idea of this particular one. I have not been to the Young Vic, but from what I know and their web site, it seems like it would be a different experience than a major West End show. And that's not bad at all; it's just that if you're wanting to see if you like that West End sort of experience, it may not be what you want.

I know Oliver is expensive, but if I were in your shoes, I'd rather spend a little more on a show that's been getting consistently good reviews than go to a less expensive, maybe not great show just to see if I liked West End/Broadway theater. The first time I was in London ten years ago, I was there for a semester and went to see a ton of shows. Les Mis was amazing; Whistle Down the Wind was... not (in my opinion). If my first theatre experience had been Whistle Down the Wind, I don't know if I would have been so enthusiastic about the art form!

If the cost truly is keeping you back, you might look for discounted tickets for something that's been around longer - Les Mis, Wicked, Billy Elliot, Mamma Mia, something like that.

Okay, a big West End show it is. I do try to pay attention when there's a definite consensus. :)

Now my decision is trying to decide what show to go to (I've quit balking at $100, it was sticker shock). I keep making decisions and then changing my mind.

Oliver - I don't even know the story, but everyone seems to love it.
Les Mis - I know I saw the movie, but I don't remember if I liked it or not.
Phantom - Saw it when it was in the area in high school and wanted to slap the female lead for painfully high notes. I assume the lead is better in London, and I did like most of the music and story.
Lion King - Good movie, but can a show really beat Disney?


Any other ideas for me to decide on and then change my mind 4 times over? :)

We really enjoyed Mamma Mia and We Will Rock You. If you like Abba songs, you will probably enjoy Mamma Mia which is very upbeat and lots of fun. We Will Rock You is full of Queen songs which is fantastic if you are a fan.

You may have heard of the Half Price Tix booth in Leicester Square. They don't sell tickets for the top selling shows but you could save a lot by going in the morning, choosing something that looks appealing and getting tickets for later that night. You can check on their website, be aware in the Leicester Square area there are lots of tickets agencies and touts, this is the official agency:

http://www.thisistheatre.com/halfpricetickets.html

You can also sometimes buy tickets on the day, at the individual theatre box office. It depends if the show is sold out but it you are going mid-week you could be lucky. You pay full price but they will show you a seat plan and you can decide on the night rather than paying now.

With London Walks, this is the same deal, you don't have to prebook so can make up your mind on the evening.

Kay

I'm sure the female lead in a West End show will hit her high notes perfectly ;). I think any of those shows will be a fun experience. I've seen some here in Sydney and they are great stories. Just thinking though, if you have already seen Les Mis then maybe try something else?? Lion King might be a good choice, visually stunning - great costumes, and beautiful music.

I'd have to chose between Billy Elliot, Mamma Mia or Jersey Boys ...seen them all and could see them again.

Skip Avenue Q!!

We loved The 39 Steps.

Not a musical, but really funny. You don't say how old you are -- since this show parodies an old movie (as well as some other Hitchcock films), you might not get a lot of the references if you are too young.

It's at the Criterion, in Picadilly Circus.
http://www.criterion-theatre.co.uk/current_show.html

We just walked up to the box office about half-hours before it started last October -- lucked out and got great seats.

SS

Of the four you mentioned, here's my take:

Oliver - haven't seen it but would really love to.
Les Mis - the movie is very different than the musical. The musical is one of my favorites ever. The story and the music are both really amazing.
Phantom - this one is really all about the music, for me. The story is there but I had a hard time following the details the first time I saw it. Since you've already seen it, I'd go with something else.
Lion King - from what I remember, the story and songs are basically the same as the movie (I believe the musical adds an extra song). The costuming and visuals are incredible.

Wicked is also one I'd consider - it's really amazing. 39 Steps is also very fun, and you can get discounted tickets to that - just depends on whether you want a big musical or a play.

This may be an unpopular opinion -- but if you're still on the fence about musicals I would recommend seeing a non jukebox musical. I know they have their fans, but if you're making up your mind about the genre I think you should choose musicals that were created with the theatre in mind.

Of your choices, I would choose Les Mis. It has everything, drama, history, a bit of comedy, witty dialogue, costumes, big ensemble numbers, BIG solos, etc.

Oliver is a lot of fun and we really enjoyed it but I don't think the scale of it is the same as Les Mis, if that makes sense.

Lion King is stunning, but I'd still choose Les Mis over it, for you and your situation.

You didn't mention Wicked, but jent103 did. If I were to choose between Wicked or Les Mis I would choose Wicked. It ticks a lot of the same boxes as Les Mis but is more current and doesn't straddle (or cross) the line into melodrama that Les Mis sometimes can.

If you're considering Wicked, don't go unless you have good seats -- that theatre (Apollo Victoria right across the street from Vicotria Station) is HUGE.

In fall '06 we ended up way back and couldn't see didley. On a trip with friends in '08, our friends had better seats and liked it.

That theatre sells unused, often excellent, seats when the box office opens in the morning for that evening's show at around half price...at least they did when we were there.

SS

We also saw Wicked with day-of tickets and absolutely loved it.

Thanks for all of the reviews! I'll look later on and see what tickets I can get for each show and make a decision from there.

I hadn't thought of Wicked, but I'll look into it. Mamma Mia... I saw the movie recently and wasn't impressed. I think it's down to Les Mis, Lion King or Oliver at this point. I'll see if I can find any clips online from the musicals.

Thanks all! :)

I haven't read through all the posts, but I find I prefer the dramas at the National Theatre on the South Bank to musicals (which are fun, but so expensive). You can often get great deals at www.lastminute.co.uk for either dramas or musicals.

Just got back from London this past week; there are a lot of excellent shows to see.
In Leicester Sq. theres not only the TKTS booth for cheap day-of tickets, but about a dozen or more other discount-ticket booths. I found out that if one doesn't have your show or price range, check another. It pays to shop. They are all mere steps away from each other so its very easy to check.

Saturday and Sunday shows have a limited range of discounted tickets because they are popular attendance days. You'll do better to go on a week day (evening or matinee).

Current top shows with hard to get or rarely discounted weekend tickets : Sister Act, Priscilla Queen of the Desert - The Musical, Jersey Boys.
Better luck for these on a weekday. All of them very good.

Another musical you may enjoy : Hairspray (funny and uplifting.)

All the shows I've mentioned in this post are at theatres a 2 - 10 minute walk from Leicester Sq. (I walked around and saw where they are all playing).

If you want recos for dramas and plays (there are a lot of good ones too) let me know. The Shawshank Redemption comes to mind but only plays to the end of Nov.

M.