yk - thank you for your honest impressions about your experience seeing 'South Pacific.' I've read a number of your posts and am always impressed with your many travels to search out and experience art, architecture, etc. and especially for your great passion for opera. And your open attitude - it's a such a good thing!

Today's story about the Seaport TKTS booth. I went this morning and gave up waiting for the daily email about what they have. Got there at 11 hoping to get a single to A View From the Bridge for tomorrow's matinee. They seem to have been having them nearly every performance. Well, no luck -- not today. There was nothing else I'm not already seeing or don't care about seeing except for the production of Emperor Jones at the Soho Playhouse, which I DO want to see.

But here was the catch. I noticed this morning I was down to my last $20 bill and noted that I needed to go to an ATM, but since TKTS takes credit cards, thought I'd do it later. Well, here was a news flash for me. TKTS only takes cash for a few shows and Emperor Jones happens to be one of them. So I got to the window and asked how much they were -- $36.50. I had exactly $36.75 in cash, so bought my ticket and walked away with a quarter left! LOL

Saw 'Zero Hour' this afternoon. This off B'way production is moving downtown shortly and I recommend it. It's a one man show about a fictional interview with the NY Times and Zero Mostel. Act II was especially fascinating when he focuses on the McCarthy era and being blacklisted. I'm a NYC Ballet subscriber for 30+ years and I've always known about Jerome Robbins' history, but this put it in a new light. What a shameful time in US history. This play, btw, has a lot of humor too.

Neo, you and I may have walked past each other at the TKTS booth. I was there Friday morning at 11:00, too, and I also was surprised to see someone pay with a credit card. It was really nice that there was no line.

We got tickets for West Side Story.

yk, I thought Paul Szot was great in South Pacific too. I'm pretty sure it was Laura Osnes we saw as Nellie last summer, and while she's very talented, I thought her voice sounded a little mousey next to Paul Szot's Emille.

Neopatrick & I saw Misalliance yesterday at their last
performance....Too bad for the viewing audience as it was
Shaw at his best!!

I don't know if anyone has already posted this, but Corbin Bleu is going to be Usnavi in In The Heights for a few months. Hmm...don't know how to feel about that.

Thanks for the info from those above.

FYI - 'A View from the Bridge' got a very good review today.
I am really looking forward to seeing it!

http://theater.nytimes.com/2010/01/2...ml?ref=theater

Someone was worried about seating for A Little Night Music. It's a ridiculously small (i.e., shallow) theater. It doesn't really much matter where you sit if you're in the orchestra, though I probably wouldn't want to sit way on the end. I was in Row P - Right and had an excellent view (and this was almost at the back of the orchestra). I suspect the same is true for Mezzanine seats.

The theater also really packs in a lot of seats and has unfortunately placed both the bar and a little gift bar right in front of the stairs leading up to the men's room. It was scary crowded.

I must say that I thought Catherine Zeta Jones was pretty good ... a few weak points in the cast, but by and large a good group of actors and singers. But the stage itself is far too small for this production, which felt exceedingly cramped, especially when they were trying to waltz and do "A Weekend in the Country".

Doug, a good point. My biggest objection of some seats in the orchestra is that as soon as you are under the mezzanine, the sound seems less clear and it seems more claustrophobic. I always check what row the mezzanine hangs over and try to avoid anything more than a row or two behind that. Of course, for most musicals and in most theatres, I still think you can't beat the front row of the mezzanine -- where I'll be (smack in the middle, in fact) for Next to Normal tonight.

This thread is great! My husband and I will be in NY for 3 nights in early October. Is there a website I can check out for a list of upcoming shows as the date gets closer? Any tips on getting good seats (pre-sale dates, etc)? How do I know how long a show runs?

I like Playbill.com for information besides an occasional discount. After you go to the site, click on Broadway on the left. You will see a current list of plays plus some that haven't opened yet. When you click on the name of a play on that list, you will see more info including preview date, opening date and closing date if it's a limited run, synopsis, cast, running time, etc. New plays are always being added to the list. The site also has articles and announcements about theater in NY.

I should also mention that even though a play may get good reviews and be listed as open-ended, ticket sales usually dictate when a play will close and that is subject to change.

Saw the dreadful first night preview of "Mr. & Mrs. Fitch" with John Lithgow. I could watch him read the phonebook but not in this sophormic play. Apart from Mr. Lithgow & the divine set (this is the NYC apt. we all wanted with double height ceilings and sloping huge window), you would have thought you'd wandered into a high school production of some student written play. The verbal banter is silly, self-conscious & often unintelligible. Mr. & Mrs. Fitch--a Cole Porter/Linda kind of couple write a gossip column. When the real gossip becomes too boring & expected, they invent some. Meant to be a commentary on our gossip obsessed world, it just doesn't work. I can't see how they can fix this play.

Oh, mclaurie, you just made me SO NOT look forward to this Sunday night! Maybe this is why Mr. and Mrs. Fitch was canceled from its expected premier last summer?

On another note. I loved the new Sam Shepard play, Ages of the Moon last week. Stephen Rea is simply wonderful in this two character play. They said it was 90 minutes, but it was more like 70. A very short evening of theatre, and I've never thought Sam Shepard to be so funny. There is a running gag with a ceiling fan that is hysterical and ends with a bang! However the couple next to me thought the whole pay was "dumb", so once again it's all a matter of personal taste I guess.

I'll be curious to hear what you think. If I'd gone by myself, I might think it was just me. But my friend who joined me also thought the same and we walked out chatting with a man who'd overheard our comments and he also thought it was terrible. The delay last year was supposedly due to scheduling conflicts. I wish I'd gotten tickets to "Time Stands Still" which was my other choice but the seats weren't very good. I want to see Victor Garber in "Present Laughter" too.

Oh Oh. I tried to get tix last night (full price) for 'Mr and Mrs Fitch' but couldn't figure out a date. I was going to buy them today based on a friend's opinion. Now I'm not so sure. The last time I saw John Lithgow, it was disappointing - not his performance, but the autobiographical subject matter.

'Ages of the Moon' got a nice review today.

Anybody see 'The Pride' yet? I have tix in a few weeks.

Well if anyone has see The Pride yet, they were an early bird. Last night was the very first preview performance. I'm seeing in in two weeks I think.

CPG, are you referring to Retreat from Moscow, by any chance? It sure was a "talky" show, but I thought great performances by both Lithgow and Eileen Atkins and Ben Chaplin as well.

I can't remember the name; he's done short running things for LCT. This one was about his grandmother and her favorite literature. Not too engaging.

It was called 'Stories by Heart' and he read family favorites (nothing to do with his grandmother and not a real play).

Saw 'Happy Now?' last night. I enjoyed it, but felt it was too long (or I was just very tired). The cast was very good and some of the dialogue as well, but didn't love the ending. I would still recommend this.

I loved the new Sam Shepard play, Ages of the Moon

Oh darn. I was originally going to see this but waited for the Behanding instead. It was just too much $ to see both so close together right after Christmas. But I am glad you enjoyed it.