Saw "Hamlet" last night. Very good production. Jude Law excellent. But..it is Shakespeare uncut. Over at 11:15pm. Some people there not expecting the real thing and were unhappy with the length of the play. Go to see it for the play not just for Jude.

This has been a busy theater week for me. I saw 'Nightingale,' the one woman play with Lynn Redgrave which I enjoyed very much. She is an amazing actress and I think this was the first time I've seen her on stage. She also wrote the script and she is talented as a writer as well.

I enjoyed 'Royal Family,' but think it may not be for everyone. It's an old fashioned revival complete with three acts - quite long. The cast was very good and it was a treat to see Rosemary Harris.

Tonight we saw 'A Steady Rain' with Hugh Jackman (gorgeous) and Daniel Craig. I also enjoyed this very much although it's not the most memorable piece of drama. After the play was another interesting 'performance.' The actors did the usual bit about Broadway Cares (AIDS charity.) Then they opened their shirts and revealed white t-shirts which they promised to sign for the highest bidder. We witnessed the 'auction' and it was amazing. The final bid was for $11,000 and in the end, two bidders agreed to pay $11,000 each for one t-shirt signed by both. They were also invited backstage. The rest of us poor folk went home!

Oh CPG, were you with your husband? I assume yes, and if he weren't there, I suppose you would have been the highest bidder? ;) Wow, Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig... When are you seeing Jude Law?! You're making us folks who live in the rest of the country jealous... we never get stars like that here.

yk - yes, I was with my husband; otherwise I would have had my hand up probably bidding 12K! I'm seeing Jude Law on Tuesday. Big movie stars don't always translate to good stage actors - Julia Roberts is a good example - a dud in 'Three Days of Rain.' Are you still visiting in Feb?

<i>yes, I was with my husband; otherwise I would have had my hand up probably bidding 12K!</i>

I KNEW it! :)) Enjoy Hamlet on Tuesday.

great thread! bookmarking.

You are all inspiring me to plan a trip to NYC for my husband's birthday in April.

Top of the list......drum roll....

The Addams Family! With Bebe Neuwirth & Nathan Lane.

LOVE Nathan Lane...saw him in The Producers, The Odd Couple and Butley. You will not be disappointed, I'm sure! My mom wants a trip and show for Christmas/birthday and I'd love to try for that! Thanks for the hint!

amyb - I love Nathan Lane too, but it has to be the right vehicle for him. We saw him in 'The Frogs' and it wasn't very good - felt the same way about 'The Odd Couple,' but in the late 80's, we saw him in 'A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.' It's was a Kids Night on B'way event and he was out of control - hysterical - ad libbing (sp?) to the kids in the audience (although most of it went over their heads) and of course 'The Producers' was brilliant. Bebe Neuwirth is a great performer too.

What a piece of work is Jude (couldn't resist the pun!). I saw 'Hamlet' last night and it was one of the best Shakespearean performances that I've ever seen (Christopher Plummer as King Lear was fantastic several years back). Forget Jude Law the celebrity. His Hamlet was so meaningful, so real and absolutely seething! You could really feel the anguish. Even the many famous lines that have almost become cliches were delivered beautifully. The time flew (I do like Shakespeare), but I'm glad our performance started at 7pm. We were out at 10:15. For Shakespeare lovers, this is a must.

The Addams Family is now a musical coming to Broadway?

I have to this this!

So glad you liked it Centralparkgirl! I think he's much better in Hamlet than any movie I've seen him in (and <coughcough> I've seen them all!) It did fly by, didn't it? :-)

amyb - yes it did. And I loved 'The Talented Mr. Ripley.'

Leiv Schreiber and Scarlett Johansson are going to be in Arthur Miller's 'A View from the Bridge.' - sounds promising.

I saw that about View From the Bridge, but for some reason on Telecharge the other day, it was not available for online sale and groups only on the phone? I wasn't sure what the story was on that.

I want to see God of Carnage with the new cast (Jimmy Smits...sigh!) and my Mom wants to see A Little Night Music with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Angela Lansbury so maybe I can try and work all three into a long weekend....

It seems that if you use an American Express card, tickets for View from the Bridge are available through Playbill.com.

I believe you need a gold Amex card and it's through telecharge, but there is a link from playbill.com

The telecharge.com page notes

"Tickets are on sale to American Express Cardmembers only."

I have not tried to go through the entire process to purchase tickets but, at least on the initial page, it does not mention gold...

kmbp - you're correct. I have a gold card and sometimes I get offers for presales for gold cards only. I looked, but didn't really 'read!'

Tomorrow, I'm seeing 'Bye Bye Birdie.' I am so sorry that I bought these tickets. I've heard nothing but bad stuff about it.

'Bye Bye Birdie' was as expected - wonderful music, terrible production - save your money and definitely avoid!

Saw "Memphis" last night. It is a must see. Great everything! Loved it!!! Put on your NYC visit lists.