Joe - I want to see Peter. I saw Where's Charley last night and I hope it gets itself a run on Broadway. Great production and I want my great nephew Charley to see it.

I would love to see book of Mormon but it is sold out for several weeks.

I also agree that off broadway has awesome offerings, but honestly, I can see good off Broadway theater here in SF> What I CAN'T see here is great BROADWAY theater.

"Not only good theater -- but -- you have the choice of great dining in that area at reasonable prices (something hardly available in the Theater District)"

Once again, there seems to be a communication error regarding what is "theatre district" but most of us call 9th Avenue from 42nd to 55th or so as part of the theatre district. I continue to scratch my head at people who can't find good dining at reasonable prices there.

And I don't get the comment regarding Off Broadway Theatre in terms of location -- there are more off Broadway theatres close to the Broadway Theatre district than there are anywhere else in NYC.

We saw "The Importance of Being Earnest" this afternoon, the last performance before a couple of key cast changes. Brian Bedford, who was terrific as Lady Bracknell, is staying, but Dana Ivey (Miss Prism) and Paxton Whitehead (Rev. Chasuble) are leaving. It is a hilarious Victorian comedy, highly literate, as one might expect of Oscar Wilde. A wonderful production with nary a falling chandelier or actor stuck in the flies. Just comic genius.

Theater district or not, some peoples' "good dining" is others' mediocrity.

<<And I don't get the comment regarding Off Broadway Theatre in terms of location -- there are more off Broadway theatres close to the Broadway Theatre district than there are anywhere else in NYC.>>

Of course there are quite a few "Off Broadway" theaters close to the theater district. ("Broadway" refers to theaters which are members of the League of Bdwy theaters.) And many Off Broadway venues are really off Broadway - Greenwich Village, East Village, Soho, et al. I happened to select one (in the East Village) noted for creative new theater and is also in an area where there are lots of great choices for dining. Since many of the visitors to this board are visitors to NYC - it might be helpful to get some tips on other than standard tourist destinations. I appreciate this sort of info when I visit a Paris board (for an e.g.).

As Burt noted - one man's good dining is another's mediocrity. There must be some sort of reason that restaurant critics and writers consistently note the general mediocrity of dining in the theater district.

I'm seeing Priscilla on April 15 and Book of Mormon the next week. I'll certainly report back if someone else hasn't. Priscilla got a very tepid review in the Times today (it just opened last night). I don't remember the opening date of Book of Mormon, but it's good extremely good word of mouth.

I must second any recommendation of The Importance of Being Earnest, though missing out on Dana Ivey's great performance will be tough even though Brian Bedford is amazingly good.

Priscilla's review:

http://theater.nytimes.com/2011/03/2...ml?ref=theater

jroth, I couldn't agree more in the value and quality of Off Broadway theatre -- but read your post again -- I honestly thought it was suggesting to those who weren't in the know that Off Broadway theatres were generally away from the "theatre district" as that seemed to be a major point of your post. Or at least it seemed it could easily be mis-interpreted that way by those not in the know, especially as it is often the logical assumption that "off Broadway" refers merely to location and it doesn't, Sorry if that wasn't your intention (and clearly it wasn't). Like you, I think it's great to keep people informed and it should be noted that many of the Off Broadway Theatres really are in the "theatre district" and not just away from there. Signature, Manhattan Theatre Ensemble, Primary Stages, The New Group, Playwright's Horizons, Second Stage, the five theatres at World Stages and many more are all located in the theatre district. And I suppose some people would be surprised that at the Lincoln Center -- productions upstairs at the Vivian Beaumont are considered "Broadway" productions and those directly downstairs in the Mitzi Newhouse are considered "Off Broadway" productions, which has nothing to do with the "quality" of the productions in either.

Glad you mentioned Peter and the Starcatcher. It's gotten nothing but raves. It's been extended once and I'm hoping it might be again so I can see it in May.

Bookmarking

NeoPatrick - thanks for your clarification. For newcomers to theater in this town be aware that when Braodway theater is referred to - it is about theaters and producers and others who belong to the Broadway League - and these are the theaters essentially in the theater district - although Lincoln Center - as noted gets in with them. Off Broadway refers to theater outside of the League - these tend to be smaller houses, many in out of the way places, could be tiny theaters and tend to produce cutting edge work - creative stuff. Sometimes very successful ones move up to "Broadway" and are seen in the big Broadway theaters. There are differences in required production rules - mainly to do with unions -- Broadway has to adhere to strict union rules -- Off B gets dispensations. And to confuse matters worse there is: Off Off Broadway.

Hee. Hee. I was reading your last post and was thinking "to confuse things even there is Off Off Broadway. But then you beat me to it!

Financial times gave "Arcadia" 4* (out of 5)
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/ab0bc2f4-5...#axzz1HR8TQo7q

Another Spiderman cast member injured.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/SHOWBIZ/03/2...ctress/?hpt=T2

We saw 'Arcadia' today and all four of us enjoyed it although none of us had seen the original or the London revival. So can't make comparisons. The dialogue has so much food for thought that one needs to pay attention to take it all in. I really enjoyed Billy Crudup who plays it over the top. Is that the author's intent? Can't say. Raul Esparza was wonderful. The only cast member who was a bit difficult to follow (and only a bit) was the young girl Thomasina. Everyone else was clear, but because some lines are so long and full of content, you really have to listen carefully. This is not mindless theater! I would recommend it.

I also saw an early preview of 'Catch Me if You Can.' I have not seen the movie so that had no influence over my expectations. I also want to add that my tix were inexpensive and this production isn't worth full price. I enjoyed it, but it was too long and uneven. The three male actors were very good especially Norbert Leo Butz. I have seen him several times, but never in this type of role. I didn't recognize him - so good was his transformation and portrayal of the FBI agent. He deserves a Tony nomination. Some of the musical numbers were great with melodic tunes and others were trashy. My guess is no matter what the reviews, this will be a popular play.

Excellent review for 'The Book of Mormon.'

http://theater.nytimes.com/2011/03/2...ml?ref=theater

"The dialogue has so much food for thought that one needs to pay attention to take it all in."
Duh! I don't know about you, but I usually pay attention to the dialogue as a matter of habit!

That NY Times review of Book of Mormon by Ben Brantley was only one of nearly unanimous raves. I suspect that there will be no discounts on this show for awhile so just booked two seats for late May -- and was lucky to get front row mezzanine -- at a little over $145 each with fees. It's going to be an expensive month in NYC this May! And it sounds like Book of Mormon is going to be a very hot ticket.

Duh, Howard. So do I. This dialogue has lots of meaning to contemplate. Not all plays are written that way. Some are light without much to consider. This dialogue not only has lots to think about, but some of it is delivered rapidly. Intellectual ideas + long, rapid speeches = listen carefully.