Broadway Play Recommendations Please.....
 

We will be in NYC for a week in mid August and would love to see a couple of plays. We prefer musicals or commedies, nothing to heavy or depressing. In previous years we've seen Phantom of the Opera, Fiddler on the Roof, Hairspray, Mamma Mia, Producers, Chicago and enjoyed all of them.

We're not at all familiar with what performances are now on going (except Jersey Boys which unfortunately I know is sold out except for very very expensive prices). Would love some recommendations of plays you've seen that you really enjoyed that might appeal to us. Thanks!

Spelling Bee has discounts available on broadwaybox.com

The Drowsy Chaperone is great, great fun!

Not to hijack this thread, but since others may be taking a glance...

Has anyone seen Little Dog Laughed? Sounds interesting.

Thank you for the two suggestions. They both sound perfect. I notice that the theater for Spelling Bee has a Square stage?? Is it still best to be in the center section (not on either side of the stage) or does it matter? I've never seen a stage like this. We want good orchestra seats. Thanks.

Petlover, The theater is quite small for Spelling Bee and there is essentially no set, so it really doesn't matter where you sit. I wouldn't want to be right up against the side walls, but really anything else would be fine.

My taste runs similar to yours. On my June trip I saw five plays and really loved The Drowsy Chaperone, The Color Purple and Pajama Game. Not so keen on Three Days of Rain and hated The Odd Couple. On past trips I loved Spamalot, Wicked, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (really funny). Although the casts have changed somewhat in these older plays, I think they still hold up and would be good choices.

if you watched the Electric Company and Sesame Street while you were growing up...you will enjoy the very clever, very racy and entertaining "Avenue Q."

I was entertained from start to finish and smiled the whole time.

You might also consider The Wedding Singer, which will be a really fun evening out. Though it has some momentum from the Tony Awards, you should be able to get tickets for August. Check broadwaybox.com for discount offers.

Depending on your sense of humor, you might also like the play Lieutenant of Inishmore. It's an Irish black comedy, and is a riot!

go see Wicked!

Oh, believe me baby, I have! :-)

Twice!

I don't think petlover can get tickets for Wicked in August...but if you can, DO IT!

I second The Wedding Singer--Took my 18-year old daughter, her friend, and her friend's mom to see it in June, and we loved it!! The music is great!

Oh BRAVO! I have tickets for Drowsy Chaperone and Wedding Singer in August. Thanks for the thumbs up! I am so psyched I can't stand it.

I saw Avenue Q last year and it fit your criteria very nicely, so I second that recommendation. It was lots of fun.

I don't think anyone mentioned Dirty Rotten Scoundrels? Thumbs up or down for fun, light hearted entertainment?

Another one that sounds good is off Broadway "Alter Boyz". I'd love your opinions please.

Avenue Q and Wicked don't sound as appealing to me as Drowsy Chaperone (JMO) Could be wrong!

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is good fun, but I'd pick Drowsy Chaperone ahead of it.

I have friends that just saw Pajama Party with Harry Connick Jr. and they loved it! Check it out on the Broadway website.

You mean Pajama Game...and you're too late. It's closed. It's supposed to return in the fall, but without Harry Conick, Jr.

We saw Hairspray in June. We really loved it. It was lots of fun.

In a word....Wicked!!!!

I just saw a touring production the Lion King and it was phenomenal. I think it would be wonderful to see in New York.

Saw Drowsy Chaperone last night. Great fun, nice to see something so original. I loved Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, I saw it last summer with John Lithgow and Leo Norbert Butz. I understand it is really funny with Jonathan Pryce, but alas, both he and Leo are leaving the show July 16.

If you had to choose one of the following which would you choose?

Spelling Bee
Alter Boyz
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels?

(we've confirmed the other plays we're seeing but have room for one more)

Of those last 3, I'd pick Dirty Rotten Scoundrels although I don't know who will be in the show. But the production is great.

Although Spelling Bee is a lot of fun -- the characters are certainly entertaining, I felt that it plays more like a long Saturday Night Live skit than a Broadway show. Of the three above, I'd pick DRS. Loved the music. Play the CD in my car all the time.

I went on line and see that tickets are available for Dirty Rotten Scoundrelsl in Row A center stage(they're referring to this as the 2nd row). Is this too close to the stage? Curious why great seats are so easy to get with one month to go?

Would it be better to be a few rows back or should I grab these seats?

DRS is a somewhat large set with big dance numbers. For my taste, Row A would be a bit too close. I saw it from the front row of the Mezz which was a good distance. The theater isn't terribly wide. You could have a good view from a side section a bit further back if that is available. Don't sit too far off to the side if you can help it. I always think the sound is distorted if one is up against the wall. I hope this helps. Its a really funny show.