I'll be in New York the weekend of May 16 with a friend and looking to go to the theater Saturday night. Any recommendations for recent shows you've enjoyed either on or off Broadway, other than the big musicals?

I am not in NYC, but yesterday I read a rave review of Salome! that opened on Wed. You might be able to see it on NYTimes.com

Here's the review:

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/05/01/ar...er/01SALO.html

Salome is a reading, not a play. Excellent choice, but you should know what to expect going in.

Your chances for getting tickets to any of the top shows for a Saturday night performance two weeks away are slim, unless you want to pay top dollar! That would include Hairspray, Gypsy, The Lion King, The Producers, Mamma Mia at the very least.
If you haven't seen Cabaret or Chicago, I'd suggest you try those. But get tickets now.

Since you said not the big musicals, I would reccomend "Take Me Out".

I saw "Take Me out" two weeks ango and enjoyed it....quite funny.

You should be aware that there is nudity in the show.

Thanks for the replies. Salome looks like a good possibility, also Take Me Out, although one account I read here was not so favorable.

Howard, I've seen Chicago and Cabaret and don't want to pay top dollar for one of the big musical hits, so I think I'm looking for something else.

I would like a few suggestions to run by my friend, so if anyone has other ideas, either on or off Broadway, I'd love to hear them.

I have tickets to "A Day in the Death of Joe Egg" in a couple of weeks--- while I haven't seen it yet, it has gotten consistantly good reviews.

The Play What I Wrote is supposed to be very funny and they have mystery guests every performance. Discounted tickets available on playbill.com

Off broadway, people like De La Guarda. If you like Billy Joel, what about Movin Out? All these available on playbill.com

I saw "Joe Egg" a couple of weeks ago and thought it was excellent. I'm a huge Eddie Izzard fan and wasn't disappointed by him at all, but it was his co-star (whose name I can't remember right now - sorry) who really shone. It was a lot funnier than I expected, but, in the end, quietly devastating.

If you want to have some laughs, check out Forbidden Broadway, a spoof of current and past Broadway shows. It's been running continuously for 20 years at several different off-Broadway theaters. It's currently at the Douglas Fairbanks Theater on 42nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenue. It's almost always offered at a discount. We've seen it several times over the years and always enjoyed it.

Thanks everyone, I've ordered tickets for Salome. The Times review and Pacino put it out in front.