Whenever people come to NYC, by ship or otherwise, Broadway is always a big attraction! But it can be expensive..... $100 per seat is not strange.

Here are some suggestions to help you enjoy theatre and not go broke doing so:

You can always buy available tickets via Telecharge or Ticketmaster at full price... or you can visit the show's web site and buy them from the show...again at full price. Sometimes this really is the best way to go. If you must see a certain show on a certain day, it is.

The best discount site I have found is: Broadwaybox.com. They do not always have every show or every date, but the discounts are better than I have found anywhere else...at least on a regular basis. Their selection is outstanding.

Broadway.com.... yech! I have never found any deals here. AND their fees are very much on the high side. But they do spend a lot on advertising.....

Costco...Yes, the big box club! They have very very few shows, BUT if you hit it right...huge savings and great seats.
example: some very good LCT friends are coming to NYC in a month or so. They are going to see a show and already got tickets. Knowing that we would not be able to sit together, I began checking for availability & prices. Reg seats were $96.25 each. Broadwaybox had them for about $60, but not for the date I needed. On a whim I checked Costco. WOW! $45 a seat. 4th row center!
Keep this in your bag of tricks.won't work often, but when it does..nice savings!

Day of show: TKTS sells day of show seats for about 1/2 + a couple of bucks. Selection is limited, but great savings. There is one in Times Square. But that is where the long lines are!
Be smart...go to the one at South Street Seaport. Same shows, same seats, same availability..........shorter lines! And - bonus - the box office at the seaport sells tomorrow's matinee tickets. the Times Sq site does not.
Be warned, however, TKTS is cash only..no credit cards.

And never forget to go an internet search on the name of the show you want to see..you just never know!

Enjoy... Doug

Thanks, Doug!!!! Great information!

Great information. I'm heading to NY on 31 May for three weeks and am thinking of going to a matinee by myself (big adventure)! Is there anything on at present that shouldn't be missed? I realise what one enjoys another might not, but perhaps based on reviews? Lee

Lee, I hope you'll contact us and we can host you when in town. Private message me and I'll send you our email. Your first weekend is not good..but I think Ray and Penny may be in right after that...and then, there's Gil and Arlene, as well.

We are going to see Journey's End May 19th. This is one of the shows 50% off on the Cosco website. You can order now, or wait for our reviews.

Yes, indeed, we'll be in New York and are really looking forward to being with you guys again...We met Lee and her son, Michael, on BLISS; Andi & Doug on the 3-15-03 PG. Lee, be sure to wear some very comfortable walking shoes and if you're up to it, we'll walk the beautiful Brookly Bridge.

We were last in New York in Sept. 2005 and really enjoyed our visit and staying in the home of Andi and Doug. Apparently we behaved appropriately as we have been invited back. We're pleased about that as we haven't seen them since ROAR.

If you would like to see an album of our last New York visit go to:

www.ofoto.com (http://www.ofoto.com) User name: cruise@yahoo.com Password: cc

My Recent Albums

Then click on year 2005, page 2.

Cheers! Ray & Penny
You will notice that Andi is on crutches as she had a knee operation prior to our visit. We tried to back out visiting them because of it but Andi would not hear of it. The second day after I returned from a walk around their neighborhood, Andi was in the kitchen making up some breakfast goodies and Doug told me she had just fallen down their steep hallway stairs. I couldn't believe it and there she was getting breakfast ready. She is a tough young bird who is intent on making you feel at home. There's nothing like L.C.T. people.

Cheers! Ray & Penny

Lee--
I would suggest seeing Blackbird with Jeff Daniels and Allison Pill. I was supposed to see it on a planned trip last weekend, but had to cancel because of an illness in the family. The New York Times gave it a rave review today. I am mad at myself for missing it.

Great deal, Doug! You guys can buy us drinks after the show. I wasn't even going to ask how much you ended up paying...

We're looking forward to seeing you again and also meeting Gil & Arlene.

Thanks for your suggestions! I've written them down but will wait until I get there to do anything.

Ray: Please practice piggy-backing Penny (plus carrying quite a few heavy weights) for my walk across the Brooklyn Bridge! I should be right one way! Lee

For those who may be coming to NYC (or just live close), here is a deal I found for Broadway tickets...

Talk Radio with Liev Schreiber at the Longacre Theatre...220 W 48th St, NYC

Save 33% on seats through May 27, 2007. $66.25 each..Wednesday Matinees are $51.25.
Balcony seats are $36.25

To order: go to Broadwayoffers.com
You will need to enter the following code: TRDMX24
There are a couple of fees added on, but that crap is normal these days.

I've heard good things about this play, but have not seen it.

enjoy, Doug

If you're not easily offended, Avenue Q is fall-off-your-seat hilarious. It's known as a kind of Sesame Street for adults. I don't want to say too much about it, because I think part of what made it so funny was the way it constantly took us by surprise.

Thanks for the tip, Crystal. We are choosing our shows for Broadway in Tucson and Avenue Q is one of them. Since we didn't know much about it, we might have skipped that one. Now, we'll have to consider it. Just saw Dirty Rotten Scoundrel...a little raunchy but great fun.

Has anyone heard anything about 'Jersey Boys'?? Hope that's the correct name - someone here suggested it might be worth seeing, providing of course it's not old information. Lee

Lee, that is a very popular musical! I saw it last fall with my daughter and loved it Go here to listen to the music http://www.jerseyboysbroadway.com/

yes Lee, Jersey Boys was fantastic. We loved it. saw it on Bway and have tickets to see it again when it gets to LA this summer. If you enjoy musicals, we also loved Wicked. Saw it 4 times!
Also FYI, the Times Sq TKTS booth is now attached to the Marriott Marquis no longer in the middle of the street. The downtown one is at the Seaport? Used to be on John St where no one could find it except those of us who worked down there
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Helen

Thanks Olivia and Helen - haven't been to a Broadway show yet, so this is the year! I get lost easily, but do know how to get to Seaport - if someone could tell me exactly where the booking office is there, I'd appreciate it. Lee

Lee, I have no idea. I did it all on the internet, and it was EXPENSIVE! to get those tickets! I have no idea how Helen got hers.

Lee,

I would recommend getting tickets via the internet ahead of time if you want to be sure to see a certain show. The good ones usually are filled up and unless you go see the shows that have been out for a while, you will not get great seats, which really make or break a show in my opinion.

Wicked was very enjoyable, Jersey Boys is a very hot show and may be very hard to get tickets unless you get them in advance. Also, that show has good music - from the 50's/60's era of American Teen Idol, Frankie Valli which if you are not familar with the era may not mean much to you. Three are a number of good plays that have been out for a while that won't break the bank, and will appeal to you regardless of the story line.

I found that in London, for example some of the cultural differences were hard to discern in some of the plays we saw. We actually left early because there were some scenes all relating to local culture that made the play where we did not understand the story line.

I'll be going by myself to a matinee but in view of all your advice, will get my No 1 (and only) son to organise tickets for me - even if he does it on the web. I agree, it makes such a difference if you have good seats. A few years ago, I bought tickets on the web for "Lion King" in London and we were ten rows from the front, right in the centre - fabulous - even if we did nod off a couple of times from jetlag!

Olivia: That cost an arm and a leg too. What do you call expensive?

ChatKat: Guess who was a teenager in the mid- 50s? Love the music of that era - makes me feel young again! If only! Sounds like a must!

Hold that thought! Just looked up a website and found a matinee ticket available for US$315!! Wow! I was expecting maybe US$100! When does it finish? Maybe it'll come to Sydney one day! Lee

Lee - most of the hot Broadway shows have adopted the VIP pricing idea. The best seats go for $250/ticket. For Jersey Boys, the VIP area is most of the center orchestra section. The rest are in the $100 area.

I booked tickets for Jersey Boys in December. I had to go as far out as August to get decent seats & not pay the VIP pricing. Frustrating, isn't it?

For what it's worth, I also loved Avenue Q. I still laugh just thinking about it.

Cheers, Anne

Lee if you are going by yourself,you should be able to get a ticket to just about anything as they almost always have single seats available. Try Ticketmaster.com or Broadway.com and you should find a decent seat for $100 US. Can't help with the location of TKTS at the Seaport but the Seaport itself is in lower Manhattan at the end of Fulton Street at the East River. A confusing neighborhood to find your own way around. I would suggest if you are going to go, just get in a taxi.
---------------
Helen
Oh sorry misread the post that you didn't know how to get to the seaport

Thanks girls! I think I may put 'Jersey Boys' in the 'too hard' basket! I just checked out a couple of websites - I thought a Wednesday matinee would have been the best choice but there are far more seats available for night performances which I'm not keen on. The cheapest are those on broadwaybox.com (as originally suggested by Doug) but they are 'second hand' (forget the correct terminology). I presume these are safe to buy - don't think we're allowed to do that here!

Thanks to everyone for all your help.

Anne: As the worst hostess in the world, I look forward to seeing you again on FJORDS and hopefully I can offer you at least a cup of coffee on board! Let's hope the weather is better this time!

Lee

Lee - When are you arriving in New York? I'm leaving around June 18 for a few days in London.

Let's make a deal. You bring all the good gossip (good is more important than true) from the Aussie Tennis Open, and I'll bring a few juicy tidbits from the Championships practice week in Wimbledon. If I can pull it off, I'll add some color from the Ladies' Day at Royal Ascot. Can't wait to catch up with you.

Cheers, Anne

Anne: I leave here at 1440 on 31 May and arrive NY at 2200 on 31 May - wouldn't it be fabulous if it only took that long! We fly from Newark to Copenhagen on 21 June on Scandinavian Airlines. We're staying at the Scandic 'Something or Other' where some other LCT'ers are staying.

Gosh, the Aussie Open was so long ago, I'll really have to rack my brains for any gossip - good or bad! I can't believe I'm taking a cruise while Wimbledon is on - what was I thinking? Lee

"We're staying at the Scandic 'Something or Other' where some other LCT'ers are staying."

We are & the Matassas, Levins and Cindy and David!!!! YEAH fun!

Lee - Gary's thinking the same thing!! He's still participating in the final training for the Championships the week before the tournament this year.

See you SOON! Does this mean I finally get to meet Michael? We are at the Marriott but already have our path mapped out to the Scandic Somthing or Other. FYI, I didn't realize until recently Malaysia Air also runs flights from Newark to Stockholm. It's good to have another option besides SAS.

Cheers, Anne

Anne: We'll just have to have a game of paddle tennis! I'm as good at that as 'real' tennis - absolutely hopeless, but that doesn't stop me from enjoying it. I should be playing tennis today but it's raining. I'll be generous and not complain as we really need the rain!

Yes, you'll get to meet Michael. I think he's really nice (must take after his mother) and he's looking forward to meeting you too.

We're flying Scandinavian Airlines because they're affiliated with United and Singapore and I'm on an 'around the world' ticket. Michael has flown with them before and thinks they're OK but he'd tell me anything to get me on a plane as I absolutely hate flying.

See you soon! Lee