Start spreading the news…… my favorite Broadway Musicals!
Anyone who knows me, knows that I absolutely love theater. Broadway, The West End, touring shows you name it, I’ll go. I am especially partial to musicals, so if you think they have a biased advantage in this post – I’ll just ‘fess up now and admit you are absolutely right! If I have to chose between a musical and a straight play, I’ll choose the musical every time. I get calls and messages from friends all the time asking what they should see or where they should buy tickets, so I thought it might be easier if I just wrote an article about it.
Let’s start with the basics – what qualifies a performance as a Broadway show? There are a couple of different answers that people give to this, but in reality there are only three Broadway theaters whose addresses are actually located on Broadway. Most critics agree that location, venue use and number of seats is the determining factor. Venues that have more than 500 seats, primarily host plays and musicals and are located between 6th and 9th Avenues from East to West and between 54th and 40th Streets from North to South are considered Broadway. Venues with 100-499 seats are considered Off-Broadway and can be located anywhere in New York City. Finally those venues with less than 100 seats anywhere in New York are considered Off-Off Broadway. Probably way more information than you need to know, but the take away is that most New York City theaters are smaller than the 2600 seat monsters venues we have here in South Florida, so there’s less of a chance you’ll have a bad seat.
There are 41 Broadway theaters in NYC, so how do you know which show to choose? One of my favorite references is Playbill.com. Playbill has a section that lists all of the current shows on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Touring, or even in the West End. Click on the show you are interested in and it will give you a synopsis of the show, dates and times it is playing, a list of cast members, the run time, and a link to buy tickets. It will even tell you if Playbill is offering a discount on the show, and if so it will you give the code to use and the specifics. If you’re an early planner like me and won’t be going for a while, you can also check Playbill’s link to upcoming shows and see shows that aren’t playing now, but may be opening before you travel.
Traditionally Broadway shows are dark on Mondays, and have shows at 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday with matinees on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday afternoons. There are a few shows that buck that trend though which is nice if you happen to be in NYC on a Monday and want to see some theater. Some shows also start a little earlier or later than others and that is also nice if you’re working with a specific time frame. Playbill has a list of current shows and their schedules to help you decide.
Once you’ve picked your show, how do you get a good deal? Unfortunately, the cost of theater tickets has skyrocketed over the past few years. It used to be that spending $150 was an extravagance and would get you front row seats. Nowadays there are some shows where that is the LOWEST ticket price. Last year’s average Broadway theater ticket price was $118. The more popular the show, the higher prices – at Hamilton for example the cheapest seat is $199 while premium seats during the holidays sold for $1,150 each! When we took my daughter for her birthday in 2016 I paid $300 each for Hamilton tickets and almosts cried when I hit the buy button.
So how do you see a Broadway show without mortgaging off your first born child? The first place to look is discount sites. Playbill.com which we have already mentioned and Broadwaybox.com are both websites that offer legitimate discounts for Broadway shows. Scroll throught the list of available shows, click on the one you’re interested in and they will provide you with a code to use online or over the phone. Another option is the TodayTix app. This is a great app and you can often find discounts on shows both same day or in advance. Check each option to see which gives you the better discount.
The options mentioned above help you save money when you’re planning your trip in advance, but if you’re willing to play Broadway Roulette and you don’t have your heart set on a particular show, deeper discounts can be had the day before or day of a show. The first option I’ll mention is the TKTS booths. The main TKTS booth is in Times Square near the red steps, and there are two others near Lincoln Center and at the South Street Seaport. The TKTS booths sell unsold tickets the day of a performance at discounted prices. The catch is you won’t know what’s available until the day of, you have to go down and get the tickets in person, and when they’re gone they’re gone. TKTS has an app that you can view to see what’s on sale that day, but you can’t order the tickets on line. A couple of tips for TKTS. Download the app prior to your visit and check each day to see what’s available – that will give you an idea of what will probably be available during your visit. The three TKTS booth sell different things at different times. The main booth for instance generally sells matinee tickets from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and then evening tickets from 3 p.m to 8 p.m., while the other two booths sell both from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. (With that logic you could get matinee tickets earlier at the Main booth, and evening tickets earlier at the other booths so plan accordingly). The Lincoln and Southstreet booths also sell some next day matinee tickets as well so make sure you know which booth you want to visit. The main TKTS booth also has a “Play Express” line, so if you don’t want to buy tickets to a musical jump into this line and it will be much faster. Oddly enough the next option is actually called Broadway Roulette lol! This is a site that allows you to see a show starting at $59 – if they pick the show for you. First you choose the type of show (musical, family friendly etc) then you are allowed to remove one show from the list. You can pay extra to remove more shows, or just go with it and see where you end up. Honestly I haven’t done this because I’ve seen so many shows I’d surely end up getting something I’d already seen – but if you’re never been to Broadway, this might work for you.
Other popular options are Rush, SRO or lottery tickets. All of these are typically done the day of or the day before a performance.
Rush Tickets: Rush tickets are tickets that are sold the day of the performance at discounted price, There are a limited number of tickets available as soon as the Box Office opens and they are sold first come, first serve. Sometimes these rushes are reserved for students, sometimes they are open to the general public. As an example, Mean Girls has $42 General rush tickets availble each day. Some show’s rushes are fairly popular and people get in line early to try and get tickets. I think about doing this all the time, then realize I am way too lazy for that!
SRO Tickets: SRO tickets are Standing Room Only tickets. These aren’t for me as I would get tired standing for that long, but I have seen many a college student get a cheap ticket this way. Hadestown for example has a policy that if the show is sold out they will sell a limited amount of SRO tickets for the back of the Orchestra section at $39 each.
In Person Lotteries: Most Broadway shows used to have in person lotteries where you would show up 2 hours before a performance and they would draw 10 names for front row seats at a very low price (usually $25-40). They have been steering away from these in favor of digital lotteries, but a few shows still have them. Wicked has one and from 2 and 1/2 to 2 hours before each performance you can enter your name in the drawing, and they will draw names for 26 orchestra seats at $30 each, limit 2 per person. I’ve entered this more times than I can count and have never won. Someday, I’ll be able to say I won the Wicked lotto lol!
Digital Lotteries: Nowadays most shows have digital lotteries where you enter online the day of or the day before and they will email you to let you know if you’re a winner. They will send you a link and you have a few hours to buy your tickets or they will be given to someone else. We once spent a weekend in New York and lottoed each day for all the shows we had not seen and let what we won (and how cheap it was) determine the shows we saw. We got to see Chicago which I had never seen before as well as Aladdin.
Playbill has made it easy for you with a list of all the shows and what types of same day tickets they offer, how much they cost, and where to go to get them. Click here to access the list.
When choosing seats there are times when the seats are so far to the side that you might miss something on one side of the stage, or sometimes seats in the first row give people a crick in the neck because you have to look up the entire time. There are even times when the ticketing site will tell you that the seats you are looking at are partial view. So how do you know whether it’s worth it to buy those tickets or not? The site aviewfrommyseat.com has done the work for you. Just enter the show you are going to see, and it will bring up all the seats in that theater that people have left comments on, including pictures. This for example is seat D20 in Orchestra Right at the Richard Rodgers theater where Hamilton is playing. The tickets were discounted because they said you might miss some action to the right of the stage. The site gives you a view from the seat so you can decide for yourself if it is worth it. I’ve had a couple of partial view seats that were actually pretty decent.
Theater Etiquette: There was a time when everyone dressed up to go the theater, and many people still do. But, there are plenty of people who take a more casual approach. I think for myself, I’d like to be more dressed up, but I’m usually on the way to the airport or am living out of a carry-on bag for a weekend and don’t have room for too many outfits. I generally wear pants (usually jeans) and a dressy shirt. Just don’t wear shorts and a t-shirt or you’ll stand out like a sore thumb. Make sure you arrive about a half hour before the show starts. This will give you time to use the restroom, to buy souvenirs or even just give you a little extra time in case you get lost or your cab is late. If you get there after the show starts they will close the doors and make you wait outside until there is an appropriate break in the show so you are not disturbing the other patrons. There is no filming or photography allowed, and you are asked to turn off your cell phones – there is nothing worse than a cell phone going off in the middle of a poignant moment. The great Patti Lupone even grabbed a phone from a patron who had been texting during the show – don’t let that be you! Etiquette dictates that you stay through the curtain call at the end of the show and it is considered rude to leave while it is going on. I have to admit I have broken this rule on occasion in order to make it to the stage door before the masses if there’s someone I really want to meet.
So, which are my current favorites and what do I recommend? I’ll let you read the synopsis for each show on Playbill and instead give you the reason I think you should see it. Here’s my list in no particular order as of February 2023:
Six: This is the United Kingdom’s version of Hamilton with the 6 wives of Henry VIII turned popstars fighting to see who had the worst time with old Henry in the form of a rock concert. This is a high energy pop-staresque soundtrack that will have you bopping along. (I happen to have an unhealthy obsession with this one, but it’s just so damn catchy!)
& Juliet: This is musical that tells the story of Romeo & Juliet from with a feminist twist. Juliet decides not to kill herself over a man and instead takes off on the adventure of a lifetime. The songs are all re-worked covers of Max Martin songs – not sure who he is? Go see the show and you’ll realize you know ALL his songs and they are masterfully woven into the story line. Great for teens and people of all ages.
Wicked: What can I say, this is the OG of modern musical theater for me and holds a special place in my heart. It’s based on the books of Gregory Maguire and tells the tale of Galinda and Elphaba (the Wicked Witch) who were best friends before Dorothy came along.
Dear Evan Hansen: If you’re looking for a modern teenage story covering taboo subjects such as suicide, anxiety and depression amidst laughter and tears, this is for you. Be forewarned, you WILL be crying when you leave.
Hamilton: This is the hottest show on Broadway right now, so if you want to be in the know this one is for you. It’s a great take on history and the life of Alexander Hamilton told mostly in rap and song with actors and actresses of color playing traditionally white parts. Who knew history could be fun!
Harry Potter: If you read the books, you need to see this. Even if you didn’t, it’s a great show with amazing sets and scene changes. This was previously a two show event, but they have combined it into one show.
Book of Mormon: If you want to laugh your ass off, see this show. However, only if you’re not easily offended as this show is an equal opportunity offender and offends everyone. There will be plenty of times that you’ll look at your seatmate and say, “did they just say that out loud?”.
Hadestown: I have mixed feelings about this one. There is nothing like it on Broadway and the scenery and costumes are amazing – plus it won the Tony so that alone is a reason to see it. I’m glad I saw it, but this is the only one on the list I probably wouldn’t see again. I like shows that are a little less dark.
The Lion King: The scenery and animal costumes are the reason to see this show – breathtaking.
If you’re bringing younger kids some can handle the shows above (especially the Lion King), but these are great shows to start them off with:
Aladdin
The Ultimate Theater Travel Hack: While we were in London we saw several shows and met numerous people from the states. While talking to them we discovered that a lot of them were there because they couldn’t get tickets to certain shows on Broadway, AND it was much cheaper in the West End. As an example we met a couple who came to London to see Hamilton. Two tickets for Hamilton on Broadway, Orchestra Center in Row M were going for $549 each, for a total of $1151.70 WHEN you could get them. Two tickets for Hamilton in London, Stalls (Orchestra) Center Row M were going for $185 each for a total of $370 and were more readily available. They saved $781 by buying tickets in London, used that money to buy plane tickets and made a vacation out of it … these are the kind of people I need to be friends with lol! We bought two second row tickets for Six in London for $102. Tickets for the Broadway show just went on sale and the closest I could get was two fourth tickets which would have cost $500! Unless there is someone in the cast that you just HAVE to see, the London casts do a great job and are just as good as the US casts. Watch the Hamilton First Burn video with Eliza’s from Broadway, the tours and West End and you’ll see they are ALL amazing!
I’ll leave you with one of my favorite stage door stories. My daughter Kaleigh and I went to see the Color Purple Revival in 2016, with the amazing Cynthia Erivo and at the time Jennifer Holiday who originated the role of Effie in Dream Girls had just stepped in to play the part of Shug Avery. We waited at the stage door and got our poster signed by Evrio and Danielle Brooks who played Sofia. Jennifer never came out so Kaleigh and I left and started walking back to meet my girlfriend Debbie and my best friend Liz who were a few blocks over. About halfway there someone stepped in front of us and said to Kaleigh who was still holding her poster and marker, “did you want me to sign that?”. Turned out it was Jennifer who stood there and chatted with us for a while – she was so nice
