Later in October, I plan on visiting New York with a group of four friends in order to see four Broadway shows; we have never seen professional New York theater performed before, and so we thought it best to go there and see what the city has to offer. Our proposed budget is approximately $9800 for five people; $4000 for air fare and accommodations, $4500 for show tickets and $300 for food and cab fare while we are in New York. We would leave October 19 and return October 23, booking a flight plan to New York and back from Home, complete with four night stay at the Affinia 50 Hotel.
The first show we would see is The Book of Mormon at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre; I have heard many great things about it, and the playwrights (Trey Parker and Matt Stone) are the creators of South Park, one of my favorite shows. Their music on the show and in their movies (South Park, Team America ) are also incredible, and I want to see what the fuss is about. Ben Brantley from the New York Times states in his review, "“The Book of Mormon” achieves something like a miracle." Tickets for the show run approximately $300-400 for mezzanine level seats; that makes at least $1500 spent for five people.
The following day, we would like to see Once, the Broadway play based on the independent movie of the same name. I have seen the movie before, and have seen actors Steve Kazee and Cristin Milioti in other shows and admire their work. Ben Brantley of the New York Times calls Once "vital and surprising," and it seems like an extremely modest play with sharp emotion, which would provide a nice contrast to the bombast we're otherwise seeing. It is currently playing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theater, and ticket prices are $200 at their cheapest, making $1000 for five people.
After this, I would like to see Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. I am a fan of Julie Taymor and her plays/films, and despite her controversial involvement with this production, I am intrigued to see what the final product has become. Ben Brantley of the New York Times calls this production "a bore," and did not have much good to say about it; however, I am intrigued by the spectacle the hugely expensive production offers, as well as the tenuous ties to comic book superheroes. This show is playing at the Foxwoods Theater, and tickets run approximately $250, making $1250 for five people.
Finally, for our last show, I would like to see the revival of David Mamet's Glengarry Glen Ross, with Al Pacino in the title role. I adore the film version, and Pacino's performance in it; I also love the rest of the cast, from Bobby Canavale to Richard Schiff, both of whom I've seen and loved many times in other films and television shows. I would love to round out the trip by seeing a smaller show, especially after the size of Turn off the Dark. This show is playing at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater, and tickets are approximately $150, making it $750 for five people.
