New York City: Previewing The Tony Nominees

As a travel company that specializes in packages to New York City and Broadway, we have to be familiar with all the shows currently playing on the Great White Way. To that end, we make several trips to Manhattan each year. The following is the trip report from the most recent excursion.

The New Yankee Stadium

Tuesday, May 4th

We arrive at La Guardia airport and catch a cab to midtown. We’re staying at the Marriott Marquis again this time. When it comes to Broadway, this may be the best location for a hotel. It’s right on Times Square, convenient to all the theatres and maybe best of all — the staff is very friendly. After taking a little time to unpack and unwind from the flight, we’re off on our first adventure: a baseball game at Yankee Stadium.

As a kid growing up in New York, I was a Mets fan and hated the Yankees. As an adult, I’m still not a fan of the team, but I do enjoy the game of baseball and my wife and I try to visit each ballpark at least once. The New Yankee Stadium is next on our list. Overall, the experience is a fun one. The stadium is nice and has lots of great amenities. One odd thing: a new state law requires all vendors to display the calorie count of the food and drink they’re selling. This certainly makes you think twice about having those Cracker Jacks and that extra beer. The Yankees wind up beating the Orioles on this night and we head off to the subway with 40,000 other fans.

Wednesday, May 5th

Our agenda for today is a matinee on Broadway and then dinner with some local friends. We begin at a place that is literally steps away from our hotel — the Jacobs Theatre. The show is “God of Carnage,” the Tony-Award winning Best Play from the previous season. Jeff Daniels was one of the original stars and he has returned to the four-person show in the only other male role, a part first played by James Gandolfini. He and his castmates – Dylan Baker, Lucy Liu and Janet McTeer, are all excellent. The ninety-minute run time simply flies by. After the show, we stop at the stage door to say hello to Janet and Lucy. They all have another show to do in just a few hours and the male leads decide to stay inside and relax. I can’t say that I blame them.

Chef's Table at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay

Being big fans of the TV show “Hell’s Kitchen,” my wife and I checked out Gordon Ramsay’s “Maze” restaurant the last time we were in town. It’s one of two eateries Ramsay has in NYC at the London Hotel. For dinner, we’ll sample the other establishment – “The Formal Dining Room at Restaurant Gordon Ramsay.” Sounds nice, huh? Well it is…and the food and service are both superb. The menu offers three choices: ordering a-la carte or a four- or seven-course prix fixe selection. Our group of four is split – two order the four-course and two opt for the larger seven-course meal. What follows is an almost endless parade of stunning food, from seared Hudson Valley foie gras to an amazing dish featuring rabbit. The portion sizes are perfect, giving you enough but leaving you wanting just a little more. Each course is personally presented by the Maitre d’ and described in scrumptious detail. Our evening ends with a nice surprise — he offers to take us on a tour of the kitchen, even taking the time to take pictures of us at the chef’s table. Finally, he offers to call us a cab…or get us a table in the bar, should we prefer to stay for a nightcap. We, of course, choose the booze. Our friendly host not only gets us a table but also our first round of drinks.

A bottle of Richard Nixon's personal wine collection in the hidden wine cellar at the 21 Club

Thursday, May 6th

We begin the day with lunch at the legendary (or is it infamous?) “21 Club,” where the liquor flowed during the days of Prohibition. Legend has it the Chief of Police of New York City was eating dinner once in the speakeasy’s secret wine cellar when his officers raided the establishment. His dinner continued un-interrupted. After lunch, it’s a short walk over to 5th Avenue for a little shopping.

This evening’s entertainment is the Tony-nominated revival of the musical “La Cage aux Folles.” For those not familiar, think of the movie “The Birdcage” with Nathan Lane and Robin Williams — basically the same thing set to music. This version stars Kelsey Grammer and British import Douglas Hodge, who has won every award London has to offer for the part and is now repeating this amazing performance on this side of the pond. We are lucky to have four seats at a cabaret table at the front of the stage. Throughout the evening, the actors play to us as if we’re in the real club in San Tropez. During one number in Act II, Doug Hodge takes my wife’s hand and sings an entire song directly to her in front of a sold-out Broadway house. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience she’ll certainly never forget. We visit the stage door afterwards and find both Kelsey and Doug to be very friendly and willing to sign autographs and take pictures with everyone there.

Friday, May 7th

One of the sightseeing tours that is required if you visit New York City is a ride on The Circle Line. We have some friends with us who have never taken the journey, so we decide to do it again today. The tour is three hours, entirely on the water. The boat takes you once around Manhattan Island, with the tour guide narrating and pointing out the sights along the way. The voyage also circles Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty. It’s a fantastic way to see a lot of NYC in a little time, plus the guides are usually extremely knowledgeable and worth slipping a small tip to at the end. After the cruise, we split up. Part of our group is off to the world-famous Studio 54 to see “Sondheim on Sondheim,” while the others are taking in the longest-running show in Broadway history, “The Phantom of the Opera.”

After the shows, we all decide to meet up for a late-night bite at a theatre district favorite — “Angus McIndoe.” The restaurant is popular for its good food, great location and because the stars of Broadway are often seen dining there. Tonight is no exception…seated just five feet from us at the bar is “Glee” star and Broadway veteran Matthew Morrison.

My wife Jennifer with "Red" star Alfred Molina

Saturday, May 8th

On Saturdays, most shows traditionally do two shows — an afternoon matinee around 2pm and an evening show around 8pm. We have elected to do the same, but not the same show. Our afternoon selection is the British import “Red.” Alfred Molina plays artist Mark Rothko and Eddie Redmayne is his new apprentice in a play that shows Rothko’s spiral into the darkness as he tried to create his masterpiece. The show is well-written and incredibly acted and we are rivited for the entire 90 minutes. For our evening show, we choose Stephen Sondheim again, this time in the form of his musical “A Little Night Music” starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and the legendary Angela Lansbury. The show is a lot of fun, but getting to see the amazing talent that is Lansbury live is worth the price of admission alone. A very enjoyable day of theatre. Sadly, this will be our last show for the trip, as we don’t have time to see one before we leave for Houston on Sunday afternoon. It’s been another great week in Manhattan and we are already making plans to do it again later in the year.