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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2018 13:39:54 GMT
In a West End theatre, it's likely that you have to go through the first double doors to get into a sort-of vestibule, then you go through the second double doors to get into the foyer. After that, you'll probably go through another door to get to a winding corridor, which will take you through at least one more door before you're in the auditorium itself (sometimes more depending on whether the bar is en route or off to the side). In a Broadway theatre, it's not uncommon for the first set of doors to deposit you straight in the foyer, and the second set of doors to open directly into the auditorium. Obviously some West End theatres are a little simpler and some Broadway theatres are a little more elaborate, but although my experience is somewhat limited, I've nonetheless been repeatedly surprised by the non-auditorium space in a Broadway theatre compared with the West End.  |
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Post by distantcousin on Jun 25, 2018 13:49:14 GMT
I MUCH prefer West End to Broadway!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2018 13:58:48 GMT
I MUCH prefer West End to Broadway! Me too. It's so much quicker and easier to get home after a show. |
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Post by peggs on Jun 25, 2018 19:11:21 GMT
Friendly americans at globe yesterday said Broadway was so expensive it was almost cheaper to come over here and go to theatre instead, granted they were on £5 tickets at the globe as they said this.
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Post by ellie1981 on Jun 25, 2018 20:02:44 GMT
I’ve only been to NYC once and got in two shows (Chicago and An American In Paris). We got great central seats for £53 and £69 respectively after the exchange rate - would have been less if it was pre-Brexit vote.
Granted, it was during some special “Broadway week” where TodayTix were being heavily discounted, but I found it quite reasonable compared to some of the horror stories.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 25, 2018 20:04:14 GMT
Foyer spaces on Broadway are generally more limited I've never been on Broadway (ok, I've been, but not in the theatre), but... seriously? Is that even possible? One of my biggest surprises after the first visit on WE was the sizes of foyers, which in most cases are virtually non-existent. Completely different from theatres I know from Poland (I know, a square meter in Central London worth a lot). Of course it does vary depending on the theatre. I remembered being surprised at the ‘generous’ space on the mezzanine level in the Nederalander, whereas the Gerald Schoenfeld & Bernard B. Jacobs have very little. |
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 25, 2018 20:09:47 GMT
On this very hot day in London you can buy an ice cream in the INTERVAL but you cannot buy one in the INTERMISSION on Broadway.
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 25, 2018 20:41:20 GMT
Child labor laws aren't as strict on Broadway. There were a few times when a Billy or a Matilda would do both the matinee and evening performance and the last Annie revival had one full time Annie and then a standby. On Broadway both Billy Elliot and Matilda only had one set of ballet girls and classmates respectively. The Broadway children also tend to get paid better then their West End counterparts but that is mainly because the AEA minimum pay rate is noticeably higher at just above $2,000 a week. Great point raised.
For me it's borderline child abuse which they do on Broadway/USA and expect a child to act 8 shows a week and forgo their education.
In the UK it is rightfully illegal for a child to do 8 shows a week and the child roles are shared, so that child actors can catch up with their schooling.
The price tag and lack of great deals for plays probably explains it but a MUCH less diverse audience than in London, i've always found. A lot of white middle class families in suits and dresses (even the kids) It is getting better for some shows though, Dear Evan Hansen and Mean Girls etc, but it's still an issue. I agree the audience is much more diverse on Broadway, and I noticed this last week, especially for the Iceman Cometh.
However when riding the Subway, it is very sad when I see people begging for money, from what I have noticed it is people that are nearly always from the BAME community begging, this is even more appalling when you see children out begging. Yesterday I saw a black child selling candy on the Subway. Last time I was over in December I saw a black dad and his two children begging and found it to be very sad and how desperate the dad was for money.
In the UK it is rightfully illegal to use a child for begging.
So yes there are higher BAME attendance for Broadway shows, but there is tragically a downside, the streets aren't paved with gold for all sadly8/ |
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Post by sherriebythesea on Jun 25, 2018 21:20:51 GMT
Friendly americans at globe yesterday said Broadway was so expensive it was almost cheaper to come over here and go to theatre instead, granted they were on £5 tickets at the globe as they said this. My upcoming 24 day vacation in (mostly) London for airfare (bought way in advance), lodgings (mostly a small Airbnb just inside Zone 2) and my tickets to (so far) 11 shows, is less than what my transportation and tickets to comparable seats to 11 Broadway shows would be. |
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Post by Jon on Jun 25, 2018 22:08:29 GMT
Touring productions are more expensive compared to their UK counterpart although not to the same degree as Broadway to West End.
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 25, 2018 23:51:12 GMT
Broadway publishes their Grosses each week.
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Post by sherriebythesea on Jun 26, 2018 0:19:11 GMT
Friendly americans at globe yesterday said Broadway was so expensive it was almost cheaper to come over here and go to theatre instead, granted they were on £5 tickets at the globe as they said this. My upcoming 24 day vacation in (mostly) London for airfare (bought way in advance), lodgings (mostly a small Airbnb just inside Zone 2) and my tickets to (so far) 11 shows, is less than what my transportation and tickets to comparable seats to 11 Broadway shows would be. Forgot to add that this is only for matinees on Broadway. If I wanted to see an evening show or a 2 show day I would have to add lodging as bus/trains don't run that late at night to RI |
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Post by viserys on Jun 26, 2018 6:06:31 GMT
I’m chuckling reading this in the year that shows known for their sophistication such as Spongebob Squarepants and Mean Girls topped the Tony nominations list. I mean, I do sense the irony (not forgetting that THE BAND'S VISIT won the Tony Award for Best Musical). But I would suggest that even Spongebob does make the state of the new West End musical look rather dire. It seems like for the most part, the best 'new' musicals are being imported from New York City. Of course, there are some exceptions (e.g., Matilda; Billy Elliot; Everybody's Talking about Jamie etc.) Broadway just manages to do "hype" better and stick small shows into big houses and somehow gets people to shell out insane amounts for tickets. London had a great season of creative new shows that found much love here on the forum - Jamie for one, but also The Grinning Man at Trafalgar Studios and Anonymous Romantics at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, plus for me Pinocchio at the National, Adrian Mole at the Menier and The Girls at the Phoenix, which closed far too early. Sometimes Broadway gets it exactly right, as they did with Hamilton and the incredibly creative Comet, but a lot of "new" Broadway fare is also just adaptations from movies (including Band's Visit) and while Spongebob is indeed at least creative, there's also a lot of bland new jukebox musicals like Margaritaville, the Donna Summer thing and the looming Cher Show. I like both West End and Broadway, seeing far more in the West End of course due to location, prices, etc. but acknowledge that Broadway sometimes has some great stuff, but I really dislike this sweeping generalization that Broadway is supposed to be better and more sophisticated and whatnot. And prices ARE a problem. Yes, you can hope for rush seats, but is that really that much of an option when you plan to travel from across the Atlantic for a once-in-a-few-years trip and really want to see a show, especially a new popular show? Most of the shows I reluctantly shelled out +$100 for on Broadway I could have seen much cheaper in London later. Had a crap seat at American in Paris in New York (from TKTS), didn't like the show at all, was able to book a great front row seat ahead in London later, loved it. Hated Spring Awakening in NY from the back of the mezzanine, only fell in love with it later from a cheaper front stalls seat during the US-Tour (and still hate myself for not seeing it again in London later and thus missing Iwan Rheon and Aneurin Bernard who both went on to have great TV careers). I'm a little sad that I had no opportunity to go to New York last year when they had some real good stuff like Comet (which I would have loved to see live and which doesn't look like it's coming over) and stars like Jake Gyllenhaal in George, but right I feel absolutely zero temptation to cross the pond. The only new show I'd be interested in is Spongebob and one show alone is just not worth it. |
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 26, 2018 17:13:08 GMT
Rush show are a good option, even if you are crossing the Atlantic.
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Post by Mark on Jun 27, 2018 4:36:30 GMT
Actually, yes. It’s extremely possible and do able. I did 15 shows on my recent New York trip at a total cost of $660, or an average of $44 a show
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Post by viserys on Jun 27, 2018 5:44:36 GMT
I don't know; if I really wanted to see a show and trekked across the Atlantic for it, I wouldn't want to rely on luck to a) get a rush seat at all and b) get a GOOD seat. Sure, if you know ahead that that particular show isn't selling well, you can do it, but I've had mostly disappointing experiences with discounted seats on Broadway and ended up not enjoying these shows at all from the bad seats I got.
I don't do more than 4-5 shows within one trip anyway; more would be complete overload for me and I don't go to New York more than every 3-4 years if that. I also don't stay in Manhattan when I do go, as I stay with a friend outside the five boroughs, so I can't start queuing for rush seats at 8-9am the way I'd do in London (where I stay in hotels) unless I'd get up crazy early (and then got into the middle of packed rush hour trains into Manhattan).
But we'll see, I have a vague plan to go next year and with all the great information available online (not least from you New York experts here) I might give it a try.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2018 9:24:10 GMT
The advantage of going on holiday is that I find I'm *more* able to rely on rush seats because I don't have to fit my day job and my everyday life around them. Roll out of the hotel, get my rush seats, grab a leisurely breakfast, maybe head back to the hotel for a nap, that kind of thing. I do like to book some tickets ahead of time when I go to NYC - especially if it's something I know I won't get a discount on or if it looks like it has a really good chance of selling out - because I'd be annoyed to get out there and not be able to see *anything* on my list, but I do appreciate rush tickets for existing and getting me into some of my "could be fun" shows without breaking the bank. |
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Post by kathryn on Jun 27, 2018 10:18:15 GMT
For me it's borderline child abuse which they do on Broadway/USA and expect a child to act 8 shows a week and forgo their education. In the UK it is rightfully illegal for a child to do 8 shows a week and the child roles are shared, so that child actors can catch up with their schooling.
Yes. It's very noticeable with child actors on TV/films because they have a habit of going completely off the rails or having major problems managing their finances later in life, whereas their British equivalents are looked after far more carefully as working children and seem to have fewer problems as adults. |
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Post by 49thand8th on Jun 27, 2018 15:05:20 GMT
Foyer spaces on Broadway are generally more limited I've never been on Broadway (ok, I've been, but not in the theatre), but... seriously? Is that even possible? One of my biggest surprises after the first visit on WE was the sizes of foyers, which in most cases are virtually non-existent. Completely different from theatres I know from Poland (I know, a square meter in Central London worth a lot). I don't really know if this is a comparison you can make all that fairly, since if you look at the space in the Gershwin and compare it to, say, the Cort, you can't get a general idea of anything as far as foyer/lobby space on Broadway. The Gershwin is a bit of an exception, but I can't say the West End has bigger foyers than Broadway has lobbies. |
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 27, 2018 15:31:18 GMT
Broadway has no real foyer space, typically you enter via the back of the stalls, with a set of stairs taking you up to the Mezzanine and a stairs down to a small lobby which has small restrooms.
*Imperial doesn't have a downstairs lobby.
** Majestic/August Wilson you enter via a lobby and walk upstairs to the seats.
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Post by raider80 on Jun 27, 2018 19:49:26 GMT
Another thing I've noticed is that on the West End shows will announce their closing far out in advance while on Broadway the announcement usually comes a month before closing and in some cases it's only two weeks or less.
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Post by madsonmelo on Jun 27, 2018 20:17:57 GMT
Broadway prices are WAY more expensive than West End. I'm still shooked!
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Post by Stephen on Jun 27, 2018 22:26:37 GMT
On Broadway, in my experience, the interval ends after the stated time and those in the loo just do what they like.
Not like the frantic bells and craziness in all West End theatres.
This may not be true always but i've experienced it on several occasions!
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Post by mistressjojo on Jun 28, 2018 1:18:38 GMT
On Broadway, in my experience, the interval ends after the stated time and those in the loo just do what they like. Not like the frantic bells and craziness in all West End theatres. This may not be true always but i've experienced it on several occasions! Yes, and that ties in with my earlier comment about late comers in Broadway theaters. Come back late from interval in a West End show and risk being locked out. (when I say 'locked out', there's usually not an actual door - except at the Barbican with the snazzy automatic doors . FOH just won't let you in) |
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