Broadway | Soul Doctor

While Broadway is known for its huge productions and large theatres, sometimes it's nice to experience something a little bit different. I'd never attended a show at the Circle in the Square Theatre until today, when I caught a Sunday matinee of Soul Doctor. I had no idea what I was in for, but I enjoyed the experience nonetheless. And let me assure you, I was one of the youngest and least Jewish audience members.

Unbeknownst to me when I sat down to enjoy the show, Soul Doctor is a musical based off real life rabbi, Schlomo Carlebach. The show follows Schlomo from Vienna, to New York, and around the world as he discovers how to live through music as an Orthodox Jew, and tries not to disgrace his family in the process.  Audience members will travel through time from World War II through to the 1960s, and meet a diverse cast of characters along the way. 

Thanks to the small venue of Circle in the Square, there truly is no bad seat in the house. The farthest away that you can be is twenty rows from the stage, and the seating is in the form of a U instead of the typical theatre set-up. This format allows the audience to really connect with the cast, and allows the performers to dance down the aisles during many parts of the show. If you love to feel like a part of the show, Soul Doctor is perfect for you! 

As I mentioned before, I did not fit the average Soul Doctor audience member. Most of my seatmates were older, and I'm pretty sure the majority was Jewish as well. But if you fit neither of those descriptions, that doesn't mean you won't enjoy the show! I really liked the music, and the vocals were incredible. Plus, Soul Doctor does a great job of telling an emotional story while still being a feel-good show. Definitely join the Rockstar Rabbi, and I'm sure you won't regret it. 

For more information visit Soul Doctor's official website. General rush is available for this show.

Broadway | Let it Be

I can never say no to a Beatles show on Broadway. A couple years back, I saw Rain and loved it. When I had the opportunity to see Let It Be recently, I jumped at the chance. My friend Gina and I ended up with great seats in the mezzanine of the St. James Theatre, and we thoroughly enjoyed our Monday night Beatles concert! If you love the Beatles, this show is a must for you.

There's honestly not too much I can say about Let It Be. You will literally spend the entire show seeing an amazing concert of all Beatles music. The four guys who play the British lads are fantastic, and interact really well with the audience. Speaking of the audience, Let It Be is a show for everyone, though let's be honest, the crowd is mostly 50+. But hey, Beatles music is captivating for all ages, and you're sure to have a good time. The show features some of the most well-known Beatles songs, and tells the story of the band from beginning to end. I highly recommend this show! There's just nothing bad I can say about it. 

For more information, visit the official Let It Be website HERE.

Broadway | Annie

Welcome to the new home of OpenLetter2NYC! With my old blogging platform calling it quits, I've transferred my content and set up shop with a goal of bringing you more NYC on a regular basis. Make sure to head on over to my new Facebook Page as well!

____________________________________________________________

During New York's intense heat wave my friend Casey was in town. We had tickets for the amazing Justin Timberlake and Jay Z concert at Yankee Stadium, but in order to beat the heat during the day we decided to catch a show. At the last minute, we headed to Times Square in hopes of seeing Annie. It was already past 1:00pm when we got there, and the show was to start at 2:00. The line for the TKTS booth was ridiculously long, and let's be real, there was no way I was going to stand outside in the heat. I grabbed Casey, headed into the Palace Theatre lobby, and snagged us tickets to the matinee for $59. Regular price? $118. In other words, we got the same exact discount as everyone wasting away in line at TKTS just by heading directly to the box office. Lesson of the day for all you Broadway-bound tourists: skip the TKTS booth and just go the box office. They're selling the same seats for the same price, and even if the tickets end up a bit more expensive, at least you won't have to wait in line!

As for the show, Annie was great! I've always been a huge fan of the movie. In fact, my mom actually put limits on how often I could watch it when I was younger. Unfortunately, we did miss seeing Jane Lynch as Miss Hannigan (her short stint ended earlier in July), but overall the show was everything I could have wanted. Our $59 seats were smack dab in the center of the mezzanine, so we could see all of the action quite clearly. Plus, I just loved singing all the songs in my head while the girls were belting them on stage. Annie is such a feel-good musical, and it was the perfect choice for a hot, Saturday afternoon.

I definitely recommend Annie, especially for fans of the movie. Keep in mind it is a family show -- the theatre was crawling with little girls (see what I did there?). Granted, we did go to a matinee, so head to an evening show for a more grown-up crowd. While it may not be the show to see on Broadway, it's an uplifting production that reminds you the sun will come out tomorrow. 

For more information, check out the official Annie website HERE. 

Off-Broadway | Potted Potter

I finally had the chance to return to the theatre today to see Potted Potter off-broadway. While my last off-broadway experience was so bad that I had just about ruled out off-broadway altogether, I was able to get Potted Potter tickets for such an amazing price that I couldn't help but go. Plus, as a huge Harry Potter fan I'm pretty much always up for things HP related, and that includes theatre parodies. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed Potted Potter, and wanted to share a bit of my experience for those who want to know more about the show. 70 minutes. 7 books. 2 guys. That pretty much sums up Potted Potter! But seriously, be ready for a two-man show that tells the story of Harry Potter in just over an hour (nope, there's no intermission, but you really don't need one). The show is quite lighthearted, and perfect for families. It's silly enough that kids will love it, but there are just enough inside jokes that serious HP fans will be cracking up throughout the show. Potted Potter also has some interactive moments, but nothing too embarrassing for audience members. Overall, the show left me with a smile, and I felt as though my time was well spent. Now even though I thoroughly enjoyed the show, just a heads up -- there is really no reason to be spending full price on these tickets. It really isn't worth $79.99. You can get $20 off tickets by shopping from Theatermania HERE, or stop by TKTS for discounted tickets as well (today tickets were 50% off!). If you get a great deal, you will definitely enjoy the show a lot more! To learn more about Potted Potter, stop by the official website HERE.

Macaron Day 2013

Today was Macaron Day here in NYC, and let me tell you, it was a great way to kick off the spring season! Macaron Day takes place once per year, and participating bakeries all over the city give away one free macaron to each person who enters their shop. I first heard about Macaron Day back in 2011 when I was interning in the city, but didn't get a chance to try out any of these treats. After class today, a friend and I made it to two of the locations on the map and indulged in these delicious cookies!

The first stop on our journey was Bisous Ciao on the Lower East Side. There we got a macaron that tasted just like peanut butter and jelly! It was oh-so-delicious, and I just had to take a bite before I snapped the Instagram photo below. The bakery itself was very nice and clean inside. We had great customer service, and I would definitely stop back there again. Of course, macarons are pretty pricey, and a half dozen will cost you $16.50. I also wish they had seating at Bisous Ciao -- it's more of a grab and run place.

Our next stop was the Macaron Parlour in the East Village. I was super impressed with this location! We had a full menu of macarons to choose from for our freebie, and I snagged Earl Grey. My friend got strawberry, and both of us agree that they tasted amazing! I love Earl Grey tea, and the macaron was even better than I could have imagined! Plus, this place is super adorable inside, and has a seating area in the back that is very clean and modern. It's definitely a great place for reading or having coffee with a friend. Oh, did I mention they also have tons of other pastries to choose from? The coffee (they sell Blue Bottle here!) smells absolutely amazing while it's brewing, too. A half dozen macarons here sells for $15.00, so it's a bit more affordable than Bisous Ciao. I am definitely planning a return stop to Macaron Parlour! 

Overall, Macaron Day is really fun and quite a yummy experience! It is also a great cause, because 10% of all profits made from purchases will go towards feeding the homeless in NYC. While there will only a couple locations downtown that I could easily make it to, there are many more participants uptown, especially around the Central Park area. Check out the Macaron Day website HERE for more information. I highly suggest taking part in this great event! I'm already marking my calendar for next year! 

Lesson 7: Keep Your Camera Handy

When I lived in the Bronx, nothing too exciting ever happened in my neighborhood. Now that I'm in the East Village, I never know what is going to happen. I've seen some pretty interesting things go by my window -- marching bands, street performers, dogs on wheels -- the list goes on! After missing some pretty unexplainable events, I knew that I needed to make sure my camera was at the ready so that when the next ridiculous thing went by I would be able to capture it. I'm sure glad I had my camera nearby when an impromptu, Mexican Parade went by this afternoon! 

I'm studying for finals when I suddenly hear this lively music outside. I go to the window only to be greeted with a street filled with hundreds of people dancing to Mexican music complete with sombreros and other festive regalia. I took a quick photo, but realized only a video would do the trick. Take a look at what I was able to capture! 

Keep in mind that this was the end of the parade, so many more people had already gone by. I have no idea what they were celebrating, and a Google search yielded no results. Whatever the occasion, I thought this was great. Where else are you randomly going to have a Mexican parade go by your window?! I'm glad I was able to document this moment.

Lesson 7: When you live in NYC, you'll never know what is about to happen next. Make sure you have your camera at the ready to capture any unexpected moments!

A Photo Update

I apologize for the lack of updates! There are a few reasons for this: (1) I'm busy with law school; (2) I'm not doing anything too exciting in NYC; and (3) I'm lazy. So here's what I'm going to do. I'll post a few photos I've taken in the past few months, and then I'll promise to update more frequently. Also, please donate to Hurricane Sandy relief efforts if you can. You can donate at the Red Cross website HERE.

 

Here's the view from the top of my apartment building in the East Village. This was way back in September. 

  

On my way home from the post office one day I spotted a Dia de los Muertos celebration happening. I was excited.

 

On my way home to New England for Thanksgiving I got to see a lot of the preparations for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Here is the star you see on TV! It's right in from of the Macy's in Herald Square (by my old internship!). 

  

I was feeling touristy that morning, so I took a typical NYC shot. I mean, the sun wasn't even up yet, so I felt okay about it. Plus, when you're towing luggage through Herald Square most people think you're a tourist anyway. 

 

I'm obsessed with The Big Bang Theory, so I was super excited to see the F train decked out in BBT advertisements. Plus, it is extremely rare for me to get a seat on the F train, and, as you can probably tell, the train was really quiet this day. Bonus.

Coming from New England, I guess I never thought about how people in cities buy their Christmas trees. It's rather bittersweet for me to see the sidewalks lined with trees for sale. One block was really cool -- they had a guy playing live Christmas music on the French horn, and you basically had to walk down an aisle of the trees. The photo above shows the not so glamorous tree sales. Who would really buy from this guy? "X-Mas Tree"? Really? Okay, I guess you can't go to the nearby farm and chop one down, but at least get a better sign.

That's it for now. I hope to do some fun Christmas themed things during finals to get my mind off the tests and to at least experience the city. I'll have this up and running again in no time!