This was published 8 years ago
Broadway New York theatre holiday: Play it again Uncle Sam
By Angie Kelly
A scene from Chicago.
January isn't the greatest time of year to pick for your first ever visit to the epicentre of American musical theatre. Hours after arriving in New York City, the TV news is predicting a monster blizzard, and residents are buying up salt and shovels while airports prepare to close.
But, like the temperature, my care factor is zero because I can see the bright lights of Broadway from my window at one of Manhattan's newest hotels, The Knickerbocker.
Just the hotel address on 42nd Street, Times Square, is enough to get a show tune devotee humming. The elegant digs are smack bang in the middle of theatre nirvana, a short walk from a dozen theatres, a subway stop from a dozen more.
Times Square by night.Credit: Alamy
On the doorstep, School of Rock, She Loves Me, On Your Feet and Finding Neverland beckon alongside such classics as Les Miserables, Fiddler on the Roof and The King and I.
The names of Tony award-winning cast members leap from every poster, with some towering small screen names also up in lights. (Think Frasier's Kelsey Grammar, The Newsroom's Jeff Daniels, Jane Krakowski from 30 Rock).
It's a five-minute walk from The Knickerbocker to our first show, Chicago, playing at the Ambassador Theatre.
Tourists in Times Squares at night.Credit: Alamy
More than 20 years after its Broadway debut, the show has lost none of its cheeky appeal, with NFL legend Tennessee Titans footballer Eddie George the latest in a string of celebrities to play guest roles.
We walk the few blocks home after the show even in this January chill, the dazzling lights of Times Square turning night into day. We walk among the post-theatre crowd made up of all ages and provenance. Around 8 million tourists take a seat at a Broadway show each year. And winter doesn't keep the fans away judging by the long queues snaking around 42nd and 44th street precincts over the five days of our New Year visit.
Between shows, the city that has inspired a thousand stories taunts the time-stretched, first-time visitor with way too many enticing options.
The Knickerbocker Hotel.
A must is a pre or post-theatre meal or drink at Sardi's, where showbiz folk have gathered for Italian food and show talk for the past 90 years.
Wedged between the Majestic, St James, Schubert and Helen Hayes theatres, the restaurant is famous for more than 1400 caricatures of theatre stars on its walls. Drawings of our own Dame Edna and Hugh Jackman take their place among legends such as Lucille Ball, Fred Astaire and Irving Berlin. Among the rows and rows of faces we spot Matthew Broderick, Stockard Channing, Whoopi Goldberg, James Gandolfini, Helen Mirrin and Chris Noth.
In this great walking city, heading off in any direction from the mid-town Knickerbocker will work out well for both elegant architecture and shopping hits. See the upmarket stores of Fifth Avenue, the department stores Macy's and Lord & Taylor, the Rockefeller Centre where the Top of the Rock experience is a must, Radio City Music Hall, Grand Central Station, the New York Library and the urban oasis of Bryant Park, which has outdoor movies in summer and a famous ice rink in winter.
Ice skating at the Bryant Park Winter Village rink.Credit: Getty Images
For iconic sightseeing beyond the Broadway mid-town area, best bet is a City Pass from NYC & Company – save money on admission prices at most of the main attractions and discounts in souvenir and coffee shops as well as some department stores.
For musical theatre lovers too much Broadway is barely enough, and add in seeing NYC for the first time the wow-factor doubles. As master entertainer Walt Disney said: "Always leave them wanting more." Mission accomplished New York.
Angie Kelly was a guest of Broadway Inbound and The Knickerbocker Hotel.
Shopping on the famous 5th Ave, New York City.
TRIP NOTES
GETTING THERE
Qantas flies to New York via San Francisco or Dallas with connecting flights to either La Guardia or JFK airports. See qantas.com
Yellow cabs and Radio City Music Hall.
STAYING THERE
The Knickerbocker Hotel has rooms from $500. See theknickerbocker.com
SEE + DO
Buy Broadway show tickets in advance online. See broadwaycollection.com
HIT LIST
ON YOUR FEET
The story of latin pop diva Gloria Estafan delivers on the promise, with the audience actually dancing in the aisles on the day of our matinee. With Estafan's hits plus irresistible Latin standards, try sitting still amid the joyful dancing and singing.
THE KING AND I
Starring 2015 Tony award-wining lead actress Kelli O'Hara as Anna, and a cast of 50, the show was rightly described by the New York Times as "first-rate and sumptuous". Rich impressive sets, magical voices and a time-tested story.
FINDING NEVERLAND
We lucked into guest appearances by Frasier's Kelsey Grammar as Captain Hook and Glee's Matthew Morrison as J.M. Barrie in the story of how the British author created Peter Pan. Old-fashioned jokes keep the show family friendly.
CHICAGO
Feel-good story of sassy, celebrity crims Velma Kelly and Roxie Hart. Delightfully funny lyrics, a score full of twinkle-in-the-eye songs and a showcase of classic theatre jazz dance moves.
SCHOOL OF ROCK
Opened in December 2015, this Andrew Lloyd Webber adaptation of the much-loved 2003 film is already setting attendance records. A company of astonishingly talented kids rock the theatre with a host of sing-a-long anthems.
HOT TICKET
THE NEW YORK CITY PASS
This ticket booklet saves travellers 42 per cent on regular combined admission prices for the included attractions.
Adults $114, children (6-17) $89.
Entitles you to skip the ticket lines and gives pre-paid admission at Empire State Building 86th floor observatory plus audio tour, the American Museum of National History including a Planetarium Space Show, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Top of the Rock observation deck at the Rockefeller Centre or the Guggenheim Museum, the State of Liberty and Ellis Island cruise or Circle Line Cruise and the 9/11 Memorial & Museum.
Available at participating attractions or online. Valid nine days from first use. See citypass.com
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