Theater is one of New York City’s greatest attractions. People come from all over the world to see a Broadway play. And the ticket prices prove it. Demand is great, supply is limited, so prices are steep. The problem I have is that I am a theater junkie, and my last name isn’t Rockefeller. After years of begging and pleading, I have landed a gig as a theater critic, which means I now get to see things for free (unless you count a 500-word review as payment). During that time, I have discovered venues and companies that don’t charge $200 a ticket, that perform exceptional works with Equity actors, and that are more intimate than the touristy theaters.
Perhaps the best known of these is The Public Theater that Joe Papp founded back in 1954. This is the group that does Shakespeare in the Park every summer. The price of those tickets is zero, zilch, nada. They are also hard to come by, and since it’s January right now, they aren’t available at all. However, the Public also operates at 425 Lafayette Street. Most recently, I saw Brecht’s “Good Person of Szechwan.” I have seen the play about five times, and this was simply the best production I’ve seen. Tickets were in the $50 range. And for $60 (tax deductible) you can become a member, which entitles you to discounts on tickets up to 40%.
When I first arrived in New York, a friend took me to see Mark Hammill (yeah, Luke Skywalker from “Star Wars”) in a show called “Room Service” at the Roundabout Theatre. I liked it so much that I became a subscriber. I paid something like $120 for four different shows. Broadway stars don’t think of this as coming down in the world; performers here have included Stockard Channing, Jim Dale, Alan Cumming, Liam Neeson, Natasha Richardson, Frank Langella, Christopher Plummer, Jason Robards and Nathan Lane. Subscription prices remain cheaper than Broadway, but they have risen since I was first there.
One of the more pleasant surprises I had recently was when I went to see the Workshop Theater Company’s presentation of a musical about Mark Twain called “Life on the Mississippi.” Whereas the Public and the Roundabout count as Off-Broadway, this company counts as Off-Off Broadway. Don’t let that spook you, though. They offer Equity actors, professional lighting, staging and writing. What they don’t do is charge you an arm and a leg. Tickets here are $18. And because it is a relatively small theater, every seat is a good one.
There are similar offerings in the outer boroughs as well. I recently saw “Equus,” as heavy-duty a drama as you’re going to find, in Brooklyn. The Gallery Players have been around as a company for decades, and if Park Slope is where you hang out, you really can’t do better. Here you also get change back from a $20.
One thing that New York has that very few other cities possess is theater space for new works by people who are going to be famous. Where does a newcomer who has just written her first one-woman show perform it? Where can a playwright stage a new piece to see if it even works? There are lots of them in New York, and Stage Left Studio consistently delivers high-quality exciting work. Stage Left is operated by Cheryl King, who stages different works almost every night, and goes through a couple thousand scripts a year to find the best pieces to produce. It’s true that new works by unknowns is a category full of junk — she goes to the trouble to separate the coal from the diamonds for you. Tickets are in the $25 range.
New Perspectives Theater Company is a multiracial ensemble that put on a show recently called “Richard Vetere Explains the World 10 Minutes at a Time.” It was six mini-plays of 10 to 12 minutes each that dealt with subjects as diverse as dating, terrorism, race and breaking into theater as a career. With a 50-seat house and an exceptional cast, you got the sense you were watching something that is going to grow and change. Not everyone’s cup of tea, I admit, but it’s the difference between seeing your favorite band in concert and sitting in the studio while they record. Their new show, “Night of the Working Dead,” is $15 a ticket.
One Comment
Leave a Reply