A day at QC NY Spa on Governors Island

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I am always looking for new and enjoyable things to do in New York City, and also love a special spa experience (a favorite go-to is Aire Ancient Baths in Tribeca, but no photos allowed there!). So imagine my delight when I discovered there is a new day spa experience on Governors Island, a place already so special in that you feel as though you are in the country away from NYC, all the while experiencing incomparable views of lower Manhattan (see my previous blog post about Governors Island here). Having spent a lovely and unique day there recently, I can say that the experience is highly recommended. Here’s what my experience was like.

In my previous post about Governors Island, I describe what it is like to get to the island, and the process is no different to get there for a day at QCNY. The spa requires advanced reservations, and when you reserve they send you a link to reserve your ferry trip there at no cost (to get there usually requires a small fee unless you show your IDNYC as a resident). The cancellation policy is fairly generous, allowing you to cancel any time up to the time of your appointment, and there are several packages at different costs depending on how many hours you wish to stay and whether you want to add on a massage. My own recommendation is to get the all-day pass, as there is plenty to do for multiple hours, and that the massage – although delightful – is not necessary to enjoy the day. Currently they have only a few massage treatment rooms so booking that well in advance is important, although they are expanding and will have additional space soon.

When you get off the ferry, you will see a sign straight ahead directing you to the right, and it’s a very short walk to the spa, which is well signposted. After a quick checkin, you are given a key on a wristband with your locker number on it. Payment is taken in advance so that leaving is easy – you simply turn in the key. At this point everything is covered except for any food or drink (more about that later!) which can be paid for by any credit card or apple pay, no cash. In the locker, you find a robe, slippers, and a towel in a themed tote bag. Most people wear the robe and slippers over their swimsuits, and carry the bag. You are absolutely allowed to keep your phone with you, take a book, or snacks, and all of those can be carried in the tote. When you are in a sauna or pool, there are always plenty of hooks to hang your robe and tote. I always put my slippers inside the tote if taking them off to go in a pool, because they really do all look alike.

There are three main spa areas, a dry Wellness Path, a wet Aquatic Path, and the outdoor pools with views of lower Manhattan. The Wellness Path is the first you experience as you come down from the locker rooms. The first room has individual beds to lounge on with large infrared lamps above, which are supposed to be good for collagen production and reducing inflammation. The next room is a olfactory sensory experience with four different scents to experience, and you are encouraged to write in journals words that each scent bring to mind.

Next, there is a dry sauna, the Mountain Stube, and you are encouraged to go in to open your pores, then use the facial scrub provided, followed by a cool wet washcloth to remove the scrub. In the Fireplace Room there is a moisturizing facial mask to apply while you relax. All these extras are included, and twice while I was at the spa an employee came around with complimentary facial and eye masks as well.

Next to the Mountain Stube sauna is a Cocoon room, where you can swing and relax in these wicker hanging cocoons while listening to bird song.

The Jukebox Room plays classic rock (I heard Talking Heads a few times!) and designed as a place to relax, talk to your companion if you aren’t alone, and rest with a facial mask if you happened to get that recently.

The Upside Down Room provides a way to look at the world in a different way, and is a lot of fun to relax in. If you get a photo taken as I did, you can flip it and appear to be resting on the ceiling!

The Close and Yet So Far sauna had stunning views of the city, looking over the outside pools.

Going down another level to the aquatic experience, I took fewer photos there because of all the steam and water! However, there were multiple steam saunas, each decorated and scented to go along with a given theme – one was Scottish, another like being inside as a storm raged outside, and my favorite, A Thousand and One Nights, with lovely music and feeling a bit like being in a Turkish bath. There was a steam shower, a foot bath area with bubbling tubs, and body scrub provided to exfoliate before lying on a steel table and having water flow over you in a Vichy bath. On this same level was an area with different facial moisturizers and a large screen showing you how to do a facial massage.

The outdoor pools!!!! As much as I loved the entire spa, I think these were my favorites. It is surreal to be lounging in heated outdoor pools while looking at spectacular – and close! – views of the Manhattan skyline. There are two main pool areas, both of which have multi-levels and various places to rest and turn on bubbling action. There is one section with music piped underwater that you can only hear if your ears go below the water line. Behind the pools are rows of loungers and chairs.

If you do happen to have a massage booked, that area is just off the locker room area, and features a lounge area to rest before or after your treatment, as well as a generous supply of snacks.

And what of food and drink, if you are making a day of it? There is plenty of water infused with citrus or mint, and apple cider, on every level of the spa, and apples and coffee are also complimentary. An employee might come around at some point offering a healthy treat such as slices of apple dusted with cinnamon. There there are also two main areas to order food and drink – and a selection of wines and fun cocktails! The food and alcoholic beverages are for purchase, and the costs are about what you would expect for a facility that knows it has a captive audience. There are a series of hefty salads (the one I had featured field greens, pecans, and goat cheese), as well as a charcuterie and cheese tray. I will note that later in the day I heard people trying to order food and some of the selections were no longer available, so keep that in mind and order lunch on the earlier side (needless to say, it is not easy to get supplies to Governors Island!). I sampled two of the cocktails – an Aperol Spritz with the salad and a Cosmo later with the charcuterie platter – and both were generous pours and delicious. You are not allowed to come and go from the spa, though, so don’t plan on leaving and getting something from one of the food trucks on the Island and coming back.

I’d like to add that the spa is open year-round, and the outdoor pools are heated so you really could enjoy even on very chilly days. A visit where it rained the entire day would make the outdoor pools less appealing, but everything else is inside. The generous cancellation policy ensures that people don’t need to worry about the forecast when making a reservation. I happen to love immersive theatre (I wrote a blog post about Punchdrunk several years ago) and the thing that struck me while I was at QCNY Spa was that this was the first spa experience I have ever had that feels in some ways like immersive theatre. I believe it could be enjoyed solo (especially if you brought a book) but is ideally suited for a day spent as a couple or for a group of friends. As always, New York City keeps providing new things to do and experience, and this is one I will definitely revisit.

The Tony Awards: 2023 and a look back to attending 2022

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Every spring in New York City, there is a flurry of new plays and musicals opening on Broadway to beat the deadline for Tony Award nominations. Of course productions do also open other times of the year, but the spring opening season is the busiest time of the theatrical year. Broadway’s importance to the culture and economy of NYC cannot be emphasized enough – in the last year before the pandemic shutdown, 14,077,000 tickets were sold, bringing in $1.83 billion in direct and an estimated $14.7 billion in indirect money into the city’s economy. NYC tourism in general and Broadway theatre specifically continue to rebound since reopening, but estimates are that Broadway revenues are still down 8-10% compared to pre-pandemic numbers. In a business where only one out of every five productions that open on Broadway recoup the investment put in by producers, every move that can increase the probability that a given show will succeed will be taken.

I have watched the Tony Awards on television for decades now, and last year had the thrill of being able to attend. I have been to the Drama Desk Awards before, and really enjoyed, but the Tonys are another experience altogether. How did I manage this? A good friend was involved with the revival of Company (which did in fact win best revival) and was able to get me two tickets to the 2022 Awards – which were also the 75th Anniversary of the Tony Awards. As we approach the 2023 awards, I am looking back on what that experience was like. Spoiler alert: it was fantastic!

Now this year (2023), the televised ceremony – which serves as a way to publicize the new shows in a season in addition to giving out the awards – was in peril due to the WPA (Writers Guild of America) ongoing labor strike. Even though Broadway playwrights are members of The Dramatists Guild (which is a professional organization, not a union), many of them are also members of WPA from working in television or film. Some Broadway performers have written for TV or film and are members of the WPA. In addition, most members of the Broadway community are in their own unions (Actor’s Equity for performers, or Local 802 AFM for musicians, for instance) and would be unlikely to cross a picket line from another union. At one point it was announced that the Tony Awards would not be televised this year. But several writers who work both on Broadway and in TV/film (Martyna Majok, David Henry Hwang, Tony Kushner and Jeremy O. Harris among them) reached out to the WPA and asked them not to picket the ceremony – and they were successful (see this New York Times article for the details). It’s still not clear how the ceremony will be impacted by the strike, as members of the WPA who are nominees (and there are quite a few) have been asked not to attend and to pre-tape acceptance speeches. But there will be performances by nominated shows, and the awards will be given out.

Even before the strike, there were going to be some differences between this year’s ceremony and those in the past. It has been held at Radio City Music Hall for a long time, with a few interruptions (the Beacon Theater in 2011 and 2012, the Winter Garden Theatre when the first post-pandemic awards were handed out in September of 2021), but this year will be held far uptown in Washington Heights. The United Palace Theater, where it will be held on June 11, 2023, has far fewer seats than Radio City (3400 vs. 6000) but more than the Beacon or the Winter Garden. On the plus side, though, covid restrictions are much less rigorous than the procedure in place last year.

Last year, there were two sets of protocol in place. Those of us in the orchestra section, who could potentially be seen on camera, had to prove vaccination status, get a PCR covid test in advance and upload to get a digital health pass that would allow us into the venue. Then masks were optional for those in the orchestra (and from what I saw, most were not masked). For those in one of the mezzanines, proof of vaccination was acceptable, and masks were mandatory.

Also – and I only know this because I saw someone’s ticket who was trying to get in the main entrance but was in the mezzanine so was instructed to go along the side – not all the tickets were like the ones I had. The tickets for those in the orchestra were thick heavy embossed tickets in a black and silver envelope! The ticket I saw for someone who was going to the mezzanine looked like a regular Ticketmaster print out with a bar code. It was so exciting to get the fancy tickets a few days before the ceremony. Most years there are a limited number of tickets available for purchase by the way, but they are expensive (I looked, and for this year they were $775 and $575 – not scalped prices, the actual tickets from the Tony site) and you will be far away from the show. The orchestra level was for people directly involved in the nominated shows, or for presenters.

In addition, those in the orchestra had a required dress code – as our fancy ticket said, “Black Tie Only” – and a separate entrance (the main front entrance of Radio City) from those going to the mezzanines. Only those in the orchestra were allowed in the main lobby or the (really spectacular!) lower level bathrooms. There are bathrooms in the mezzanine, but not as opulently Art Deco, or as fun to pose in front of.

The section of the orchestra I was in was in the middle but far house right. The cast of A Strange Loop was in front of our Company section, and MJ the Musical behind us. Nominees from any show were seated closer to the stage, but would occasionally come by to say hi to their cast mates. Three rows in front of us, in a kind of Spring Awakening reunion, were Steven Sater, Jonathan Groff, and Lea Michele. I took a screenshot of the opening when The Music Man cast marched in, and circled my location:

I have been to other televised shows, so some of the aspects of how that works was familiar to me. But the Broadway-specific nature of the entire evening was a dream come true. Before the show began, they were playing Broadway songs. In commercial breaks they would show montages of things like this year’s shows, past Tony acceptance speeches, past Tony dance numbers, etc. They would then count down and when they got below five ask for applause as we came back live. People watching was so much fun, as during breaks people would get up to see their friends. It’s also a chance for people in the industry to meet or express appreciation for those they haven’t worked with. For instance, Philippa Soo and Renee Elise Goldsberry (Hamilton OBC) came and took selfies with some of the performers from A Strange Loop.

We all received a thick souvenir Playbill and there was merchandise you could only get there. I bought a tote bag and t-shirt that had the 75th Anniversary logo on the front and all the shows that had opened that season on the back, as well as sweatpants with the Tony Awards logo.

This year I will be watching at home again. I don’t know if I will ever be able to attend the Tony Awards in person in the future, but I certainly hope so! But if not, I will always have the memories of what it was like to be a part of that special crowd on the most important night of the entire Broadway season in June of 2022.

Central Park in Spring

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A highlight of the current Lincoln Center Theatre production of Camelot comes at the beginning of the second act, when Lancelot (a magnificent Jordan Donica) sings “If ever I would leave you.” When walking through Central Park lately, I have been singing (inside my head, not aloud!):

If ever I would leave you
How could it be in springtime?
Knowing how in spring I’m bewitched by you so?

Spring in Central Park is bewitching, indeed. After the austere beauty of bare tree branches creating stark contrast with the greyish winter sky, against hard brown soil, it seems that in mid-March and through April into early May, the park becomes vibrant seemingly overnight with carpets of flowers and spectacular flowering trees. The juxtaposition of the glories of nature with the iconic Manhattan skyscrapers and stately apartment buildings is truly unique and makes Central Park a very special place to experience in spring.

Flowers that grow from bulbs show up first – generally cheery daffodils are the harbinger of the spring blooming, followed later by tulips. Later you can find black-eyed Susans, violets, and bluebells.

Cherry blossom season is famous in Japan and in Washington DC, and there are terrific cherry blossoms in both the Bronx and Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. But Central Park is underrated, I think – cherry blossom season in the park is unforgettable! Most of the cherry trees in the park were a gift from Japan in the early 1900s, and there are three main types: Okame, Yoshino, and Kwanzan. For instance, look for Kwanzan on the east side of the Reservoir, Yoshino near Pilgrim Hill on the east side near 73rd Street, and Okame on the west side of the Reservoir. Okame are the first to bloom and are deep pink. Yoshino bloom next and are so pale they are almost white (I have been walking beneath these when the blossoms are being blown off by the wind and it looks like you are in a warm weather blizzard!). Kwanzan bloom latest and are thicker clusters of bright pink. The timing varies each year depending on the temperature and precipitation, but once a tree has bloomed, the blooms are only on the tree for 7-10 days (and can come off all at once if there is a rainstorm or high winds). The transience of this beauty makes the experience of being around it even more magical and meaningful. When the cherry blossoms first begin to bloom, the branches of most trees are still bare, but by the time the last of the cherry blossoms fall, the park has greened with pale new leaves and bright spring grass everywhere you look.

Most years there is little or no overlap between the timeline of the three types of cherry blossoms, so use this as a general guide:

Okame Cherry Blossom Dates: Mid March (most already gone as I post this)

Yoshino Cherry Blossom Dates: Beginning / Mid April (ending now)

Kwanzan Cherry Blossom Dates: End of April / Early May (coming soon)

To see a few videos I have posted of cherry blossoms in the Park, check out this one, this one just behind the Met Museum, or this one next to the Reservoir. Also, for a more formal garden experience, the Central Park Conservatory Garden at Fifth between 104th and 106th Streets is particularly stunning in spring.

If it sounds like spring is my favorite season in Central Park, it is – at least right now! On a sultry summer evening coming back from Shakespeare in the Park, a spectacular autumn day with the fall foliage ablaze, or after a gorgeous fresh winter snowfall, those seasons will then be my favorites. As the song eventually decides, I agree that in my love for Central Park:

Oh, no! Not in springtime!
Summer, winter or fall!
No, never could I leave you at all!

TV and Movie Filming in New York City

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Having enjoyed visiting many working film studios in Los Angeles, it would be easy for me to think that all significant filming takes place on the West Coast. However, living in Midtown, I pass by film locations on a weekly basis, seeing trailers, filming equipment, and sometimes even catering (craft services) out on the street. Generally speaking, if they aren’t actively shooting, you can walk past their set up and the bustle of the activity and just get to where you need to go. Recently I was able to be an extra on a major cable TV show (update as of May 30, 2023 – it was the series finale of Succession!) that needed “upscale New Yorkers” for background and was able to experience first hand the excitement, chaos, and tedium (at times) of filming in New York City. This led me to think more about the importance of the movie and TV film industry in New York City.

Interestingly enough, the movie industry began in New York City – and so did television. In 1894, the first first commercial motion-picture exhibition was given in New York City, using Thomas Edison’s kinetoscope. Between 1895 to 1910, New York City was the capital of film production and distribution. Fort Lee and other areas of New Jersey close to Manhattan were also centers for early movies. In 1920, Kaufman Astoria Studios (which are still in operation – I had to go there for my PCR covid test before working as an extra this past week) opened in Queens. 

Thomas Edison had a strict monopoly (“The Trust”) on the movie business, though, and filmmakers began to move to the West Coast, primarily in and around Los Angeles, to make money quickly before they could be prosecuted for patent infringement. Los Angeles also, of course, provided a more consistent climate for year-round filming. However, the radio industry, and then the television industry, were also born in New York City before many (but definitely not all) television shows moved to Los Angeles. Broadcast television (news, news shows, and talk shows) has remained centered in New York City. All talk shows have lotteries (and some have same-day stand by) for live audiences, and that can be a fun thing to experience. I have been in the audience at The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon (look into tickets here), Late Night with Seth Meyers (ticket process here), and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (ticket information here) in just the past few years.

My top experience as an audience member was seeing Saturday Night Live in November of 2019, though. It is a very very hard ticket to get – you have to email them in the summer and then they select throughout the year. See the process of how to get tickets here. There aren’t many seats, and some people line up for days outside (especially for a very popular musical guest) for standby tickets. It was amazing to see how quickly they transitioned from scene to scene with the live time restriction. I would love to do it again!

My very recent experience (1/30/23) as an extra on a TV show filming in NYC was a bit of a surprise and much more enjoyable than I had thought it would be. Update as of May 30: I can now reveal that the show was the finale of “Succession”! I will upload a few photos below, although of course no phones were allowed on set.

My sister loves this particular show (I signed an NDA and can’t say much more about it until after it airs!) and saw that they were looking for “upscale New Yorkers” as background on a few days. She encouraged me to send in photos, and after I had forgotten about it, I did get an email from them asking if I would be available on two days (one to get a PCR covid test, and then the day on set) as well as measurements, dress and shoe size, whether I had an visible tattoos (nope) and if my look had “significantly changed” since those photos (also nope!). After confirming me, they sent a link to register on the RABS site (Run A Better Set) which had me fill out an I9 form, and gave me info first for the covid test. Getting to go into Kaufman Astoria Studios itself was fun, the testing process was very efficient, and after they processed the negative test I was given a call number for the shoot (#44- you were asked your number constantly on filming day) and a site to check the day before the shoot for my call time and place. On the day of filming, I started out in holding for the background people, in SoHo, had breakfast, rotated through Wardrobe, Hair, and Makeup, had a group wardrobe photo taken, and after about 90 minutes was bussed to the filming location (a private club, Zero Bond). When we first arrived, we sat quietly on another floor as the principals rehearsed just above us, but after being there about another 90 minutes, we were sent up to the set. The scene itself turned out to be very interesting (although of course we couldn’t look at the actors as we were dining patrons). Update: it was the scene where *spoiler alert* Greg is Google translating Swedish to figure out what Mattson’s plans are. It was once a much longer scene and involved Mattson, Oskar, Greg, and Tom. In the end I was not visible in the significantly cut scene. My scene partner and myself were selected to come into the room and be seated by a hostess, which kept things interesting and also allowed for some viewing of the director and staff watching the filming of the scene before we walked in. The same scene was shot many many times, with changes in camera angles also many times, and it was fascinating to hear how the scene played a little differently every time. After 4-5 hours, background was released and bussed back to holding, where I collected my things, checked out, and went home. I was paid via RABS for covid testing and for the filming, although as a non-union extra it is certainly not enough to make a living! But it was very enjoyable to see all the people and steps that go into making just one scene in a high-quality cable television show.

Obviously, New York City is synonymous with Broadway live theatre, and according to a recent report from the Broadway League, Broadway theaters of all sizes contribute over $12.6 billion per year – on top of ticket sales – to the New York City economy. The same report found that Broadway supports more than 12,600 direct jobs and an estimated 74,500 indirect jobs in NYC. Surprisingly, though, in 2019, New York City’s film and television industry was directly responsible for 100,200 jobs, $12.2 billion in wages, and $64.1 billion in direct economic output. There are more than 120 soundstages throughout New York State, most in NYC, of varying sizes. Currently under development are Steiner Studios in Sunset Park, Brooklyn which will provide another 500,000 square foot production hub to the already well-known Silvercup Studios in Long Island City and Kaufman Astoria Studios in Astoria. To delve deeper into the history and current state of NYC’s film industry, I recommend visiting the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria right next to Kaufman Astoria Studios (check out hours and ticket prices here).

Now when I pass filming while out and about, I have a new appreciation for the importance of the movie and TV film industry to New York City. And who knows, maybe I will get the chance to be an extra again. I will have no idea for a few months whether I show up in the scene I walked into so many different times (I DID NOT haha), but regardless, it was a wonderful experience for this “upscale New Yorker” to experience!

London Holiday Decor and Markets 2022

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My beloved New York City never shines as bright as between Thanksgiving and New Year’s – it’s hardly an original opinion, and yet I can’t help but to reinforce it. I have blogged several other years about holiday decor (here from 2014, here from 2015, here from 2016, holiday markets, Dyker Heights lights in 2019 and earlier in 2014, how NYC decorated during the pandemic in 2020, etc., etc.). But my second-favorite city is London, and they certainly know how to do the holiday season extravagantly as well. I have visited many many times over the years, but only once before during the holiday season (in 2011). I was fortunate enough to spend Thanksgiving week in London just last month (2022). I simply couldn’t stop taking photos, and felt completely immersed in the holiday spirit during the entire delightful week. Here are a few of the highlights of the 2022 holiday decorations and markets as I came across them during my stay.

First, let’s talk about the Holiday Markets. They are all over London, and full of shopping, snacking, and eating opportunities. The market all along the south bank of the Thames was a lot of fun, stretching from the London Eye past the National Theatre and almost to the Tate Modern. There was a terrific market at Trafalgar Square, and a quite large and raucous one at Leicester Square. See here for a video of marshmallow toasting at the Leicester Square market.

Covent Garden, one of my favorite places to wander in London, has not only a Holiday Market added to the normal plethora of shops, but also fantastic decor, entertaining buskers, and restaurants along with snacks. Props to their classy use of a disco ball, which gives a subtle snow effect at night (see it here). I thoroughly enjoyed seasonal gingerbread and along with Ben’s cookies, which are always there – and always worth the wait!

Harrod’s was well-decorated as always, and I never go to London without including a lengthy visit to their food hall. In addition to looking at all the fun holiday foods, I was able to get several items to go for an impromptu lunch al fresco.

And Fortnum & Mason! Ah, to dream of receiving one of those huge Christmas hampers!

Borough Market is another of my favorite places in London, decorated festively, and providing an opportunity to have absolutely the best cheese sandwich in the world.

Somerset House has a wonderful skating rink – see here for a video including the cutest tiny skater.

Christmas trees are of course everywhere. I particularly liked the one at the London Transport Museum adorned with double-decker buses and the one at the Buckingham Palace gift shop entirely decorated by crowns.

In Hyde Park, they had set up a Winter Wonderland, with food, drink, and carnival rides. I discovered that a “helter skelter” is a traditional British ride where you sit on a mat and go down a curvy slide. There was a real ice slide that I went down – twice – on an inflatable tube, a haunted house, a fun house, and the opportunity to try “tornado chips” (a potato sliced in a spiral, skewered, fried, and dusted with garlic salt – absolutely delish).

The wonderful thing about London during the holiday season is that you don’t even need to seek out decorations – you will come across them everywhere you go. They are all festive during the day but particularly magical at night. As the days grow so short and the nights so long, this celebration of light and joy is particularly appreciated.

Of course I enjoyed the London theatre scene while there, and indulged in several pints of draught lager as well as an absolutely yummy gingerbread milkshake spiked with Bailey’s (find it at Byron), but what made this trip special was being immersed in the London holiday spirit. And then I was able to come home to New York City and appreciate this most special time here as well.

Here’s to many merry celebrations as we all end 2022, and look forward with hope and anticipation to 2023!

The Museum of Broadway

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There have always been good exhibits about Broadway theatre around the city that come and go. The Performing Arts Library has excellent displays – some more elaborate, like the Hal Prince exhibit a few years ago, and some as quick pop-ups like the one honoring Stephen Sondheim via his correspondence set up after his death almost a year ago. There was a terrific temporary exhibit about costumes around the time Broadway reopened after pandemic. And many theatres themselves have displays of old show art or even props or costumes from productions that have been in that theatre. But when I heard people were planning to create a permanent Museum of Broadway, I thought that was a splendid idea and knew I wanted to be there as soon as they opened. I was fortunate enough to be there on opening day, and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

The museum is on West 45th between Seventh and Sixth Avenues, right next to the Lyceum. You walk in through the gift shop (will exit there as well, two chances to shop!), head toward the giant Tony Award, and either purchase a ticket or scan in if you have purchased in advance.

Everything is completely themed – so when you are entering through a stairwell, you see information about warmups in stairwells before a show, backstage traditions, and even the bathrooms are disguised as dressing rooms.

The first room has a poster for every Broadway theatre, and information about the show currently there, as well as a QR code to go through to purchase tickets to the show. If an theatre is currently empty, the poster is blank, so this room will need to be constantly updated as shows come and go. You can see a video of this room here. I noted that the small group of people who saw 15 or more shows in a given year (and I am quite definitely in that group!) account for 28% of all tickets sold. And only 35% of tickets sales on Broadway are to New Yorkers like myself, so you quickly realize the importance of tourist dollars to the Broadway economy.

You might wait a bit to be let into the next room, as it features a lovely short film about the history of the Times Square theatre area. They let groups of people in at a time so that those enjoying the film aren’t constantly interrupted by people coming or going, and I appreciated that.

Then you begin the main portion of the museum, which is a timeline of Broadway. Each time period features costumes, props, information, and interactive displays with which to explore that era. The first was of course the vaudeville/Ziegfeld Follies period.

The next section featured Show Boat, often considered to be the first true musical theatre piece (rather than a revue). The cross section is of a tree trunk showing the time between 1927 when Show Boat first was produced, and 2022, the opening of the Museum of Broadway

The next section featured the “golden age” musicals such as Oklahoma, and the beginning of the Tony Awards.

Moving forward in time, there was a wonderful room dedicated to West Side Story, including a video highlighting the choreography. This was one of the many places you could insert yourself into the set, here behind Doc’s counter.

The next era included Cabaret, Hello Dolly and Hair (these costumes from the 2009 revival).

Interspersed with shows of the time were information and interactive exhibits about people who did important work in the time being portrayed (Hal Prince above, for example, or Bob Fosse and Stephen Sondheim here).

The large interactive exhibit about Company was in the timeline associated with when Company was first produced, but the sets shown here are from the recent Tony Award-winning revival (see a video of this room here.)

After “easing on down the road” from The Wiz, there was a large display about A Chorus Line, including this mirrored room, seen here on video.

After Annie, there was an interesting area about jukebox musicals, which are not all the same. As pointed out in the chart above, some are based on movies, others not, some feature the music of only one person/group (Mamma Mia, Jersey Boys MJ, A Beautiful Noise) and others of various artists (Moulin Rouge, Rock of Ages). They had a video screen showing clips from several of the jukebox musicals currently playing on Broadway that I expect will be changed out over time.

While Off-Broadway, The Public Theater has been an incubator for several shows that have gone on to Broadway. Continuing in time, there were small displays for Cats and La Cage Aux Folles.

The next room underlines the impact of the AIDS crisis on the Broadway community, and the creation of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Red ribbons cascade down next to a two walls filled with names of those who died of AIDS in the creative community.

Heading into the 80’s, there are displays for Evita, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, and of course the Phantom of the Opera. A large beaded curtain features a hidden Phantom mask that you can only see from a particular angle (see it here).

The next, large, room highlights Rent. I really enjoyed this room, as it had costumes, sets, props, cute interactive aspects (ring a doorbell and see who shows up at the door), a telephone where you can listen in to casting recollections, and a place to draw your own recollection and add it to the digital tribute wall.

Moving forward, you can see props from The Lion King, Avenue Q, and The Producers (you can sit behind the desk).

While not one of the larger exhibits, I enjoyed this section about Spring Awakening.

I loved the 360-degree set showing Wicked inside the Gershwin Theatre. You can see the public areas but also the backstage areas for warm ups and dressing rooms, and the backstage machinery that makes the set pieces move.

After a small display for Hamilton, there are panels for shows that opened each year, and I really loved that there were blank panels for the next several years. It’s exciting to think of what might lie ahead for us on Broadway!

Leaving Broadway through the years, you enter a very informative session about the creation of a Broadway show, from initial playwriting, to production and design, casting, out-of-town tryouts, and arrival on Broadway. There are many video interviews with creatives explaining how stage managers/stagehands/makeup artists, etc., work.

There is a section after this which will have special exhibits that switch out over time. The first one is about the art of Al Hirschfeld, and even has a fun interactive way to create your own Hirschfeld caricature.

Exiting again through the gift shop, I left happy with what I had experienced. I already have plans to bring someone else to the museum in the next several months, and this is the kind of place that you can spend as long or as little as you want while there. I would say the bare minimum of time would be about 90 minutes, and more if you want to really watch the videos, read and listen to information presented, and study the props and costumes. Tickets are $39 and up, and a portion of every ticket sale goes to Broadway Cares. Broadway is the heart of New York City, and I think a museum dedicated to this art form fills a need. Also – it’s fun . . . don’t forget to enjoy and let the sun shine in!

The Upper East Side of Manhattan in October

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When one thinks of the Upper East Side of Manhattan, you often imagine rows of elegant townhouses and apartment buildings, interspersed with high-end shops, elegant restaurants, and schools with children in tidy uniforms. All those things are true, but they aren’t the entire story. The idea of the Upper East Side as a stuffy, reserved neighborhood is negated every October when walking through the gauntlet of Halloween decorations that adorn block after block in the neighborhood. Some decor is indeed elegant but much of it – much more than you would expect – ranges from spooky to terrifying. I have posted before about Halloween decor in NYC (here and here for instance) but this post is specifically about the Upper East Side this year, with a bonus of a dog costume contest held yearly in Carl Schurz Park!

I have posted a few videos on Instagram, too – here’s an example.

I talked to a UPS delivery man while taking one of these photos and he said he felt he needed hazard pay to go to some of these houses, because he had no idea who would come to the door!

I love the skeleton above – almost seems like a jaunty “Singing in the Rain” pose.

Here’s another video that I posted on Instagram. This was one of the more terrifying displays, and the sound was triggered by someone walking by.

Another Instagram video, just to give more of the flavor of being in front of one of these houses.

Although a lot of those photos may make the Upper East Side seem like a terrifying place in October, there are more light-hearted things to enjoy as well! One of the best is the yearly “Halloween Howl” dog costume contest held in that well-kept secret treasure of NYC, Carl Schurz Park in the Yorkville neighborhood of the Upper East Side (I’ve blogged about it before, in general and after a snowstorm). Here are a few photos from this year:

Now, a lot of these same townhouses decorate for the December holidays as well, but there is nothing quite like the gothic excess of so many of these decorations! Walking to an appointment on the Upper East Side in October, with the first touches of chill in the air, and taking in the sights of what my fellow New Yorkers have done to celebrate the season in the city – and share it with others – I am reminded once again of how fortunate I am to live and work in this vibrant city.

South Street Seaport

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Heading to a concert at Pier 17 at the South Street Seaport recently, I was pleasantly surprised to find the area vibrant and busy – people were eating, drinking, there was a DJ outside playing music as people danced, all with spectacular views of the Brooklyn Bridge on one side, and an enormous four-masted schooner, the Pioneer, on the other. With the Fulton Street fish market having moved to the Bronx in 2005, the area no longer has a pervasive piscine smell, and the new shopping area that opened in 2018 mixes a variety of shopping and dining choices next to one of the oldest bars in the city (The Paris Cafe, from 1873) and the South Street Seaport Museum, one of several that make up America’s National Maritime Museum. Here’s what this revitalized mix of old and new in lower Manhattan has to offer.

Entering the Seaport area from Fulton Street as it dead ends on the East Side, right away the lighthouse and cobblestoned streets give one notice that you are entering one of the original areas of Manhattan settled by Europeans. In 1625, the Dutch West India Trading Company built the first pier nearby, and the port was a focus of trade with England. During the Revolutionary War, the port was occupied by the British for several years, and after the war many merchants returned to England, marking a slump in the Seaport’s fortunes. But by the mid-19th Century the port was booming again. Many of the buildings burned to the ground in a fire in 1835 but it recovered quickly and was at its peak as a maritime trading center again by 1850. Such history in this area, and you can sense it as you walk on cobblestoned streets past low brick buildings.

It’s also important not to forget that New York City had a market near here, between Water and Pearl Streets, in the early 18th Century for selling enslaved persons captured from Africa. We in NYC often choose not to look on this part of our history, but in 1730 42% of people in the city had enslaved persons, a higher percentage than any other city other than Charleston, SC. At this time in the city’s history, between 15 and 20% of the population was enslaved, and enslaved people literally built the city and fueled the economy that made the city run. There is a plaque nearby first installed in 2015 that reminds us of this, see it and read more here. I also highly recommend reading the 1619 Project from the New York Times to learn about this aspect of the city’s history.

The South Street Seaport was home to the Fulton Fish Market until it moved to the Bronx. Now with formerly commercial buildings turned into restaurants and bars, this area has become a very popular place to gather in the evenings. The new Jean-Georges development, Tin Building, just opened this month, and has everything from full-service restaurants and a wine bar to food to-go and a culinary shopping marketplace.

It wouldn’t feel like the Seaport if you didn’t have lovely ships to gaze at (and you can pay to visit or even take a sail on some of them). Check out the Clipper City if you want to go on a sunset sail. The Wavertree, a wrought iron tall ship typical of those that would have filled the Seaport in the mid 19th Century, and a few other ships can be visited as part of your ticket to the South Street Seaport Museum.

Industry Kitchen, under the FDR drive, has great views and I have enjoyed dining there on several occasions.

There’s an ipic movie theater and lots of shopping in the more recently developed sections of the South Street Seaport. Ipic has reserved stadium seating and food and drink service to your seat, like my personal favorite Alamo Drafthouse (which now has a theater near the Seaport in the Financial District to add to their original location in Brooklyn).

The view as you walk around the Seaport next to the East River encompasses Brooklyn, lower Manhattan, and the Brooklyn Bridge. When I was there a DJ was playing music and people were dancing in the open spaces with this view as a backdrop (see my Instagram video here).

I was at the Seaport a few weeks ago for a concert at Pier 17 (Nick Lowe opening for Elvis Costello). Having been to two concerts there before lockdown, I was happy to see that the magic of this space for a concert venue is unchanged. When there aren’t concerts happening, you can go up to this space for drinks and enjoy the views as well.

The South Street Seaport is a part of New York City that reflects on its history – good and bad – and is adapting to serve the needs of the 21st Century. I was taken by the vibrancy of the area when there a few weeks ago, and it reminded me in some ways of the area around One World Trade, which has completely transformed itself over the past decade to be a destination area for entertainment, shopping and nightlife. And like that area, there are new development residential condo buildings being built to keep people in lower Manhattan after work hours are over (or work-from-home hours!). 130 William, near the Seaport, is an important new development designed by famed British-Ghanian architect, Sir David Adjaye. Such a project would have been unimaginable even ten years ago, but is now part of this neighborhood which, as New York City constantly reminds us in so many ways, is evolving and will continue to do so.

Rise New York

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Have you ever been on the Disney ride “Soarin'”? It started out as “Soarin’ over California” at Disneyland’s California Adventure Park, and then a duplicate was installed at Disney World in Florida. You sit in a large device that simulates the experience of hang gliding while watching a large-format screen, originally showing scenes of different places in California, synching the visuals, movement, and even scents to create a sensory experience that I quite enjoy. (The visuals have been changed to fit the concept of soaring over the world, and now the ride in both American parks simulates flying over the Taj Mahal, an island in Fiji, Mount Kilimanjaro, the Great Wall of China, etc. There are also different versions of the ride now in Disney Parks in Tokyo and Shanghai which I have not yet experienced, but I digress . . .) Why am I discussing this Disney ride on a blog primarily about NYC? The answer is because there is a new venue in the Times Square area that culminates in what I can only accurately describe as “Soarin’ over New York City.” Well, of course I had to try it, and here is what I experienced.

Rise NY is located at 160 W 45th St, between Sixth and Seventh Avenues, and is open every day beginning at 10 AM, until 8PM on most nights but until 9PM on Fridays and Saturdays. There are timed tickets available in advance, and walk-up tickets subject to availability. Although I went primarily for the ride, I was interested in the walk through history of New York, with a focus on Times Square, that was more extensive than I had guessed in advance.

After a simulated subway ride with introductory video, you walk through the initial history of the city and then through exhibits related to specific themes.

I hadn’t fully appreciated the importance of the development of the elevator brake to the development of Manhattan as we now know it, with skyscrapers, but it makes a lot of sense!

After an interesting display about the skyline, the next exhibit related to the entertainment industry, specifically television.

Given my own special interest in Broadway, I really enjoyed seeing the room devoted to its importance to NYC, with costumes and videos.

There were also areas devoted to the iconic Beatles performance at the Ed Sullivan show, the music scene including the Village People, and NYC in the movies (all video so I didn’t take photos).

After all these displays, the set-up for “Soarin’ over NYC” (OK, not its actual name but I can’t seem to think of it as anything else!). You go back in time to see the ball drop in Times Square in 1958 (although the ball has been dropped there since 1907, these were the early days of it being televised nationally).

Entering “Sky Studio,” we find ourselves in the same kind of simulator used for “Soarin'” with our items stowed – so once I had done that, I had no more photos of the experience.

Basically in the film accompanying the simulation, we are first watching the ball drop in the past. But a storm is coming! Lightning hits our perch and – wait for it – we travel forward in time and soar among the skyscrapers and icons of New York City. It’s fun, no doubt about it, if over in only a few minutes.

Is it worth going if you live here? I say yes but then again, I do everything! I learned a few things in the exhibit, and truly enjoyed the ride portion even if it is short. The price for this varies depending on the date, time, and whether you get VIP tickets (really just a “jump the line” pass), but count on about $30 for an adult with no discounts in 2022. This would be a fun thing to take visitors to when they come to NYC – you can do it all in about an hour, and it’s near Broadway theaters so you could fit it in before or after taking your guests to a show. And if you aren’t a New Yorker, I think this would be an enjoyable addition to a trip to NYC (just don’t forget to check out one of the observatories in the city, like Summit at One Vanderbilt, or the Edge at Hudson Yards). And if you are consumed with wondering what it would be like to hang glide over New York City, I am confident that this is a much more enjoyable – and safer! – alternative.

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Steinway Tower: 111 West 57th Street

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Among the super-tall skyscrapers along “Billionaire’s Row” on 57th Street, it’s impossible to miss Steinway Tower, at 111 West 57th Street. It looks impossibly skinny, tapering dramatically (see below for a recent side view I took from Central Park West recently).

The skyscraper sits on top of the building that was Steinway Hall, a 16-story landmarked building that was the marquee showroom for Steinway pianos. The condominium is now closing on residences, some in the landmarked building but most in the tower. The idea of skinny “pencil towers” like the tower portion of 111 West 57th took off in Hong Kong in the 1970’s, and the mechanics of creating a stable building that is this high and this slender are so complicated that there is a documentary about the engineering of the building (you can find it here and it is really interesting!).

After watching this impossible skyscraper rise over the past several years, this month I was fortunate enough to see a model apartment on the 43rd floor twice, and even go up to the 76th floor to see a triplex penthouse still being finished. As you can see in the photo above, the tower is perfectly centered for a unparalleled view of the entire length of Central Park.

First, entering the lobby, the scale and grandeur of the design is clear. I loved how details like door handles echoed the iconic look of the tower.

In the tower, each apartment is at least one entire floor. As the building tapers, the penthouses become duplexes or triplexes. For the model apartment, a full floor, the elevator opens into the home, and looking to the north, the open living/dining/kitchen area features those full Central Park views.

Just as the door handles in the lobby reflected the silhouette of the tower, I loved that the cabinets in the kitchen resembled piano keys, another sly nod to the history of the site.

While I knew to expect the Central Park views, I was not expecting to see that the bedrooms with south views had such incredible NYC skyline views. I posted a few videos on Instagram from these rooms (see them here and here).

And the primary dressing room – with window – and bathroom with giant golden tub! I loved the bathroom so much I posted a video of it as well, and used one of my favorite songs to represent it (Jill Scott’s “Golden”). See a 360 degree view of the primary bathroom here.

Going up to the high-floor penthouse, the windows were dirtier since it’s still be finished, but the difference in the the view was pretty obvious.

It’s always fun to see a project when not finished yet, and imagine what it will be like when completed and filled with fabulous decor. This spiral staircase is going to be pretty dramatic.

And although I was not able to go outside, this penthouse has outdoor space! This is the view looking south. I believe the top penthouse has a wrap-around terrace with 360 degree views.

This full-service building also has a fabulous pool and large outdoor terrace for the use of residents. Let me know if you’d like me to make an appointment to show you this one-of-a-kind place to live in New York City.