You HAVE to be paying attention this week. Off-Broadway delivers one of the most-buzzed-about openings of the spring tonight, Broadway gets a star-studded comedy mash-up that just opened Monday, and TKTS is quietly running some of the best deals of the year. Here’s what to see, how to get in cheap, and which lottery to actually enter.
Don’t Miss: Indian Princesses at Atlantic Theater Company (Opens Tonight, Tuesday, May 19)
Eliana Theologides Rodriguez’s Indian Princesses has its official opening night tonight at Atlantic Theater Company’s Linda Gross Theater (336 West 20th Street). Directed by Miranda Cornell — both making their Off-Broadway debuts — the play is a tender satire set in the summer of 2008 at a real father-daughter program of the same name, designed to bond white fathers with their daughters of color through handmade activities, camp adventures, and a generous helping of cultural appropriation.
It’s been in previews since April 30, and the cast — Ben Beckley, Anissa Marie Griego, Rebecca Jimenez, Greg Keller, Serenity Mariana, Pete Simpson, Lark White, Haley Wong, and Frank Wood — has been getting strong word-of-mouth from preview audiences. The limited engagement runs through Sunday, June 7. If you’ve ever rolled your eyes at well-meaning whiteness, you will laugh. If you grew up living it, you will laugh harder.
The Other Big Opening: Celebrity Autobiography on Broadway
Just opened Monday, May 18 at the Sam S. Shubert Theatre — Celebrity Autobiography, a 90-minute comedy phenomenon where today’s biggest celebrities read passages from OTHER celebrities’ unintentionally hilarious memoirs. The opening night cast was a who’s-who: Matthew Broderick, Rita Wilson, Kenan Thompson, Mario Cantone, Andrea Martin, Jeff Hiller, Jackie Hoffman, Gayle King, Nia Vardalos, Bobby Moynihan, Scott Adsit, and Ben Mankiewicz.
The rotating-cast format means every performance is different. Announced upcoming participants include Katie Couric, Anthony Anderson, Jason Alexander, Tiler Peck, and Leslie Rodriguez Kritzer. The exclusive limited engagement runs through Sunday, August 16. If you want to see one show this summer where you’re guaranteed a story to tell at brunch — this is it.
This Week’s Best Rush, Lottery, and Discount Tickets
Lottery Picks (Enter These)
Wicked at the Gershwin Theatre — The big news for May: Wicked is running a limited student rush slashing student tickets from $69 to $45 for the entire month. Bring a valid student ID to the Gershwin box office. This is the cheapest you’ll get into a top-tier Broadway musical right now.
Hamilton — The classic $10 digital lottery via the Hamilton app is still running daily. Your odds aren’t great, but the price is unbeatable.
Death Becomes Her — $40 in-person rush, $45 digital lottery. Heads up: Death Becomes Her announced its Broadway closing this week, so this is your dwindling window. Get in while the rush still exists.
TKTS Booth (Times Square, Lincoln Center, Downtown Brooklyn)
As of this week, the Times Square TKTS booth has been moving tickets at 40-50% off for some genuinely worthwhile shows: August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone and Buena Vista Social Club have been hitting 50% off regularly. CATS: The Jellicle Ball is steady at around 40% off. Show up between 3pm and 7pm for evening shows, 10am to 2pm for matinees, and bring cash or card.
Programs Worth Joining
If you’re under 35, Roundabout’s Hiptix and MTC’s 30 Under 30 are no-brainer signups — both put you in $25-$30 tickets to first-rate Off-Broadway and Broadway productions. Free to join, no catch.
Off-Broadway Worth a Bet This Week
Thornton Wilder’s The Emporium at Classic Stage Company — Opened May 18, directed by Rob Melrose. A rarely-staged Wilder play getting a major NYC revival. CSC at 136 East 13th Street is one of the most consistent Off-Broadway houses in town — if Wilder is your speed (or you want to find out if he is), now’s the time.
Well, I’ll Let You Go at Studio Seaview — Also opens tonight, May 19. Written by Bubba Weiler, this is a new play at one of NYC’s newer downtown venues. Smaller capacity, intimate room — the kind of opening night you can later say you were at.
The Maids at St. Ann’s Warehouse — Director Kip Williams’s production of Jean Genet’s The Maids opened May 17 in DUMBO, starring Yerin Ha, Phia Saban, and Lydia Wilson. Williams’s Picture of Dorian Gray was one of last year’s most talked-about productions; expect a similarly intense visual treatment here. Limited run.
Long-Running Off-Broadway Picks Worth Your Time
If you want low-pressure, near-guaranteed entry and a great night out, Little Shop of Horrors at the Westside Theatre and The Play That Goes Wrong at New World Stages are both still running and both consistently sell discounted tickets via TodayTix. Perfect Crime at The Theater Center is the longest-running Off-Broadway show in NYC history — running since 1987 with Catherine Russell in the lead role the entire time. It’s a piece of New York theater history you can still buy a ticket to tonight.
Matinee Strategy for the Week
Wednesday and Saturday are the standard matinee days. The play to grab a midweek matinee for: Death of a Salesman at the Winter Garden — TKTS regularly has it on the board, and seeing a Miller revival in the middle of a Wednesday afternoon is the kind of move that reminds you why you live here.
How to Actually Get the Cheap Seats
Three apps to download right now if you haven’t: TodayTix (rush tickets drop at 9am daily, lotteries close 24 hours before showtime), Broadway Direct (lotteries for Shubert houses including Hamilton, Wicked, and the new Shubert openings), and Lucky Seat (lotteries for Disney shows and several Off-Broadway runs). Enter every lottery for every show you’d want to see — the marginal cost is zero and you’ll win one eventually.
One last thing: the Tonys air Sunday, June 8. Anything you see win big will get harder to ticket and more expensive after. This week is the calm before that storm. Use it.
