London 7: Broadway Shows

An older female tourist also from the US once told me that every winter when fares were really cheap she would fly to London for a week just to watch as many broadway shows as she could taking advantage of the half-price tickets one could get at those ticket booths in Leicester Square.

As soon as I got off the plane and after we dropped off my bags in her apartment, Kim and I hurried to the theater to watch Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.  We were late half an hour but since I already saw the movie, which had been a family 'cult' favorite when my kids were younger (we all adored Guy Pearce), it wasn't much of a loss.  It was very colorful, quite fun and the costumes quite outrageous, more than in the movie version, and the actor who played Terence Stamp's role carried the entire show 'fantastically' playing only second to the bus (with the gigantic glittery silver shoe on top) around which everything revolved.  This was the last performance before the show took a month-long break, which was why we had to catch it.

I saw ads for 'Hair' in the underground walls but to my dismay, its run ended on September 4, the day I flew to London.  I missed it when I first got to New York, I missed it again. Well, so much for the Age of Aquarius.

My last day in London was rainy so I was tempted to just stay in Kim's apartment.  But remembering that slim, fashionable, white senior tourist made me drag myself from bed.  I got dressed, carried an umbrella and took the underground to Leicester Square.  I was decided on Jersey Boys and Frankie Valli,  for its 3 o'clock matinee.  I went to a booth, tickets were already sold out.  I was so disappointed but didn't give up.  I went to another booth.  The young lady was nice (sometimes they are snobbish) plus there were still available seats, she said.  I got the lowest priced ticket,  20 pounds sterling instead of 32.50.  She promised to give me a good seat, anyway.

I grabbed a slice of mushroom pizza and then walked several blocks along the Charing Cross Road to the Prince Edward. My seat was in the fourth row of the upper level which was the third balcony I believe, high vertically but still close horizontally to the stage so my view was very good.  It was a very good seat for the price I paid. And the songs were my songs.  I had almost forgotten that Ragdoll, which was my favorite as a teen was by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons.  Of course there was also Sherry, Walk Like a Man, Stay, Bye Bye Baby Goodbye, Big Girls Don't Cry, and it seemed like hundreds more songs but it was the rendition of Dawn (Go Away) that was sooo beautiful.  More than a week in New York and I was still humming it in my head.  We found it in i-tunes but it was different listening to it live, even if not by the original performers.

So, two broadway shows ... and not just any two shows.  Not bad for one trip.  I am happy.