Broadway, on the cheap

I think Broadway is one of my favorite parts about living in this city. Every time I see a show, it sort of restores my hope in humanity a little bit. The world is full of darkness and evil. Some of that darkness is on the other side of the world and lots of it is right outside your door. Life is stressful and scary and overwhelming. But when I'm sitting in a theater watching people up on stage (probably living their dreams) I feel full of hope. Life can't be so bad if every single night there are people employed to dance and sing and pretend like they are another person for two hours.

When you see a show on Broadway, you are guaranteed to be in a theater with people from all over the world. You're sitting next to strangers who might not speak your language but you are all enjoying an experience together, in harmony. Isn't that awesome? Next time you see a show try to think about that in the middle of one of the songs. Listen to the people around you laughing or see the sweat on the actors faces as they dance around. It's a special connection. Very Kumbaya for me. I haven't experienced it anywhere else. TV and movies are so removed and remote. Live performances really make the difference. Okay, so enough of that mush.

I promised my tips for seeing Broadway on the cheap. I did not discover any of this. It's all out there on the internet already I'm just giving you my experience.

There are lots of different ways to get tickets to Broadway. But if you want to see a particular show on a particular day, you need particular seats, you don't want to take any chances, your best bet is to just buy them full price. All other purchase options come with a bit of risk so if you are dead set on one show and there is no backup plan, pay full price and enjoy. It won't change the experience one bit.

If you live locally and can get into the city relatively easily, buy your tickets at the box office - it will save you the $20+ in fees that you pay online and sometimes they have even cheaper tickets that are not advertised online. Or, buy your tickets over the phone. That works too.

When deciding where to sit, I'll just say I've never been disappointed with nosebleed seats. Most of the theaters are pretty small so it's not like a stadium where the stage is just a dot from way up high. Whenever I buy full price tickets I always get the cheapest available which are always in the upper mezzanine and sometimes the very last row. The view from up there is always pretty good. You can typically see the whole stage and you have a wider vantage to take in the full experience.

I've also seen shows in the front row too and of course that is awesome as well but you have a more limited view in the front row and although its great to see things super close, you compromise the full perspective. Both locations, close and far, have pros and cons. All that to say, paying several hundred dollars for a seat in the orchestra isn't worth it to me when the mezzanine offers a pretty awesome experience at more than half the price.
 
If you don't care so much what you see and your schedule is flexible, there are a lot of great options to get cheap tickets. Most Broadway shows range in ticket price from $30 to $500+ (yes, Hamilton is still crazy expensive). The average I've paid is $80 for back mezzanine but I've paid as low as $25 for front row seats. How you ask? Rush.

Playbill.com has a page which lists all the current shows on Broadway offering student rush, general rush, standing room only, and lottery policies. These are different for each show so read that page carefully. Pick the show you want to see and make your game plan. I'm a very low risk person. I don't take many chances which is why I rarely try the lottery. I'm just not a lucky person so I'd rather not expect to see a show and then not win the lottery and leave the city with no Broadway experience. If you are local and have tons of free time, then enter the lotteries all-the-live-long-day. I bid you good luck. I know several people who have won the Hamilton lottery and paid $10 to see that show!

But, if you're like me and you want the low risk best chance of getting a ticket, then go with Rush.  The key for Rush tickets is to arrive at the box office about two hours before it opens (earlier if the show is super popular). Grab a blanket to sit on, some snacks, and get in line. Or, be first in line! The two hour wait goes fast when you are in the middle of Times Square and you love to people watch. Or make friends with the person in line next to you. You can get there closer to 10 am but you could be near end of the line and you never know how many Rush seats are available and you might not get one.

When the box office opens have your cash on hand (most rush tickets are cash only) and take the tickets they give you (there is no negotiating). Some theaters will let you get two tickets per person while others only give out one. Read the policies carefully. All the tickets are typically in the first four rows of the theater and usually on the side (some have slightly limited view) and I have never paid more than $40 per ticket (student rush are even cheaper but you need a current student ID). If you look up the resale ticket price for the seats near you, they are typically in the $150+ range! So, yeah, it's a deal. When I saw Annie with my friend Stephanie a couple of years ago, I was the first person in the Rush line and we had front row seats directly in front of the orchestra pit. We could touch the conductor!! Can't beat that.

When Mandy and I saw Bye Bye Birdie (with John Stamos) we were in one of those cool side balconies. The best part with Rush is you have your tickets by 10 am and have the full day to gallivant around the city until showtime.

If I was a tourist with a hotel in Times Square I would do Rush every.single.day I was in the city. I mean you are literally blocks away so you wouldn't have to get up super early. You could do a different show every night and you wouldn't pay that much to see tons. One year, my friend and and I saw three shows and we paid only $125 total. THREE SHOWS! That's a steal.

Now, if Rush doesn't sound like your type of gig, you can try TKTS. I can't speak much to this option since I've only done TKTS once for my first trip to NYC, ever. My Dad, Mandy, and I waited in line in Times Square and ended up seeing Movin' Out (the musical with Billy Joel tunes) circa 2005. At TKTS you can't really plan on a show you want to see because you just have to wait to see what is available in your price range once you get to the window. They say the tickets are discounted but it's hard to say how much. On years we had matinee tickets for Les Mis and I paid full retail price at $47. Two rows behind us (last row in the house) the woman said she got her tickets at TKTS. I'm fairly certain she paid the same price as us. It's a gamble but you could end up with good seats, you never know. The thing is, you don't know what shows they will have tickets for, you don't know how much they will cost, plus you have to pay fees. You can read more about it here.

If you are a student there are a lot more options for you and if you are into seeing some things off-Broadway there are options for that as well. Read those shows and polices here.

Another option we've tried is TodayTix. You purchase your tickets in online (even just hours before the show) and then find the TodayTix agent near the box office about 30 minutes before the show begins. These tickets are cheaper than if you purchased them online from Ticketmaster but a little bit more than what you would pay at the box office. BUT, it's a great way to grab tickets on short notice. I've done it several times and been completely satisfied. This is a nice option if you can't hassle with doing Rush.

Whatever you do, whatever you see, however you pay, and wherever your seats - just GO! You won't regret it. If you are coming to the city for a trip, make it a priority. If you live in the city, take advantage while you can. Connect yourself to humanity, shut off the parts of your brain that are on overdrive and laugh at silly show tunes and admire the talent of stars who likely ride the same subway as you. You don't have to be rich to enjoy a show, or two or three!