September 20, 2007
Lunch hour theater, $20 musicals, symphonies, films and
more…
The Three Tomatoes love
autumn. We love the crispness in the air, brilliant blue skies, glorious red/orange sunsets, cashmere sweaters, those great
new little ankle boots, turning off the air conditioners, and the smell of wood burning fireplaces. It’s really our
favorite time of the year. And while spring brings a reawakening, we always think of fall as the start of all good things in
New York City , like the fall season openers (and we’re not talking football or the World Series here). We’re
talking about the new seasons at all of our great cultural institutions like Lincoln Center, the New York Philharmonic, the Metropolitan Opera, and the anticipation of new shows opening on
Broadway. But if you’re only experiencing those icons, you’re missing out on so much other
wonderful theater, music and art that live and breathe all over our great city. And at reasonable prices too, we might add . Here
are a few we think are great, and you might too.
Celebrating the One-Act Play over lunch or cocktails
We only recently found out about Food for Thought, which has just launched its
sixteenth season producing and celebrating the one-act play with readings by the theater’s most distinguished actors. Our only
disappointment is that we missed the last fifteen seasons. This fabulous idea started as the brainchild of Susan Charlotte, an award winning writer of plays, TV and film who felt that the one-act play is often over looked, despite masters of the form like Miller,
Pinter, Albee, Beckett, Chekhov, and Williams. So she thought, why not ask some of New York’s best and brightest actors to
do readings of some of these gems in an intimate setting with small audiences? Well the idea took on a life of its own, and
the 2007/2008 season will feature lunch
time readings two to three times a week, and a series of ten Tuesday evening Cocktail Hour Comedies (yeah!) all performed at The Players Club, in Gramercy Park.
In past seasons, theater-goers have had the chance to see Patricia
Neal and Eli Wallach read Tennessee Williams, Judd Hirsch and Marian Seldes read Chekhov,
and other great readings of one-act plays by the likes of Kyra Sedgwick, Rita Moreno,
Barbara Feldon, Christine Baranski and Anne Meara, to name drop but a few, in a close intimate
setting.
You can check out the calendar for the fall season which will include readings of plays by Mel Brooks, Noel
Coward, and Tennesee Williams among others.
Food for Thought Lunch Hour Theatre and Cocktail Hour
Events take place at The Players, located at 16 Gramercy Park South. Single tickets are only
$75 and include a buffet lunch, one-act play reading and Q&A. Subscriptions are available too.
Don’t miss the New York Musical Theatre Festival
Hailed as "the Sundance of musical theatre”, The New York Musical Theatre Festival is happening right now, from September 17 to October
7th. This three-week celebration features the works of the newest generation of musical theatre writers with a slate of more than
30 full productions and some 100 special events. Now in its 4th year, The New York Musical Theatre Festival is the largest musical
theatre event in America and a great place to preview new musicals (before they become big hits), like Back Home: The War Brides Musical.
According to the press materials, "Back Home aims to shed light on a war story that is rarely told. During World War II, over 70,000 British
women met and married American servicemen stationed in Great Britain. After the war, husbands and wives were separated when the husbands were
shipped home. The musical is based on true events and follows the journey of Mo, a London postal worker and Ivy, a mill worker from Leeds in
their fight to be reunited with their husbands." Performances begin Monday, September 24 through September 30 at The Sage Theatre (711 Seventh
Avenue). Tickets are only $20 and may be purchased by calling Theatermania at 212-352-3101, or online where you can also get the full schedule of
all of the festivals events.
New York City’s most diverse performing art
center
Symphony Space is a wonderful performing arts center and non-profit organization that “fosters
artistically and culturally diverse performing arts, literary, and film programs.” This year’s season sounds
outstanding. The music series includes Blue Note Records Live, Arturo O’Farill’s Afro
Latin Jazz Orchestra ; the dance series includes
Thalia Dance, Dymamic
Duos; and theatre performances that includes NYC’s only political caberet.
And think about becoming a member -- you’ll save money on performances and help continue the great work
of Symphony Space.
So there you go. Just three more of the thousand of reasons
to love New York City.
‘til next week,
The Three Tomatoes
Copyright©2007. The Three Tomatoes. All rights reserved.
