You've Gotta Have Heart

This week a friend of mine scored us tickets to the opening of Damn Yankees presented by New York City Center's Encores! Summer Stars series. The cool thing about New York City Center is that it brings in some of the country's best and most recognizable talent and presents them for extremely reasonable prices ($25 - $110 per ticket).

Damn Yankees, for example stars Sean Hayes (from Will and Grace), Jane Krakowski (from 30 Rock) and Broadway star Cheyenne Jackson. To see these kinds of celebrities perform, you would expect to pay at least $80 per ticket and yet I think the best seats were selling for less than $50. New York City Center is certainly living up to their mission "to make the finest in the performing arts accessible to the broadest possible audience."

Plus we got to attend the opening night party. Let me tell you opening night parties are always a good time. You have the chance to mix and mingle with the cast and creative team. There is usually good music, eats and an open bar. The fare for this party was appropriate to the baseball theme, featuring mini hamburgers, popcorn and crackerjacks.

The production itself was adequate. All the players performed admirably and sufficiently entertained the audience. The stand outs of the evening were Cheyenne Jackson as the young Joe Hardy who turned in a soulful performance; Veanne Cox who provided some great comedic timing; Sean Hayes as the Devil himself who really shined during his solo number "Those Were the Good Old Days" and the costumes which were designed by Broadway veteran William Ivey Long.

This production used the original Bob Fosse choreography, which unfortunately didn't really work. I do not believe that the performers were able to fully embody the choreography and so the dance numbers were not fun and energetic extensions of the scene, but rather people on stage just trying to get all the steps.

Several years ago I saw a production of Damn Yankees that was fantastic. It was exciting, moving and entertaining. I left the theatre and for weeks afterwards caught myself humming "You've Gotta Have Heart." While the performers in the Encores! production all hit the right notes and had the right bravado, there was definitely something missing. They didn't have heart. And ultimately, as the musical itself illustrates, that is what it takes to score a homerun.

New York City Center has a fantastic season lined up that features more musical theatre, the "Fall for Dance Festival" with tickets starting at $10 and some of the best dance companies in the country.

Check out the New York City Center website for ticketing and schedule information.

Insider Tips:

• The Encores! Great American Musicals in Concert has 3 more productions this season (On The Town, Music in the Air and Finian’s Rainbow). Performers have not yet been announced, but I'm sure it will be a good opportunity to catch celebs performing live theatre at less than Broadway prices.
• Check out the "Fall for Dance Festival." There are some fantastic dance companies participating and tickets are only $10.

A Live Sing-along with Pearl Jam

Madison Square Garden is one of the most iconic and renown arenas in the world. The building that currently stands above Penn Station on 7th Avenue between 31st and 33rd Streets is actually the forth Madison Square Garden. The first two were located on Madison Avenue and 26th Street, hence the name “Madison Square” garden. The third was located on 8th Avenue and 50th Street and became wildly popular for presenting boxing matches. And finally, the building currently known as MSG was built in 1968.

Hosting over 320 events a year, everything from the New York Knicks to Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus to the Democratic National Convention to the Westminster Kennel Club dog show has filled the 20,000 seats of The Garden. However on June 24th my BF and I took our seats to attend a concert by one of Patrick’s favorite bands, Pearl Jam.

The opening act, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists began playing at 7:30pm. They were passable and played to a mostly empty stadium while beer venders shouted their wares. The 45 minute set drummed up a spattering of applause from a less than appreciative audience.

My BF and I took advantage of the 45 minutes between acts to locate the nearest bar in our section and purchase $12.00 drinks that included flashing light-up mugs. Admittedly the mugs are completely over the top and ridiculous, but I think they are awesome. We giggled to each other as we paraded them back to our seats and to the delight of our fellow concert goers held them high at key moments in concert as though they were lighters gently encouraging the beloved band.

By the time that Pearl Jam finally took the stage, all 20,000 seats were packed. Wild cheers met them as they began their first song, “Hard to Imagine.”

There were no pyrotechnics, no fancy projections or graphics, no coordinated dancing just the band, their music and the audience. I certainly appreciated the simplicity of the presentation.

I am not an avid concert goer, but I have been to several concerts in my lifetime. I have even been to a few previously at Madison Square Garden. However this was one of the oddest concerts that I have ever been to. As the band began to play, the entire stadium began to sing along with them, word-for-word. Okay it was the first song. People are excited. I can understand. The second song and the group singing continued. The third, the forth, the fifth song and still the entire sold-out arena of fans crooned the words along with Eddie Vedder. This continued through every single song of the performance. It was in essence a live sing-along with Pearl Jam.

I wonder if this happens at all of their concerts. It has got to be an odd experience for the group. People are not really coming to hear them play, but to ... experience the music in a very personal way in a very public venue?

Pearl Jam played for nearly 3 hours, which included 3 encores. My BF and I had been looking forward to the concert for several months and left humming the tunes and feeling invigorated.

Insider Tips:

• Buy tickets early, they sell out. If the event you are trying to attend has already sold out, try StubHub. Many folks who need to sell their tickets post them there and there is no scalping.
• Eat before hand. Food at The Garden is expensive and honestly, not that good. There are lots of little pubs and restaurants in the area that offer better fare at better prices.
• Leave your bags at home. There is no place to put a bag, it will probably get stuff spilled on it and of course security will have to scrutinize it. Avoid the hassle and leave it at home.