Review: Phantom of the Opera, Majestic Theatre, New York City 23/08/2014

Picture from Broadway.com

When I went to the Majestic on August 23rd, I was immediately thrilled because I had a front row, stage left seat; I could literally lean slightly and peek over the low wall in front of me into the orchestra! I also couldn't believe how much I paid for the seat - around $150 for front row, Saturday night, on Broadway.  

Having seen Phantom in London's West End back in 2007, I knew the basics of what to expect from the show but I still got chills after the auction scene, when the main theme starts and the chandelier is pulled up. From the front, the sound of the orchestra was absolutely huge, but not overwhelming and I was immediately hooked. I'd originally thought the stage at the Majestic was a bit small, but it was at this point that the curtains around the sides fell away to reveal the golden statues and I was bowled over.

The show was absolutely incredible. Norm Lewis was unbelievable as the Phantom; the rest of the cast were phenomenal, but he absolutely owned the stage when he was on. His voice is absolutely huge, and his performance was completely believable. It was mostly because of him that I found myself crying my eyes out at the end of the show. I cannot begin to explain how much I enjoyed his performance - Norm Lewis' Phantom is a definite must-see.

I also adored Michele McConnell, who played Carlotta; she was the perfect mix of glamorous and hilarious. She definitely had Carlotta's character down to an art, sweeping around in elaborate costumes and demanding attention and respect, which the audience gladly gave. Her voice was out of this world too - some of the notes she can reach are absolutely unbelievable!

Picture from Playbill

All in all the entire cast, right down to the last ballerina, did such a good job of bringing the show to life; the performance was polished and well-rehearsed, but came across as entirely natural. Another honorary mention has to go out to Laird Macintosh and Timothy Jerome (Monsieurs Andre and Firmin), who absolutely cracked me up. They worked fabulously as a double act! The sets were also absolutely stunning - I particularly enjoyed the Phantom's underground lair, and the staircase scene for 'Masquerade'. I also loved the final few seconds of the show, when Meg Giry (played by Polly Baird) held up the Phantom's mask, and the lights slowly faded. My heart was pounding for most of the show, and I had a constant knot in my throat.

At the end, I was one of the first audience members on their feet; it was like my legs were spring-loaded. I cannot say how appreciative I was of every cast, crew and orchestra member involved in the show - Phantom means so much to me, it's been my favourite show for many years, and I suppose I'm a bit protective of it. In the Majestic, it is in good hands, and seeing it this year was just as awe-inspiring as it was when I was 15 years old. The standing ovation went on for so long, and crescendoed when Jeremy Hays (Raoul), Mary Michael Patterson (Christine), and of course Norm Lewis appeared for the curtain call. 

Picture from BroadwayWorld

I would definitely recommend that you try to catch Phantom of the Opera if you're in New York; even if you're not a big theatre person, you will enjoy it simply for the wonderful aesthetics and obvious effort and hard work every person on that show has put in to making it perfect. The theatre is definitely a nice way to spend the evening in NYC, and this is one of the ultimate shows not just on Broadway, but in the whole world. Even now as I write this, I miss the sheer magic that I experienced that evening, and I wish more than anything I could go back and watch it all over again.

Review: Carlton Arms Hotel, East 25th St, New York City

I found out about this hotel via HostelWorld, and was immediately taken in by the pictures on their website. It definitely looked like my kind of place, and it was located so conveniently (on the corner of East 25th and 3rd). For a private bedroom, it set me back $600 for a week's stay; the toilet and showers were shared, but after living in the woods for two months this wasn't even slightly a setback for me. It was a lot of money to part with, but seemed reasonable considering the location.

When I arrived, I found that the hotel entrance was a door next to a store, and you immediately have to climb a staircase to get up to the main lobby; I was amused by a sign downstairs, telling guests to bring the cat upstairs if she was at the bottom. Lugging my suitcase and holdall up the stairs wasn't much fun, but seeing the reception area kind of distracted me:

This place was covered, covered in murals; even in a week I was still spotting new things on my floor, and I haven't even seen the other floors of the hotel. It is absolutely stunning, and I love the idea of bringing in local artists and letting them loose to decorate every single room differently.

Checking in was a breeze; the people running the Carlton Arms are friendly, artsy folk who are really relaxed and approachable. I was asked which floor I wanted to stay on and, being lazy and sick of dragging my bags around, I opted to stay on the same floor as reception. They gave me the keys to the two remaining rooms on that floor and told to pick whichever one I preferred. I picked 6A, of which I've posted photos on here previously. It was a monochrome room with beautiful, slightly morbid murals on the walls - definitely suitable for me! I went back to tell the staff my choice, and to pay the remaining $510 I owed them. Here I hit a little snag - the temporary debit card that camp paid me on decided not to work. A lot of people had this problem, and I was incredibly embarrassed, not to mention worried that I would be thrown out before I'd even been there for five minutes. But the people running the hotel were honestly the nicest, most chill people. I was told to go settle in, and to bring them cash whenever I could get to an ATM. I was so grateful for their kindness, as I was pretty flustered at this point.

On my way back to my room, I noticed this windowsill and couldn't resist taking a photo:

As I was dragging my things through the door, one of the two cats (a tabby) that live in the hotel came into my room. She was very friendly, letting me pick her up and give her a big cuddle before depositing her back outside. I soon met the other, a grey and white cat who was a little more shy, and it was nice to have them roaming around the corridors - it made the hotel feel so much more homey and friendly. Not to mention that they keep the hotel clean enough so that you don't get cat hair all over everything you possess!

The bed in my room was a double one, and it was so comfortable (even if it was super squeaky). I loved sprawling out on it after a long day walking around the city. It was also equipped with a sink, and an air conditioning unit that worked like a dream. I was expecting it to be noisier than it actually was, but I suppose the noise was cancelled out a bit by the fact that all I could ever hear was the traffic out on 3rd Avenue. You'd think that would be really annoying and disturbing - I usually can't sleep with loads of noise happening - but I slept incredibly well at the Carlton Arms. Maybe I was tired from all my NYC adventures. Maybe it was because I wasn't sleeping in a cabin in the woods any more. I don't know. In any case, I slept beautifully there, even managing to have a couple of naps during the day when everyone was hustling and bustling outside.

A couple of the corridors on my floor.

All in all, I had a really wonderful stay. The hotel is 'basic', in that you don't get breakfast and there's not anything like a TV in the rooms, but the complimentary WiFi is great. The atmosphere in the place is so ambient and laid back; it's a truly charming little oasis in the middle of the big city and it was lovely to come home to it every evening. I definitely missed it when I left.

So, if you're planning on going to New York City any time soon, I would highly recommend the Carlton Arms Hotel. It's clean and pleasant, with the charm of an old house that's been really lived in and loved for years. If you're an artistic sort of person, a solo adventurer, a young couple or a fan of cats, you will adore it there. It's also really accessible, only a 5-10 minute walk over to 5th Avenue and the Empire State Building, and a short subway ride to famous places like Grand Central Station, Central Park and Times Square.

If I ever get to go back to New York, Carlton Arms Hotel will be top of my list for a place to stay!

NYC: Museums

I started today at the American Museum of Natural History. I was in my element, as I walked straight into the space section, and space is one of my favourite things ever. I went to a show in the planetarium; a great big dome-shaped screen was on the ceiling and the show was about dark matter in the universe. It was so interesting and caused a massive existential crisis for everyone in the room. The 3D effect of the screen above us like the sky was amazing, it felt like we were actually cast into the cosmos. Also, they had a meteorite hall, which is exactly how it sounds - I promptly lost my mind.

Another highlight for me was the main hall, where they had two massive dinosaur skeletons. As a child, I was obsessed with Jurassic Park and wanted to be a palaeontologist, and I still get excited over old bones, dinosaur or otherwise. This museum had an abundance of bones, so I was very happy about this. Unfortunately I didn't get to see all of the museum because it's bloody huge, and I wanted to visit the Metropolitan (and have a walk through Central Park), so I couldn't spend too much time there.

Central Park was next, as I had to walk through it to get over to the Metropolitan. I didn't really stop, but I got to stroll through the Shakespeare Garden and see Belvedere Castle! It was a genuinely chilled out walk in the sunshine, and I really enjoyed just taking my time and looking at the scenery.

After that pleasant interlude, I was back in the bustle of upper 5th and outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art!

I was immediately enamoured with this museum because they had a huge section on ancient Egyptian art! I spent about 80% of my time at the museum in that section, because it was all so interesting and so beautiful! There was also apparently some ancient Sumerian art somewhere, but I couldn't find it - this was crap because if there's anything I love more than ancient Egypt (if possible), it's the Sumerians. But I got to see plenty of Egyptian art, including a few cheeky statues of Anubis, my favourite person ever. So I was happy.

So, this entire tomb was donated to the museum from Egypt.

This has been a bit of a lazy blog, but how much can you really write about walking around museums and parks? They're so much better to go and experience yourself, being told about them doesn't come close to describing it. I've had a really nice day, and I'm feeling sad that my time in New York is close to ending. I don't really have any plans for tomorrow, as I need to sort all of my things out to go home (I'm meeting Starry and Smiley at their hostel in Queens early on Wednesday, so we can all go to JFK together). I will wander down to 5th one last time, and get some souvenirs for my family. It's been a blast, and I'm sad to go, but I am looking forward to being back home after two months away!

NYC: Ground Zero, Bars & Broadway

Yesterday morning, I wandered down to Grand Central Station, just to see it. It's one of those things that you have to go and look at if you're in New York City for the first time, and it is ridiculously stunning. I was going to go to a breakfast place across the road that Starry had recommended to me, but the line was out of the door and down the street, so I didn't go in. I had a lot of things planned, including travelling down to Lower Manhattan and back, so I had to get started.

I went down to the financial district to find a specific street sign. It's become a family tradition to find this street sign, ever since my Gramps visited New York when he was younger. Since he was a boy, he'd always gone to a working man's club near his home on a street called Morris Street; even now, in his 70's, he still frequents the same working man's club, with his group of equally insane old friends. So, when he visited New York all those years ago, and found a street named Morris Street, he had his photo taken beneath the sign. Since then, my Vati and stepmum, my brother Liam, and now I have all had our photos taken with the same street sign, at the intersection of Morris Street and Broadway, and everyone who will visit NYC in the future will continue this little family joke.

Having fulfilled the family tradition (with kudos to the pleasant French tourist who took the photo for me), I ambled over to Ground Zero. Walking into the area is the strangest feeling: It's still right in the city, but all the sounds become almost muffled as you approach the memorial site. People aren't rushing around, but walking slowly, stopping, looking around them. The memorial pools where the towers stood are so unbelievably huge, it's impossible to imagine the sheer size of the devastation that occurred there. It was incredibly eerie, strange and sad.

Yesterday was also the first time I got a bit lost in the city. I say 'lost', it was very easy to reorient myself, but I suddenly found myself over in the rough end of Chinatown with no idea how I'd managed to get there. It's not too far from the 9/11 memorial, but I was heading somewhere completely different, so I was slightly bamboozled. I found a cute pair of velvet shoes in H&M, which was handy because my Converse had absolutely shredded my feet by this point (and I needed slightly dressier shoes for the theatre that night). 

I headed on over to Times Square, as I wanted to visit the Hard Rock Cafe before I had to go to the theatre. Times Square was utterly packed, and there was so much to look at while being buffeted along by the crowds. I didn't hang around for long as there was an Iron Man and a couple of Minions accosting people, trying to con them into getting photos with them (which you then find out you have to pay for). 

I was really surprised when I went down in to the cafe part of Hard Rock, and was immediately seated. More impressively, I was sitting next to the very guitar that Kurt Cobain smashed up in the Smells Like Teen Spirit video:

Hard Rock also wasn't as expensive as I thought it would be (though still a bit pricey). I had a massive burger with chips, and a huge slice of Oreo cheesecake, and it was heaven. I tried their signature cocktail, the Hurricane (orange, mango and pineapple juice; Barcadi superior and select rum; Amaretto and Grenadine - gorgeous!), and had a cheeky Jack Daniels and coke to round it all off. I spent a while in there, and took my time with my dinner. They played things like Avenged Sevenfold, which made me happy, and there was plenty to look at while I hung out there. I had a little wander about the place when I was done eating, and was glad that it wasn't ridiculously packed (still hugely surprising, considering it was a Hard Rock Cafe, in Times Square, on a Saturday night).

I found myself heading towards the Majestic waaay too early, and was just wondering what I was going to do when I spotted a bar that looked perfect for me. It's called Jekyll & Hyde and it was a sort of bar/restaurant/haunted house attraction combo, which is basically everything I love. The whole place was decorated in Victorian-era style, there were oddities and skeletons hanging around everywhere, and a sign outside said 'eccentric explorers and mad scientists welcome'. It was the coolest bar ever! 

The bartender who served me, Rich, was fab, chatting away to me about my adventures in the USA and how I was enjoying New York. I mentioned that I was going to be seeing Phantom soon and he was excited for me. I had three cocktails from this fine establishment - Sweet Poison, Kiss of Death and the Transformation Cocktail, before I realised that it was time I got down to the theatre. I said to Rich, "What time do you finish work? Yes, I am hitting on you." and he gave me his number! S-c-o-r-e. I left the bar feeling incredibly pleased with myself, and moseyed down the street, where I couldn't exactly miss the theatre I was heading to:

The gigantic Phantom mask kind of gave it away.

I went in and was handed a Playbill, another classic New York Moment. I bought a beautiful program, then scuttled in to the main room. I knew I was in the front row, but I was still overwhelmed at how close I was to the stage. I could lean forward slightly and see over the low wall in front of me, into the orchestra pit. It was utterly magical. Here's a cheeky snap of the stage before the show started, not zoomed in at all!

The show itself was utterly amazing - I will be writing a proper review at some point, so I won't go into masses of detail. I was crying by the end of it, and I was one of the first people on their feet at the curtain call. Everyone gave such an amazing performance, and I was so honoured to be right at the front where I could see every little detail. Also, Norm Lewis was bloody incredible as the Phantom - he absolutely owned the stage and gave such a believable performance. He was mostly the reason I started blubbing in the first place! I also thought I was going to see Sierra Boggess as Christine again, but she didn't do Saturdays. Instead, I got Mary Michael Patterson - she was ridiculously good though, and it was interesting to see a different Christine. I'm so glad I decided to go see Phantom on Broadway, it was so worth it.

When Rich finished work (past 2am), he came to meet me at my hotel. We soon sought out a bar and he ended up footing a $60 tab! I could not believe his generosity. We chatted for ages, and he cracked me up by saying if he was a flavour he'd be beef jerky, and saying that his dog looked like Bryan Cranston. I also laughed when he likened some crazy woman at the bar to Nicki Minaj. It was a really nice time, and we may have kissed each other. And he may have come back to mine for the night. May have.

Today, I planned to go to Central Park for the day, but I've had to cancel. The terrible blisters on my feet have gotten worse, and when I got up today I could barely walk. I managed to hobble down to the nearest CVS and grab some drinks, painkillers and blister plasters, then I hobbled back in agony and I've been resting my feet all day. I think I'll be able to carry on with stuff tomorrow, and if I shift a few of my plans around, I can get a short time in Central Park into my schedule.

NYC: Tall Buildings

I had a slow start today. I chastised myself a little, which is annoying - I've had to keep reminding myself that I'm on holiday now. The first thing I did was wander down to the Rockefeller Centre, where I bought a CityPass (I would honestly recommend getting one if you're in NYC, it saves so much money and hassle!) and got a ticket for the next available trip to the Top of the Rock. On my way up, I had a photo taken on the girder:

The view from the top was stunning. I stood up there for a long while, looking out at Central Park and the Empire State Building. It wasn't ridiculously packed either, so I got  a good look from all angles. It was also interesting because I'd never been on such a tall building before; you really don't get an idea of the height until you're there.

When I came down, I explored a little bit. I went to the Lego store, which was ridiculously cool because (obviously) there was Lego everywhere. There was this ridiculously tall thing with bubbles, and each bubble contained a type of Lego brick; you could fill a bag with them like pick'n'mix sweets, and it was so cool. I also went down to Nintendo World, which was just as cool as it sounds. Upstairs, they had a mini exhibition on all of the consoles that Nintendo have developed; it was so great to look at all of it, and I was quietly laughing to myself when a kid was pointing out the original Game Boy and talking about how strange and old it was. I told him that I still own mine, and he looked astounded that anyone could be so ancient.

Next, I went up to the 86th floor of the Empire State Building for another breathtaking view of New York. While I was queuing inside, waiting to get to the elevators, someone said to me, "Just so you know, it's a thirty minute wait!" I was like, "Mate, I'm English. I know how to queue." When I got up there, it was a lot more crowded than Top of the Rock was, so I didn't get as much of a chance to look around. I did, however, get an amazing panorama photo.

So I had a really fab day taking in the sights, and standing on some really bloody tall buildings. Tomorrow evening, I am going to see Phantom of the Opera on Broadway and I am dead excited.

I Want To Be A Part Of It - New York, New York!

So continuing on from my last post ... After London and I had seen Tink off at security, we decided we needed a stiff drink. This was for a few reasons:

• Saying goodbye is always shit
• We were soon going to be travelling on our own
• A congratulatory tipple for getting through camp, even when it was difficult
• We were finally off contract so we were allowed to buy our first drink in the USA!

It was then that we found ourselves in a bar at Boston airport, drinking cocktails at 8:30am. London had a Cosmopolitan, and - in honour of my imminent bus ride - I got one called a 'Greyhound' (vodka and grapefruit juice). It was delicious! We sat at the bar, socialising with the staff and other people there, trying to postpone the moment when I'd have to leave.

Eventually, alas, I had to go; I had a shuttle to take to the bus terminal, and then I had to puzzle out where my bus would be leaving from, so I needed to leave in good time. It was crap saying goodbye to London, because she's fab and I was really nervous about travelling on my own. I was also insanely excited by this point, as I was on my way to New York!

After arriving at the bus terminal, I had to walk for like twenty thousand miles to get to the place where my bus would leave from. I picked up a cheeky McDonald's on my way and managed to get a seat at the front; this benefited me, as it had a bit more legroom and a little tray thing to put food/drink on. It was made even better by the fact that I didn't have anyone sitting next to me for the whole ride, allowing me to sprawl out across two seats and be a little comfier. The ride wasn't too bad; it went by pretty quickly, and suddenly we were in the Bronx, then Harlem, then Manhattan. I was looking out of the window and giving myself whiplash trying to see the tops of the buildings. At this point I was utterly terrified, but so exhilarated.

I was fully unprepared for stepping out of the bus terminal and literally being in the middle of Times Square - it was a shock to the system. I didn't really stop to admire it because I'll be seeing it this week anyway, and because I had a massive heavy suitcase and a massive heavy holdall. I got myself a 7-day subway pass and bluffed my way through the underground. Luckily, I got it right and managed to get to 23rd Street; from there, it was a fairly short walk (I'm staying on East 25th), but it felt like longer because of the aforementioned heavy-as-shit bags.

Now, I have to talk about my hotel. It's called the Carlton Arms and, if you look at the photos on the website, you may understand why I love it. Literally every wall, every floor, every windowsill is covered with paint and artwork. It is seriously the coolest hotel I've ever seen, the staff are really chilled out and friendly, and the general atmosphere is so laid-back and welcoming. Another majorly good thing about the hotel is that they have two cats! They're really friendly too, and let you pick them up and cuddle them. It's nice to have some furry friends roaming around. Here's a couple of photos of my hotel room because look how ridiculously cool it is!

Last night, I wasn't really going to do anything but then one of the counsellors I worked with this summer, Indi, messaged me asking if I wanted to go out for drinks with her (she lives in Brooklyn). I decided to go out, and I'm glad I did. First we went to a rooftop bar that had cute tiki torches and a view of the Chrysler building. We walked onto the roof and 30 seconds later some Wall Street-looking bloke had bought us a cosmopolitan. A few guys tried to chat us up and it was hilarious; when the rooftop closed, we went into another bar and Indi has so much hustle that she conned another pair of random blokes into buying us shots. So we drank very well without spending tonnes of cash, and it was generally nice to hang out with Indi and have some company on my first night in the city.

Long story short, I didn't sleep until like 5am, and was in bed until noon. On my way out of the hotel, I saw one of the kitties having a nap on the reception desk, and she looked so comfy and cute.

I got an orange Coolatta from Dunkin' Donuts to revive me a bit; I'd never had the orange flavour before and it is now my new favourite thing in the whole world. It was so delicious - so delicious, in fact, that I had two today. I spent this afternoon wandering around 5th, Madison and Park; there was so much to look at and I walked right past the Empire State Building. It was so bizarre seeing it in real life. I learned how to avoid being killed crossing the roads, tried (and failed) to count the yellow taxis, made a mental note to visit the Lego store later in my trip, and stood in the Lindt shop for about five minutes, staring at all the chocolate.

Walking down 5th Avenue - I spy an Empire State Building!

A hilarious moment occurred when I was navigating yet another treacherous crosswalk. An older bloke walked across, narrowly avoiding being hit by what appeared to be every yellow cab in the world; as I walked by him all I heard was him say in a really strong New York accent, "Fuckin' cabs, man!" and I felt like I'd had an Authentic New York Moment. Everyone drives like a mentalist in the city, it's pretty hilarious when crossing the road.

I got back to my hotel at around 5pm, and I've been here since, chilling out. I've had such a nice day wandering around and getting to grips with being in the city. After the first hour or so, I felt confident and safe walking around, so I now feel more prepared to roam around the city properly during the rest of my trip. I can't believe I've been in New York for over 24 hours already; it's been a whirlwind and I am having a blast!