NYC

     

Am off to the Big Apple  (click on the link to see why they call it that) on a business/pleasure trip.   If you think about it, anytime I go to NYC it would be hard to distinguish between work and pleasure.  This time around, however, the family is joining me and we are taking in Mary Poppins.  I have a friend who works for Disney Broadway who got us great seats. 

While my partner catches Grey Gardens (which I saw last fall and loved it – I hear it’s closing soon), my daughter and I are off to Toys R Us on Times Square.  It’s almost as fun as seeing a show. My daughter first met the TRU dinosaur when she was 2 years old and she still talks about it.  The full-scale ferris wheel inside the store is really something to behold.  Each car on the wheel is a giant toy.

We also hope to catch up with our friend Lisa and her actor/director husband Tim Blake Nelson as well as our new friend, former Current Affair anchor, Mary Garofalo.  All  have promised to come visit us in Austin and catch a show at the Paramount while they are here.  Tim was left speechless by the beauty of the Paramount when I toured him through the space last year.

I was surprised to learn that Beauty and the Beast is closing down in a couple of weeks, but my daughter is very excited to hear the next Disney adventure on Broadway will be a new musical based on the movie The Little Mermaid.  Let’s hope it’s better than what critics are saying about Disney’s last Broadway adventure, Tarzan.  Several Paramount patrons who have been to NYC recently reported back that Tarzan isn’t worth seeing.

No matter, if it’s Tarzan, Beauty and the Beast or The Little Mermaid, all of the Disney musicals are too big to ever play the Paramount.  You’ll have to catch them on tour at either Bass (like the recent tour of Lion King) or maybe the new Long Center when it opens.  I have no idea if the Long Center intends to compete with the University in that arena.

The Paramount will continue to be the best place to see revivals like Damn Yankees and the Mikado both scheduled for the 2007-2008 Paramount Season now on sale.