Sweeney Todd....the demon barber of Fleet Street

For Christmas this year, I was presented with tickets to see Josh Groban, who is once again performing on Broadway.   This year, he is delighting viewers with his role in Sweeney Todd, where he plays the role of the demon barber.  I wasn't quite sure what to expect, having briefly read the storyline, but I enthusiastically booked a hotel months ago, in anticipation of the event, basing my choice on my previous trip last year with the girls.  After all, when you find a place that suits in New York City, you might as well stick with it....right?

So, Marty and I headed out yesterday, bright and early, driving into the city with the hopes of a little exploring prior to the 3:00 pm performance.  We were making great time, exiting the Lincoln Tunnel way before noon, headed on our way to the hotel parking lot.  We did notice that traffic was extremely heavy, but didn't give that much thought.....until......we went to make a turn as directed, and there was a blue barricade blocking us from entering the street.  

We traveled a few more blocks, only to find ourselves in repeat.  A quick google search, and I learned that yesterday the city hosted a half marathon, which began in Brooklyn and finished in Central Park.  As our Gps kept directing us to "turn right",  I located a map for the race online, and quickly determined that the only way to achieve our goal was to drive west, travel down to the middle of Central Park, scoot through the transverse (that part was a breeze), then head back on 5th Avenue, turning on 51st street.  This way, we would be able to enter from the opposite direction, as 7th Avenue was closed.  

It was a clever plan...don't you think? And we were finally making our turn onto 51st street with just a block and a half to go.  And, what do we see?  A blue barricade with a policeman standing behind it.  Our hearts sank. 

As we sat at the light, I decided to pop out of the car, cross the street, and throw myself at the mercy of the policeman manning the barricade.  (Ok, so maybe it wasn't quite that dramatic)....But I did very sweetly ask him if he could help me....and he was actually quite happy to do so.

In the meantime, Marty took advantage of a break in traffic, and worked his way to the spot where the man moved the barrier so that he could squeeze the car by (without hitting any pedestrians....that was key) , and we could finally breathe a sigh of relief.  

The result was that we reached our destination an hour and a half after entering Manhatten.  Obviously, the garage wasn't busy (since no one could get on the street to enter the building), so we had no issues handing over the keys, grabbing our luggage, and making our way to the hotel lobby.   We couldn't check in yet, so we handed over our bags and headed out to find the theater.

It wasn't far from our hotel and there was no one in site when we managed to capture a photo in front of the sign outside. 

We popped inside a nearby restaurant for a quick bite to eat.  (the beer belongs to the photographer). 

The ambiance was quite lovely, and this large mural on the wall was really quite clever, filled with so many familiar faces from films over the years. 

Having recouped from our driving adventure, we headed outside, only to find ourselves in a throng of people who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere....all lining up to see Sweeney Todd. (Good thing we took that photo earlier!)  We  headed in the opposite direction of the theater, because that was where the end of the line could be found.  But the staff at the theater were extremely efficient at getting the people in and seated in relatively short time, all while treating us as valued guests.  How great is that? 

This was a "preview" performance of the musical, and I will admit that at the beginning, I had a bit of difficulty understand the words as the ensemble began singing the lyrics of "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd".  But as the show  progressed, that problem seemed to vanish, and I was able to absorb the content without issue.

Let's face it....the plot is rather macabre,  but the musical performance manages to capture the audience's sense of humor with some extremely entertaining puns thrown in for fun during some of the musical scores.  Annaleigh Ashford plays the role of Mrs. Lovett to perfection, complete with a convincing cockney accent.  She had the audience in stitches numerous times through the performance. 

And as I mentioned, Josh Groban played the role of Sweeney Todd, and there's no doubting his entertainment value.  My eardrums nearly burst at the roar of approval from the audience as they applauded, hooting and hollering, at the end of the performance.   He had missed the prior three shows, due to illness, and I think the audience was eager to show their appreciation at his return.  I know that we were certainly happy to hear him!

The show lasted nearly three hours, and, afterwards, we did a quick check in at our hotel, then headed out to an Italian Restaurant, Azaleas, which was just a block away.

We enjoyed a lovely dinner to end our day.  

About the play......let me just end on this note:

Attend the tale of Sweeney Todd

He served a dark and vengeful god

What happened then, well, that's the play

And he wouldn't want us to give it away....

Guess you'll just have to find out what happens yourself!   

 

Destination: Radio City Music Hall!

I realize that there has been a distinct gallivanting draught as of late, but things are looking brighter on the horizon.  And this last 24 hours certainly didn't disappoint in excitement as I headed out on a venture with these three lovely ladies yesterday morning. 

The day began early, (which might explain some or our "tired" faces), as we headed out the door towards our destination:  New York City!  The event had been planned months prior by these lovely woman, as a Christmas gift for me:  tickets to Josh Groban's Great BIG Radio City Show, which was to be held at Radio City Music Hall.  How lucky am I?

If you've been a follower of my blog over the years, then you might recall that I am a fan of this enormously talented singer, having seen him in concert numerous times when the opportunity has availed. He is certainly a gifted entertainer who is a pro at keeping his audience engaged, whether he is belting out a ballad, poking fun at himself during the performance, or engaging his audience in laughter.  So, you can certainly relate to my excitement when I opened my Christmas gift from them.

So, yesterday morning, we headed out with Stacey behind the wheel, driving through a persistent, heavy rainfall that plagued us until we nearly reached the city, where the skies began to clear a bit upon our welcome to Broadway. 

We dropped off our luggage at the hotel and began our trek through the city to the Terrace room, where Amy had secured a lunch reservation.  The restaurant was quiet and peaceful and offered just what we needed to refuel our energy for a day in the Big Apple.

Heather had purchased a seat to see the Music Man, which happened to be showing in a theater directly across from our hotel, but the girls and I opted to do some touring instead.  So, as she headed to the performance, we made our way to Macy's to take a peek at the Spring Flower Festival which was coming to its end. 

Once inside, the strong scent of flowers greeted us along with the myriad of colors and arrangements.

Ok, so these aren't flowers, but I did wonder just how someone manages to walk in them.

Outside, in the front window, was this cute set up where Stacey managed to take a photo of us surrounded in florals!  How clever was that?

After our sinuses convinced us that we'd seen enough flowers, we began the mile walk to Rockefeller Center, as we had tickets to travel to the "Top of the Rock".  We were excited that the weather had cleared, as we were looking forward to seeing the awesome views from the 47th floor. 

As we began our walk along sixth street, it became very obvious that something special was happening, when we kept passing men dressed in full Scottish garb, many with a drum or bagpipe swung over his shoulder.  Little did we know that it was the annual Tartan Parade!

It was obvious that some of these groups were quite serious regarding their role in this parade. 

While others took a more care free approach.  (Photo credit to Amy for capturing this gem.)

The parade seemed like a delightful surprise.....until we realized after walking quite a distance, that we needed to be on the OTHER side of the street to get to Rockefeller center.  The parade traveled a very long route, and it was obvious that none of the police guards were willing to let pedestrians cross over to the other side while it was going on.  

We ended up extending our walk several more long blocks, where the parade dispersed and we could jaunt across to the other side,  Then, we headed back along the route until we came to the crossroads that would lead us to Rockefeller Center.  We managed, somehow, to make it with ten minutes to spare, and the guards at the door were adamant that we would not be permitted to enter until our reservation time.

Once through the door, we traveled along an information path, opted out on the touristy "photo memory", and headed to the elevator where we traveled to the 47th floor.   Once we stepped out of the doors, we were absolutely awed at the beauty of the city that surrounded us. 

I had taken my small camera and was able to zoom in on the Statue of Liberty that I had spotted in the distance. 

One of the out of town visitors on the observation deck offered to take our photo.

Didn't she capture a great image? 

We were offered the opportunity to travel up to the 67th and 70th floors for yet another view, but we declined and decided to head to our hotel where we could check in and recoup a bit prior to heading out to dinner and the show.

We passed some entertaining views along the way.

After a delicious dinner at Azalea's Italian Restaurant, we headed to Radio City Music Hall to get settled into our seats prior to the performance. 

We weren't sure how complicated the check in  process would be, but we streamed through the ID/Covid check, had our bags searched and were seated with 30 minutes to spare. 

The venue had chosen some entertaining "old time" piped in music to keep us entertained and the girls and I had a grand time bopping to the oldies. 

As I would have expected, Josh's performance did not disappoint.  The event had been originally scheduled for April of 2020, for just 3 nights, in this awesome venue.  Obviously, that plan was put to a halt, and now, two year later, Josh finally realized his dream of performing in the Radio City Music Hall.

The show was set up quite differently from other performances which I've attended.  There was an amazing backdrop with awesome special effects to enhance the mood.  Apparently there were several guests included in this special event, with a different set each of the three evenings.  He sang a duet with Rita Wilson (Tom Hanks's wife), had a sit down "chat" with Rachel Brosnahan of "Mrs. Maizel" fame, which was quite entertaining,

and he joined Cindy Lauper as she belted out her hit "Time After Time", sounding as incredible as the first day she sang it.  He also included some local musicians on stage, highlighting his support for the arts, for which he is well known.

He finished with his own version of two beautiful ballads:  The Impossible Dream, and Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

and after one last amazing piano performance, confetti seemingly dropped from the ceiling. 

An awesome finish to an amazing event. 

After a rested night at the Michelangelo Hotel, we treated ourselves to some morning delights from Angelina's Italian bakery,

then bid farewell to the city and headed home.

Honestly, I can't thank my daughters and daughter-in-law enough for gifting me with this very special gift.

Believe me, I know just how lucky I am.

We covered a LOT of ground in 24 hours.  My gallivanting adventures might be picking up again  in the near future, but I might have to consider a slower version for future travels!   Perhaps it might be more appropriate to call myself Gallivanting Geisgrandma! 

Downton Revisited

On Friday, I had the pleasure of visiting New York City with a special friend who knows the city like the back of her hand.  She had asked me if I was interested in joining her to visit the Downton Abbey Exhibition, and I was thrilled to be able to go with her.
We boarded a bus in Kutztown and the time passed by quickly as we caught up with each others lives.   Soon we were in the city and we headed towards one end of Central Park to enjoy some scenery.
It wasn't long before I spied Christopher Columbus standing high upon a tower

overlooking the world.

There was still some snow on the ground, adding to the charm of a horse and carriage in the distance.

and we even had the chance to see a few up close!

We made our way to the Brooklyn Diner.  

The place was hopping with activity, and we managed to arrive just in time for the brunch menu.  The staff was entertaining, and we met up with yet another friend from my past and her sister, who had come to enjoy the exhibit with us. 

I opted for the Tony Bennet Chocolate Walnut Babka French Toast.

Believe me.......it did not disappointed.  And neither did the company!

The Diner was conveniently located right next door to the exhibit

so we didn't need to walk far, and, as luck would have it, we were granted admission early so we didn't have to stand outside in the cold to wait for our scheduled admittance time.

The Exhibition is laid out on three floors of a building on 57th Street.  We entered through wooden doors and found ourselves in the servants quarters, at the foot of the stairs.  We were greeted by a hologram of Carson and Mrs. Hughes wishing us a pleasant visit.

I thought that was a brilliant way to begin our tour, and we turned the corner to explore the ground floor of the building, which primarily featured the servants' area of the bottom floor of the house.

In addition to a remake of the kitchen, there was the servants' table where meals were served

Carson's office which is often featured in the series

And, of course the infamous bells which lead to the various rooms needing attention.

In addition to the recreated rooms, there were informative displays that discussed the life of servants during the times covered by the series, and there was even a question and answer quiz to determine how efficient one would be in service.  But the many booths were busy with occupants, so we just decided to make our way up to the second level.    I'm not sure how well I would have fared taking the test, as the British have strict rules on many protocols of which I am completely unfamiliar.

The second floor was a real treat, featuring costumes and jewelry that had been used on the set.

There were many dresses on display;

An original cornflower blue cotton enhanced with clear glass beading, worn by Lady Edith

evening gowns worn by Rose and Lady Grantham

A Silver sequined antique cotton enhanced with glass silver bugle beading, worn by Lady Mary, just to list a few.

We were ushered into a large area that appeared to be the library, and we were soon fascinated by many of the characters that popped up in various spots, recreating scenes from the many years that Downton Abbey was featured on PBS.   The library suddenly changed to a World War I battlefield, taking us through those scenes of war, surrounding us on 3 sides,  gradually moving forward in time and the many changes that occurred in the house after the war. 

The exit from this library led us to the Dining Room, where the table was set, ready for dinner, and complete with mannequins featuring the Earl and Lady Grantham's evening wear.

There were displays explaining the seating protocol as well as the layout of the silver, dishes and glasses.  There were three forks to the left of the plate, and two knives, sandwiched between two large spoons, on the right side of the plates.  Of course, there was an explanation for all of this protocol, but don't ask me to set you straight on that!

We quickly went from dining to sleeping as we soon find ourselves staring at the duplicate of Mary's bedroom.

I thought it looked much larger than what I had imagined on the actual show. But certainly beautiful.

Around the corner, there was a special feature devoted to Violet, known as the dowager countess.  Those who are familiar with Violet know that she is known for her wit and comic relief in the show.

There was a movie running that featured nearly all of her clever comments, bringing quite a laugh to all of us in attendance.

Moving through the exhibit, we came to a rather large room that featured bios on the Downton Abbey Characters and a corresponding history of a real person who would have filled those shoes.  Explanations were given for all facets of life, and many items from certain time periods were featured behind glass.  There were brief movie clips running around various spots in the room, adding a bit of spark to the exhibit. 

It really wasn't difficult to imagine that one might actually be on the set.

We finally made our way up to the third floor, which primarily featured mannequins in costumes as well as many of the hats that had been worn, true to the time period.  If you are familiar with the show, then many of these costumes will be quite familiar.  

Edith wore the gold enhanced gown on the left, towards the end of the series, and, of course, how could we forget Sybil's shocking pantaloons?

There was Mary's garden party dress

and Mrs. Hughes and Carson in their wedding finery,

as well as Edith's two wedding gowns, with Mary's in the distance. 

Our final stop of the tour found us once again being entertained by Mrs. Hughes and Carson, this time joined by the Earl and Lady Grantham,  as they thanked us for visiting.

All in all, it was an extremely entertaining day, and we managed to find someone to take our photo as a memory. 

Lots of smiles, as you can see.

And, I couldn't resist one last photo op with the Downton Abbey group.

Isn't that a hoot?  As you can see, I'm not quite dressed for dinner.  Perhaps that is why Violet, the Dowager Countess, has that scowl on her face.  But no one else seems to really mind.

I would be remiss if I didn't thank my friend for her awesome invitation.  She and I made quite the gallivanting team if I do say so myself!  

Thanks, Kathy, the entire adventure was absolutely brilliant!