One day, Two shows

Since the beginning of my trip, I have wanted to go to a Broadway show. New York is probably one of the best places in the world to see theatre, with tons of shows running everyday of the week. 

I asked around to find out what the best show to see is, and I got an almost unanimous "Wicked." The story is the prequel to the Wizard of Oz, and tells the story of the two witches Elphaba (Wicked Witch of the West) and Glinda (Glinda the Good) and their unlikely friendship. As one of the most popular shows on Broadway, good tickets go from $150 and up. Now, I only get $140 a week stipend, so I had to figure out another way to get tickets. Some of the big shows on (and off) Broadway have a lottery. The way it works is that you show up 2 hours before the show, put your name on a card, and hope that your  card gets chosen. 13 people win front row tickets for only $25. Now, the lottery is well know, and highly coveted, so nearly 150 people showed up. As you can probably guess, I didn't win. My friend and I were not going to give up so easily though, so we went inside to see if they had any student discounts. Sure enough, we were able to get seats on the bottom level (which usually starts at $156) for only $66. Granted we were all the way in the back, but I still felt like we had a great view of the stage, and boy was it worth it.

The amazing Wicked stage

 It is by far the best show that I have ever seen (I can only compare it to Billy Elliot though so don't take my word for it). The show is funny, witty, dramatic, romantic, and has amazing lighting and effects. I would recommend it to anyone who finds themselves in New York. We went to the matinee showing, so we got out a little bit before dinner. After grabbing some quick food, we heard that RENT (now an off-Broadway show) was also having a lottery. So we said "what the heck? We might as well try while we are here!" And what do you think happened? Both of the friends that I were with won, and one of them gave me their extra ticket! We got front row seats to see RENT, ridiculous! 

I could literally see the sweat on the actors' faces, see their singer's veins popping out, and even look them in the eye. It was a surreal experience, and one of the best I have had here in New York. I mean who gets to see two Broadway shows in one day? 

My friend Sophia and I - Playbills to prove it!