| November 24, 2001 Back to the City
 Today I was back in New York City, on my third trip in as many
months. I can't remember ever going so frequently before. In September I went alone. In October, Maria and I went.
This time I was joined by Marty, his mom, and his stepfather.
Our big activity today was seeing The Music Man on Broadway. It was playing
at the Neil Simon Theatre on 52nd Street -- right next door to Victor's Cafe,
that incredible Cuban restaurant Maria and I ate at last month. The musical was great --
it's one of my favorites anyway, and this is a very good production of it. Robert Sean
Leonard is playing Harold Hill, and he does a great job. The actress playing Marian the
Librarian is also wonderful, and has a very good voice.
The theatre itself is a nice old one, with lots of painted
paneling and crystal chandeliers. It wasn't that large -- not as large as some of the ones
I've been to in London, for certain. We had great seats at the front of the mezzanine and
were close enough for me to see the actors' facial expressions.
The only negative thing was that the theater was full of
little children. Well, it was a matinee, after all. And most of the children sitting
around us were very well-behaved, but there were two sitting right behind Marty
and his mom who were somewhat disruptive. They were two little girls -- maybe 3 and 4
years old -- too young to bring to a play (in my opinion). They were making a good bit of
noise, although they weren't really all that loud -- I'm not sure we could have
heard them at all if we hadn't been sitting right in front of them. But the most
irritating thing was that when they were humming or whispering or bouncing in their seats,
their mother didn't tell them to stop, or say anything at all to them about it. In fact,
during the intermission it sounded like she stirred them up even more before the second
act began. Finally, during the second act, Marty turned around and asked the little girl
behind him to please be quiet. (If you know Marty, you know that this was very extreme!)
He was polite, and she (mostly) stopped after that.
 I know it's
way too easy for a non-parent to criticize other people's parenting philosophies, but I
hope I never take a child out someplace and then neglect to help her understand the proper
behavior for the situation. It's certainly not fair to the other people in the audience,
who don't care about my child's need for self-expression, and who just want to see the
show they've paid for. But I think it can't be good for the kid, either. How are children
supposed to learn how to function in public if nobody explains the guidelines to them as
they go along? Surely a situation like that would be a good opportunity for teaching a
child something new.
Well, anyway. It's not my problem right now. And the show
was very enjoyable, despite the interruptions. Actually, I really loved the musical. That
particular show is one of my all-time favorites -- I love the variety of music in it. This
was my first Broadway play, although I have seen many, many plays in London, and the
production values seem to be very similar.
After the play, we headed over to Rockefeller Center to see
the big Christmas tree. On the way there, we passed Radio City Music Hall and I took a
couple of pictures. The one at the head of this entry turned out the best. I like how the
taxi is sort of floating down the street like a Jetsons car or something. (Click on the
picture for a bigger version.)
So. We walked to Rockefeller Center. The tree won't
actually be lit until next Wednesday, but it is up and it's gorgeous. I'm
planning to go back to New York in December (when my friend Laura comes to visit from
Georgia), so I will probably get a chance to see it lit up after all. And then I will have
been to New York four times in four months.
Next we walked up Fifth Avenue and looked in the store
windows. We ended up on Central Park South (our intended destination) and had dinner at Mickey Mantle's Restaurant, a place Marty had
been before. He and his stepfather are both baseball fans, and this place has a lot of
memorabilia to look at. The food was good, too, and the service was really excellent.
Compared to the service we frequently get at restaurants in Connecticut, the service was stellar.
 After dinner we took a cab back to
the car, and I think this may have been my favorite part of the whole day. Does that seem
strange? I was sitting beside the open window in the back seat. Even though it was way
after dark by then, the day had never turned very cold, and the wind was rushing into my
face as we headed across Central Park (from east to west) on one of those curvy, swervy
roads. I was looking up through the trees out the open window, and I could see the lights
on top of the buildings along the edge of the park, shining out against the black sky. It
was just achingly beautiful for a few minutes there.
As we were riding along, I was thinking of all the people
I've been to New York with in the last few years, and all the memories that city holds for
me now. It's quite amazing, when I think that five years ago I had been to New York once,
once in my entire life, and I had no real desire to go back. Now I feel so differently. I
don't think I could ever live there -- I am way too attached to all my stuff and I could
never deal with the space limitations of city life -- but I do love to go and visit.
One other good thing about today -- we had the easiest time
getting into and out of New York we've ever had. We made great time into the city, and
then caught a cab right outside the parking lot. When we left, it was just the same. We
walked out of the restaurant and immediately found a cab. Then, when we got to
the car, the traffic out of the city was a little heavy but it kept moving the whole way
home. We left Hamden at 10:53 AM and were back at 8:20 PM. It was a fun day, made even
better by the company. And the cab ride through Central Park.
(No, I didn't take this picture. It's a
publicity shot from the play. But could he be any cuter?) |
