|
Theatre Lover's Journal for May 2000:
TKTS Memories
by John Kenrick
The Theatre Development Fund’s announcement that it is planning to revamp
the TKTS discount ticket booth in Times Square sent my thoughts back to
the 1970’s, when I was a kid in high school and the booth made regular
theatre going financially feasible. A half price matinee orchestra seat went
for as little as $9, service charge included! With the salary from
a weekend job, I could always scrape together the price of a ticket
plus lunch – and my favorite French restaurant in the theatre district
had a luscious four course pre-matinee lunch for $6.95. (Yeah kiddies –
read it and weep!)
Living in Queens meant that TKTS was a thirty cent subway ride
from home. (Oh Lord – I could weep over that one myself!) Saturday
matinee seats officially went on sale at noon, so I
would meet friends at the booth at 8:30 A.M. to guarantee that we would be
the first ones on line. We parked ourselves at the innermost window of the
booth, usually on the East side (closest to The Palace Theatre) –
our "good luck" spot.
Coffee and bagels were consumed as we pored through the NY Times,
debating what that day’s choice would be. In our logo t-shirts, well-worn
jeans and windbreakers, we did our best to look like the blasé New
York theatre people we yearned to be – heaven forbid that anyone should mistake
us for tourists! With almost no other souls in sight for an hour or so, we felt
terribly pleased – and more than a little smug.
The first ones to join our early watch were usually a group of
scruffy-looking middle aged theatre buffs. These guys wore cheap toupees and
even cheaper polyester pants. As a rule, they already had theatre tickets
for that day. They simply loved to hang out, brag about what
they had seen and simply enjoy the excitement of the line. They looked down their
greasy noses at us kids, and we looked down our noses at them, each group
reveling in the other’s disdain.
Being the first on line meant all sorts of people would come up asking
how the line worked or what shows might be available. Everyone
was itching to see A Chorus Line, which did not show up
regularly at TKTS until the 1980’s. We were anything but shy about our opinions,
and directed many an uncertain visitor to our favorite shows and eateries
– and I still stand by those recommendations today!
If we were lucky, one of the TKTS window shades would be a bit ajar,
and we could sneak an early peek at the boards listing that day’s
offerings. Orange colored lastic plaques embossed with the names of shows
were attached to matching sets of red plastic boards that would be planted on each
side of the booth. Once the boards came out at 11:50 AM, chaos reigned as
we quickly settled on which show to see and gave last minute advise to
friendly tourists. Then came the rush of the windows opening, getting
the first seats to the show of our choice, and sailing off to a celebratory
lunch.
Oh, the wondrous shows we got into! I Love My
Wife, Side By Side By Sondheim, Day in Hollywood/Night in The Ukraine,
Chicago, Shenandoah, the all-black Guys and Dolls – and
non-musicals like Sly Fox (with Robert Preston), The Shadow Box and
California Suite. I carried the habit on into my college years, organizing
bands of classmates and camping out at TKTS for seats to On the 20th
Century, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Channing’s first revival of Hello
Dolly, They’re Playing Our Song, Sandy Duncan’s magical Peter
Pan, Kiley in Man of La Mancha, I Remember Mama, Evita, Sweeney
Todd, Annie . . .and oh so many more!
While I no longer make those Saturday pilgrimages to TKTS, I made a
point of being the first on line one weekday last summer -- just to see
what it would be like. A lot has changed. Digital display screens have replaced
the old listing boards, and the cliques of theatre-loving locals have been
replaced by tourists itching to see Lion King. But it was all sorts
of fun to watch the big parade go by, and people still asked questions and
shared opinions of the latest shows. And I must confess to still feeling a
silly thrill when the windows opened and I got first dibs on the show I wanted.
Long live TKTS! I just hope there are some kids out there who think $45
half price tickets are a bargain, and that the
booth becomes their key to a lifetime of memories.
Back to Theatergoer's Journal |