Saturday I split up the 11 hour drive from Pittsburgh to Massachusetts with a night in NYC. Last time I was there was about 18 months ago, so it was good to get back.
The Saturday before Christmas in Times Square promised to be overflowing with holiday shoppers and tourists, and it delivered. If I had more exact plans I possibly would have been irritated, but I just enjoyed the crowds and people watching. After seeing the Rockefeller tree and Saks windows I had one of my NYC winter traditions, a hot chocolate at Dean & Deluca. Later in the day I also had another liquid NYC tradition-- a margarita at Chevy's.
After meeting up with Katie, a friend from Syracuse and her sister, we got Equus tickets at TKTS. We ate at an Italian restaurant on 8th and then went to a wine bar to kill time before the show, both were very good.
Equus was entertaining and very well conceived, though feel short of being memorable. The sound design was spot on, as was the acting, costuming, and lighting involving the horses. The scenic design seemed a little lazy with audience seating on stage-- do we really need any more of this? Worst part is that despite having a nearly full Orchestra section, there were all of two people on the on stage seats.
Daniel Radcliffe's understated acting was appropriate for the role and overall was a solid performance. He was overshadowed though by the rich, complex performance of Richard Griffiths as the psychologist who beautifully spoke Peter Shaffer's words. Also solid was Kate Mulgrew, aka Catherine Janeway from Voyager.
The show does drag a bit in the middle of both acts (do we really need the mother character?) but not insufferably so. So ultimately a good show to catch if you see a lot in New York or are hungry for a play. Do get a
discount code, $119 would be bit steep for this one.
After the show we met up with Jake, a friend from CMU who's a lighting designer in the city for some drinks.
The next morning brought a LONG day of driving through terrible weather before finally making it home for Christmas and a day filled with red wine and football.
