First time going to London--which show should I see??

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 6/15/17 at 12:35am

Hey all!

I'm going to London this weekend, leaving Sunday evening from Chicago and arriving Monday morning.  I have a few days and then I leave for a family function elsewhere on Thursday.  But I have a couple of nights during which I could possibly catch a show.  I've never been there before, am a single woman in my 40s traveling alone, staying in Kensington which I've been assured is a safe area, and am unsure of how to get to a theatre at night and how close it is to me. At least if I do decide to see a show, it's my understanding that in the summer in Europe it doesn't get fully dark at night til about 10p or something?  Is that accurate? 

So, I'm interested if anyone could please offer some info on which shows you'd recommend. (I really may only have time to catch one, probably Tues night unless there are no shows that night, there. I will likely crash early on Monday evening after flying the night before, and Wednesday is a day trip to Liverpool and back so I likely won't make a curtain time).  Also, how close is Kensington to and from the West End theatre district in distance and time, and what is the best way to get there and back safely.  I don't imagine it's walking distance but even so, once the show ends it would be dark out; while everyone tells me to take the Tube for sightseeing in daytime, I'm not so inclined to travel that way in an unfamiliar place in the evening hours.  Are there cabs readily available?

Thanks in advance for your recommendations!

[AlForShort]

Posted: 6/15/17 at 9:03am

Kensington isn't that near to the West End but it's easily accessible on public transport. You can catch a Picadilly line train from Earl's Court or South Kensington directly to Picadilly Circus, Leicester Square or Covent Garden depending on which theatre you're going to. South Kensington to Leicester Square is only about a 10 minute journey. I've never had an issue with the tubes in the evenings but if you don't feel comfortable then black cabs are readily available but very expensive.

Show wise, I'd recommend Half a Sixpence. It's just brilliant, I couldn't stop smiling when I saw it.

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 6/16/17 at 2:10am

Oh, I've not heard of that show. I was hoping for a recommendation on any of the more traditional Broadway shows that might be there right now.

Thanks for the tips!

[LYLS3637]

Posted: 6/16/17 at 2:14pm

I just went to London a few months ago and told myself I would not see anything I could see in the States and I would see one play and one musical.

I chose DREAMGIRLS (before the transfer was announced), and WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF? (which is closed now), but I would definitely look at the list of shows playing and see something unique to the West End. 

[cynicale2]

Posted: 6/19/17 at 2:42am

I'd always recommend seeing Les Misérables with the original London staging, but I haven't heard good things about the current (recently changed) cast. 

"Beautiful - The Carole King" musical is probably my other current favourite, and Kinky Boots is fun (other than the first couple of songs, tbh, when I thought I'd end up walking out during intermission...). 

"The Girls" is quite lovely, it is based on the true story which also inspired the movie The Calendar Girls if you're familiar?

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 6/26/17 at 8:24pm

So, I went and wound up seeing "Book of Mormon." Don't throw fruit at me--I hadn't had a chance to see it til now.  I was on another tour and we went right by the Prince of Wales theatre where it's playing.  Last week was the hottest week on record in London in 40 years--what a shvitz!!  

So the next day, I thought I'd just dally around Piccadilly and Covent Garden for a bit and buy some gifts before leaving, and take in a show to be in the AC to get out of the heat.  Plus, as I'd mentioned, I hadn't seen it and had known where the theatre was from the previous tour.  (I also passed by the "42nd St" and "Beautiful" theatres on the hop-on-hop-off bus the day before, which I also haven't yet seen--gah--but they didn't look as easily accessible from where I'd be starting out from, so it was good to see BOM on lots of levels, then.)  Now, in London, they're not used to such stifling heat, and buildings and hotels rarely have AC. But those have windows to open!  It was cooler inside than outside, for sure, but I thought, "any minute now, the AC will really kick in, as the performance is starting."  By the end of the show, you could visibly see sweat coming off the performers, as they were dancing their little butts off, and it was still warm in there.  I'm surprised that even for a moderately cool locale they don't take care of their performers, let alone the patrons, at the theatre by making them more comfortable.

That last part is my only rant.  The show was excellent, the cast was great.  I wish I'd seen Andrew R and Josh Gad in the OBC though, and kept picturing them in those roles that they created and that these newer guys were emulating.

Also--in case any of you haven't heard, they're making an effort to convert the "West End" theatre district labeling to "Theatre-Land."  I like "West End" better, but having seen it, I had originally envisioned the district being out of the way or something, and was unclear on why that is what the theatre district is called, there.  It's really very accessible by Tube, as an above poster mentioned, and not obscure or out of the way at all.  They already have "next stop including  ______, _____ and Theatre-Land," etc, on some recorded Tube stops when they read off the destinations of each stop.

Updated On: 6/26/17 at 08:24 PM

[Mediamaven2]

Posted: 7/1/17 at 9:11pm

Yes , if you don't mind I'd like to hijack this query with my own related one; Going to London in august (oy) and welcome recommendations, also links to best sites for listings of what I might see and any ticket buying tips such as all the great things we know to do in NYC: waiting for SRO/Rush seats at box office opening, TKTS, lotteries, etc)

PS Also will be with 12 yo boys and wonder if anything besides Harry Potter Cursed Child would appeal. (HP just too many hours of theater for them). I certainly plan on ditching them for adult fare a couple of times so please don't restrict recommendations to child friendly things!

[ggersten]

Posted: 7/2/17 at 3:27pm

Go to www.theatremonkey.com.  It has information on "day seats", when they go on sale, locations of seats from reports, wait times from reports, etc.  It has information on what shows are on which days - Sundays are generally dark - but not all shows.  It also has seat maps with opinions on seats at almost all West End theatres and then some.  

Discount sites - a lot of people report good luck using the todaytix app.  There are multiple kiosks - but only use with a STAR emblem so that you know it is legitimate.  We liked the London Theatre  Bookings (www.londontheatrebookings.com) stand outside the Booth pharmacy at Picadilly Square. It can be busy but people there were always helphful.  They will ring up box office as needed.  Timeout London has deals on its website.  LastMinute.com.has deals as well.  There is a TKTS booth in Leicester Square which Americans use, but I don't think many others use.  We never found a deal that couldn't be matched or bettered elsewhere.    

Sometimes, your best bet is to just go to the box office and politely ask what can they do for you especially as it gets closer to curtain time.  We got discounted seats to Mamma Mia on a Friday evening that way when we asked at the box office about 4:30 in the afternoon.

 .For your 12 year olds - without knowing much about them or what they like - they should enjoy The Woman In Black - which is a longrunner - but, in my opinion, really excellent theatre.  

Check your mail for other information

[ggersten]

Posted: 7/2/17 at 3:34pm

Your 12 year olds also might enjoy The Comedy About a Bank Robbery - which is silly, at times juvenile - and fairly inventive. It's from the people who created The Play That Goes Wrong.  BUT, use theatremonkey's recommendations, because sight lines are an issue from many seats.  

And in non-theatre items, it's touristy, it's kitschy, it's still fun and information - take the Tour of the Tower of London.  Be sure to book online to (1) save some money and (2) avoid lines and wait times

[Mediamaven2]

Posted: 7/3/17 at 1:06pm

Wow, thank you SO much. Appreciate all the info/tips/suggestions above and email. Will read through  carefully and consider.....may be back with questions later...!

 

[chewbaca]

Posted: 7/4/17 at 8:12am

I recently purchased tickets to see The Ferryman in late July. Has anybody seen this play?

[ggersten]

Posted: 7/4/17 at 12:47pm

chewbaca said: "I recently purchased tickets to see The Ferryman in late July. Has anybody seen this play?"

there is an extensive discussion on another message board.  But this comment from that board seems informative:

"You will need to understand thick Irish accents. I think you will also need to understand the dialect - the way the Irish speak in this play is quite different. Words will be unfamiliar, and they will use them in a different order to that which you would expect.

I would also say that you will need to know your Irish history, mostly that of the "troubles" of the 1970s. I had an American woman sitting two seats away from me when I went, and she asked me a lot of questions at the first interval, as she really struggled with the background that is essential to understand a lot of the action."

That said - as with many things - some people love it - some people admire it but don't love it.  Some commentators compare it to Butterworth's "Jerusalem" - favorably and not as favorably.  

 

[Sadlad]

Posted: 7/30/17 at 8:32pm

Just returned, my favorite show was Half a Sixpence. It was like going back to how the theatre was 50 years ago, which coincidentally was around the time this show was introduced the first time around.

I purchased "day tickets" (rush) from the box office around 11AM on the day of the show (Saturday evening) - Twenty pounds for front row, which at first I thought was going to be too close....but it really wasn't.

Highly Recommended