Broadway Buying Guide: October 31, 2022

Looking for the best deals on Broadway shows? Welcome to our new weekly guide to the most popular shows listed on BroadwayWorld.

This Week's Top Broadway Shows

1) & Juliet Buy Tickets Tickets from: $69 - & Juliet flips the script on the greatest love story ever told, imagining what would happen next if Juliet hadn't ended it all over Romeo, and got a second chance at life and love - on her terms. Juliet's new story bursts to life through a playlist of pop anthems as iconic as her name, all written by Max Martin and his collaborators, including "Since U Been Gone," "Roar," "Baby One More Time," "Larger Than Life," "That's The Way It Is," "Can't Stop the Feeling," and many more.

2) Take Me Out Buy Tickets Tickets from: $59 - Tony Award® winner Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Tony nominee Jesse Williams reprise their roles in this Tony-winning Best Play Revival, returning to Broadway for 14 weeks only! In Take Me Out, playwright Richard Greenberg celebrates the personal and professional intricacies of America's favorite pastime. When Darren Lemming, the star center fielder for the Empires, comes out of the closet, the reception off the field reveals a barrage of long-held unspoken prejudices dealing with sexuality and masculinity, money and power, and race and class. Facing some hostile teammates and fraught friendships, Darren is forced to contend with the challenges of being a gay person of color within the confines of a classic American institution. As the Empires struggle to rally toward a championship season, the players and their fans begin to question tradition, their loyalties, and the price of victory.

3) Into the Woods Buy Tickets Tickets from: $69 - Into the Woods first premiered on Broadway in 1987, winning three Tony Awards including Best Score and Best Book. It has since been produced throughout the world and was adapted into a major motion picture in 2014. This production marks its first time on Broadway in 20 years.

4) Almost Famous Buy Tickets Tickets from: $59 - The year is 1973 and it's all happening. Led Zeppelin is king, Richard Nixon is President, and idealistic 15-year-old William Miller is an aspiring music journalist. When Rolling Stone magazine hires him to go on the road with an up-and-coming band, William is thrust into the rock-and-roll circus, where his love of music, his longing for friendship, and his integrity as a writer collide. Almost Famous is about a young man finding his place in the world and the indelible characters he meets along the way. It's a celebration of community, family, fandom and the power of music.

5) The Piano Lesson Buy Tickets Tickets from: $49 - The Piano Lesson is set in Pittsburgh's Hill District in 1936. A brother and sister are locked in a war over the fate of a family heirloom: a piano carved with the faces of their ancestors. Only by revisiting history can the siblings endeavor to move forward. The Piano Lesson, wrote Frank Rich in The New York Times, "has its own spacious poetry, its own sharp angle on a nation's history, its own metaphorical idea of drama and its own palpable ghosts that roar right through the upstairs window of the household where the action unfolds. Like other Wilson plays, The Piano Lesson seems to sing even when it is talking."

6) MJ the Musical Buy Tickets Tickets from: $59 - He is one of the greatest entertainers of all time. Now, Michael Jackson's unique and unparalleled artistry has finally arrived on Broadway in a brand-new musical. Centered around the making of his 1992 Dangerous World Tour, and created by Tony Award(R)-winning Director/Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, MJ goes beyond the singular moves and Signature Sound of the star, offering a rare look at the creative mind and collaborative spirit that catapulted Jackson into legendary status. Turn it up, Broadway - MJ is here!

7) Funny Girl Buy Tickets - With music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill and book by Isobel Lennart, Funny Girl was a Broadway smash which skyrocketed Barbra Streisand to stardom. The show follows Fanny Brice, who rose from the Lower East Side of New York to become one of Broadway's biggest stars under producer Florenz Ziegfeld. While she was cheered onstage as a great comedienne, offstage she faced a doomed relationship with the man she loved. The score features now-classic songs such as "People", "You Are Woman, I Am Man" and "Don't Rain on My Parade."

8) The Music Man Buy Tickets Tickets from: $182.5 - Two-time Tony Award, Grammy Award, and Emmy Award winner Hugh Jackman will make his highly anticipated return to Broadway in what is widely agreed to be the greatest role ever created for an actor in the history of musical theater: Professor Harold Hill in Meredith Willson's beloved classic, The Music Man. Two-time Tony Award-winning musical comedy superstar Sutton Foster will star as Marian Paroo. The production, directed by four-time Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks, with choreography by Tony Award winner Warren Carlyle, will begin performances on September 9, 2020, and officially open on October 15, 2020. One of the most universally cherished treasures of the American musical theater, The Music Man was an instant smash hit when it premiered on Broadway on December 19, 1957. It went on to win five Tony Awards, including the prize for Best Musical, and ran for 1,375 performances. The Smithsonian Institution ranks The Music Man as one of the "great glories" of American popular culture.

9) A Christmas Carol Buy Tickets Tickets from: $49 - The timeless tale of Ebenezer Scrooge comes to thrilling new life as Tony Award® winner Jefferson Mays (I Am My Own Wife, Gentleman's Guide...) plays over 50 roles in a virtuosic, master class of a performance that must be seen to be believed. This theatrical achievement comes from the haunting and hope-filled vision of one of Broadway's most imaginative directors, Michael Arden (Tony-winning Best Revival - Once on this Island).

10) Beetlejuice Buy Tickets Tickets from: $69 - It's showtime, folks! The ghost-with-the-most makes his Broadway return in this edgy and irreverent musical comedy based on Tim Burton's dearly beloved film. BEETLEJUICE tells the story of Lydia Deetz, a strange and unusual teenager whose life changes when she meets a recently deceased couple and Beetlejuice, a demon with a thing for stripes. When Lydia calls on Beetlejuice to scare away anyone with a pulse, this double-crossing specter unleashes a (Nether)world of pandemonium, and the biggest sandworm Broadway has ever seen.

This Week's Top Off-Broadway Shows

1) Chester Bailey Buy Tickets Tickets from: $30 - In a stateside hospital at the close of World War II, a young man recovers from catastrophic injuries. Or so the doctors have told him. But Chester Bailey denies what's happened to him has actually happened, which is how he comes under the care of Dr. Philip Cotton. Older, wounded in his own ways, Cotton is charged with leading Chester back to reality. The journey is not what either man expected. *Chester Bailey* stars real-life father and son, Tony Award winner Reed Birney (The Humans, "House of Cards") and Ephraim Birney ("Gotham," "The Americans"), as doctor and patient, and is directed by Ron Lagomarsino (Driving Miss Daisy, "Picket Fences"). *Chester Bailey* was selected as a New York Times Critic's Pick in 2021, which called the play "as striking as a sucker punch...highly effective." The Washington Post hailed *Chester Bailey* as "a keenly observed, beautifully written tale about guilt and psychological resilience in World War II-era America, and a luminous showcase for father-son actors Reed Birney and Ephraim Birney." *Chester Bailey* had its first reading in 2012 at American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and a subsequent reading in 2015 at Irish Rep. The piece was workshopped and received its 2016 world premiere at ACT (where it won Theatre Bay Area Awards including Outstanding World Premiere Play and Outstanding Production of a Play). Since then, Reed Birney and Ephraim Birney have starred in productions at the Contemporary American Theatre Festival in West Virginia and in 2021 at Barrington Stage Company in Massachusetts. Irish Rep is proud to present the New York premiere.

2) Parade Buy Tickets Tickets from: $113 - Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Award winner Ben Platt (Dear Evan Hansen) returns to the New York stage as Leo Frank alongside Micaela Diamond (The Cher Show) as Lucille Frank in this starry Gala presentation of the Jason Robert Brown (Songs for a New World) and Alfred Uhry (Driving Miss Daisy) musical. Inspired by historical events, Parade follows the Franks-a Jewish couple living in Marietta, Georgia-as they're pulled apart and drawn together by Leo's 1913 murder trial, conviction, appeal, and eventual lynching. Brutal legal drama contrasts with haunting pastoral lyricism as an unlikely love story unfolds-a unique blend of tones that won both Brown and Uhry Tony Awards (for Original Score and Book respectively). Funds raised at all seven performances help ensure the future of City Center's founding mission: to provide all New Yorkers affordable access to world-class performing arts.

3) Straight Line Crazy Buy Tickets Tickets from: $149 - Following an acclaimed run this spring at the Bridge Theatre in London, *Straight Line Crazy*, a new play by David Hare, will have its exclusive US engagement this fall at The Shed. Starring Ralph Fiennes as Robert Moses and directed by Nicholas Hytner (*One Man, Two Guvnors*) and Jamie Armitage (*Six*), the play delves into Moses's questionable legacy and enduring impact on New York City. For 40 uninterrupted years, Moses was among the most powerful men in New York as he envisioned and built public works whose aftereffects determine how New Yorkers experience the city to this day. These public works were often realized at the expense of disempowered New Yorkers, particularly people of color, living in the way of and near his projects. The play presents an imagined retelling of the arc of Moses's controversial career in two decisive moments: his rise to power in the late 1920s and the public outcry against the corrosive effects of that power in the mid-1950s.

4) A Man Of No Importance Buy Tickets - Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty, and Terrence McNally's acclaimed musical A Man of No Importance tells the story of an amateur theater group in 1960s Dublin and their leader, bus driver Alfie Byrne. Determined to stage a production of Oscar Wilde's Salome despite the objections of local church authorities, Alfie confronts the forces of bigotry and shame over a love "that dare not speak its name." This evocative and award-winning musical illustrates the redemptive power of theater, love, and friendship, all for a man of seemingly no importance.

5) Downstate Buy Tickets Tickets from: $51 - At a registered address in downstate Illinois, four men convicted of sex crimes share a group home where they live out their days post-incarceration. When a man shows up to confront his childhood abuser, it becomes hard to locate the line between justice and retribution. This gripping, provocative new play from Pulitzer Prize winner Bruce Norris zeroes in on the limits of compassion and forgiveness.

6) Titanique Buy Tickets Tickets from: $82.5 - When the music of Céline Dion makes sweet Canadian love with the eleven-time Oscar-winning film Titanic, you get Titanique, a musical celebration that turns one of the greatest love stories of all time into a hysterical and joyful slay-fest. Featuring powerhouse voices and show-stopping numbers (plus, contemporary pop culture and punchy odes to the 90s film), Titanique is a one-of-a-kind musical voyage bursting with nostalgia & heart. It's a pure love letter comedy, fun and all things joyful! See you aboard the Ship of Dreams!
"This is f**kin' outstanding. Bravo!" -David Foster
"A CAN'T MISS!" -Buzzfeed

7) Merrily We Roll Along Buy Tickets - Starring Daniel Radcliffe, Jonathan Groff, and Lindsay Mendez! Spanning three decades in the entertainment business, Merrily We Roll Along charts the turbulent relationship between composer Franklin Shepard and his two lifelong friends - writer Mary and lyricist & playwright Charley. An inventive, cult-classic ahead of its time, Merrily We Roll Along features some of Stephen Sondheim's most celebrated and personal songs. Maria Friedman first directed the musical at London's Menier Chocolate Factory which subsequently transferred to the Harold Pinter Theatre to critical acclaim-the most five-star reviews in West End history-winning the Olivier Award for Best Musical.

8) Fiddler On The Roof Buy Tickets Tickets from: $87 - National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene's beloved Off-Broadway production of Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish is back this November in a seven-week return engagement at New World Stages, directed by Academy Award and Tony winner Joel Grey and starring Steven Skybell, who reprises his role as Tevye, a funny and honest milkman navigating family and faith in the little Russian shtetl of Anatevka.

9) Little Shop of Horrors Buy Tickets Tickets from: $69 - The world's most ravenous plant has returned to its acclaimed, sold-out run at The Westside Theatre! Winner of the 2020 Drama League, Outer Critics Circle and Drama Desk Awards for BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS is "wildly exuberant" (The Hollywood Reporter), and a New York Times Critic's Pick. This smash-hit production stars Emmy® winner and Grammy® nominee Tammy Blanchard ("Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows"), Tony® nominee Jeremy Jordan (Newsies), and two-time Tony winner Christian Borle (Something Rotten!), who won the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Lucille Lortel Awards for his performance in LITTLE SHOP. Together they bring succulent new life to a true musical landmark. Get tickets now and enjoy a taste of what we've all been craving: live theater!

10) Kinky Boots Buy Tickets Tickets from: $49 - KINKY BOOTS has inspired audiences across the globe, reminding everyone we can change the world when we change our minds. This uplifting sensation is winner of EVERY MAJOR BEST MUSICAL AWARD, including the Tony, the Grammy, and London's Olivier Award. Filled with glitter, glam and a whole lot of sole, KINKY BOOTS invites you to FEEL THE JOY all over again.