No Bad Seats?
No Bad Seats?
#1No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/10/19 at 10:42am
I'm sort of an theatre-architecture fanatic, and feel like the expression 'Not a bad seat in the house' is severely overused. Are there any Broadway theatres that you believe really don't have any bad seats, in terms of view/experience, etc? If not, what theatres come the closest?
Updated On: 8/10/19 at 10:42 AM
VotePeron
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/2/13
#2No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/10/19 at 10:48am
No, I don’t believe such a theater exists. I would say the current production in a theater dictates whether there is a bad seat or not.
When it comes to sight lines, there are definitely some theaters with specific architecture that make it more comfortable no matter the show. These are some theaters off the top of my head that have very limited, if any, partial view locations in the orchestra level:
- Circle in the Square
- Marquis
- Palace
- Minskoff
- Friedman
BWAY Baby2
Broadway Star Joined: 11/10/14
#3No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/10/19 at 11:08am
Saw Fun Home at Circle In The Square- had very close orchestra seats on the side- which were awful. They did not state that there was a partial view- but because of the staging, characters were continually blocked - hated this seats-and actually do not like that theater- have seen a few in the round productions- and if not staged really carefully, in the round can be not great.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#4No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/10/19 at 12:26pm
The Hudson is pretty terrific.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
Broadway Joe
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/15/10
#5No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/10/19 at 2:43pm
dramamama611 said: "The Hudson is pretty terrific."
The Hudson is my favorite theatre, the leg space there is great and I've sat in the very last row of the balcony and had a fantastic view as well.
For other theatres I've never sat in a bad seat at the Friedman either.
The rest of the theatres depend on the production for me.
#6No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 12:58am
The newer/renovated theaters are the most comfortable - The Hudson and The Lyric.
As far as sight lines go, I don’t think there’s a bad view at The Music Box.
"Oh look at the time, three more intelligent plays just closed and THE ADDAMS FAMILY made another million dollars" -Jackie Hoffman, Broadway.com Audience Awards
ErmengardeStopSniveling
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/20/18
#7No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 1:44am
It also depends on the set design/staging/choreography for each show.
I take "not a bad seat in the house" to mean "partial view are the only bad seats in the house." It's a marketing buzzword. I personally hate sitting in the rear of any mezz that has a balcony hanging above it (Shubert!), but I know others who have liked those seats; for a play, sometimes I'd prefer to sit partial-view in the 5th row of the orch if it means seeing 90% of the action up close, instead of mezz seats.
Like others have said, the crown jewel Shubert playhouses are pretty good, as are the recently-renovated houses.
UncleCharlie
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/26/16
#8No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 1:59am
IdinaBellFoster said: "The newer/renovated theaters are the most comfortable - The Hudson and The Lyric.
As far as sight lines go, I don’t think there’s a bad view at The Music Box."
The Music Box has always been one of my favorite theaters. I'm also pretty partial to the Vivian Beaumont. Pretty clean sight lines there from almost any seat.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#9No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 5:58amYes to the Beaumont!
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
theatered100
Chorus Member Joined: 3/14/17
#10No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 6:46am
Maybe Barrymore can be added to the list?
I think it also depends on the show itself. Some shows have two-story sets while others don’t. Some shows have beautiful lighting and/or projections you might not want to miss.
I sat in very similar seats (almost exactly the same number) for Once on This Island and Oklahoma! at Circle in the Square. I thought my seat for Oklahoma! was fine, but I didn’t quite like my seat for OOTI because of the aisle they created in front of my seat—I was seeing Lea Salonga’s back for most of the first act because she was frequently using and staying on the aisle.
broadway213
Chorus Member Joined: 5/8/19
#11No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/11/19 at 11:41pm
Some of the seats over to the sides (i.e. the "Orchestra boxes"
at the palace are absolutely awful. I have sat all over at the booth- all the way back and all the way to the sides) and never had too much obstruction...
#12No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/12/19 at 7:16amThe Hudson came immediately to mind. I’ve also never had a bad seat at the gershwin.
#13No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/12/19 at 11:36pm
ChildofEarth said: "The Hudson came immediately to mind. I’ve also never had a bad seat at the gershwin."
Gershwin was the one I was going to name drop as well. I have sat all over that theatre over the years and the view has always been perfect from where seat and angle I have sat in. Even when I sat off to the side and up close for Wicked once. Yeah you missed some of the upstage stuff but that comes with the set design and it was still a great view for 95% of the show.
#14No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/13/19 at 12:34am
I've sat in many places in the Imperial from the nosebleeds to the mezzanine to rear orchestra to front orchestra and the sightline was always good and I never felt too far away or too close. So ... that's the house I'd say has no bad seats.
chrishuyen
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/12/14
#15No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/13/19 at 1:03pm
Just to counter the Imperial, I was at the very end of a row in the mezz for Les Miserables and about a third of the stage was blocked (coudn't see Fantine for I Dreamed a Dream or Valjean for Bring Him Home), but I haven't been in that area for any other production so it could depend.
+1 to Friedman, Gershwin, and Marquis though from what I could tell. And CITS provides a different experience from each seat so "bad" is pretty subjective there.
#16No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/29/19 at 11:43am
I have to say, having seen Come From Away for the first time yesterday (in a partial view seat!) I think the Schoenfeld is now in the top 3 of my favorite Broadway theatres. What a lovely intimate space for a show. I know the partial view seats would be more problematic for shows with different set designs, but they were fantastic for CFA. 
#17No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/29/19 at 12:08pm
broadway213 said: "Some of the seats over to the sides (i.e. the "Orchestra boxes",) at the palace are absolutely awful. I have sat all over at the booth- all the way back and all the way to the sides) and never had too much obstruction..."
I've only seen one production at the Booth, dead last Mezz, but was still felt like a great seat. Never felt too far from the stage and was a lot better than I was expecting when I saw my seat.
Broadway61004
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/14/11
#18No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/29/19 at 1:13pm
I'd add the Golden to the list as well--rear mezzanine isn't great simply because of how steep it feels, but it's still a perfectly clear view of the stage.
#19No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/29/19 at 5:31pm
DoTheDood said: "broadway213 said: "Some of the seats over to the sides (i.e. the "Orchestra boxes",) at the palace are absolutely awful. I have sat all over at the booth- all the way back and all the way to the sides) and never had too much obstruction..."
I've only seen one production at the Booth,dead last Mezz, but was still felt like a great seat. Never felt too far from the stage and was a lot better than I was expecting when I saw my seat."
The booth like most of the smaller theaters problems is its front side orchestra. They have horrible sightlines. I remember sitting in the 3rd row for the Letts/Moreton revival of Whose Afraid of Virgina Wolfe? Which was right after a renovation at literally starred at a wall for half of the production. The same thing happened again when I saw The Glass Menagerie there. I honestly wondered who designed the new seating arrangement, as its not like I was staring at the proscenium, but an actual wall of the theater. It was even worse at The Glass Menagerie because there was a “water moat” in the front half of the set, so the play took place on the back 2/3 of the stage, with about 1/3 of that are out of my sightline.
#20No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/29/19 at 5:45pm
The same thing happened again when I saw The Glass Menagerie there. I honestly wondered who designed the new seating arrangement, as its not like I was staring at the proscenium, but an actual wall of the theater. It was even worse at The Glass Menagerie because there was a “water moat” in the front half of the set, so the play took place on the back 2/3 of the stage, with about 1/3 of that are out of my sightline."
While I LOVED that production of Menagerie and thought the set was stunning, I remember feeling far away even with my seat in the front row of the Mezzanine. I wish the whole set had been moved forward several feet.
magictodo123
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/18/19
#22No Bad Seats?
Posted: 8/30/19 at 7:53am
I don't think there's a bad seat at the Lyric Theater? I sat in the literal last seat in the last row of the balcony and the only time I had trouble was if someone taller sat in front of me. Otherwise I think it's a fantastic theater!
