Okay, time to finally finish writing this New York trip report (from January!) and bring it out of draft status:
On (a very rainy) Saturday afternoon we went to the New York Public Library, to see a couple of exhibits, both of which we really enjoyed. One was called “The Splendor of the Word,” and features medieval and Renaissance illuminated manuscripts. We both took a bunch of nonflash photos, but only upon our leaving the gallery did a guard notice my camera and tell me that photography of any kind was not allowed in this exhibit. Oops, oh well. Another exhibit is called “Treasured Maps” (runs through Apr. 9), and totally tapped into our interest in cartography, especially ancient maps. (One day I hope to start a collection of my own.)
That night we went to see Chita Rivera’s show, The Dancer’s Life. Wow. It’s so great to see a legend in great form. She’s still got all the moves and charisma. After the show Thom and I met up with Jere (fellow blogger and one-time sublessor in absentia) whom we were glad to finally meet in person. What a great guy. We all chatted the night away, first at a coffee shop (which closed shortly after we got there; apparently the city never sleeps, but this coffee shop does, early) and then at a bar.
Thom and I spent early Sunday afternoon at the Museum of Television & Radio, where we caught a couple of screenings, including part of a Muppets retrospective and “An Advertising Album 1950-2004,” a fascinating museum-produced compilation of iconic TV commercials, one from each year. (The commercial for 1962, Thom’s birth year, was for Cracker Jack; the one for my year, 1977, was for Miller Lite. Yes, “tastes great, less filling” was around even then.) After our museum visit, we went to see Altar Boyz, a fantastic musical about a fictitious Christian boyband (we still hum the tunes now and then, and I think they totally need to come out with an accompanying workout video), and Dog Sees God, a darkly funny play that catches up with the Peanuts gang as angsty teenagers. (The cast included Ian Somerhalder as the Pigpen-type character. Our seats were in the second row, which at one point afforded us a nice view of a mostly naked Ian, clad only in boxer shorts in one scene.)
On Monday, we decided to surprise Jere and see him in The Bully (presented by Vital Theatre Company), a musical for children in which Jere plays one of the bully’s minions. After a quick stroll into Central Park on the way to the show, we were greeted at the theater by a “sold out” sign. Undeterred, we put ourselves on a waiting list for tickets and eventually a couple of seats opened up, so thankfully we didn’t have to strong-arm any eight-year-olds out of the way. It’s a cute show! Afterwards we stood in line with the kiddies to have Jere sign our programs and he was delighted to see us.
Thom and I rounded out the afternoon with a visit to MoMA for the Pixar exhibit, which included a lot of artwork and other items from their animated movies. One highlight was a huge zoetrope with characters from Toy Story. I know I’m going to have trouble explaining it, so if you’re interested, check out these blurbs. (A simple zoetrope is a rotating slitted cylinder with images on the inside that simulate movement when you look through the slits; this Pixar one uses a strobe light and variously posed figures on a carousel-like platform.)
By the way, we’ve stayed at a few different places on our trips to New York; our hotel this time was the Super 8 on W. 46th Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It’s part of the Apple Core group, which is no frills to be sure, but usually has reasonable rates and offers free wi-fi (fast becoming our top criterion in choosing hotels).
Check out my Flickr set for photos from this and other New York trips; our next one is scheduled for June!
