Venues

[zerbinetta]

bart: re the Old Met - it's been a long time & I was rather a mini-person last time I was there but wasn't the footprint larger than the New Met? I remember it as a more European style of theater, the parterre boxes were certainly closer (or maybe my eyesight was better?), the layout more aesthetically pleasing & the upper tiers more comfortable. The only time I did Standing Room I was about 4 years of age & the protective grille (which was beautiful) was perfect for sticking skinny 4-year-old legs through to dangle so I could sit through Don Carlo.

The New Met, which I have to love because I spend so much time there, is taller & bulkier & has a larger seating capacity but somehow seems less spacious & gracious. Or perhaps the passage of time has lent a glamor which may be partly imagination.

& yes, carbro, that staircase does go somewhere.

4mrdncr: I've been in the Wang a few times & it certainly never reminded me of the Palais Garnier.

The Palais Loew, perhaps. This sounds like a bit of Boston hyperbole to me.

[sandik]

LOS ANGELES:

Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (Music Center): A sort of 'knock-off' of Lincoln Center with a wider campus and more water, but still white (travertine?) stone and arches--more narrow and many more than the Met. It too had a grand staircase--but I do think it actually led up to the Mezz/balcony levels. I remember very tall long gold drapes at the windows--lots of windows. Inside (can only speak of Mezz/balconies because that's where I sat most) seats were very comfortable, spacing was okay, and I never remember a sightline problem, or a problem with tall/large person in front of me--which may have meant they were raked or staggered more than elsewhere? Color scheme was peachy and gold (to warm up that stone again?) The hall itself is wider than taller. ABT and Joffrey both seemed to do okay there, and filled the house most nights without a problem.

I saw the Matthew Bourne "Play Without Words" here a couple years ago up in the nosebleed seats and had no trouble with sightlines or obstructions. It seemed like a pretty functional place, though I was glad that my hotel was nearby and I didn't have to negotiate the traffic to get there.

[4mrdncr]

yes, carbro, that staircase does go somewhere.

4mrdncr: I've been in the Wang a few times & it certainly never reminded me of the Palais Garnier.

The Palais Loew, perhaps. This sounds like a bit of Boston hyperbole to me.

RE: Wang Ctr: That's what I was told after the renovation; having never been inside the Palais Garnier, I can't compare, so I'll take your word for it. But there really is a LOT of gold/marble (real/fake?) in that lobby, and trim inside. Personally, I was just glad they reupholstered the seats.

RE: Met staircase--Yup, I do the same as carbro...take the Grand Staircase and then all the other side stairs to my assigned upper level--why would I wait for a hot, stuffy, slow elevator? (I also always take the stairs to the 4th Circle at NYST.) Have to watch heels though, in Chicago, I managed to go down the stairs rather suddenly scaring everyone but myself. The Met's Grand Staircase only seems to go up one level--or down to lower concourse/garage area--and for other more lofty levels you have to take the 'secret' or side stairs. It's not to nowhere really--just truncated for a supposedly central staircase.

[AmandaNYC]

Just hopping in now.

I am done with going to City Center unless I want to spluge on front Mezz. For ABT last Fall, I had seats in the balcony (is that what is behind the mezz?) in the center section and they were truly PARTIAL view seats. I could barely see half the stage. The people in front of us were not even that tall. And the people next to me had problems, and they were not short like I. While I didn't purchase the most expensive seats, I still paid good money, and had an awful time. It was the most miserable experience I ever had at a performance. Even worse than having wrapper crinkling, coughing, talking audience members nearby. I realize the theater is old, and they would have to raise a ton of money to renovate a balacony. But, I had no idea when I purchased my seats that I would have half the stage obscured.

My one reprieve was running into someone I knew who was leaving before the final ballet. She gave me her first row mezz seats. WHAT a difference!

The Met seems like a great house for watching dance when compared to City Center.

-amanda

[drb]

Absolutely agree, Amanda. What a catastrophe that next year the Mariinsky will be there. Also, they promise Bayadere's Kingdom of the Shades! Even ABT's smaller version would not fit that little stage...

[Dale]

Ditto on Amanda and drb with regards to City Center. I almost dread going there because I never know how I'm going to have my view obscured. Even some seats in the orchestra are bad because there is almost no incline. I think critics talk up City Center because when you have a good seat there, it is amazing. A very intimate experience. But for most everybody else....