Finding Neverland on Broadway

As I mentioned in my last post, I made two trips into New York last week.

On my first trip, my husband and I attended a movie screening at the Tribeca Film Festival.  The second trip was on Saturday…an all day girls trip to see Finding Neverland on Broadway!

Six of us headed into the city on one of the most beautiful Saturdays we’ve had all spring.  Our first stop was the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre for the matinee.

We all feared that being at a matinee, we might end up with an understudy for one of the main roles.  I think I am permanently scarred from the time my mom and I arrived for Victor Victoria only to find that Julie Andrews’ part would be played by her understudy!  So, when we noticed those little white pieces of paper dropping out of everyone’s playbills, we couldn’t open ours fast enough to check!  Luckily, the main roles were all in tact – whew!

We were then able to relax as we settled into our orchestra seats with our Neverland themed mixed drinks!

I mean, c’mon, how could we resist these?…

I had a Hook’s Right Hook. – yum!
Somehow the bottom of the menu got cut off,

(and we hadn’t even had a drink when we took this picture!)

Let me start by saying that I went into this play knowing absolutely nothing about the story line.  (It is so out of character for me to not read up on something before I see it!)  All I knew was the play told the story of how Peter Pan was created.  I never even saw the Oscar winning film of the same name (with Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet).  I think it came out around the time when I was just starting my family…those baby-fog years!  In a way, I am actually glad I didn’t know the story line going in.  It made the show that much more exciting for me!

For those of you who don’t know, Finding Neverland follows the story of how London playwright, J.M. Barrie meets a widow named Sylvia who has four young sons.  Barrie’s playful demeanor makes it easy for him to develop a relationship with the family who later becomes the inspiration for Peter Pan.

Finding Neverland stars Matthew Morrison – (that cutie from Glee) and Kelsey Grammer who I have enjoyed watching most of my life!  Both of them gave incredible performances and had me smiling throughout the play…well except for the sad parts.  I really didn’t expect it to be so moving but I honestly loved every minute of it!  Funny, sad, bittersweet and magical…what more could you want in a play?

What more could you want?  How about meeting some of the cast? After the show, we hung out by the stage door…just in case!

Matthew Morrison

One of the boys.

Carolee Carmello

Paul Slade Smith

Who I must say was a doll.  He took the time to chat and laugh with us.

(He played Mr. Henshaw and dressed up as Nana the dog for the “play” scene in the show.)

And speaking of Nana…

I caught up with the dog handlers as they were leaving the theater with these two cuties!  Apparently, they use twin dogs (like the Olsen twins!) to play the part of Nana.  How nice of them to pose for us!

I couldn’t resist…

(My dog, Rosie was jealous…)

If you are in New York, I definitely recommend you see Finding Neverland!

We ended the day with an early dinner at Aquagrill down in SoHo.  LOVED it!  So many incredible choices on the menu and our waiter was a character!  We shared a bunch of appetizers and half the table sampled a variety of oysters.  I am not a big oyster fan but the three of them were in heaven!  If you are an oyster lover, this is the restaurant you need to visit in New York.   For dinner, I devoured the Halibut special which could not have been more delicious…and don’t even get me started on the desserts!  Yes, we all managed to find room for them!  Which reminds me, I need to go for a walk!

Great day, great company and a reminder that we have to plan more outings like this one!

Have you seen any plays on Broadway lately?