Your Guide to Broadway Show Tickets

Broadway Theatre in New York

The thrill of stepping onto Broadway is incomparable! A feverish excitement sets in before a show. As the lights dim, the animated chatter dies down and the audience collectively holds its breath -- the bright red curtain draws and the stage is set on fire with vivacious story-telling, stellar acting and a combination of brilliant music, set designs and costumes. The world’s finest theatre musicals and plays take place on Broadway in New York City.

It was in the late 1700s that lady theatre greeted New York City, essentially shaping its future as a cultural hub. The first few plays performed were from Shakespeare’s works, including Hamlet, after which works by other playwrights slowly gained popularity. The Phantom of the Opera is one of the longest running broadway shows, having debuted on 26 January 1988.

Today, for a play or musical to appear on Broadway, it must be held in any one of the 40 professional theatres that have a seating capacity of 500 or more. It is one of the highest honors for any theatre artist, director or producer, to have their show on Broadway.

What is the difference between Broadway and Off-Broadway shows?

Broadway’s other side, quieter and relatively lesser known outside the theatre circle, is Off-Broadway. The primary distinction between Broadway and Off-Broadway is the theatre size: Off-Broadway theatres generally have between 99-499 seats, while Broadway theatres have more than 500 seats.

Some of the most popular Off-Broadway shows, musicals and plays include ‘The Vagina Monologues’, ‘Spring Awakening’, ‘The Wild Night’, ‘Love, Loss and What I Wore’ and ‘Rent’ among others.

What are the different types of Broadway and Off-Broadway shows?

The two main types of Broadway and Off-Broadway shows are musicals and plays.

Broadway Play: A Broadway play uses spoken word and dialogue to tell a story. While plays can also include music and/or dance sequences, they’re mainly used as tools to enhance story-telling. Popular plays include Hamlet, The Importance of Being Earnest, Romeo and Juliet, Waiting for Godot and Pygmalion among others.

Broadway Musical: A musical primarily uses music and dance to tell a story. It can also include dialogues in the form of narration or conversation to imbibe a sense of continuity into the story. While a musical can function as a play, a play cannot be a musical. Some of the most popular musicals on Broadway are The Lion King, The Phantom of the Opera, Cats and Hamilton.

Metropolitan Opera

During the 1800s, while the world raved about musicians at legendary opera houses across Vienna and London, the elite folk of New York decided to establish their own opera and theatre scene: with this, New York’s premier Metropolitan Opera was born.

The Lincoln Centre in New York City is home to the Metropolitan Opera. It was built back in ‘66 by famed architect, Wallace K. Harrison and the first play to be performed at the Met Opera was Antony and Cleopatra,. The Met Opera, today, has the largest seating capacity in the world with 3,800 seats.

Talented powerhouses from across the world have performed at the Met. Names such as Arturo Toscanini, Elīna Garanča and Luciano Pavarotti have graced Lincoln Centre. Opera shows are performed in all languages, including Italian and French. Some of the most popular shows are Aida, La Boheme, Madame Butterfly, La Traviata and Carmen among others.

New York City Ballet

In 1933, a young, bright-eyed Lincoln Kirstein, approached 20-year-old George Balanchine -- perhaps the most influential choreographer of the 20th Century -- in London, to lay the stepping stone for what is known today as the prestigious New York City Ballet. Balanchine’s vast knowledge of traditional Russian ballet and Kirstein’s passion for revolutionising dance came together to establish New York City as the home of modern ballet. Prominent performers include Maria Tallchief, Patricia McBride, Violette Verdy and Melissa Hayden among others.

The NYC Ballet calls David H. Koch Theatre at Lincoln Centre, home. Over 150 shows have been featured by the NYC Ballet till date. The most successful and popular ballet is Balanchine’s timeless musical, the Nutcracker, running for more than 40 years now.

The New York ballet platform also extends beyond the New York City Ballet. Other venues that feature ballet companies include the American Ballet Theatre, The Joyce Theatre, Brooklyn Academy of Music and Brooklyn Centre.

Broadway Theatres

Broadway theaters are huge. One important defining characteristic for a theater to be classified as a Broadway theater is that it has to have a minimum of 500 seats and selecting the right seat is essential to how your Broadway experience turns out. However, this can be challenging since each theatre -- on and off Broadway -- is designed with different seating arrangements.
Seats in a Broadway house are usually spread across three sections.

Before booking Broadway show tickets, here’s some basic seating information. Most theatres are divided into three sections: Orchestra, Front Mezzanine and Rear Mezzanine. Some also come with Balcony/Box seats that offer a private view of the show.

Orchestra

The Orchestra is the section closest to the stage and it offers the best views in the house. Along with the views, sitting here will place you closer to the action, making your Broadway experience that much more intimate. When it comes to pricing, seats in the front center of the Orchestra are the most expensive while seats in the back and to the sides are relatively cheaper. If the seats are available, we recommend you try to sit as close to the stage as possible and if not, go for the side seats in the Orchestra or the first few rows in the Mezzanine.

Mezzanine

The Mezzanine is the first elevated seating section of the theater. The first few rows of the Mezzanine offer stunning panoramic views of the stage and are often considered to be among the best seats in the house. Located above the Orchestra, seats in the Mezzanine will have you looking down at the stage rather than looking up. Though the front central seats in the Mezzanine are sometimes as costly as central Orchestra seats, most of the section is relatively cheaper and offers the perfect combination of good views and affordable pricing.

Balcony

Though some theaters are limited to only Orchestra and Mezzanine seats, many of the larger theaters have an additional Balcony section. The Balcony is a level above the Mezzanine and also the furthest away from the stage. The cheapest seats in a Broadway house are often found in the Balcony section. Though you do get to see most of the stage from a bird’s-eye view, to place yourself so far away from the stage is quite a compromise to make.

Some of the most popular theatres on Broadway are Lyric Theatre, Richard Rodgers Theatre, Marquis Theatre, Vivian Beaumont Theatre and New Amsterdam Theatre among others.

For more information on theatres in NYC, selecting the best seats and knowing which to avoid, read our detailed guide. (add these two paras to the main website page)

Broadway Show Tickets

The Broadway district is always crowded with theatre enthusiasts. Getting on-the-spot tickets for your favorite show can often be challenging in this case.

Where to buy Broadway show tickets?

Some of the most popular options to buy broadway show tickets are theatre box office, lottery giveaways, SRO, Rush, Lottery giveaways, TKTS booths and online portals such as broadway-show-ticket.com, telecharge and ticketmaster. However, the best way to avoid missing out on a good show is by booking your Broadway tickets online. There are several benefits to purchasing Broadway tickets online:

• Perhaps the best benefit of booking your Broadway show tickets online is that you can avoid waiting in long lines at the box office. This way, you don’t have to worry about missing out on tickets or having to skip the beginning of the show.
• You can book a show months in advance. Since most Broadway shows open ticket sales 2-3 months before the show premiers, you can book your Broadway tickets online and plan your day accordingly.
• By booking your Broadway show tickets online in advance, you can pick and choose the seat of your choice and enjoy the best view of the stage.

Make bookings on broadway-show-tickets.com to get instant booking confirmation, great offers and discounts, avoid waiting in queues and most importantly, select a seat in the theatre section of your choice.

Why broadway-show-tickets.com?

Once you’ve decided on a Broadway show, musical or play or Off-Broadway show to watch, you can make a booking online. Simply select your show on broadway-show-tickets.com -- mobile or web platform -- select the date and seat of your choice and voila! You have your Broadway tickets in hand.

There are several benefits to purchasing your tickets from us.

Verified Tickets: You get verified tickets and booking confirmation, straight from the box office. All your bookings and payments are 100% secure.

Choose Your Seats: By booking your Broadway show tickets online, you can also pick and choose the seat of your choice to enjoy the best view of the stage.

Discounts: Get the lowest prices. Enjoy exclusive discounts up to 70% off on your favorite shows!

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