My cousin from Ponce called me last month in a panic. She’d bought tickets to her first Broadway show and suddenly had forty questions and nobody to ask. So I wrote down everything I told her, in order, from the day you buy to the moment you’re standing at the curtain call. This is the list I wish somebody had handed me.
Before the day
Buy from the official seller. The show’s own website links to its official ticketing outlet, and the theater has a box office. Resale sites aren’t illegal, but they can mark tickets way up and you can end up with a fake. If a price looks too good on a site you’ve never heard of, walk away. Want it cheaper the honest way? Rush, lottery and the TKTS booth, which I break down in how to get cheap Broadway tickets.
Know your seat. Orchestra is the ground floor, mezzanine is up one level, balcony is up top. Front mezzanine is the best-kept secret on Broadway and I will not be taking questions. Here’s the full argument, and every house has its own page in our theater guide with the levels, the seat count and the nearest train.
Check the running time and the curtain. It’s on the show’s site. We explain how long Broadway shows run and why curtain times move around during the week.
Decide what to wear, then stop worrying. There’s no dress code. Imani’s take is the one to read, and her best advice is to bring a layer because the houses run cold.
The night of
Arrive thirty minutes early. Doors usually open half an hour before curtain. You need that time.
Expect a bag check. Most theaters check bags at the door. Travel light. A big suitcase or backpack is a headache, and some houses won’t let it in at all.
Grab your Playbill. The usher hands you one when they show you to your seat, and it’s free. It has the cast list, the bios, and a slip of paper if an understudy is on tonight. That’s not bad news, mija. Read why the understudy is the show.
Use the coat check if there is one. Not every house has one, and the ones that do usually charge a few dollars. It’s still better than three hours with your winter coat on your lap.
Go to the restroom before you sit. I’m serious. At intermission the women’s line in an old Broadway house is a lesson in patience.
Drinks and snacks are sold in the lobby. Many shows let you bring them to your seat in a lidded souvenir cup. It costs what it costs.
During the show
Phone off. Not silent, off. The glow from a screen in a dark house is visible from the stage, and everybody behind you can see it. And no photos or video during the performance. The etiquette guide covers when to clap, what happens if you’re late, and the rest.
Intermission is about fifteen minutes. Stretch, get a drink, and get back before the lights blink, because blinking lights mean the show is about to start again. Some plays have no intermission at all, so check before you settle in with a big drink.
After
Stay for the bows. The whole company comes out for the curtain call. Clapping for it is part of the show, and leaving during it is rude to the people who just worked for two and a half hours.
Want to meet the cast? Walk around to the stage door. Imani wrote the stage door guide so you don’t embarrass yourself there.
That’s the whole list. Do those things and you’ll be fine. And if a word in the Playbill throws you, swing or standby or eleven o’clock number, our Broadway glossary explains every one of them. Bienvenida. Now go enjoy it.
