But what do you do if you want to combine a love of theater with a really, really special vacation?  Broadway Across America has a very special package for very special theater fans.

Hugh Jackman will appear on Broadway in A Steady Rain

How about a Columbus Day Broadway weekend, taking in the limited engagement, A Steady Rain and the revival of Bye Bye Birdie?

A Steady Rain is about two Chicago cops whose lifelong friendship is put to the test when they become involved in a domestic dispute in a poor neighborhood in town.  It’s very limited 12 week run at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.  It stars Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig, two of the hottest hunks around these days.

The revival of Bye Bye Birdie marks its first return to Broadway in almost 50 years, with an engagement at the Henry Miller Theatre Set in 1960, teen idol Conrad Birdie has been drafted by the Army.  His manager cooks up a plan to send him off with a new song and one last kiss from a fan, all played out on the Ed Sullivan Show.  The revival stars John Stamos and Gina Gershon.

Daniel Craig will appear on Broadway in A Steady Rain

The Columbus Day Broadway Package includes:

• Roundtrip coach airfare to New York city from most major cities within the continental US
• Roundtrip airport to hotel transfers via private car service
• 3 nights hotel accommodations at the Hilton Times Square Hotel (or comparable), including tax (based on double occupancy)
• Invitation to an elegant welcome reception, including food and cocktails, on Friday, October 9th
• Orchestra/front mezzanine seats to Bye Bye Birdie on Friday, October 9th
• Invitation to a group lunch at Sardi’s, including food and beverages.  Take a look at the famous caricatures on the wall of Broadway stars and see how many you, as can recognize.  The lunch with feature a questions and answer session with Broadway performers who will share stories and be available for autographs and photos.
• Orchestra seats for A Steady Rain on Saturday, October 10th.
• Orchestra/front mezzanine seats for a third show, this one of your choice, on Sunday, October 11th.  Specific show will depend on availability, but should include a choice of Billy Elliott, Mary Poppins, Next to Normal, In the Heights, Chicago, Mamma Mia, The 39 Steps, and Rock of Ages.
• Exclusive behind-the-scenes theater tour, or a walking tour, given by a seasoned NYC Guide.
• On site management to address any concerns or needs.
• Compressive guest itineraries sent via overnight delivery

October is a great time to be in New York City.  You can spend your day shopping, enjoying the fall foliage in Central Park, or visiting one of the city’s many attractions.  Come evening, you get your theater fix.

This special package offers once in a lifetime theater opportunities, and at $2,149/person doesn’t come cheap.  But if you have a special person in your life who is a big theater buff, this getaway weekend is well worth the price.

Call (877) 284–4222 for further information and to reserve your spot.

Photo credits: Bauer Griffin

Post from: Blisstree

Spend Columbus Day Enjoying Broadway

It’s their tagline: “Because Your Business Is Your Life.” Um…hmmm….nope. No, it is not; and I hate it when banks try to pose as if they know me or my life.

As the politicians say: make no mistake — The Pet Set is profoundly important to me.

It’s creation it and development have changed my life. I stay up very late at night and wake up very early — worring about every detail and decision — from the ordinary to the momentous. But it’s not my life. My life is my life.

During the years I worked in Corporate America, THAT was my life. Morning, noon and night and then some. There was nothing else — only the prospect of making more and more money and getting to the top.

And of course there was Manhattan, my other life, at the time.

Go ahead ask me what street any popular restaurant in New York is on and I can tell you…ask me where the best place to get a cab after a Broadway show? That’s a cinch…tip any hotel doorman in the area, and you will be in a cab.

But now, my life is a bit more balanced; it’s more civilized; and it’s probably more interesting…although THAT is hard to see when it’s me, my computer and my dog.

So Visa, maybe your tagline should be “Your business may keep you up all night, but your credit card shouldn’t.” Too long?

Post from: Blisstree

A Notice To Visa Marketing Department

It’s Friday, it’s broiling — and the most energy I’d planned to expend today was to order tickets on-line to a new Broadway show, walk my dog, and maybe think about where to have cocktails this evening. But no.

This was supposed to be an effortless exercise in the design and production of a basic sales brochure for my business which I thought would be a breeze–write the copy, get a jr. designer to lay it out, get it to the printer…done.

The printer can’t open the designer’s files. The designer can’t correct his files. When I questioned the rep about what the problem could be–his answer was “it could be anything.”

When I spoke with the designer about how he sent his art to the printer, his response was, “I don’t know what could have happened.”

Meanwhile, I’ve spent most of the day on the phone, trying to get the two of them to coordinate with each other.

I think the biggest question is, why does this have to be so painful? And I think the answer lies in my expectation level. With a big job, I will over plan, over project….looking way down the road for potential problems. With smaller jobs, I tend to relax.

It’s kind of like driving…if, after a long road trip, you lower your defenses as you get closer to home, that is usually when you’ll get into an accident. Same thing here…my alertness mechanism or my fight/flight thing-ys were lowered.

But I say, c’mon guys…get this done…it’s not a shuttle mission for goodness sake.

I’m sure all of this will get done, but I do wish I could just sleep through it!

Image: flickr.com

Post from: Blisstree

Why Is It Always Something?