LONDON – August in London is for tourists. They throng the sidewalks, cram into the restaurants, mob the museums and fill the theaters.
Just as many visitors to New York must see at least one Broadway show, so London visitors are drawn to the West End theater.
For the theatrically minded New Yorker, it can be tricky finding the right show to see. Many now on in London are either still in New York or have already been on Broadway and departed.
A quick rundown of West End offerings reveals six shows currently on Broadway, plus a remarkable 14 shows that have already shuttered or shattered in the tougher climes of Manhattan.
Admittedly, these 14 include such chestnuts as Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap,” still loaded with tourist cheese after more than 48 years, and such unlikely survivors as that oddly enjoyable musical about Buddy Holly, “Buddy,” which, while faring only modestly on Broadway, is still a chart topper in London.
Seeing such shows as “The Mousetrap” in London is for some visitors a ritual tantamount to watching the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace – and, I imagine, just about as lively.
So, for the sophisticated traveler, the choice might well be limited to shows that are due to come to New York next season or the season after. Catching them now gives you back-home bragging rights: “It’s good, but you should have seen the original production back in London. Now, that was a show!”
Getting in isn’t always easy, however. You may want to see the absolutely marvelous ABBA musical “Mamma Mia!” which is due on Broadway, and which I caught in London last year, but your chances are dim.
Even the ads bear the warning note: “Apply daily in person for returns.”
Only the kind of stalwart willing to line up in Central Park for hours and hours to get into “The Seagull” need apply. The rest would be better off going to “Buddy.”
And, by the way, if you think it’s easier to get into “The Lion King” in London than it is in New York, think again.
More possible is another Broadway-bound show, Joe Penhall’s exhilarating tragicomedy “Blue/Orange.” The show has a different cast from the one I saw last year, but I understand this grimly illuminating battle between two white shrinks on the rights and wrongs of releasing a black patient from custodial care remains as hilarious as ever.
Another certainty for Broadway’s new season is the wonderful staging of “Oklahoma!” by Cameron Mackintosh, Trevor Nunn and the National Theater – a show that’s been waiting in the wings for nearly three years and is no longer in London. Presumably, it will arrive on Broadway without its stunning original star, Hugh Jackman.
The Mackintosh/Nunn/National banner still flies over the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, where the acclaimed production of “My Fair Lady” reigns triumphant. I have yet to see it, but it’s said to be penciled in for Broadway’s 2002-3 season.
Tickets here are, if anything, even tougher to get than those for “Mamma Mia!”
Two other shows due for New York are Terry Johnson’s surprisingly quite apt adaptation of that iconically 1960s movie “The Graduate”and the revival of Michael Frayn’s brilliant comedy “Noises Off.” (“The Graduate” is coming to New York with the original stage Mrs. Robinson, Kathleen Turner, set to return to her briefly unclad role.)
But if you want adventure with the promise of moderately certain returns, I suggest the three stages of the National Theater.
The Royal Shakespeare Company has enchanting production of Goldoni’s “A Servant of Two Masters,” with a great performance from Jason Watkins as the classic clown, Truffaldino. This is a production straight from a North American tour that omitted New York.
Some final hints about London theatergoing: Don’t go to ticket agencies or use hotel concierges without first trying the theater box office. And your trip to the theater can easily incorporate some sightseeing.
Also, remember that there is a reduced-price ticket agency in Leicester Square, which, like the TKTS booths in New York, offers many shows, especially matinees, at half-price or little more.