Showtime!

Today started with another bagel shop: PopUp Bagels, a relatively new chain specializing in hot bagels with a tub of cream cheese. The bagels are not served cut; you’re supposed to tear off pieces and dunk the pieces in the tub of cream cheese. The bagels were very good, despite the shtick. Hey Bagel in Seattle seems to do something similar, though we haven’t tried them yet.

We then went in separate directions so that Amy could buy a Broadway ticket for tonight while Greg looked for a new camera at B&H. Greg’s trip was a success:: he liked the new Sony a6700, got a good trade-in for his older camera, and got a few extras thrown into the package. Amy’s trip to the TKTS booth was not successful: the shows that interested her hadn’t released tickets for the evening. After meeting at the hotel, we got lunch at The Original Soup Kitchen, made famous in Seinfeld. No, there was no Soup Nazi. Neither was there any Mulligatawny soup. And we make better soup at home. But of course, we’re not at home.

Next, we had tickets for a matinee performance of the Buena Vista Social Club. Before we arrived, we walked past a man who complemented Amy’s dress. When Amy said thanks, he followed us and pestered us, eventually turning to profanity and racial slurs. Stay classy, New York! We lost him in a crowd, then got in line for admission to the theater. Thankfully, the show was so amazing that we practically forgot about our heckler. Greg heard about the play on NPR: it’s a Broadway adaptation of the movie. The story is about Cuban jazz singers at the time of the Cuban revolution, told in two timelines: at the time of the revolution, and later reminiscences of the old days. Everything was fantastic: acting, dancing, singing. The best part was the onstage Cuban jazz band.

When the play ended, Amy hurried to TKTS and found they had released tickets to more evening performances, so Amy got a ticket to Hadestown. Greg had other plans: to hear the Boston Symphony at Carnegie Hall. Greg enjoyed the concert of Beethoven and Shostakovich, especially with a great orchestra in a great hall. It’s a rare treat to get two live performances in a single day