Great Comet Seating Thread- Page 8

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 2/23/17 at 4:40pm

Southpaw2 said: "Luscious et al, that's very helpful. Being a nerd, I used the Power of Windows Paint to overlay the names of rows in question. See my image below. Can't make up my mind about these! I just don't want to end up in seats that Groban faces away from during crucial scenes, etc. Any help appreciated - this is a big expense for us and I want to make sure I get it right! :)



 

"

I don't know what to tell you. For the most part he plays out to the orchestra... I didn't miss much in the mezzanine but sometimes, particularly in act 2, he turns to face the banquettes. I don't remember exactly but I think even the people in SE would have to turn to try to look into his face. I will say the people in the SE seats experienced a lot of audience interaction and had to move around a lot. There was some interaction in the SA and SB seats but I noticed them moving around to get a better look less often. 

[eugenia2]

Posted: 2/23/17 at 8:16pm

I have been all over the theater from last row of upper mezz to seats in the midst of the action on stage.  My absolute favorite has been first row of banquettes, stage right, as close to the outer wall as you can get. But only if you like a lot of interaction with the cast. :) this is primarily marked up for groban fans. 

https://www.dropbox.com/home?preview=comet+view+marked.JPG

gold X is where groban comes out to start the show

yellow seats on first row of bench seating - tons of action on top of you and in the aqua area

green X is Dust & Ashes ending behind brass railing.  starts at piano in oval.  behind the X is a group of string musicians. 

gray looped stage seating is right under him. if you go for table seating there, try to get front chairs, closer to oval. will get shaker, maybe letter.

pink on either side of oval are great seats. will get shaker. maybe letter. 

red splotch is piano where jg on occasion plays. Or Matias is dynamic!!

lavender is desk where jg sits and ponders, filled with angst. LOL ... and where fight scene takes place. 

blue circle is drums he plays

white arrow is stairs where jg goes in and out as do other actors.  

tan splotch is front of mezzanine where groban wanders. 

in case anyone wonders, that chandelier that looks like it is blocking your view of the oval rises up at the start of the show. 

Updated On: 4/10/17 at 08:16 PM

[canadian fan]

Posted: 2/23/17 at 8:44pm

Luscious, nice to hear from you and that you enjoyed your Banquette seats. Last time I read your thoughts on this topic you had seen this show from the orchestra and were quite disappointed with your original stage seats. (I think) You had pinpointed BC 21/23 as the seats you thought were the best and you were going to buy tickets for another performance and snag those seats. Based on your thoughts I traded my first row mezz seats for those exact seats when we are seeing the show in May. Nice to hear you thought those seats were great! :)

[canadian fan]

Posted: 2/23/17 at 8:49pm

Thank you Eugenia2, that is an awesome illustration! 

[Luscious]

Posted: 2/23/17 at 11:48pm

canadian fan said: "Luscious, nice to hear from you and that you enjoyed your Banquette seats. Last time I read your thoughts on this topic you had seen this show from the orchestra and were quite disappointed with your original stage seats. (I think) You had pinpointed BC 21/23 as the seats you thought were the best and you were going to buy tickets for another performance and snag those seats. Based on your thoughts I traded my first row mezz seats for those exact seats when we are seeing the show in May. Nice to hear you thought those seats were great! :) "

canadian fan... I think you're going to love those seats! Enjoy the show when you see it in May and please report back with your thoughts.

Southpaw2... If money is no object, I'd go for the TP seats. Those are excellent seats. You can't go wrong. The SB seats are very good. It's like sitting at a bar and you're facing Groban most of the time that he's in Pierre's Salon. But you'll have to turn your head to see what's going on in the orchestra and mezz. As far as stage seats go, the best bang for your buck is still the banquette seats, and my friend and I loved our seats (BC 21/23). Those seats have just enough height to give you a really nice overview of the entire stage. We had a clear unobstructed view of everything happening on stage, in the orchestra and in the front and rear mezz. And we both got a pierogi and a shaker! I would steer clear of SE and SA, the least desirable, in my opinion, being the SE seats. The SE seats are set lower and face the stage, so you'll have your back to the orchestra and won't see what's happening behind you or in the mezz. Hope this helps.

 

Updated On: 2/24/17 at 11:48 PM

[willep]

Posted: 2/24/17 at 12:59am

For what it is worth, I sat in one of the SA armchairs and felt like I had the best seat in the house. Pierre has his back to you when he plays the piano, but there is a drum about three feet from you that he plays a couple times. At one point he put his glass down right next to me, and during his dancing in The Abduction, he shook his butt in my face. Also got lots of interaction with Helene, Balaga, Dolokov and many of the ensemble. The swiveling chair makes it easy to look around at everything. I would sit there again in a heartbeat.

[eugenia2]

Posted: 2/24/17 at 8:42am

willep said: "For what it is worth, I sat in one of the SA armchairs and felt like I had the best seat in the house. Pierre has his back to you when he plays the piano, but there is a drum about three feet from you that he plays a couple times. At one point he put his glass down right next to me, and during his dancing in The Abduction, he shook his butt in my face. Also got lots of interaction with Helene, Balaga, Dolokov and many of the ensemble. The swiveling chair makes it easy to look around at everything. I would sit there again in a heartbeat.

agree. i sat in SA1. and actually gasped at the fight scene.  I happened to have a drink so ended up toasting with several of the actors. Dolokhov gets friendly with the ladies.:) It is a fun seat.  Will add, the mezzanine is fabulous for viewing the whole stage, and ticket prices are reasonable. Bottomline, after also being in table seats, including the ones where Sonya & Mary pop in, banquettes are my favorite. The show is so much more than the phenomenal Groban. 

[Southpaw2]

Posted: 2/24/17 at 10:08am

You are all SO very awesome for responding to my many questions. It sounds like we have several good seat options. I'll be thinking about which to choose (hard still!) and look forward to seeing the show this summer! :)

[Bwayz]

Posted: 2/24/17 at 11:11am

Some great info in this thread - thanks to everyone that has contributed.

My parents and their friends have tickets for an upcoming show at one of the upstage tables, TM, which looks like it is tucked between the stairways located stage left.  Is this a good location?  They were excited to get something onstage since they know one of the actors (Anatole).  They are not craving nor shy of interaction, but just want to be "in the action".

Looking at what else may be available, there are high banquettes, BF 22/24, and front mezz, A7/8, left center.  Trying to help them if there may be better options.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

[NYadgal]

Posted: 2/24/17 at 4:27pm

I was finally able to see it last night - and our seats were fabulous!

We were on stage - in the banquette seating.  Row BB, seats 14 & 12 -  right next to the center aisle action, and with an easy perspective to turn and see what was happening as characters came through the center door at the top.   It added so much to the enjoyment of the show - I highly recommend those seats!  Not a single complaint!

(My friend received a dumpling and we both received letters).

[dramamama611]

Posted: 2/25/17 at 5:24am

We sat in BB 7-11 weds night. And really loved our seats.  Some have complained about backs, but on stage, I think you really see how much they've been blocked to include everyone. We had lots of interactions.

Personally, I still prefer orchestra seats, you get to take in everything, instead of looking through a microscope of what's closest to you.

My kids really want to go back and see Oak in the role...so I'm thinking  of mezz seats for our final time, I'll look for tix soon.

Posted: 2/25/17 at 10:15am

Just wanted to thank everyone who shared info in this thread. On my last trip to NYC I could have got tickets, but when I learned the seats were onstage I got nervous and chose another show. (Liaisons Dangereuses...hindsight is 20/20.)

This time I'd done my homework, and I snapped up the chance for a half price ticket in row SD. It's not technically on the stage, it's right in front of the downstage catwalk, but I loved the experience of the show from my seat. I really felt immersed; the opera sequence was almost overwhelming, and with my shaker I felt like I was part of the show during the abduction. Those chairs swivel so it was easy to turn and see what was happening in the orchestra and mezzanine.

The only thing that was a bit of a bummer was that when the actors were on the catwalk in front of me, I had a great view of their thighs. They were excellent thighs, but I really had to crane my neck to see faces. Fortunately not much of importance happens there, and I didn't have to strain to see the action downstage center. I was glad to be on the side and not in row SE, right in front of the salon. I think folks in SE must leave the show with neck pain.

Ended up seeing the show again the next night from the mezzanine (not much else on offer at TKTS) and was very glad to see it from a different viewpoint. Definitely a different experience; not better or worse, just different.

If I ever have the chance to see the show again I hope I can be on stage.

[eugenia2]

Posted: 2/25/17 at 2:15pm

NYadgal said:
We were on stage - in the banquette seating.  Row BB, seats 14 & 12 -  right next to the center aisle action, and with an easy perspective to turn and see what was happening as characters came through the center door at the top.   It added so much to the enjoyment of the show - I highly recommend those seats!  Not a single complaint!

thanks for this! i have these seats in June after being on the other side, which i do love.  wanted a change, but wasn't sure if view would be blocked by the people in the mini island of three. O.O   

 

"

 

[josh147]

Posted: 2/25/17 at 3:46pm

Thanks to this whole discussion, I upgraded my seats from Orchestra Row B to SA1 on stage. I'm so excited to be in the middle of this show!

[Sari_Chile]

Posted: 2/25/17 at 9:15pm

Hello! I just registered to thank all of you for this thread and your insight. I purchased SA1 (on stage) for March 22nd. I will come back to this forum to give you my opinion about the seat!

Thank you for your help (again)!!!!

EDIT: March 22nd is my last night in NYC so I won't be able to come back another night to try to have my playbill signed. So my question is: is it possible to buy a program or another souvenir beforehand to try to have it signed? Thanks in advance for your help.

Updated On: 2/25/17 at 09:15 PM

[Groundhog2]

Posted: 2/28/17 at 7:01am

This is such a helpful thread. I use the theatremonkey site for seating tips in London, but haven't found a similar site for Broadway. I'm traveling to NY to see some shows in May, including this one. Are the seats at the very ends of the front mezzanine ok, they look a little obstructed in this photo? How is the leg room in the mezzanine? Which side is the better one, left or right?



 

[irishgator1]

Posted: 2/28/17 at 9:01am

Does anyone know what row of the banquettes Anatole sits down in when he does the whole shut the door, it's a Russian custom bit?

[PW5]

Posted: 3/2/17 at 10:46pm

So I splurged and got tickets in TQ... is that good, or did I do bad...

[willep]

Posted: 3/2/17 at 11:52pm

If I'm not mistaken, you should have a great time at TQ :)

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 3/3/17 at 1:54am

Groundhog2 said: "This is such a helpful thread. I use the theatremonkey site for seating tips in London, but haven't found a similar site for Broadway. I'm traveling to NY to see some shows in May, including this one. Are the seats at the very ends of the front mezzanine ok, they look a little obstructed in this photo? How is the leg room in the mezzanine? Which side is the better one, left or right?



I don't know about the view of the center from the sides of the front mezzanine but you will be able to see a lot of the action happening on the staircases near you if you choose to sit there. The leg room was fine for me in the rear mezzanine but if you're concerned (if you're tall, for example), I recommend sitting by one of the lamps. It's a great way to get some extra room. 

[3GamesToLove]

Posted: 3/6/17 at 12:43pm

Got tickets for my wife and I to see this in August en route to our honeymoon in Quebec. We wound up with the front row, center aisle of the SR banquettes (BA 9 and 11). The general consensus from this thread was that the banquettes are the way to go for the on-stage seating. I can't wait, it'll be my first show on Broadway. We've been obsessed with the original cast recording.

Updated On: 3/7/17 at 12:43 PM

[britspin]

Posted: 3/7/17 at 1:14pm

Between seats in the back row of the onstage banquettes and seats on the extreme left and right in the rear mezzanine, which are better?

I really want to sit onstage, but I'm concerned about how the view will be. I'm short, so I'm anxious about it. 

These are the options.

[britspin]

Posted: 3/7/17 at 11:02pm

britspin said: "Between seats in the back row of the onstage banquettes and seats on the extreme left and right in the rear mezzanine, which are better?

I really want to sit onstage, but I'm concerned about how the view will be. I'm short, so I'm anxious about it. 

These are the options."

 

Update: I went with the mezzanine seats because the seats that I wanted onstage were unavailable. $79 tickets. I don't regret it. I actually ended up in row E, center-right on the aisle. The seats were amazing. The show was incredible. So, if you're looking to buy tickets but you're not sure where to sit, seats E11 and E12 have the stamp of approval from a viewer.

[LesWickedly]

Posted: 3/8/17 at 12:50am

Curious to hear more opinons on Row G of the orchestra. It's right behind the platform, so hoping for some interaction and hopefully an overall angle of the most important elements. 

[Big Apple2]

Posted: 3/19/17 at 7:04am

Alright, after reading this thread, I've narrowed my choices to these seats: BC/BD 21/23 or front mezzanine center right A 7/8.  Same price for all seats.  I don't mind the interaction but would like to sit with the best views available.  For those who have seen the show, which seats would be the best?  Thanks.