The Central Park Tale

One thing I quickly learned here in the city is that while everything is expensive, there are actually a lot of places to go and things to do that cost very little or nothing at all. There is a catch to this, however -- you give up your precious sleep time.

Leaving at 7:30am yesterday morning, Amy, Stef and I headed to Central Park for a 5-hour wait in line for Shakespeare in the Park tickets. I had done my research before hand, thinking it was best to be prepared -- I found that many people waited in line overnight for these tickets. The three of us decided that would not be logical, nor fun. Upon arrival we were told we had come on the perfect day -- the show we would be seeing is The Winter's Tale and because Al Pacino was staring The Merchant of Venace (the other production being put on this summer) -- the line was significantly shorter than normal and that we would definitely get tickets!

Post-line waiting, our threesome went to H&H Bagel for a snack and then proceeded to walk the Manhattan Bridge -- that is, after we made a quick stop in Times Square for a free Slurpee at 7-Eleven (it was 7/11!!) and a visit to Tudor City (the city above the city). And while the experience of walking the bridge and seeing the city from a different point of view was great, it was nothing like walking the Brooklyn Bridge -- especially since I had recently walked it at dusk, which was beautiful.

That evening we arrived back at the Delacorte Theater -- took a picture of the Romeo & Juliet Statue -- and sat down to see the stage lit by candles with the Belvedere Castle in the distance as a backdrop for the scene. It was perfect. The play was wonderful, too -- and I wouldn't expect anything less from a Shakespeare performance.

For those that don't know the plot of The Winter's Tale, it is a story of two boyhood friends (Leontes and Polixenes) who come together for a visit. After nine months, Polixenes wishes to leave and only Leontes' (pregnant) wife was able to convince him to stay. From that point Leontes believes Polixenes to have had an affair with his wife. After the baby is born, Paulina (a lady of the court) attempts to convince Leontes that the child is his. Instead he alienates himself and he ends up alone after his wife passes on. The baby, however, is safe and raised by an old shepherd. The second act tells the story of what happens...but I won't give any of that away.