CDH Visits Broadway

By Kate Dario '20 and Audrey Faison '21
February 10, 2020

CDH Theater ventured off to New York City for the annual Broadway Theater Trip February 23–26.  

Audrey: After an early morning flight, we arrived in the Big Apple on Thursday morning at 10 am.  Our hotel was located in the heart of the theater district so we were immediately immersed in theater excitement through billboards and the excitement of Times Square. While waiting for our hotel rooms to become available, we took a walk to Rockefeller Center, watched the ice skaters, and got some lunch.  

After settling into our hotel, we met Dillon Cody '00 for a quick historical tour of Broadway. Then, we met Emily Nelson ’12 and Willem Smith ’12. The three alumni joined us at John’s Pizzeria, a famous pizza place housed in an old church. Emily is a playwright and actor in NYC and Willem works in the financial district and teaches and performs improv in the evenings. 

Conveniently, Dillon Cody knew one of the sound engineers for the show we were seeing that evening, "Jagged Little Pill," and he arranged for us to get a backstage tour after the show was over! 

"Jagged Little Pill" was created around Alanis Morissette songs and the plot centers on a dysfunctional family. The show was absolutely fabulous, with a powerful ensemble and strong leads. Once the show was over, we connected with the sound engineer, who not only gave us a backstage tour but even let us stand on a Broadway stage. After the show, we ended the night by playing card games before bed. 

Kate: On Friday, we were up and ready for rush tickets at 7 am. Rush tickets mean that you stand in line for a show in order to get tickets at an extremely low cost. We waited in line for almost three hours and it was worth it! We paid $35 to see "To Kill A Mockingbird" and the musical "Mean Girls."  

After standing in line for so long, we were ready to eat. We went to a famous restaurant called Ellen’s Stardust Diner. The dinner’s waitstaff are all singers and actors trying to get cast on Broadway. So, they sing and dance throughout the meal. It was extremely fun. After lunch, we walked to the New York Public Library and through Bryant Park.  

In the afternoon, we ventured to The Museum of Modern Art where we got to see famous works like Van Gough’s Starry Night and Claude Monet’s Water Lillies. After the museum, we walked through Central Park and listened to live music, saw ice skaters, and climbed rock formations.  

Then, that night we were off to the theater again. The shows were incredible. I got to see Mean Girls in the front row! 

Our last day in New York City was a two Broadway show day! The shows we saw in the afternoon were "Come From Away" and "Dear Evan Hansen."  For the evening show, we all attended "Beetlejuice" together. "Beetlejuice "was a fun way for us to end our NYC theatrical experience.  Everyone had a great time enjoying the craziness of the show and we laughed heartily. 

On Sunday we attended St. Patrick’s Cathedral for mass and then we sadly headed home to the Twin Cities. The trip was a magical experience for all of us.