Review: 3 Christmas Shows and It Is Not Even Decemer Yet!!! 2 Comp and 1 BOGO

Review: 3 Christmas Shows and It is Not Even December Yet!!!! 2 Comp and 1 Bogo

I have to admit, I am one of those people who welcomes the Christmas decorations after Halloween. To me Christmas is not just a day it's a season. I have already set my Pandora to Mary J Bliges' A Mary Christmas. I have already added my favorite holiday movies to Netflix.

The Christmas shows and performances start in November in New York City and tickets are on sale for some shows all year! In this blog I will review the 3 shows that I have seen so far.

The Christmas Carol

Theatre at St Clements

November 20, 2013

The Christmas Carol like The Nutcracker is a Christmas classic that is offered in various locations in New York CIty and in varying versions.

This version of The Christmas Carol was in an off-Broadway theater and the tickets were “comp” tickets offered by clubfreetime.com. My membership has allowed me to see several wonderful “comp” performances in New York including Fuerza Bruta.

This adorable version of The Christmas Carol stayed close to the original story. It had a talented cast of 5 people who played all of the characters of the play. Scrooge was played by one cast member while the other 4 members played all of the characters of the play including the ghosts. Tiny Tim was played by a marionette.

My family and I sat in the center of the third row. It was a Wednesday night show, so my kids and I were out on a school night. We planned ahead, I made sure both kids completed their Thursday assignements in advance.

I would recommend this play. They had an interactive version of “Deck the Halls” to start the show. The cast was very talented. The sang, played instruments and even moved furniture.

The Christmas Spectacular

Radio City Music Hall

November 26, 2013

I started going to the Christmas Spectacular when my youger sister was a few days shy of her third birthday. 17 years later, you can call it a family tradion. I take my two teenaged sisters and my children. We have gone with various friends and families through the years. This year my friend came with her teenaged niece and nephew.

Part of being able to go with a large group and getting great seats is to buy tickets early using one the various “bogo” buy one get one free codes. I also save money by going to the box office to buy the tickets so that I do not have to pay extra service charges.

The seats we had were great orchestra seats!

The Christmas Spectacular stays true to its name. It includes a bouncy Santa, high kicking Rockettes, 3D illusions, a live orchestra, ice skating, a version of the Nutcracker and a Nativity scene that includes live camels.

The Christmas Spectacular is a must see.

Shea, Prince of Christmas

St Lukes Theatre

November 29, 2013

The tickets for this show were also “comp” tickets from clubfreetime.com.

I will warn you, this show is very corny. You have to have serious Chrsitmas spirit to see this show. A young man named Shea from New Orleans is the self proclaimed Prince of Christmas. He sang many Christmas classics and a few originals. There was a Princess of Christmas and she had a lovely voice and allong with nice vocals, she brought comic relief to show. Another stand out was the drummer who sang two songs one was a reggae Christmas carol. We had a good time. Our seats were in the 5^th row. I went with my kids, one teenaged sister and my friend. We had enough corny Christmas spirit to leave the show with smiles.

I appreciate that these were COMP tickets.

Recovery

October was a busy month. 


I hosted a birthday party for my daughter.  The party included my family, friends and their kids and my daughters' classmates.  

She requested that her party be in the Hamptons, but we compromised and had it at Chuck-E-Cheese.  It was a monstrous success. 

I went on to celebrate my birthday at several different locations with various people.  I hung out with my boyfriend, my family and a multitude of friends.  

I went to the 40/40 club in Manhattan.  I went to restaurant/ bars in Brooklyn; Therapy Wine Bar, Beso, Milk River and Peaches.  I also partied at Katra nightclub.  I had a Libra dinner at my cousins’ house.  I had a wonderful thirty-something birthday.

The biggest thing that I went through mid-October after the celebrations was a surgery.  It was a surgery related to a "black cyst" (yuck), that formed due to my prior C-sections.  Double Yuck.  After years of misdiagnosis, I found the surgeon who knew what it was and how to tackle it. 
My parents and sisters thankfully helped me with my kids during my surgery and recovery.

My boyfriend graciously helped to take care of me. He rode me to and from the hospital, he made sure I ate and he supported me.  

My doctor said it would take up to 6 months to recover. But in less than a month, I was feeling better than ever without that nagging cyst.
The recovery of my physical body made me think about how we recover from everything whether it's heartbreak, injury, divorce or death. We go through phases. Some are harder than others but they seem to have the same three steps. 

1. The Pain - Whether it is physical, mental or emotional the first step is painful. We often wonder whether we will ever feel better again. We believe that our current state will last forever. But then the next phase comes. 

2. The Work - We have to get up and do things to improve the situation. Fortunately and unfortunately, I was back to my grind.  This included taking the train to get my kids to and from school and going to and from work.  This was only after four days of rest.
It was painful but I managed to get it down. I got my rest and I also got moving. I took medicine when needed.  But the physical movement helped me to get better. 

When we recover from something emotionally painful we also need to "get moving".  We may need to get spiritual guidance, talk to friends, journal, yoga…  We have to do some kind of “work” to improve.

3. The Recovery – I felt myself getting better day by day, but one day came when I realized I was no longer sore and I no longer needed a pain killer.  I no longer needed an alternate way to sleep.  (It was very uncomfortable to lay flat post-surgery.)
There comes a moment when you notice you feel better when experiencing other situations.  We realize our lives are no longer focused on “that issue”.

I am very thankful for the wonderful surgeons at Lenox Hill Hospital and for the support I received after the surgery. 
Now that I am getting better, my kids and I have to hit the town so that I can continue blogging.

ExposureMom