Broadway / Off Broadway / Off Off Broadway Shows I Saw in 2024

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2024 was the year I discovered I had been missing out on a whole huge world of entertainment by ignoring Broadway shows, and also by being absolutely clueless that Off and Off Off Broadway even existed in New York City.

I had to cancel a lot of travel in 2024 due to health issues (I am fine) and instead of doing my normal traveling on the anniversary of my mother’s death, I instead, decided to do something she found exotic.  She thought that going into “the city” and seeing a show and staying in a hotel was super fancy fun.  So I did that.  I chose shows I knew she would have wanted to see.  Brooklyn Laundry, with Cecily Strong since my mother loved Saturday Night Live.  She loved Seinfeld and Friends so I went to those parody shows. Of course she would have loved to see The Outsiders.  And 7 Year Disappear with Cynthia Nixon.  And then I just kept going.  Diving deeper into all the things I never knew existed.  And there began a life where instead of watching television on my couch, I was out watching anywhere from 1-10 live shows a week in a theater.

I had to compile this list by going back and looking at my wall calendar that I packed to bring on my Las Vegas trip so I could finish it.  This year, I am keeping the list in real time.

My favorites were:

Fatherland: This was based on a true story about a son who turned in his father into the FBI for his involvement in the January 6 ressurection.   All the dialogue was taken from the court transcripts.

Odd Man Out:  This show is about a blind man telling his life story.  It takes place in absolute darknesss.  You are escorted to your seat which is supposed to be on a plane.  You cannot see anything at all.  I had no idea if there was someone next to me, or how far away the actors were.  I knew I was in the front row because the person escorting me mentioned that.  I remember being scared someone would trip over me.

People of the Book:  This is one of many shows I saw that I had never heard of and stumbled upon on accident.   A random Monday night, nothing better to do than go to a show.  The story line was just fantastic.

I have memberships to TDF  and Club Free Time.  TDF has different levels of discounted tickets.  I am only elligible for Off Off Broadway shows and went to a ton of these through that.  Club Free Time is the greatest.  I saw so many shows I never would have known existed if not for them.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: The Finale

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Good last morning Las Vegas!  Today is day 18 and it is also my last day of this trip.   This trip has been so unusual for me.  I wasn’t supposed to be here.  I didn’t LOVE being here.  I hated working from here.  My time not working was sort of a let down, specifically not having a marshmallow bed at Vdara.  I only had a Bellagio fountain view one time.  I am kind of ready to go home for the first time in my life.  The only dread I feel about going home is having to unpack all the stuff in my apartment I packed for the kitchen renovation.

As soon as I wake up, the texts start from JetBlue.  Flight delay. Flight not delayed.  Flight delayed again!  Whoops, no it isn’t.  Yes it is.  This is getting annoying.  When I originally booked my flights, I then was myself and rebooked a million times.  I settled on flying home on January 1 in the afternoon but realized that this was a terrible idea to get home late and start January 2 working in my apartment, with the bulk of the apartment packed in boxes that are filling the apartment.  So I tried to change it back to fly home on the 30th and now prices are skyhigh.  But there is a flight with a layover in Boston – Mint seat for $709.  Yes please.  So now I am on that flight, with the nonstop delay texts.

I tried to change the flight to make it stop but they tried to charge me. So no.

I got dressed and went to the buffet at Cosmopolitan. I am still fucking thirsty from Wynn other other day.

After, I sit down to play Ultimate X.  Is this my last time playing?  It might be?   Some dude was playing the one next to MY machine but he is also playing on my machine.  I didn’t realize this until I came around the corner to ask if he was playing MY machine and saw that not only is he, he just hit a dealt full house on ten play quarters.   He cashes out and lets me have it.  I asked him if he wanted his multipliers and he did not because it is too expensive to play one hand.   He also told me he left multipliers on other games on this machine if I want to find them.  So  now I have no choice but to bet $25 to get his multipliers, which sucks because these machines will only let you play max bet.  You cannot bet just 5 coins a hand to get the multipiers.  Each bet is $25.  And next thing you know, I am playing ten play quarters no no no no NO you cannot even afford this on nickels stop it.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: Sheep and Aces

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Good morning Las Vegas. I woke up too late to shower or eat so I ate a Kind bar and…didn’t shower.  What am I too late for?  A tour!  Specifically, THIS one.

Got picked up at 9:00 on the dot and headed off on today’s tour. I am the sole person who signed up for this tour so I am thrilled they did not cancel on me.  I want to see the big horned sheep.  I attempted to see the big horn sheep last year but the tour I was on did not stop at the park. The driver said they aren’t out in winter. So why advertise it as part of the tour you jerk.

This year though, my driver assures me we are stopping.

This tour was a bit expensive for what it is but it seems new as it wasn’t an option last year when I spent 6 weeks between Vegas and Arizona and took a million tours that I should probably post about.

We started at Seven Magic Mountains.

Then to Hemenway Park, where there were no sheep.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: The One Where I Expose the Vortexes

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Good morning Las Vegas! Although I did sleep in at Vdara, which I desperately needed, I have to say both the beds and bedding are not the same in the studios as they are in the suites. My bed was perfectly fine, but I was daydreaming about the marshmallow beds I had on past stays, and could not take advantage of because I had to get up to work.

Oh well, I still have my marshmallow bed at home.

I had reservations for La Cave at Wynn. I took an Uber who dropped me off at Encore, which was not my intention. So that threw off gambling plans entirely. I was supposed to start at Wynn, eat, and then end with my Ultimate X video poker.  I went backwards and so did my winning plans.  Cleopatra Keno?  Never met her.  Video Poker on the same machine though.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: Last Hotel of The Trip, First Fountain View of The Trip

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Good morning Las Vegas – burning sun from my room at Fremont Hotel.
I was up 3 minutes late for work.  This is my last day working from Las Vegas this trip and I wish forever.

I got packed VERY early as I am getting the fuck out of here as soon as I get the notification that my room at Vdara is ready.  Well maybe not because I need to collect some more snacks with my dining credit that I am too cheap to let go.

I then unpacked to shower because the shower here at Fremont hotel is the best shower I have had in all the hotels I have stayed in during this trip.  The water pressure is so strong.  For the record – I typically shower after work because who the fuck has the time to do it before work when you get to work at 6:00 AM in Vegas?!  Also for the record, Encore had by far the all time worst water pressure in their shower.

Went to the food court at Fremont and continued trying new coffees with my dining credit.

Strawberry Matcha (not coffee) and an iced caramel apple chai, which is also not coffee fuck I need coffee before I write about non-coffee.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: I Now Hate Fremont Hotel

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Well it is a morning, Las Vegas.  Not sure how good it is.

Woke up for work with Dunkin Donuts coffee waiting in my room refrigerator for me.  I had decided in advance to not gamble before work is over.  So I gambled before work is over.  And every time, had those sessions that suck – where the credits go straight to zero without any wins at all.  That is not fun at all.

Here is a win I did not post yesterday though:
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Las Vegas Trip Report: Merry Christmas

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Merry fucking Christmas from Las Vegas!

I am in pain. My back hurts. I want to sleep forever. I can only get a breakfast reservation at 8:30.  This is why you booked FN Blue remember? To have a room today that you could sleep in. Oh well.

I should go to a spa today to address the back pain. But I’ll likely just gamble and hurt my back more from sitting for hours yay.  Actually I imagine the only spa with appointments available on Christmas is very expensive and the funny thing is that since I won money, I am less willing to spend it.

I’m checking into Fremont today. I’ve read they now charge an early check in fee. Sign me up, I’ll pay it.  I’d rather pay the $25 fee and put my handpay in the safe than risk losing it.

After eating breakfast at Jardin, I went to see Cleo!  She did not like me at all today.  So sad.

I had $100 for my Ultimate X and a jerk was on her.  I played Buffalo instead and as I hit zero, jerk got off my machine.  Fuck it, let me go get $100.

I turned the $100 into $100 and cashed out.  I’ll be back to visit her this weekend.

Chilled in my room before checking out, completely exhausted.  As I read the little notes I leave in here throughout the day and the word “exhausted” was typed 3984738 times.

My Uber driver was annoying.  He pulled up in the wrong spot and acted like I was the asshole.  Then he kept mansplaining how to take an Uber to the airport on New Year’s Eve.  Over and over.  The more I kept saying “yes, I know” the more he kept talking.  It would get quiet for a minute and he would start all over again.  I am not even going home on New Year’s Eve.

Then the guy who checked me into Fremont was also annoying.  He went on a monologue about how Americans are rude.  For a very long time.  I don’t think he was talking about me, but who knows.  I was the only person on the line and he was on the phone so I stood on the line.  I did not approach the front desk until he hung up the phone and called me over.  But blah blah yammer yammer Americans rude.

I’ll post photos of my room when I check out because it is an odd room type I have never seen and I would hate to post it and (a) find out there is only one of these rooms and (b) some weirdo creep has slept in it before and now knows my room number.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: I Hit The Holy Grail

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Good morning Las Vegas!

I am off work today and I can smoke in my room OMG heaven.

I had so many plans today but realized that moving hotels in between the plans would be a nightmare so I decided to cancel Fontainebleu.  I was double booked there and Encore tonight.  My thinking was that I did not want to be without a hotel on Christmas if Fremont would not let me check in early.  But ultimately, I’d rather not check into any hotel tonight so….let’s see how this goes.

As mentioned,  I have plans tonight. It is 9 am and I already don’t want to do any of them. I just want to gamble and sleep.

Today is (hold on while I count on my fingers) day 13 of this trip, which makes it day 12 since I last went degenerate.  Hmm.

Crazy to think of how excited I used to get about 2 week trips. Now those are short for me.

Went to Jardin for breakfast. I get the same thing every time. Three eggs your way. Every time it is great.

I have $80 for Cleo. Walking to her, I see all the machines i want to play and can’t because small budget.  I tell her I want to play all the machines but I cannot unless she gives me money.

I played $40 on one machine, cashed out for $60. $40 on other for zero.  I put the $40 tito back into the first machine and HOLY FUCKING SHIT is what I screamed when i hit 9/9 for the first time in my life, on a bonus when its doubled and playing $2.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: I Love Encore

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Hi Las Vegas, although you may as well be Oklahoma for all the fun I am going to have while working from my room today.

I went to Starbucks and people did not know how to form a line at all.  The employees had to sort that out, which took a bit of yelling “EXCUSE ME, LADY ON THE PHONE, THE LINE IS THIS WAY.”

The woman in front of me had resort credit she wanted to use up.  Perfectly acceptable.  Except she kept asking “how much is it now” about her total after each single item, but we started at like $20 and she made her way up to $80 so we didn’t really need to be asking after the first 3884798347 items now did we.

I also have resort credit to use up and I will also use it at Starbucks before I check out, but I will be less annoying.

I HATE WORKING FROM LAS VEGAS OMG I WAS TRYING TO STOP SAYING THIS IN EVERY TRIP REPORT BUT I CANNOT STOP MYSELF.

Tonight I have a Thai shampoo treatment booked and then I move to Encore.  I am actually not going to Soulo spa, because I had $100 in Groupon credit so I bought a Groupon for Mutao Spa. I did not think this one through when booking it because it is on Spring Mountain, but I did not leave time to check into Encore before my appointment, nor did I use all my resort credit so I have to come back anyway.  Oh well.

The shampoo was great.  I cannot say this enough – if you have never had someone else wash your hair while you are laying down, you are missing out.

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Las Vegas Trip Report: Annoying Day

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If you have been reading my Las Vegas trip reports for awhile, you know I always have an annoying day, where everything is annoying.  Today was that day.

Today is also a day I can actually sleep in while in Las Vegas.  I love sleeping in!  I could not get out of bed. Just wanted a cigarette. Refused to go smoke without showering.  Could not shower without a cigarette.  Terrible cycle that I am not even kidding when I said it took me two hours to finally just get up and shower already.

I got breakfast at Pyramid Cafe.  It was very busy but even busier as I was leaving.  I got in just in time.

After, it was time for Starbucks.  Luxor Starbucks does not make drinks correctly.  Or maybe they do and other places don’t and I prefer the wrongly made drinks from other places?  I worked at Starbucks for half a day before walking out.   They want there to be consistency at every store in the world.  You should walk into any store anywhere in the world and get exactly the same thing you would get back home.  Fail.

Out of all the Las Vegas Starbucks, Aria is best.  They make strawberry acai refreshers great, and they also never hand me black coffee with oatmilk where the coffee is still black.  Luxor does not do either of these things well.

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