Statue of Liberty crown tickets sold out until Labor Day
While the Statue of Liberty is on track to reopen her crown to the public on the Fourth of July, tickets to climb up her steps are already all-but sold out through the Labor Day weekend.
Tickets first went on sale June 13 and demand was so high that the website and telephone lines were difficult to access. (The website has been slow again this morning.)
Only 30 people per hour will be allowed to take the stairs to the crown under escort from a National Park Service ranger.
It’s important to note that currently the plan is to keep the crown open for two years only. After that, it will close again for a project to make the interior safer to visitors and hopefully allow more people to visit each day.
The crown has been closed since Sept. 11, 2001, mainly for fire safety reasons, the National Park Service has long said. The torch has been closed to the public since 1916, when Liberty’s arm was damaged by a massive rail yard explosion in nearby New Jersey. There are no plans to ever reopen the torch to the public.
What you need to know to get tickets to the Statue of Liberty’s crown:
Crown tickets can be reserved up to a year in advance through Statue Cruises, the only company licensed to ferry the public to Liberty and Ellis islands. The $3 crown fee will be on top of the regular ferry ticket, currently priced at $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and $5 for children. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 877- LADY-TIX (877-523-9849) between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m., Eastern time.
Wall Street Journal launches summer arts chat series
The New York Times has Times Talks, has New Yorker has its festival and now the Wall Street Journal is launching a series of arts-themed newsmaker public interviews at Lincoln Center called Summer Scoops.
The schedule is short on finance and long on arts, although technology columnist Walt Mossberg will go one-on-one with Moby, and artist Cai Guoqiang will talk about barrier-breaking in China.
Tickets, which are now on sale, are priced from $20 to $30.
Restaurant Week to offer early reservations via Twitter
NYC Restaurant Week will officially kick off July 12 with $24.07 three-course prix-fixe lunches and $35 dinners at some of the city’s best restaurants, including DBGB Kitchen and Bar, Le Cirque, Mesa Grill, Nobu, Craftbar, Tribeca Grill, Primehouse New York and Tabla.
Reservations will go live June 30, but Twitter users can expect early opportunities by following @nycgo, the Twitter feed for NYC & Company, New York City’s official marketing and tourism organization.
The first Restaurant Week tweet will go out today, followed by unique dining offers, last-minute reservation openings, and surprise chef appearances, an NYC&Co. spokesperson told NewYorkology.
Summer Restaurant Week will run from July 12 through 31, excluding Saturdays and only some restaurants will offer the prix-fixe deal on Sundays. The $24.07 lunch and $35 dollar dinner price does not include tax, tip or drinks.
(American Express will also offer its cardholders separate benefits for NYC Restaurant Week.)
The cast of “Twelfth Night” also features Stark Sands, Audra McDonald, Julie White, Raúl Esparza, David Pittu, Michael Cumpsty and others. Daniel Sullivan directs. Opening night is set for June 25, according to Playbill.
“Twelfth Night” wraps up July 12, making way for Euripides’ “The Bacchae,” which will feature Jonathan Groff and a choral score by Philip Glass. “The Bacchae” will play from Aug. 11 to 30.
The Virtual Line returns today, allowing anyone to enter the daily lottery between midnight and 1 p.m. You sign back in between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. to see if you have a pair of tickets. Tickets not picked up at least half an hour prior to curtain will be released to the stand-by line.
The Public Theater does not say how many seats are up for grabs this way: “It changes on a daily basis but the majority of Free tickets for Shakespeare in the Park are distributed via the Free line at the Delacorte Theater.”
Tweeting the Tony Awards, who to follow Sunday night
There are a number of Broadway people and media outlets on Twitter, some already offering pictures from rehearsals inside Radio City Music Hall for Sunday night’s Tony Awards. Here’s a list of Twitter people likely to offer an inside look at the Tonys:
@TheTonyAwards - official Twitter of The 2009 Tony Awards
@Janefonda - actress nominated for “33 Variations”
Live Gershwin Hotel restroom telecast, for a love story
Starting Friday, the Gershwin Hotel will start telecasting a live feed of its lobby bathroom into closed-circuit TVs in guest’s hotel rooms.
And although a “love story” is promised, it’s not what you think.
The restroom will be home to a site-specific dance performance called “Dark Horse/Black Forest.” Standing-room only tickets will be sold to allow a live audience in the bathroom, but hotel guests can watch the performance in the privacy of their rooms upstairs.
The work by Yanira Castro is described as “an emotional and private exchange between a couple that evolves into a formal, sensual dance.” Performances are scheduled through June 28.
The bathroom tickets are $45, according to the Post.
There are also $10 tickets available for Friday’s opening night “screening party” in the lobby.
The restroom performance isn’t unique to New York. Last year, a site-specific noir thriller “Ladies And Gents” was staged in the toilets at Central Park’s Bethesda Fountain.
Other performances in unusual places include “A Mysterious Way” which will be performed for free starting today “on the uptown C train platform on 81st Street and the downtown J/M train platform at Chambers Street, subject to change due to the inconsistent environment of the MTA.”
NYC Twitter list: museums, Broadway, transit and food
Taking #FollowFriday to the max, here’s a big list of some of the best Twitter accounts in New York City, including museums, food trucks, sports teams, transit advisories and Broadway.
The Tony-nominated “Next to Normal” is Twittering its full Broadway show through June 7, the Brooklyn Cyclones gave its followers first dibs at ticket purchases and Tasti D Lite last month made a special fail whale cake for a Twitter meet-up. Others give away free tickets and food, plug upcoming events and others dish opinions or back-stage gossip. But mostly the list excludes the Tweeters who use Twitter as just another place to put press releases, or a link dump of their RSS feed.
First, make sure you’re following @NewYorkology, and then add your favorites from the list:
