Radio City Christmas Spectacular

Radio City Music Hall
with the Rockettes (of course)

Sometimes you find yourself in expensive seats you never would have paid for yourself, that your Mom bought, for something like the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. And, then you have to admit to yourself  that it is actually something you have always sort of wanted to see, at least to find out what all the hubbub is about.

It's an expensive show, designed for everyone - for the grandchildren and the grandparents. It's an institution. And, here is something I did not realize, they perform it four or five times a day. Wow! It's a cash cow, too.

This is the Disneyland of theater. It is professional, reliable and it delivers almost exactly what you would expect it to deliver when you buy your ticket, including the length - enough to feel like you got your money's worth - now move out so we can get the next group in.

There are famous bits that you expect to see. I mean you aren't going to go to a Billy Joel concert and not hear Piano Man. And, you aren't going to see the Rockettes without seeing them perform the classic tin soldier bit. Evidence of their severe institutionalization can be found in the review of costumes through the years on the side balconies. Trying to keep it fresh, they have an entire video game sequence, strange for adults, but I think my niece found it to be the most riveting part of the show. Additionally, there is been an enthusiastic attempt to try and make the show as interactive (the buzz word for these years) as possible with some 3-D elements, video and projection on to the entire theater surrounding the stage.

One of my personal favorites was the dueling organ piece at the beginning when you come in. I've never heard two organs at once and that was pretty cool. My Mom was just waiting for the live nativity and my Dad could not believe they had so many real animals on the stage. I mean, I've been to the opera - recently it's changed, but there used to be a time you did not go without a horse clomping across the stage. I am just realizing now I have not seen a horse in awhile.

It's impossible to not like this and not enjoy seeing it once. It's perfectly calculated for enjoyment, like a restaurant meal with balanced salt, sugar and fat. It's pure entertainment. It's precisely what you should see with your grandmother. I wish I had seen it with mine. And, I hope one day my niece appreciates having seen it with her grandmother.