BWW JR: A Tour of the New Amsterdam Theatre
By: Erin Leigh Peck Nov. 28, 2011
Last weekend the folks at Disney Theatrical set me and my daughter up for a real treat. My eight-year-old, her friend and I along with other bloggers and columnists were all invited on a special preview tour of the New Amsterdam Theatre, home to Broadway's Mary Poppins. This was more than a backstage tour (which ps, you can get if you toss $150 into the BCEFA holiday collection bucket from now until December 4th…if you are lucky enough to be seeing Mary Poppins this week, consider taking advantage of this special treat in return for supporting a terrific cause).
In addition to getting to walk on the stage and stand inches from the set, we got the inside scoop from Disney Theatrical's VP of Operations Dana Amendola. With a title like that, you'd expect to meet someone extremely serious and buttoned up, but Dana is a larger than life, teddy bear of a guy who has an intense passion for the history of the theatres he manages as well as all things Disney. He is incredibly knowledgeable, and managed to keep us intrigued for the entire hour and a half tour. This guy has amazing stories to tell. For example, did you know that when Disney started their 1995 renovation of the theatre, there were actually vines growing and pigeons flying around inside? Or that the theatre is known to be haunted by the ghost of Ziegfeld Follies star Olive Thomas? My favorite part was the "listening post", a special spot in the house of the New Amsterdam where you can hear what everyone is saying, even in hushed tones. Florenz Ziegfeld used to listen in on the critics when they congregated there during intermission. If they didn't' like the show, he'd invite them upstairs for a drink and a special "moment" with one of the Ziegfeld girls!
Of course, none of this held as much interest for my daughter and her friend, but they got their turn when we were invited into backstage prop room that had been set up for the tour. Inside, the kids tried on masks from The Lion King, got their pictures taken inside Ariel's bathtub and took turns holding Mary Poppins' umbrella. All of it was a truly special, insider look at how much goes into the show and the theatre itself, and it made our experience seeing Mary Poppins that night all the more meaningful.
Disney plans on making the tours available to the public this Spring . Although I doubt Dana himself will be conducting them, I have full confidence that the tour guide will be well-versed and charismatic enough to entertain. After all, it's Disney. But if you want to hear a little of Dana Amendola's New Amsterdam experience straight from his mouth, consider purchasing his book, "A Day at the New Amsterdam" from Amazon.com. I actually got it for my husband for Hanukah. Don't tell him! (He won't read it here…he never remembers to read my column).
My next post will be about our experience seeing Mary Poppins, but I wanted to share this with you all now so that you'll be on the lookout for these tours. It's definitely not to be missed, and once the New Amsterdam starts offering tours to the public, I'll be sure to post details here as well as on Twitter.
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