Walkin Broadway Tour- walkin' and talkin' was never so fun!
By: Pati Buehler Oct. 24, 2003
Broadway is a BIG place! There's a lot to see & do and learn. So where do you start? How about taking a walk over to Colony Records on Broadway & 49th St., home of "Walkin Broadway." This 60-minuet walk is an informative and just plain fun self-guided audio tour that brings theater, history, music and humor to life. Stories from actors, directors, designers, and producers to delight the most seasoned Broadway fan, theater student or tourist of the Big Apple's theater district.
Creators Don Frantz and Elliott Forrest's mission statement is " to bring Broadway fans and visitors close to the day-by-day life of Broadway, closer to the people who make Broadway…" Over twenty voices are woven into the tour hosted by Elliott Forrest, who is also an A&E television personality. From composers, Cy Coleman and Stephen Schwartz to directors Hal Prince and James Naughton to actors such as Chita Rivera (West Side Story), Antonia Banderas (Nine), Gary Beach (The Producers) Kitty Carlisle Hart. Just walk the streets and listen, learn and laugh. Find out how many "Annies'" graced the stage, or which show found the audience stark naked! What was the cast and audiences' experience when President Clinton saw Chicago on Broadway or Kitty Carlisle's first impression of "newcomer " Julie Andrews? Learn about the history of theaters, it's past shows and actors. Enjoy the insight of director Hal Prince, recipient of the most Tony awards ever (see what I learned), as he shares his experience of Sweeney Todd that played at the Gershwin.
And the music! Oh the music! Over sixty sound tracks will have you literally singing along and kicking up your heels on the sidewalk. This is particularly fun, especially for the passers-by who gawk at you, very sure that you are likely to be a tourist from a foreign country or have visited a few local bars or both!
As we rounded the bend to return to the office of Elliott Forrest, grinning from ear to ear, I just had to know more about the how's', when's' and where's' of this unique and fun concept took place.
Mr. Forrest graciously treated us to lunch to fill us up with facts and great food. Here's what we chatted about.
Let's start by saying these two gentlemen Don Frantz and Elliott Forrest are two very creative entrepreneurs. Frantz is an eight-year veteran of the Walt Disney Company where he was an Associate Producer and was instrumental in creating Walt Disney Theatrical Productions. He also broke the Guinness Record for the World's Largest Maze, which we'll get to in a minuet.
Elliott Forrest is in his eleventh year with the A&E Television Network as host of "Breakfast with the Arts". A popular voice-over artist, Elliott is the "voice" of CNN programs and specials. He was the voice to open segments of the 2000 Presidential debates, the Election Night coverage and the Bush Inauguration. Mr. Forrest can now be heard onWQXR, 96.3FM in New York and WQXR.com. He and Don Frantz have each produced and directed plays, musicals and theater pieces from Texas to New York.
What intrigued me was the origin of this audio walking tour. Don Frantz developed what we know today as the "corn maze", those huge cornfield mazes that we love to get lost in, in the farmers fields. Yep, the ones where you are given a map and the first one to reach all the destinations without getting lost, wins. Elliott, who's theatrical and technical skills met up with Don in the corn fields to re-created an audio headphone theater adventure of Huck Finn, equipped with props in the field next to the corn maze, where the actors are heard on the headphones and you are taken on the adventure. "It was a fun concept, except when the people were done romping through the corn maze they were too tired to meet up with Huck Finn's adventures", says Elliott. "Since getting the people to the corn fields was a challenge, we decided to combine our efforts and bring the audio touring idea to the people". What better place to find tons of people walking the streets than Broadway's theater district? And there you have it.
After two years of planning, gathering celebrities, scripting, obtaining rights to music, Walkin Broadway is here. This is a great way to spend an hour walking off lunch, or between shows or just to enjoy with your friends and family while in the city. It's perfect for theatrical students too, and the price is right!
There is the North tour featuring theaters between 47th & 51st street and soon to come, the South tour covers theaters from 42nd to 46th street.
Walkin Broadway tours originates at Colony Records and costs just $10 +tax. For more information visit www.walkinbroadway.com or call 1.866.NYC.BWAY
Walkin Broadway is sponsored by Evolution Technologies Inc. providing high quality digital, portable MP3 players.www.nowevolution.com and Koss Sterophones, courtesy of Koss Corporation, celebrating 50 years of technology for music,computers, cell phones avation and medical equipment. Both are pleased to support Walkin Broadway and the Arts.
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