Fifteen NYC Moments That Made Me Feel Like the Luckiest Person Alive

I’ve been reflecting on my summer in NYC all semester, but these are the magic moments that shot my love of the Big Apple into the stratosphere. Clearly, I had a fairy godmother slipping me some Felix Felicis ...

1. Staking out an Indianapolis hotel gift shop to see my first New York Times story ...

...on the cover of The New York Times Arts section. There is no “magic moments” list on which this could conceivably not be #1 (unless my byline had appeared on A1 of the main section, above the fold — though I might’ve been so excited in that case that I’d have broken down the gift-shop door). Definitely worth the city-wide scavenger hunt to get my hands on a copy (you disappoint me, every Indianapolis Starbucks location). I ended up waiting out a Hyatt hotel gift shop employee’s interminable 20-minute smoke break to score a copy (I could see the paper it through the door glass, so close yet so far!). And then the moment when I opened the paper and saw my name: *CHILLS*.

2. Finding my favorite NYC view at Pier 35 on the Lower East Side (of the Manhattan Bridge)

Have you tired of my odes to my favorite view in the city yet? The moment I set eyes on this combination urban beach-swing plaza looking out over the Manhattan Bridge during an even stroll was extraordinary. My jaw might’ve actually dropped — this was not the just-another-building-around-the-corner I was expecting! I came back many times to ponder life (and watch the Macy’s 4th of July fireworks!).

3. Scoring second-row “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” tickets I could afford

This show was going to fall firmly in the tier of stuff-I’d-love-to-see-but-it's-too-expensive, along with “Hamilton” and “Hadestown” (there were so many shows I wanted to see, and I chose the route of seeing 10 non-”Hamilton”s in lieu of what a single ticket to that show would’ve cost me).

BUT THEN.

I’d just lost the lottery again (I’d entered every day since arriving in New York), and I checked the Lyric Theatre website to see what seats were available at face value. Thus far, the only affordable ones had always been in the rear balcony — opera-glasses distant in a nearly 2,000-seat theater — or in obstructed-view locations. But then fate intervened, and a second-row orchestra seat popped up for the lowest price on the website for any seat ($70 per part, including fees). Per that day’s blog post, a recap of my face when I spotted them:

And when I bought them:

Still entirely baffled as to how this happened when all the other orchestra seats available cost hundreds of dollars -- for each part. Not questioning it. Thank you, lucky stars, because it was so, so worth it (now could you also help me win the “Hamilton” lottery in Indy?).

4. Watching Michael Halling, Harry Hadden-Patton’s alternate, kill it as Henry Higgins in “My Fair Lady”

I saw my favorite show of the summer on a Wednesday evening, which meant Michael Halling would be playing the male lead role rather than Harry Hadden-Patton. But I can’t imagine how Hadden-Patton could’ve topped his performance! I even waited at the stage door after the show just to tell him how much I enjoyed it, which I’ve only ever done with one other non-big name actor — Scott Davies, the standby phantom in London’s “Phantom of the Opera.” I’d have immediately paid to see the show again if it hadn’t been the last week of the run.

5. Witnessing the revelation that was Audra McDonald in “Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune”

This was my sleeper hit of the summer --- and the show I advocated for pretty much every chance I got. The marketing for "Frankie and Johnny" was terrible (the production had both Audra McDonald and Michael Shannon in it — maybe, umm, emphasize that?!), and it ended up closing a month early. BUT that meant I could walk up to the box office 90 minutes before the show and score an amazing rush seat.

My enjoyment only increased as the narrative unspooled, and I was hanging on every word by the end. I’d only ever seen McDonald sing — with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra last year — so I relished the chance to watch her act (and then to meet her and Shannon afterward).

6. Sitting feet from Andrew Barth Feldman during his mental breakdown in “Dear Evan Hansen” (via an improbable front-row lottery win!)

After seeing "Dear Evan Hansen," I wrote that it made me redefine the way I view theater. This was a quadruplely (is that a word?) magical evening, because 1) It was a show that I didn’t think I was going to get to see, 2) I won what was, in my opinion, the best seat in the house — dead center, front row — via the uber-competitive lottery, 3) I’d seen a matinee of “To Kill a Mockingbird” with Jeff Daniels earlier in the afternoon, so double show day!, and 4) Although I’d listened to the cast recording dozens of times, the show was so much more moving in person. I forgot I was attending a show and became totally absorbed in the world the actors created on stage. As I wrote at the time:

“I looked up, and the first act was over --- I’m pretty sure I didn’t draw breath the entire time (exaggeration, but my neck was stiff from not moving because I was so enraptured by what was happening on stage!).”

7. Taking an unexpected trip back to England via the “Treasures from Chatsworth” exhibition at Sotheby’s

I walked up to the second floor of Sotheby's and was immediately whisked 3,500 miles away. From the design that replicated the furnishings of the royal estates I’d visited in England to the British-accented gallery guides, I got a severe case of sudden-onset England sickness — in the best way possible. The gallery layout was the work of “Hamilton” set designer David Korins, so, in hindsight, I should've known it'd be great! If there’d been a window, I would’ve been unsurprised to look out over formal gardens and rolling countryside.

After my initial shock wore off (who knew a free, little-advertised NYC exhibit could do such an extraordinary number on my heart?!), I spent a delightful couple of hours diving into Chatsworth, which is a stately home in Derbyshire, England. (It was used as Pemberly — Mr. Darcy’s residence — during the filming of the 2005 “Pride and Prejudice” movie that featured Kiera Knightley.)

8. Discovering that the Morgan Library is actually Hogwarts

Secret passages behind bookcases? Floor-to-ceiling shelves? A Gutenberg bible and a wealth of other priceless treasures? Count me in! I’m fairly certain I stumbled back a step or two upon walking in — and that was before I learned about the secret staircases. I guarantee a sleepover event here would sell out.

9. Reeling from a rainbow bagel revelation

Before this summer, I’d erroneously let a London rainbow-bagel impostor lead me to conclude that the creations were nothing special — just a regular bagel doused with food coloring. Boy, was I wrong! And that birthday-cake cream cheese! I was ready to buy it by the vat-ful. PLEASE reopen in time for my March visit …

10. Peering out at the city lights from atop the Empire State Building at midnight

I’d heard the Empire State Building line was atrocious; the elevators to the 86th-floor observatory perpetually packed.

Life hack: Not if you go at midnight.

And it’s more peaceful at night anyway … the city grid is like an ocean of twinkling lights, and a breeze tickles your cheeks as you feel like a single light bulb in a sea of Broadway marquees. Basically, you end up marveling at the miracle of your own existence. Magic moment, for sure.

11. Snapping a gorgeous photo of the sunset over the Statue of Liberty from the Staten Island Ferry

There are gorgeous photos, and then there are heart-stopping, drop-dead-amazing snaps. It unintentionally worked out that I picked the exact-right departure time on the free 25-minute ferry ride between Battery Park and Staten Island to capture a glowing golden sunset over the Statue of Liberty. I was stunned when I pulled up the photo on the ride back to Battery Park — it was already dark; what a difference a few minutes makes! — and saw how well the colors had translated. Sunsets can be finicky beasts to photograph, but one was perfect both in-person and on camera. Not sure I could score a ferry passing by the statue at the exact right moment again if I tried!

12. Listening to Sierra Boggess sing “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” at Feinstein’s/54 Below the day after Hal Prince died

Hal Prince, the “Phantom of the Opera” producer — and musical theater GOAT — died July 31, and I saw Sierra Boggess’s cabaret show at Feinstein’s/54 Below the next day. Prince had been a huge influence on Boggess's life and career — she’d played Christine in “Phantom” on Broadway, in Las Vegas, in the 25th anniversary production in London, in the “Phantom” sequel “Love Never Dies” in London, and was set to play the role in French for a 30th anniversary production in Paris before the theater burned down. Needless to say, her career was tied to “Phantom” — and Hal. Her emotions were audibly raw, and this was one of the most moving renditions of any song I’ve ever heard, anywhere (she dedicated her performance of "Wishing" to Prince).

13. Finding an A+ adventure of a transit museum in an old subway station

I was 100% not expecting this place to be as cool as it was. Not only can you climb aboard old MTA buses and subway cars, you can ogle tons of old subway maps (did you know Manhattan was oriented horizontally on maps, rather than vertically?). Anyway, amazing, semi-secret spot in Brooklyn— this is my hidden gem museum pick in NYC.

14. Flying through Battery Park on a fish (carousel)

The second-best surprise I stumbled upon in NYC this summer after walking around an apparently ordinary corner (see magic moment #2 for the best!). I’d just escalated up from the Battery Park subway station when I heard … carousel music? I walked down a garden path to investigate, and was greeted by this delightful sensory assault of colorful, glowing, high-flying fish. I pulled out a $5 bill and hopped on — and immediately flashed back to my childhood carousel rides on the Carousel of Wishes and Dreams at the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. Highly recommended.

15. Taking in a sunset Spanish serenade on a subway ride to Queens

I was on my way out to the Queens Night Market in Corona (with a shark sandwich on my mind!). But first, I listened to a love song in Spanish by a guitar-playing subway busker. As the train rolled along the above-ground section of the 7 line, I watched pink and purple wisps of cloud race each other across the sky while soaking in the busker's beautiful ballad. I’d wind up repeating the serenade experience a couple more times — the Spanish buskers are regulars on the 7 line — but never again against the sunset backdrop.

Bonus: Tracing the chandelier’s ascent to the rafters in “Phantom of the Opera”

This is the moment that gives me chills every time I see a production of "Phantom of the Opera." It's an unparalleled theatrical moment that marks your entry for the next two-and-a-half hours into the Phantom’s Paris — accompanied, of course, by the pulsing beats of the title-track-laced overture.