10 Great Shows to See for $49 or Much Less This November
Catch a new play by Pulitzer Prize winner John Patrick Shanley, the La MaMa Puppet Festival, a Shirley Chisholm bio show and more
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Adventurous audiences know that some of New York City’s biggest theatrical thrills—and lowest ticket prices—are found on the smallest stages. But with a slew of shows running Off-Off Broadway every day, it’s tough to figure out what’s worth your time and money. That’s why we’ve rounded up 10 promising indie theatre productions opening in November, all offering tickets starting at $49 or less. Even better, TDF Members can see some of these shows for as little as $21! Not a TDF Member? Consider joining our Go Off-Off and Beyond program, which gives you access to discount tickets to Off-Off Broadway shows for an annual fee of five bucks.
If you’re a TDF Member, log in to your account daily to see what we’re selling as ticket inventory changes frequently.
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The Tank: Legerdemain – begins October 29
The Tank, 312 West 36th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Midtown West
Previews begin October 29. Opens October 31. Closes November 22. Tickets are $28-$53.
Enjoy the magic of theatre, literally, in Lynn Rosen’s new play about a dejected writer-turned-waitress whose biggest fan turns out to be an amateur illusionist. Can his bag of tricks convince her to finish the book she abandoned, the one he’s sure is meant just for him? Set during Halloween in New England, Legerdemain is about conjuring connection.
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Mountain Girl – begins November 4
154, 154 Christopher Street between Greenwich and Washington Streets in the West Village
Begins November 4. Closes November 22. Tickets are $47.
John Patrick Shanley (Doubt: A Parable, Moonstruck) has a Tony, an Oscar and a Pulitzer Prize. Yet in recent years, the Bronx-born playwright has chosen to present his new work on smaller stages. Nylon Fusion Theatre Company and Axial Theatre present his latest premiere about the dysfunctional relationship between a flailing writer and her chaotic mother (Sophia DeMornay-O’Neal and Tonya Cornelisse), who reunite at the family home to parse their shared past. One story in particular haunts them both, but will Mountain Girl translate from life to lit? Ivette Dumeng directs this gritty comic fable.
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Shirley Chisholm: Unbossed & Unbowed – begins November 2
West End Theatre at St. Paul & St. Andrew United Methodist Church, 263 West 86th Street between Broadway and West End Avenue on the Upper West Side
Begins November 2. Closes December 7. Tickets are $32.30.
With the recent election results expanding diversity in our government, it’s the ideal moment to celebrate a 20th-century trailblazer who helped open doors for the politicians of color who came after. In her solo bio show, playwright-performer Ingrid Griffith delves into the life and legacy of Shirley Chisholm, a Brooklyn-born activist and the first Black woman to be elected to the United States Congress. Griffith channels more than a dozen characters while chronicling Chisholm’s historic ascent. Presented only on Monday evenings, every performance is followed by a talkback.
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Broom Play – begins November 5
The Players Theatre, 115 MacDougal Street between West 3rd and Bleecker Streets in the West Village
Previews begin November 5. Opens November 7. Closes November 29. Tickets are $40.50, but if you’re a TDF Member, log in to purchase $20.50 tickets.
Playwright-performer Matte Kranz riffs on Waiting for Godot and other theatre of the absurd standouts in Broom, a two-hander about a pair of custodians tasked with tidying an unruly room armed with one mop but no water or broom. One is Zen about their predicament, the other advocates for a change to their repetitive futility. XYZ Theatricals presents the world premiere of this highly physical tragicomedy, directed by Egor Trukhin.
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First and Last – begins November 10
artXnyc, 409 West 14th Street between Ninth Avenue and Washington Street in Chelsea
Begins November 10. Closes November 22. Tickets are $39.50.
Another intriguing two-hander from a playwright-performer, Adam Elliott’s First and Last is set in 2003 Washington Heights, as a struggling broker shows a dilapidated rental to a low-paid artist’s assistant in dire need of a home. What starts as a typical transaction transforms into an experience that changes both of them forever. Best known as an actor, the multitalented Ephraim Birney directs this world premiere, co-presented by Open Variations Theater and Black Cat—appropriate since the spirit of a deceased kitten is involved!
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La MaMa Puppet Festival – begins November 11
La MaMa’s multiple venues on East 4th Street in the East Village
Begins November 11. Closes December 6. Tickets are $30.
La MaMa’s Puppet Festival returns with a lineup of eye-popping and cutting-edge puppet productions. Curated by Denise Greber and Federico Restrepo of the venerable Loco7 Dance Puppet Theatre Company, the fest includes offerings for kids and adults, like Tiresias’ New Weird Future: a Work in Process (November 12-15); La MaMa Kids’ The Dandelion’s Wish (November 14-15); The Undercity (November 14-16); Mirrored Pool (November 27-29) and Husks from Iran (December 3-6). It’s worth perusing the full lineup, especially because there are multi-show packages that save you money: two for $50, three for $75 and five for $120.
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STREB Extreme Action: Do Not Try This at Home
New Victory Theater, 209 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Midtown West
Begins November 14. Closes November 29. Tickets start at $36 but if you’re a TDF Member, log in to purchase $23.50 tickets.
A great option for the whole family! The daredevils of STREB, Elizabeth Streb’s high-energy company that fuses dance with acrobatics and circus machines, show off their death-defying moves in Do Not Try This at Home. Streb dubs her works Action Events, and the physical challenges she devises demand strength, courage and confidence. The feats in this program include jaw-dropping leaps and navigating a 100-foot wave simulation.
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The Barrow Group: Other Bodies – begins November 19
The Barrow Group Performing Arts Center, 520 Eight Avenue 9th Floor between 36th and 37th Streets in Midtown West
Previews begin November 19. Opens November 23. Closes December 20. Tickets are $49, but if you’re a TDF Member, log in to purchase $35.50 tickets.
More than two decades ago, veteran Broadway actor Martin Moran won a 2004 Obie Award and rave reviews for his harrowing autobiographical solo show The Tricky Part, which detailed his childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a camp counselor. In 2013, he did a follow-up, All the Rage, exploring the aftermath of his confessional play. Now he completes the trilogy with Other Bodies about how we connect with one another. His longtime collaborator Seth Barrish directs this world premiere.
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EPIC Players: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time – begins November 20
A.R.T./New York Theatres, 502 West 53rd Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues in Midtown West
Begins November 20. Closes December 6. Tickets are $37.59.
When The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was on Broadway, it won five Tony Awards but also sparked some controversy since its autistic protagonist Christopher Boone was never played by an actor on the spectrum. That changed in regional productions and, in recent years, the play has been reclaimed by autistic theatre-makers. Now EPIC Players is presenting a landmark revival with an all-neurodivergent cast performing Stephen Simons’ play about how the death of a neighborhood dog sends Christopher on a life-changing journey.
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You Never Learn – begins November 27
Target Margin Theater, 232 52nd Street between Second and Third Avenues in Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Begins November 27. Closes December 12. Tickets start at $31.
Page-to-stage adaptations of Jane Austen continue to be popular. Are the Bennet Girls Okay?, Bedlam’s loopy twist on Pride and Prejudice, is having an encore engagement at The Public, and the Broadway-aimed musical Austen’s Pride is still kicking around. For You Never Learn, experimental playwright-director-performer William Sydney riffs on Austen’s Emma, about a meddling would-be matchmaker who doesn’t even know her own heart. The ensemble cast includes indie theatre favorites Jess Barbagallo and Abe Goldfarb.
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