Broadway with the rich, but on a budget

We all love theater, right? If not, get the heck off this blog! But seriously, that was rhetorical because everyone loves Broadway, especially Mr. Moneybags from my favorite childhood game, Monopoly—I know because I saw 100 of him at Billy Elliot last night. Here’s the catch, though: you don’t have to be a Mr. Moneybags to sit next to one at your favorite Broadway show. There’s really only two (and a half) ways to do it.

Right in the heart of Times Square, underneath the red, pointless stairway to nothing, sits the TKTS Booth. This booth opens at 3pm for every evening show and will sell you tickets for well over half off the original selling price. Warning: pack a lunch, because you’ll be waiting a while. Also, stick to weekdays (though weekends aren’t completely out of the question). If you care enough to wait and still pay quite a bit, then this is your all access pass to Broadway.

BUT I bet you didn’t know that there is a second, more secret TKTS booth on the island, did you? If so, bravo to you and to the many actors you’ve been able to watch for cheap, but if not, you should definitely check this one out instead. It’s the South Street Seaport Booth, which not only sells tickets to that day's evening performances, but also to the following day's matinees. Did I mention there is literally NO line at this one? And that secret isn’t good enough for you? Well, how about this: did I mention a THIRD booth? This one’s a bit of a hike, but it’s worth it. It's the Downtown Brooklyn Booth, which sells everything the other two do, and tickets to the Brooklyn shows as well!

If you’re a student, student rush tickets are certainly the way to go. Most shows allow students to come two and a half hours before the show and enter into a lottery for tickets. Each show will give away a certain number of tickets (usually 10-20), and they're usually some of the best in the house—reserved just in case the actors want to bring guests to watch the show. At student rush you can score an orchestra-middle, top-dollar seat for under 30 buckaroos. Pretty sweet deal, huh? Good luck in the lottery, though; I’ve stood in many lottery lines without any reward. Tip: Some shows do student rush before the showing time, but others do their rush as soon as the box office opens. Plan ahead. If you’re serious, hit up one of the rushes at the opening of the box office and then another before the show.

I went TKTS Booth last night and snagged a Billy Elliot ticket for about $50. Admittedly, that’s not great for a traveler on a budget, but it's not bad if Broadway is your main reason for heading to NYC. If you value theater, any of these options are great ways to see a wonderful performance, and they’re the only (credible) way to do so without being Mr. Moneybags.