Broadway VIP Experiences

The organization BroadwayPlus is the Theater District’s official provider of VIP experiences. It offers what it calls ‘beyond the ticket’ opportunities for fans to connect with the Broadway community like never before. This includes access to premium seating and meet-and-greet photo opportunities with Broadway artists, right through to a pre-show dinner or private events with your favorite artist! Wicked, Hamilton, and Death Becomes Her are just a small selection of the shows available through the service. 

Sounds pretty dreamy, right! But you’re probably wondering how much this all costs? Well, BroadwayPlus operates like a concierge service, where each booking is personalized with the assistance of one of their Broadway experts. We’ve found that a VIP experience to SIX the Musical, which consists of a pair of center orchestra seats, a gourmet three-course meal, and a cast member joining the meal for a minimum of 15 minutes, will cost you $1,250 per person. For context, a top price ticket to SIX can cost upwards of $300, so this is an expensive package, but how many people can say they’ve dined with one of Henry VIII’s wives!

Another popular route to securing a VIP Broadway experience is through your hotel concierge. Seeing a Broadway show is one of the main draws for visitors to New York City, with tourists totalling 67% of audiences in the 2023-24 season, making it a win-win opportunity for luxury hotels to create bespoke packages with Broadway fans in mind. 

The five-star Mandarin Oriental launched its ‘Broadway VIP Experience’ last year, which includes a two-night stay; prime orchestra seats to shows including Hell’s Kitchen, The Great Gatsby, and Hadestown; a cast member meet-and-greet at the hotel’s opulent lounge; and exclusive merchandise from the show. That’s not all, guests have the option of adding a ride to and from the show in a Mercedes S-Class and a VIP tour of the Museum of Broadway for an additional fee. Prices can vary depending on the time of year, but expect to pay at least $5,000 for a party of two for the base package.

Other luxury hotels such as AKA Times Square and Baccarat Hotels offer VIP Broadway packages including premium tickets to shows including MJ the Musical, The Lion King, and The Outsiders, as well as opportunities to meet cast members and sip champagne. Sometimes hotels offer VIP experiences catered to specific shows, such as the iconic Knickerbocker Hotel, which launched its ‘Everything’s Coming Up Roses’ package to coincide with the blockbuster revival of Gypsy, starring the legendary Audra McDonald. The package includes lots of fun Gypsy-themed merchandise, including fresh roses, a vintage show poster, and an exclusive candle, as well as a pre-theatre dinner and discounted tickets for the show. 

If you’ve already sorted your Broadway show tickets but are keen to make your stay in New York City extra special, then you could consider booking Lotte New York Palace’s ‘Something Wicked Comes to the Palace’ package, which is themed around the Tony Award-winning musical Wicked. Alongside two nights at this luxurious five-star hotel, you’ll get a special Playbill signed by members of the Broadway company, Wicked-themed cocktails and snacks, and unique merchandise. The experience costs around $1,300 for two guests, depending on the time of year. 

Sometimes, just being able to step away from the crowds and avoid the long queues for the bars and restrooms before the show and during intermission can make a Broadway experience feel so much more luxurious. Several Broadway theaters, including the St James Theatre, the Hudson Theatre, and the Lyric Theatre, have a venue called the Ambassador Lounge, which theatergoers can book to elevate their experience. 

The Ambassador Lounge includes skip-the-line entry to the venue from 90 minutes before the show, complimentary coat check, secluded restrooms, and dedicated bar and table service. Various extra offerings can be purchased to make your visit even more special, including specialty cocktail packages, flowing Moët Impérial champagne and charcuterie boards. The Ambassador Lounge at the Lyric Theatre, which is home to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, has created a host of themed packages to cater to budding witches and wizards. These include items such as Chocolate Frogs, Frozen Butterbeer, sour gummy candies, and custom butterscotch cookies from Schmackery's bakery. Access to the VIP lounge usually needs to be booked in advance as the limited capacity soon fills up; however, you can check with the venue team upon arrival for any last-minute lounge availability. 

The running theme with all of these options is that they’re expensive, especially considering that many of these require you to purchase tickets to the show as well. Considering the average cost of a ticket to a Broadway show is now $129, any further costs can be prohibitive for many tourists and theatergoers. Well, we’ve got some ideas on how to elevate your Broadway experience without breaking the bank.

You could become a Broadway insider by taking a two-hour walking tour delving into the history of the Great White Way, from its early years through to the billion-dollar industry it is today, all set against the backdrop of its most iconic theaters. Alternatively, you can book a behind-the-scenes tour of Broadway’s oldest theater – the Hudson. This historic building tour offers a unique chance to peek behind the curtain of Broadway history. The tours are offered by Broadway Up Close and start from just $37 for adults. 

And even if you can’t make it to New York in person, you can still feel like a VIP with a virtual shout-out from your favorite Broadway star. There are hundreds of Broadway performers on Cameo, an app for connecting with celebrities through personalized video messages, to suit all budgets. You could treat your loved one (or yourself!) to a message from a Broadway Elphaba, Alexander Hamilton, or Hades, or even a real-life Tony Award winner like Joanna Gleason, Bonnie Milligan or James Monroe Iglehart!

There’s no denying that VIP packages on Broadway are expensive, sometimes prohibitively so. Staying in five-star grandeur in one of the world’s most expensive cities and securing the best seats in the house is a luxury reserved for those with deep pockets. But it’s also hard to put a value on some of the perks, like a VIP private dinner with a Broadway superstar or immersive seats, putting you center stage. These once-in-a-lifetime memories are priceless. We hope we’ve shown that with some compromise, there are ways that every theatergoer can make their Broadway dreams a reality. Cheers to that!