Here is the playlist I was listening to every time I sat down to write this (very long) blog.
So, Day 1 in NYC was a blast, but I did forget to tell you one important thing that happened.
Caleb (Aubrey’s fella) didn’t go with us to get our lives changed at “Sunset Blvd.” He stayed home and chilled and set up my bed for the weekend: an air mattress set up on a camping frame. See, folks, if you want a Jacki to come visit you for a bit, she doesn’t need a fancy bed. I’m a really easy guest (I think?!).
So, Aubrey and get home with black-and-white-stars in our eyes, and the bed is set up. Woo-hoo, we’re excited and think nothing more of it.
About an hour or so later, one of us goes into the room, and the bed is not quite as floofy as it was before.
And you know what? It was no big deal. I slept on the couch for one night. When my dad died, my mom auctioned everything off and moved us down to Florida, I slept on a couch for years so that D could have her own room.
And Aubrey’s couch was luxe and blue and quite comfortable. So it wasn’t a big thing. I slept great and woke up ready for another day in NYC.
The first thing we did, which would be a pattern for the rest of the days in the city, was look at the TodayTix app to see if there was a possibility of getting Sunset tix for the three of us another day I was in town. Caleb (as a techy fella) NEEDED to see this show. We also checked to price of “Hadestown” tickets, because D said it is the best thing SHE’S ever seen and she has incredible taste, so I obviously also want to see it.
Not that night, obviously: Friday is for “Oh, Mary!”. And the Tenement Museum. And Pizza. And a Florida Friend!
So, we wake up. We decided we are NOT playing over $200 to see “Sunset” or “Hadestown” on Saturday night and would just try for $45 Rush tix in the morning. We slowly get ready and then head over to our first planned stop of the day: Pizza.
This was the only day that we had a very clear, set schedule. Here it is:
- Lunch at Scarr’s Pizza
- A tour at the Tenement Museum
- Casual hangs
- Dinner at Carmine’s
- “Oh, Mary!”
- Home
Now, this was also the day that I planned to see one of my Florida friends, Lando! He had a pretty busy schedule, so told us he’d meet up with us after pizza for our Tenement Museum tour.
The Pizza
Now, Aubrey hyped this pizza place up a lot, y’all. It’s called Scarr’s Pizza, and, coming from someone who has written a LOT about pizza lately, it’s worth the hype. The pizza was fantastic, and so were the garlic knots.
I don’t miss a lot of food from Florida, but all the food I miss is garlic-related:
- Hawaiian Raw Garlic on ANYTHING at Oblivion Taproom
- Garlic Noodles from Kai Asian Street Fare
- Honey Garlic Chicken from 888 Chinese
- Garlic Knots from Bruno’s Pizzeria
The vegan knots at Scarr’s Pizza were pretty damn close y’all. The sauce, though, that was something singular and spectacular. And not chunky! This is a Jacki-preference; I do not care for chunky pizza sauce.
You know what I *have* cared for quite a lot lately? Something that has surprised me?
Hot pizza.
Now, I’m not talking fresh out of the oven hot pizza. That should be standard, y’all. If you’re not getting a fresh pizza straight outta the oven, you are settling. You’re too good a person to settle. Don’t do that. Okay? Okay.
I’m talking about a spicy pizza. I’m blaming a local place and their Hot Honey Valentine pizza. Pepperoni cups, thin crust, and a Mike’s Hot Honey Drizzle. Simply perfect…or so I thought.
Enter the Hotboi.
It has all the things I know and love from the Hot Honey Valentine, AND it added freshly sliced jalapenos. This added a green element that I didn’t know the pizza was even missing, y’all.
Scarr’s Pizza was a vibe and I will go back. It was cute inside and I honestly appreciate how straightforward and simple the menu is.
While we were pizzaing, we were also planning our next steps: The Tenement Museum.
My friend from Orlando, uh, Lando, would be meeting up with us for these festivities, so there was some scheduling to handle.
There were two slots available: 1:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. Lando couldn’t make the 1:30, so we set our sites for 2:30 p.m. and headed to the subway, bellies full of pizza.
The Tenement Museum
The Tenement Museum is not a “walk in and look at all the things” kind of museum. It’s a “take a verysmall tour and learn as full of a story as you can about a single family” kind of experience.
I loved it, y’all.
Now, before we got to the museum proper, we had some time to kill, so we explored the neighborhood.
However, we did the very neurodivergent thing of finding our final destination first, both for safety and because we had to buy our tickets first, of course.
The neighborhood (Lower East Side, if I remember correctly) was fucking adorable y’all. I’m not a shopper, but I could BUY stuff here. There were so many tiny stores that focused on doing one thing and doing it well.
There was a store filled with beaded accessories that felt like pure joy when we stuck our heads in.
A jewelry store with the most creative creations.
And a unisex clothing store with durable, stylish work clothes in non-boring colors—a dream that I could have spent major cashe at.
Everywhere we went, the three of us were included in conversations. Some we joined, some we ended. Just depended on the vibes.
Then, my museum alarm went off! It was time to walk to our tour. There was one problem, though: Lando was nowhere to be found. Before I did SO MUCH WORK on my own brain, this would have sent me into a panic. Truthfully, it did a bit, but instead of letting it run away in my brain (which was the only way I knew how to exist before therapy), I took a deep breath and realized that no one was judging me for something I could not control. I walked up to the desk and left Lando’s ticket with them.
“He has to arrive by 3 pm to join the tour,” they said.
I texted this info to Lando and settled into our history lesson.
Y’all, this museum will get a visit from me every time I visit Aubrey in New York. It’s different than any that I’ve been to before.
There are several different tours to choose from. Each one tells the story of a different family from a different time period. You learn a bit about the family’s history and the area, and then you get to see a restored replica of how they lived… down to oysters simmering on the stove (on our tour).
I did a little research before we went, so I knew which tours felt most like our vibe.
My choices were:
- After the Famine: 1869
- Tenement Women: 1902
- A Union of Hope: 1869
Hmm, interesting that I picked two from the same year. I don’t think I did that intentionally, but there is no telling with my brain.
We chose “A Union of Hope”, the newest exhibit at the museum.
”Explore the story of Joseph and Rachel Moore, Black New Yorkers who made their home in Lower Manhattan’s tenements in the 1860s and 1870s. Joseph Moore moves from New Jersey to Manhattan in 1857, his wife Rachel from Kingston, New York in the same decade. They lived in a rear tenement in today’s SoHo neighborhood, in a building with both Irish and African American New Yorkers.
Years in the making, the Joseph and Rachel Moore exhibit traces Joseph’s history from his free Black community of Belvidere, New Jersey, through his family’s migration to New York City, and the community he and his wife Rachel built in their neighborhoods and workplaces.”
The first part of the tour was almost like a classroom lesson in an 1800s building. First, we had to climb four flights of stairs, and we touched the only thing in the building we were allowed to touch: the railing.
We learned about the Moore family, what they did for work, and how the museum became introduced to their story in the first place.
Our tour guide was wonderful. Knowledgeable without being condescending. Emotional but reserved enough to get through the story. Respectful, but also playful. It wasn’t a depressing tour at all.
Just eye-opening. How similar we all still live nowadays, in some ways. But then I’m not having oysters for dinner every night cause they’re cheap, either, am I? Women do still seem to be running the households, though, don’t we?
The tour ended and Lando was waiting for us in the lobby, where he was deep in conversation with one of the gift shop employees and we each were greeted with a verystrong hug. Lando hadn’t changed one bit. He looked exactly as he did across the gorgeous bar at Thirsty Topher (r.i.p.). I bought a bonus item for my Lollipop Subscribers, which they will get next month.
We exit the gift shop, ready for whatever is next. It’s almost 4 pm, and we have reservations at Carmine’s at 5:30, so our time is limited.
A Taste of Florida
Lando squeezes my arm and looks at us all intently, and says, “Follow me. I’m gonna take you somewhere that I know you will love. You’ll just get it.”
The three of us are up for infinite adventures, so we follow him.
While we follow him, my brain is spinning. It’s gonna be a beer bar, I bet, right? That’s what me and Lando have in major common, right? I mean, aside from caring about humans more than money and being very loud about it.
We passed an Irish Pub and then a craft beer bar that I was sure was it. But no, we kept walking. Look, I’m not used to walking this much, but I prepared y’all. Before my visit to NYC, I visited the Shoe Guy to get some walking-around shoes.
This was the best move I made, y’all. We walked over 15000 steps every day I was in NYC, and my feet were NOT beat. In fact, they were rarin’ to go the next morning every single day. Used to be, I would walk one day, and my feet would be miserable, and I’d have to really hype myself up for additional walking.
Not this time. I walked all the time, and my feet were HAPPY. I’m ready to do it again.
Unrelated: I just saw some youths on the sidewalk pop wheelies on their bikes. Right now, as I’m writing this. It was moment!
But back to this moment… the four of us are walking down the street, chatting it up like we’re background players in an episode of Search Party. Three of us have no idea where we are headed, but we’re still walking.
There was a moment when one of us had to pee and the others were just kind of wondering how long the walk was and if we’d still be able to make our 5:30 reservations at Carmine’s if we were walking this far away from the subway station.
So we ask Lando, how many more blocks?
”Oh, just like ten or so.” (he actually said the street, and then we looked at the street we were on, and we did the mental math. but I can barely remember the streets around my house. do you expect me to recall the names of VACATION STREETS? however, the streets mostly made a lot of sense in new york city.)
So, we did a pause and assessed the situation. There was a subway station right by the bar we were headed to and we were instructed on which trains to get on and all was well again.
Then we arrived at the place. It was called Motel No Tell, and it looked like neon-soaked Florida threw up everywhere. This is a compliment. It was glorious. The bathrooms looked so much like actual motel doors that Aubz and I were confused when we got to the peeing portion of events. The merch was cutoff shirts (and I still regret not getting one). The drinks were BOAT drinks, y’all. It was just a good place.
I have no idea why this is the only thing I took a photo of in the bar. I mean, I know I was trying to EXPERINCE things more than documenting them, but why this shot. There were much cooler things to look at in this bar.
Two of us got a Miami Vice, and I don’t know if I ever saw one of those off a cruise ship. I heavily considered getting beer, but I was on a Mezcal/Tequila kick on this trip, and I didn’t want to break stride. So I ordered a Paloma, and it was a fantastic cocktail.
The conversation was wonderful and tended to land in adult animation quite frequently. I hung my head in shame when Aubrey asked if we were still working our way through The Simpsons. We are not. There are just so many seasons, y’all. (and Dropout happened)
We liked the place so much that we debated skipping Carmine’s and just getting some nibbles here. Caleb remained steadfast in his desire for Carmine’s incredible Caesar salad, so we paid the check and headed to the subway.
We kept our eyes on our watches the whole time we were on the subway and emerged… not quite as close as we expected. We had, like, five minutes until our pre-Broadway show reservation at Carmine’s, so we had to hoof it.
We really worked up an appetite. The most surreal-feeling thing for me was that while we were fast-walking through the streets of NYC, we were just casually passing a joint between the three of us. No one looked at us twice. The marijuana culture there feels different than anywhere else I’ve been. Maybe there’s a separate blog post in that?
I’m so proud of us. We were on the razor’s edge of missing our reservation and we were not panicked… just focused. You could tell that the three of us have really been putting in the work on our brains.
We made it! A few minutes late, but Carmine’s luckily has a 15-minute grace period.
Carmine’s
And, y’all, arriving at Carmine’s was an experience in itself. We were greeted with compliments by the doorman and ushered in through the doors.
OH! I should mention two things.
One: It was raining all day. Not, like pouring, but drizzly and kind of romantic.
Two: I just realized I did not give you a fit check for the day.
Here it is:
- Black and yellow thin-striped Third Man Records shirt
- (this is the most comfortable item of clothing I own. i love it so much that i bought it for two other people i love because i also wanted them to feel this comfort)
- A mid-length circle skirt made of simple cotton with an oversized pineapple pattern on it.
- Black thermal leggings
- A perfectly proportioned black jacket with slightly voluminous sleeves.
- (i’m very into volume in my sleeves lately. not puffy, necessarily, just oversized)
- A black purse with a large circle handle, and a dark metal chain so I can wear it crossbody if I wanted. On the front, in stenciled letters, it reads: “Music is the art of thinking with sounds.”
- A yellow beret.
I was going for a theme, you see? (I was trying to match the “Oh, Mary!” branding)
I don’t know why it was important for me to tell you about my outfit here, in the middle of dinner, but hey, that’s where my brain wanted it.
We waited for a few moments and were ushered to our table upstairs. We were already sweaty from our fast walk, so we added this to the sweaty pile.
While we waited to order, Aubrey fanned us all with a fan sneakily stashed in her purse. It was a much-needed breeze to our dewy faces.
Then two things arrived: our drinks and the bread basket.
One thing I really loved about being in the City (omg that sounds so pretentious) was the mocktail options. I don’t always want booze, but I do always want to be fancy. The Italian sodas at Carmine’s fit this bill perfectly.
I got the pomegranate, if you were wondering. Yes, it was spectacular.
So was the bread basket. Oof, the bread basket. It didn’t even need butter, it was so perfect on its own. Three different varieties, with a piece of each for everyone at the table. Like I said… perfect.
Now, this wasn’t on the menu at Carmine’s, but it was the next thing we ate, so I feel I should mention it. We shared a lil pre-show gummy. I don’t recall the flavor, but it did relax me enough not to freak out at the steepness of the impending “Oh, Mary!” standing ovation.
Then came the salad that Caleb was craving. I’m so glad (but also mad) that he was craving it. Glad, because it was fucking amazing. Easily one of the best Caesar salads of my life. And, like, Caesar salads are one of my lifetime special interest foods. I know a good Caesar, y’all. And Carmine’s has it.
Mad, because I have been craving it since then. So much so that we went to Mugly’s exactly one week later so I could have their Caesar Salad. I was finished eating before Mickey that night and that never happens. I was ready for that salad.
But the Carmine’s itch remains unscratched. Maybe a visit to Moro’s will fix it? I’ll have to give it a shot.
Carmine’s is family style, so we only ordered the Caesar and a dish of Penne Alla Vodka. While the pasta was stunning, the salad was the star. We relaxed into the end of the meal and then made our way to the entire reason I was visiting New York for the first time in the first place:
“Oh, Mary!”
You know, old Jacki would be embarrassed about this, but I still get quite teary-eyed when I think about getting to see this show—not only the show but on Broadway, with the Original Cast—including the entire reason I even knew or cared about this show in the first place. I sure am saying “in the first place” a lot today, yeesh. Sorry about that.
I fell in love with Cole Escola because of Search Party, aka what I call “The Greatest Work in Escalation to Ever Be on Television.” The TBS-turned-Max show came highly recommended to me by a couple of friends whose taste in media was impeccable during the pandemic.
Mickey was out of town for work a lot, so I had a lot of time to explore things that he might not jive with and then report back with the picks of the litter. I enjoy this. I love sifting through the crap to find the gems. This is the time I also came across The Other Two. When Mickey came home after I discovered that show, I remember saying, “IDK about the guy yet, but the main girl is going to be a massive star. My entire opinion on Molly Shannon has completely changed, and this might be the most tightly written comedy I have ever watched.”
I don’t remember what I said when he came home after Search Party had blown me away. I mean, how can one encapsulate the magic of this show from season to season without spoiling anything? It’s impossible. Back then, I’m sure I babbled, and he watched it and immediately understood.
But I’m gonna pretend that I told him what I tell people now, “Watch the entire first season as blind as possible… if you make it through the season one finale episode and are not hooked and dying to know what comes next, this show is not for you.”
But if you make it and you feel it, you are in for the ride of your life. And on the ride, during season four, you’ll meet Cole Escola, playing a brilliant character brilliantly. Like, I don’t know how to explain it, but comedic genius is seeping through his pores. It’s like the Sedaris siblings smashed into a singular twink, but live in person and not on the page.
Electric. Iconic. Once in a lifetime. That’s Cole Escola.
So, I did that thing where I follow all the niche people I love from a television show, and have been following Cole for years. I was delighted when they began talking about “Oh, Mary!” off-Broadway in 2024. Mary Todd Lincoln wants to be a cabaret singer, and ol’ Abe won’t let her. What a fun concept.
Then, last summer, when it was announced it was going to Broadway, I cried. I was so happy for this person I had never met because I wanted to see them succeed so badly. This is the kind of (psychotic?) fan I am. When it opened, I got a jolt of happiness every time I read another glowing review or backstage celebrity shot.
The show kept getting extended, so they did a bit of recasting. First, Betty Gilpin was Mary, then Titus Burgess. I was a faithful reposter of everything about this show I could get my hands on for the past year and a half.
During this time, I got a decent-sized web design contract that enabled me to breathe a bit financially. The first thing on the agenda was a relaxing bath and art weekend with Breanna. Then, Aubz said she had a guest room. Then Cole and the rest of the original cast said they were coming back for a limited engagement. Then I realized how cheap plane tickets from DTW to LGA were.
It gave me a tummy ache, so I booked the ticket. Aubrey took care of the show tickets through a combination of finesse and keeping an eye on the prices on various apps. I also want to say that we bartered for some of the tickets instead of doing an even-money exchange. I did some pretty extensive bio copywriting work for both Aubrey and Caleb. I love a good barter, y’all.
And now, I’m here (in this blog at least) right in front of the Lyceum Theater, ready to see Cole as Mary live onstage.
First off, this was the loveliest theater of all the lovely theaters we visited. It was built in 1902 and had incredible details throughout.
We were in the balcony again, so had quite a few stairs to climb. Not as many as the previous night, though, because it’s a smaller theater than the St. James. On all the walls during the entire walk were portraits of Cole in different roles. The sheer amount of artistry that went into those alone let me know that we were in for an incredible experience. I honestly wish I could go walk around the empty lobby and really spend my time with each picture, kind of like a museum. Cole, can we make this happen, please?
Now, this balcony section is muuuuuch steeper than the previous theater. Like, scary steep. Like, I was worried about the standing ovation after the show, steep. And the bathrooms were An Experience. The men’s was situated at the end of our row and, like, triangle-shaped? I dunno, but it was shaped in such a way that every time the door swung open, we could see who was hanging dong at the urinal inside. The women’s was outside the theater, but included climbing a couple of sets of precarious death stairs to get inside the stall. Like I said… An Experience.
God, this is so long already. I’m sorry, I keep typing. But there’s another side story I need to tell you.
So, like I said before, I have been obsessed with “Oh, Mary!” since it was on Off Broadway. Hell, I would be been obsessed with the instant Cole whispered his brilliant dream to me if I knew them like that. So, a few months ago, the script became available for pre-order and I pre-ordered it immediately, because, at the time, I figured reading the script would be the only way I could experience the play. Hey, I’ll take what I can get.
About a month before my trip to NYC, the script shipped. Then I had a dilemma: Do I read it before I see the play? Or do I not and let myself be surprised? Mickey suggested one further: don’t open it until you get there, rip it open in front of Cole, and have them sign it.
I did not do this, because I had to fit the script in my purse in case I did encounter Cole to sign it. (spoiler alert: i did not.)
However, I also did not open it until I got to New York. Nor did I read it. And I’m so glad I didn’t, because there are some pretty big reveals early on that would have been disappointing to know in advance.
Y’all, I was smiling the whole time. The WHOLE play. No exaggeration. From Conrad Ricamora’s first pained roar as Lincoln to Cole’s final bow as Mary, my smile wrinkles were working. “Oh, Mary!” was better than I ever could have imagined. I laughed so hard and so often.
At first, I think with both shows, I was kind of overwhelmed at the beginning with just the joy of being there, and it being live, and the energy, and just all of it. So, I kind of had to settle in. At “Sunset” I settled into the bare starkness of the production. At “Mary” I had to let myself settle into the broadness of the comedy.
It did not take long. It’s easy comedy to settle into.
And yes, I cried. Sometimes for joy, but also once from true emotion. It was the one time when it felt like Mary was being anything resembling earnest and was quite moving. And sometimes just with pure personal joy. I was just so happy to be there.
Now, I won’t be mean and give away anything plot-wise. Like it says at the beginning of the script (yes, by now I’ve read it.), “Protect the surprises of the show.” So I will.
Here is the description from the experts:
Oh, Mary! is a dark comedy about a miserable, suffocated Mary Todd Lincoln in the weeks leading up to Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. Unrequited yearning, alcoholism, and suppressed desires abound in this 80-minute one-act play that finally examines the forgotten life and dreams of Mrs. Lincoln, through the lens of an idiot (playwright Cole Escola).
Here is a spoiler-free list of things I loved about this miraculous show:
- The limited sets. There were four, tops, and they are easily replicated by community theaters.
- The way they highlighted the two box seats before presenting that set on stage. It was subtle but really cemented the setting for me.
- The costumes! The skirt was a character of its own.
- As were the bratty curls. I hate wigs, but I would wear one to be Mary for Halloween!
- The repeated jokes. God, I love a repeated joke.
- The ice cream.
- Conrad Ricamora as Lincoln (more on that later)
- The joy of this shared experience with the audience
- The reactions of some people not liking it in the bathroom line afterwards
- The way I’ll never look at “She’ll be Comin’ ‘Round the Mountain” in the same way again
- The endless recastability of every single character in this show
That’s what we did on the subway ride home. We cast our actors in it (I need a Parker Posey Mary, please). We cast comedians in it (Wayne Brady as Lincoln). We cast Dropout cast members A LOT. Our favorites there were Izzy as Mary and Brennan as Lincoln, and the “Oops, All Grant!” cast, where Grant O’Brien plays every single character of the play.
They would all be excellent. ANYONE could play ANYONE. We even started casting my friends.
Okay, I lied. I immediately (in my head) cast my friend Zach Bennett as Lincoln the minute Conrad Ricamora started talking. I’ve never felt a better connection. In that production, I’d also love to see Heather Shaw as Mary.
Again, a girl can dream, right?
This one might do well at the community theater level… and it’s not the only one from my trip that I think that way about.
In conclusion, I came to “Oh, Mary” loving Cole Escola and left with a heart full of love for Conrad Ricamora. He possesses that same electricity. Just a massive force of angry, unctrolled comedy on stage. I can’t wait to see more of him.
I mean, I already saw a lot of him in Dying For Sex, I guess.
When I was trying to take the Cole Escola marquee shot, I accidentally got this one, and I’m glad I did.
Thanks for reading. I know this is long. A day adventuring with Jacki is a FULL DAY, y’all. Also, I’m a wordy bitch.
