Laurie Beechman Theater at the West Bank Café

If you like cabaret and are looking to see a show that won’t cost you an arm and a leg, then you should see something at the Laurie Beechman.  

The Laurie Beechman is my favorite place to see a cabaret show.  It classy, intimate but not too small and there are no bad seats that are off to the side and sort of behind the performers like in many smaller venues.  It will make you feel as though you just stepped out of a 1930’s cafe from some Noel Coward show.  It really is a beautiful venue.  It also has a bit of history.  The space has always existed there, but was not always a cabaret venue.  It used to exist simply as the cellar downstairs from the coffee shop that had a piano.  In fact, the owner of the West Bank Café donated the space to Stephen Sondheim and the cast of “Sunday in the Park with George” so they could rehearse new music.  “Finishing the Hat” was performed there for the first time.  It is not the first story of that nature that I have heard about the Beechman.  The owner of the West Bank Café has been a supporter of the arts for a long time and is very generous.

They serve a full menu downstairs (the same menu from the upstairs West Bank Café) with plenty of table room to eat.  The food is delicious so arrive a little early to have dinner.  There is a full bar and the staff is really great.  Last night we saw “Sondheim Unplugged” which is a great show.  It has extended and will be running the last Monday of every month for all you Sondheim fans out there.  The show will have different performers every month and they will sing different songs.  If you like Sondheim you should go to this.  It was top-notch.

Also notable is the upstairs West Bank Café.  

If you are seeing a show on Theater Row or anywhere in the theatre district for that matter, the West Bank Café is always bustling with theatre folk and is a fantastic place to go for a drink or have dinner before the show.  After the show you are bound to run into some great star from a show (especially if they are performing nearby) Again, it looks like a old school café from the 1930’s.  Cozy and charming and totally New York.  

The Laurie Beechman Theater

407 West 42nd St. (Between 9th & 10th)

212-695-6909