Broadway Up Close — Local services in New York

The Broadway Up Close Shubert Brothers & Beyond tour with Morgan was wonderful. Morgan is a joy and very knowledgeable about Broadway. Being from New York City, I am a Broadway fan from birth so I am always happy when I meet people that share that same passion. The Shubert tour is such a good investment of time and I highly recommend it. If you love Broadway and want to hear some great stories, take this tour. Also, don’t forget to purchase that souvenir book so you have the history in your hands after the tour. Thank you so much Morgan.

I took the Hamilton tour with John and I learned so much. John really made the tour great by taking the time to explain the history, sites, going through the years that Hamilton would have come to the city, lived, worked, married, etc. John was very good at explaining the difference in timing of the musical and Hamilton’s real life. This tour was truly fascinating. I enjoyed John’s energy. I purchased the souvenir book for this tour and it is well worth it as you will never remember the timeline of things without it. Thank you, John. You were wonderful.

The Broadway Up Close Tour Broadway Beginnings is a comprehensive knowledge dropper of the beginnings of Broadway and some very little known facts. Rhiannon was amazing on a very hot day in July as she gave us her best by just being her - sharing, caring, knowing and spreading her joy and love of the theatre. I highly recommend this tour as well as anything Broadway Up Close offers. Thank you, Rhiannon. You were terrific.

I took the Broadway Up Close Tour Hudson Theatre Close Up Tour. Wow. So many great stories on this indoor tour. Tim is so knowledgeable about the theatre and has such a passion for it it absolutely shines through. He is also fabulous at engaging the people taking the tour by remembering their names and asking them questions about their theatre experiences. It is a joy to watch him and just learn. Thank you Tim.

I took the Broadway Up Close Tour Hippies, Discos, and Dogs Oh My! Tour and was so impressed with Rhiannon again. This was my second time touring with Rhiannon and enjoyed her stories regarding the theaters that we had on passed on the tour. Very comprehensive tour as all of my tours have been thus far. Thank you Rhiannon and Broadway Up Close for having these wonderful tours. I look forward to my next one.

I took the Broadway Up Close Tour Ghost Light with Brett. Brett has the most pleasant demeanor and was quite knowledgeable about the streets of Times Square and the history of the Ghost Light. As usual, I have come to expect that everyone trained by Tim Dolan is going to be great at their jobs and this was no exception. Thank you Brett for a lovely tour and I wish you well in your career.

I took the Broadway Up Close Tour - New Victory Theatre Up Close. OMG, this was a fabulous tour. I had Molly as the tour guide and Molly was so enthusiastic about every fact she was telling us about New Victory. I truly am amazed of her knowledge and her candidness. Molly is extremely knowledgable as well. Thank you so much, Molly. This was my 7th tour and you made it memorable. Now I look forward to repeats of my tours until Tim finds another tour that he will deep dive into!

Back for my 2nd Hamiltour with Tim. Tim's knowledge of Broadway is infectious. Always love coming to NYC and taking a Broadway Up Close tour. Never...

October 2021 Another fun, wonderful experience and this time with the Ghostlight tour which I loved. Several times I actually got chills when I heard some of the stories, it's amazing how many ghosts live among Broadway's theatre walls. I've enjoyed learning so much from all the tours and this one brings in a new wonderfully mysterious, magical and sometimes frightening level of drama to them all. LOVED IT!!! And it's always so nice to be surrounded by other people who love the theatre as much as I do!

August 2021 I was so excited to take the Broadway's Beginnings tour a second time since my first last year. This time I brought along friends and it was just as wonderful and our guide Colin was so delightful and knowledgeable and enthusiastic so we all loved learning about the fascinating, fun, quirky and sometimes spooky, but always engaging history of Broadway's beginnings. I've had the pleasure doing several Broadway Up Close in-person tours and each one is fantastic that I'm ready to book again. Ghost tour and Hamilton tours next on the list!

April 2021 Another fabulous tour, so happy I got to join you for the Shubert Brothers & Beyond experience. I always learn so much and am always so impressed with the incredible history and personal stories you share and the "then and now" pictures continually amaze and inspire me. I truly will never look at these theaters the same way. I can't wait to go on another one very soon!!!

March 2021 Had the pleasure of taking another great tour with Broadway Up Close yesterday. HIPPIES, DISCOS, & DOGS, OH MY! Tour, I LOVED IT!!! This was the highlight of my week and I left the tour on a happiness cloud!!! Tim Dolan gives a superb tour! His passion for theatre and his impressive and extensive knowledge of all things theatre is astounding and inspiring. I learned so much fascinating stuff about the theaters I've been going to for years and places in the Broadway neighborhood I never noticed were even there. Is expert eye and his caring nature and his infectious enthusiasm makes for a truly wonderful experience!!! It's like being in the middle of a live theatre performance that travels, perfect!!! Can't wait until April to do the Shuberts tour next!

October 2020 Tour I had the most wonderful experience on the "Broadway's Beginnings" tour today. Tim is a superb guide and theatre professional who is incredibly knowledgeable about the history, architecture and fascinating true-life stories of Broadway theaters, the artists who have and do perform in them and the exciting NYC theatre scene Off-Broadway and Off-off Broadway as well. He's a wealth of fabulous insider information and he presents it in a wonderfully engaging, fun, creative, enthusiastic way. It was like going to a show that moves joyously around the theater district. Absolutely delightful and I am so grateful to have found this amazing company. Tim makes you feel so special and makes the tour personal and meaningful and I can't wait to take my next tour and have already told friends and...

I've done my fair share of tours in my time, especially being a tour director myself. I'm a hard judge on tours. I've been aware of Broadway Up Close for a long time and have been secretly stalking everything Tim does, watching it turn to gold. As a Broadway tour guide, I love finding out little unknown tidbits, it's a nerd rush, and Tim has spent a good amount of time crafting his tours to be packed full of "Oh my Gosh" and "Wow" moments. I was hoping my little research heart would be full of joy, and full of new knowledge.

I was in the city with a full plate but I really wanted to squeeze in a tour. I shot Tim a message on Instagram and filled him in on the time I needed to leave for the airport to see if it could even be done. He responded back so quickly! A quick response is always a great sign for me. We worked out some details and it could be done! It would leave me exactly 15 minutes to get back to my hotel and zoom off for home. I quickly booked the Act II tour, which would be lead by the owner Tim. I was excited to close out another visit to the city with this hopefully excited new experience.

The day of my tour rolled around and I would be lying if I didn't day I was worried. The heat index was over 100° and here I was getting ready to do a hour and 45 minute walking tour! We got to the meeting spot and Tim was there, smile on his face with a Broadway Up Close fan for each person. A welcomed sign! There were 5 of us on the tour and Tim did a great job getting to know each one of us I those first few introductory moments, he had even took the time to check up on what we had done in the city.

Tour time! He had made a few adjustments for our tour due to the heat and he made sure every other stop on the tour was an air conditioned location and that we had plenty of options to stop for water if needed. During this 90+ minutes, I learned so much about the history of the middle section of the theatre district. Tim is so passionate about his work. He was a joy to watch and learn from. The two of us also had the chance to chat a bit about the industry and compare some stories.

I won't go on and tell you the secrets of the Act II tour in this review, you need to book a tour yourself. I told you I rate my tours hard and this was one of the best tours I have ever done. Hands down. I plan on taking all the other tours, preferably on my next visit, but I'm kinda spoiled because I want Tim to lead all of them! Haha.

You won't regret this chance to experience the history of Broadway and see how much it's changed. If you don't have time for a tour, be sure to swing by the booth in Times Square and check out the merch, history, and small shop offerings of some great Broadway related products! And tell Tim that...