The Woody Allen Experience

Up until about a year ago, I had never seen a Woody Allen movie. Around that time, it was in my best interests to enroll in a Woody Allen 101 class. I really wanted to do well this semester so I thought I'd impress my professor, Prof. Cotton, with a surprise class field trip to see Woody Allen and his Dixieland Jazz Band perform at the Carlyle Hotel in New York City.





To really secure my spot on the Honor Roll, I got us seats at one of the three VIP tables. The trumpet and trombone players were putting their drinks and instrument doodads on our table. At some points, I thought the trombone player was going to hit me in the head because he was so close:



Here's my professor cheering on his subject:



Tips for those of you who also want to take this field trip:

• Check the performance calendar at the Carlyle Hotel's website to make sure he's in town. They generally only play on Monday nights. The current season runs til Dec 10th of this year.
• You have to make dinner reservations to guarantee getting to see the band. Tickets usually sell out 3-4 weeks in advanced. The Carlyle is teeny-tiny, so you've got a good view from almost anywhere you sit.
• The show starts at 8:45pm, the last dinner reservation you can make is at 7:30pm. Eat before hand as the Carlyle is ridiculously expensive. As soon as you sit down they give you a glass bottle of Evian drinking or sparkling water and charge you $10 for it whether you want it or not. A vodka collins will cost you $20.
  
• Don't be sad if Woody doesn't look up at all the entire time he's playing. He is the king of all introverts and seeing him live proves it.
  

It was totally worth it and highly recommended! So, what became of me and my Woody Allen 101 class? Unfortunately, the dean discovered this photo and Prof. Cotton was fired for sexual harassment: