Tickets
Purchase MJ tickets online or at the box office.
Group Tickets (10+) Book online or call 800-714-8452.
Location
Public Transportation
By Subway:
Take the C, E train to 50th St.
About This Theatre
Christened the Alvin in 1927, the Neil Simon Theatre was renamed in 1983 to honor America’s most prolific playwright, following the successful engagement of Brighton Beach Memoirs, the first play of an autobiographical trilogy about his youth with his family. Fittingly, in 1985, the second play of Mr. Simon’s trilogy, Biloxi Blues, played there successfully. In 1992, Mr. Simon returned again with his play Jake’s Women.
Since 2000, the Neil Simon has been filled with music and dancing as the home to two of Broadway’s most popular productions, namely the acclaimed revival of The Music Man and the Tony Award–winning Best Musical Hairspray.
Payment
American Express, Visa, and Mastercard are accepted for ticket purchases at the box office.
Exchanges/Refunds All ticket purchases are final and tickets may not be exchanged or refunded. See Terms & Conditions.
Dress Code There is no dress code at the theatre. For all performances, attire should be comfortable and appropriate for the occasion. The theatre is air-conditioned during the summer months.
Children
All persons entering the theatre, regardless of age, must have a ticket. Guests under 5 are not permitted in the theatre.
Food & Beverage
No outside food or drinks are permitted in the theatre.
Late Seating
There will be a strict late seating hold for those who are not in their purchased seat when the Act begins. For Act I, the hold is approximately 22 minutes. The hold for Act II is approximately 10 minutes. Patrons will be held in the promenade or upper lobby (depending on the seats purchased) in which the patron will be able to view the show on a monitor. Late seating is at the discretion of management.
Smoking
Smoking (including e-cigarettes) is prohibited in the Neil Simon Theatre.
Security
Patron Security For the protection of our patrons, theatre managers and private security personnel are on duty during all performances.
Bag Screening
All bags will be inspected upon arrival. Luggage, shopping bags, and other large packages that will not fit comfortably with you at your seat will not be checked or allowed inside the theatre. For your convenience, please arrange to check your large bags at one of these locations if you are unable to leave them at home.
Do not leave your personal bags (purses, backpacks) unattended while in the theatre.
Prohibited Items
Do not carry any of these items into the security screening area. Items that are confiscated will not be returned. If you are unsure about any item, do not bring it to the theatre.
All weapons are strictly prohibited, including but not limited to: firearms, ammunition, knives, swords, scissors, OC spray (mace), any dangerous items, and weapons of any kind
Outside food or beverage
Large professional cameras or video recording equipment
Flashlights or laser pointers
Illegal substances
Noise making devices or fireworks
Electric bikes or scooters
The Neil Simon Theatre has the right to refuse entry if any of the above is not adhered to.
Amenities
Concessions
There is one bar located in the theatre’s lower lounge and one bar located on the mezzanine level where alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages as well as snacks can be purchased. Bottled water and beverages with secure tops are permitted in the auditorium. The bars begin serving patrons 30 minutes prior to the start of the performance and at intermission.
Nederlander Theatres do not permit outside food or beverages.
Patrons seeking to bring in their own food or drink because the food or drink is necessary for medical reasons shall be permitted to bring such food or drink into a theatre.
It is imperative for patrons to understand that not only do the theatres sell peanut-related products, it is impossible for any theatre to designate peanut-free seating zones since we cannot control what food products patrons may bring into the theatres.
Restrooms
Restrooms are located on the lower lounge and the Mezzanine level of the theatre.
Cloakroom
Cloakroom service is not available.
Parking
Broadway Direct has partnered with SpotHero to provide guests with convenient and affordable parking. Please use the calendar below to reserve parking ahead of your upcoming show.
Lost & Found
Did you lose an item at the Neil Simon Theatre? You’ve come to the right place to start looking.
The Neil Simon Theatre is committed to the needs of patrons with disabilities. Accessible seating is available for this performance as indicated on the seating map.
All accessible seating locations may be purchased online, pending availability: Buy tickets for MJ. If you do not see accessible seats available for a selected performance, it means that performance is sold out of accessible tickets and you should try selecting a different performance.
Wheelchair locations are available in the orchestra section of the theatre (pending availability). You may purchase one wheelchair and three companion seats per order if available.
For guests with limited mobility, there are seats available with movable/folding armrests (“Aisle transfer seats”) in these locations: Orchestra C101, C113, J2, L101, L115, P2, S2; Mezzanine F101, F124, H2, T1, T2, T101, T127.
For low vision/deaf and hard of hearing guests, accessible seats are available in the Orchestra Row B 2 – 8 and C 110-113.
There is no elevator or escalator to the mezzanine. The mezzanine is only accessible by using stairs.
If you have additional questions or require assistance when attending the theatre, please send us a message or call 212-757-8646 and we will be happy to help accommodate your request.
Wheelchair-Accessible Restroom
The Neil Simon Theatre is equipped with one wheelchair-accessible restroom on the Orchestra level (house left), as well as wide stalls in the male and female restrooms.
Seat Accessibility
The only seats that do not require steps are in the Orchestra. All Mezzanine and Box seating locations require the use of stairs.
Services for Patrons With Disabilities
Theatre representatives are available to meet patrons with disabilities in the lobby of the building to escort them to designated wheelchair accessible areas.
Policy on Guide Dogs and Service Animals
Although animals are not permitted in the theatre, an exception is made for guide dogs and service animals. Please inform your ticket sales representative if any accommodations are required.
Assisted-Listening Devices
Infrared headsets for sound augmentation are available at the theatre, free of charge. Guests are required to fill out a form with their name, email, and phone number to ensure the item is returned after the show. Once the item is returned, the guest’s information will be deleted so they will not be contacted after the show. For patrons with a tele coil, this theatre is equipped with an induction loop. Please set your device to “T”.
GalaPro
This theatre offers automated closed captioning and audio description via I-Caption or on your personal mobile device with the GalaPro App. Download from the App Store or Google Play.
Audio Described/Captioned Performances
The Neil Simon provides “Audio Description For Our Patrons Who Are Blind or Partially Sighted,” a detailed account of the visual aspects of the production. The theatre also offers “I-Caption” hand-held devices that provide captioning for deaf or hard-of-hearing patrons. Performances are not presented in sign- language.
Originally built in 1927, the Alvin Theatre (rechristened the Neil Simon in 1983 and currently owned by the Nederlanders) opened auspiciously with Fred and Adele Astaire in Funny Face.
Recent productions here include the revival of Cats; The Illusionists; Gigi; The Last Ship; All the Way with Bryan Cranston; Big Fish; Scandalous; a revival of Jesus Christ Superstar; Catch Me If You Can; Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles; Harry Connick Jr. in Concert on Broadway; a revival of Ragtime; the Tony Award–winning best musical Hairspray; Elaine Stritch at Liberty; and The Music Man.
The 1990s saw The Scarlet Pimpernel; Swan Lake; A View From the Bridge; The King and I; The Rise and Fall of Little Voice; Cyrano: The Musical; Jake’s Women, starring Alan Alda; and Jackie Mason: Brand New.
In the 1980s: Vanessa Redgrave in Tennessee Williams’s Orpheus Descending; Senator Joe (which closed after only one preview performance); Ah, Wilderness!; Long Day’s Journey Into Night, starring Colleen Dewhurst and Jason Robards; Derek Jacobi in Breaking the Code; Blithe Spirit, with Richard Chamberlain and Geraldine Page; Neil Simon’s Brighton Beach Memoirs and Biloxi Blues, both with Matthew Broderick; the successful gospel musical Your Arms Too Short to Box With God; and Merrily We Roll Along.
The 1970s began with Company (six Tony Awards) and ended with Annie, which ran for 2,377 performances. In between, John Cullum picked up a Tony Award for Shenandoah.
During the 1960s, Anthony Perkins starred in Greenwillow; Lucille Ball made her Broadway debut in Wildcat; Zero Mostel won his second Tony in the hysterical A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; Beatrice Lillie appeared in her last Broadway show, High Spirits, a musical version of Blithe Spirit costarring Tammy Grimes and Edward Woodward; Liza Minnelli won a Tony Award for Flora, the Red Menace; “It’s a Bird…It’s a Plane…It’s Superman” flew in and then out; Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead lived here; and Howard Sackler’s The Great White Hope earned Tonys for stars James Earl Jones and Jane Alexander.
Highlights of the 1950s included Claude Rains in Darkness at Noon; Shirley Booth in the musical version of A Tree Grows in Brooklyn; Henry Fonda in Point of No Return; Bette Davis in Two’s Company; The Golden Apple; House of Flowers, the Truman Capote– Harold Arlen musical starring Pearl Bailey and Diahann Carroll; Andy Griffith and Don Knotts in Ira Levin’s No Time for Sergeants; and the musical Oh Captain!, starring Tony Randall and singer Abbe Lane.
Gems of the 1940s: Gertrude Lawrence and Danny Kaye in the dazzling Lady in the Dark; the Lunts and Montgomery Clift in There Shall Be No Night; Ethel Merman in Something for the Boys; Ingrid Bergman in Joan of Lorraine; and Henry Fonda in Mister Roberts.
The ’30s included The Boys From Syracuse; the premiere of Porgy and Bess; Helen Hayes in Mary of Scotland; and Merman in Red, Hot, and Blue (1936), Anything Goes (1934), and her Broadway debut, Girl Crazy (1930).
Used with permission by Playbill, Inc. Playbill is a registered trademark.
Originally built in 1927, the Alvin Theatre (rechristened the Neil Simon in 1983 and currently owned by the Nederlanders) opened auspiciously with Fred and Adele Astaire in Funny Face.