Five, four, three, two, one.
As the end of 2009 nears, Ron Scarlata,
theater professor, offers a chance to
spend this New Year’s Eve in New
York City’s Times Square.
“I have been sponsoring tours
for over 25 years and this year’s tour
will be conducted from Dec. 26 to
Jan.1, in New York City,” Scarlata
said.
Scarlata said that the price of
the trip is a good value for every-
thing that is included.
The total cost of the trip is
$2,510, and there are lower rates
available for students.
Scarlata said the group will be
staying at the Crowne Plaza Hotel,
which is located in midtown Man-
hattan at Broadway and 49th Street
in the heart of New York’s Times
Square.
“I’ve never been to New York, so
it would be cool to be there for New
Year’s and the price isn’t that bad,”
biology major Sumayyah Khan, 18,
said.
“The biggest expense is because
of the hotels,” Scarlata said. “They
raise their prices for New Year’s Eve
because it is the place to be and it is
also a very nice hotel.”
He said that the Crowne Plaza
is the perfect base for a Manhattan
adventure because of its location and
also because the Plaza is equipped
with a fantastic fitness facility and
Manhattan’s largest indoor swim-
ming pool.
“We will be close to the Theater
District, Radio City Music Hall and
Rockefeller Center, and just three
blocks away from the world-famous
Fifth Avenue,” Scarlata said.
“Also included in the cost will be
tour guides, two major Broadway
musicals and one Broadway drama
or comedy,” Scarlata said. “We will
attempt to select the hottest titles on
the Broadway stage.”
The tour guides are actually actors
and actresses who live in New York
who do tours to make some extra
money, he said.
“The guides know what it is like to
be in New York from an actors’ per-
spective, like going to acting classes
and auditioning for plays,” Scarlata
said. “They usually know the city re-
ally well.”
He said that spaces are limited
and that last year’s trip was sold out.
“Those who are interested should
contact me immediately via mail,
phone, or e-mail, and I will get a
brochure to you,” Scarlata said.
He also said that those who go on
the tour will get to experience life as
a New Yorker.
“We travel around like the ac-
tual citizens; most of the tours will
be done by foot, subway, or another
form of public transportation,” Scar-
lata said. “It’s
not one of those
trips that you
just sit in an air
conditioned bus
and look left and
right.”
According
to the Times
Square Alliance,
there are about
1 million people
who attend the
celebration in
Times Square.
“There are
a lot of tour-
ists coming in
and its all those
people in a few
blocks crammed
full of life with
noise makers
and balloons.
When it actually
happens, when
they drop the ball, its thunderous,”
Scarlata said.
He said that they limit the amount
of people allowed in Times Squares
and that after 6 p.m., no more people
are allowed to enter because it would
be dangerous.
He added that there are police
officers everywhere on horses and on
foot all around.
“They make their presence known
because they are afraid that people
will get out of control,” Scarlata
said.
This trip is open to whoever is
interested because it is just a recre-
ational trip, Scarlata said.
“There are no classes, and no
credits so we get a lot of people of
different ages who go,” he said. “So
you get a mixture of people who may
or may not be students at EC and
they bring along their family and
friends.”
For more information, interested
persons may contact Professor Scar-
lata 310-660-3593ext.3704.