Wicked

Anyone see Wicked at the Smith Center for the Perfoming Arts. If so how far is the show from the strip, and can you take public transporation.

I haven't seen the show.

A quick visit to a site like Google Maps will show you that the Center is half a mile from the strip and is served by public transit.

WICKED hasn't started yet 'grummie'...
It runs August 29-October 7. Tickets have been on sale for
quite a while now.

The SMITH CENTER is very close to downtown. I've done 4 Shows
there so far...it's very cool!
I cab over from the RIO. There is public transportation but at showtime
hour...?...I've never seen any buses before or after the Shows.
Call 'em 1.702.749.2000....info/tickets

If you get some tickets, I'd suggest you DO NOT get balcony seats.
It's real, real, steep up there. Some folks even need help getting in
and out.

The Left and Right 'aisle' seats on the main floor are great...about mid room
or closer. You don't have any heads in your view because of the aisle!

Dress Circle is also very good. I've even sat in the very back of Dress Circle
and it was good for a concert. For a musical, try to sit much
closer if you can.

I'm going two nights to WICKED. One seat is at the back in Dress Circle, the
second night, Gold Circle down front. The theater is large, but not as big
as it appears in photos...there's lots of real good seats!
Look at the seating chart: www.thesmithcenter.com

The Smith Center is almost walkable from downtown, but there are the train tracks which make you have to detour around, and you end up going through a very deserted and dark area, so I wouldn't do it at night. From the rear parking lot, you can almost throw a stone to the back wall of the Plaza -- but there's no direct route.

The bus system runs down the main street (Grand Central Pkwy/Ogden) near the Smith Center with very nice and well lighted stops. Check the hours. You'll definitely spend more time waiting for a bus than riding on the bus if you're looking to get downtown or the transit center.

Taking a taxi there wouldn't be an issue, but I don't know about picking one up out there for the return trip. There must be some process. Nor do I know if there's any other kind of shuttle serve the venue.

Yeah, you don't want to walk form The SMITH CENTER to the Plaza area at night.
There are walk bridges in the works that will link SMITH to parking areas the
other side of the tracks and downtown but...they're quite a ways off yet.

In re to TAXI after a Show....it's hit 'n miss.
Some nights I've waited (along with maybe 17 other fares...) for the cabs to
arrive. VALET folks always say the cabs have been called. The usual wait has
been aprox. 20-30min. but they do come.

Other nights, the cabs are lined up after the Shows...they just don't have it
together yet, but I always get one.

One reason is the cab companies can't be guaranteed the fares will be there.
One driver told me, their dispatcher sent them over...but when they got there,
all the fares were gone and they made the tip for nothing. This possibility makes
'em hesitant to even make the drive when they know fares are waiting at the
other major properties.

This is an issue The SMITH CENTER needs to come to grips with.
YES...most folks drive and use VALET (and they have a real good system for that)
but there IS a need for cab transportation also.

Greg, great info as always. You da Entertainment-man.

I expect they'll get the cab system refined. But it will never be perfect. The numbers needing cabs will vary greatly (a good example of a need for analytics), and as you point out, no driver wants to sit out at the Smith Center and not get a fare. As you're looking for a cab, hopefully you can buddy up and share with another party. Also, driver is also not going to be real happy about a fare to Fremont Street. That's barely a click on the meter.

The pedestrian bridges won't solve the problem, I suspect. Bridges in out of the way places like that won't get police patrols and will probably not be all that much safer than the Ogden via duct under the tracks.

Busses look like a decent option, though some of them stop serving the area at 11pm. For the expresses, which is what you want, will run you something like $7 a person.

Bus there, cab back may be the best option for those without a car.