When she's not belting out "Tomorrow" on stage, Annie, accompanied by an orphan or two, likes to head out to Times Square for a quick game of Lazer Tag at one of the slick new arcades, followed by a bowl of spaghetti or a burger at a hip but positively kid-friendly eatery.
They window-shop at the huge Disney Store that anchors the corner of 42nd Street. Across the street are two other recent arrivals kids love: DAPY for weird and wacky trinkets and Magic Max for take-home magic tricks.
"Times Square is really fascinating, especially at night with all of the lights, and a lot safer than I thought it would be," offers 8-year-old Brittny Kissinger, the endearing Annie of the new 20th-anniversary Broadway production. Her favorite spots: For important occasions, the revolving View restaurant atop the Marquis Marriott and, for dinner, the Olive Garden, with its big windows overlooking Times Square.
"There are still weird people, but it's a lot of fun here," agrees Brittny's 11-year-old friend Casey Tuma, who plays the orphan named July.
City sights
Of course there are weirdos, as any New Yorker will attest: This is a real city and not a theme park, despite the ever-growing presence of Mickey Mouse, an array of high-tech game palaces (including Lazer Park on 47th Street and Xs Virtual Game Arena at Broadway and 42nd Street), the All Star Cafe and themed restaurants offering every variety of food from family-style Italian (Carmine's) to '40s' diner fare (Stardust Dine-O-Mat) to Tex-Mex (Manhattan Chili Co.) to pizza under a stained-glass dome (John's Pizzeria) to meals-cum-comedy in an interactive environment (Comedy Nation) to Chinese (Ollie's Noodle Shop).
And there are the ubiquitous hot dog, pretzel and souvlaki vendors, too.
For a complete list of Times Square restaurants, hotels, theaters, music stores and other attractions, call the Times Square Business Improvement District at 212-768-1560, visit BID's Web site at www.times-square.org. When you're in the city, the visitor center is at 226 W. 42nd St. Call 800-NYC-VISIT to find out about summer hotel bargains and other citywide information.
Times Square -- that formerly tawdry stretch of 30 square blocks just west of Sixth Avenue, from West 40th Street to West 53rd bTC Street -- is back in business. Big time. And it's rolling out the red carpet for the growing number of tourists -- more than 30 million in the last year, including some 4 million American families, reports the New York Convention and Visitors Bureau.
But 250,000 others now come to Times Square to work every day. Major corporations from MTV to Morgan Stanley to the New York Times are headquartered here, with more poised to join them: David Copperfield's magic restaurant, Madame Tussaud's wax museum, theaters, restaurants and apartments.
The change has been dramatic. Known a decade ago for its hookers and peep shows -- a neighborhood visitors avoided -- Times Square now is the spot kids beg to see first when they come to New York.
Theater buffs may want to introduce their kids to the excitement of the Broadway stage. Times Square, after all, has the biggest concentration of legitimate theaters -- 37 -- in the world.
These days, there are plenty of shows for families to choose from. Besides "Annie," there's "Grease" (call Telecharge at 212-947-8844 for the $125-for-four-family ticket package), "The King and I," "Beauty and the Beast," "Cats" (look for discount coupons at the visitor's center) and "1776" (which is offering half-price tickets for kids 17 and under; check the Roundabout Theater box office at 212-869-8400. In October, the stage adaptation of "The Lion King" begins performances at Disney's New Amsterdam Theater.
Pub Date: 7/06/97
