New York Comic Con 2023 Wrap-Up: Jaws and Godzillas and Broadway, Oh My!

As a member of the press covering New York Comic Con, occasionally we get invites to afterparties or other exclusive events. This year (2023), I was able to attend two separate but incredible events after the Friday and Saturday Convention days!

On Friday the 13th, my colleagues and I were invited to see the Broadway play The Shark is Broken. Starring Ian Shaw, Colin Donnell, and Alex Brightman, the show is a wonderful character piece that sees the cast portraying actors Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider, and Richard Dreyfuss on the Orca between takes of shooting the original Jaws while the shark is, well, broken.

As co-written by Ian Shaw (also the son of Robert Shaw, who played Quint in Jaws), the show is a fast-paced 90-minute tour de force. First off, all three performances are masterful. Brightman gets all the funniest bits as Dreyfuss, Shaw eerily channels his father’s bluster and mannerisms, while Donnell is the glue that holds it all together, often playing the peacemaker of the group. Filled with humor, the show has plenty of dramatic moments as well, and since it’s loosely based on real events, there are some revealing insights about each of the actors to be found. Honestly, I absolutely loved it and I can’t recommend it highly enough to anyone in or around the vicinity of New York City and Broadway. Afterward, we waited outside the exit door and were lucky enough to meet Ian Shaw and Colin Donnell and get pics and our Playbill signed. It was an amazing night!

The play ends its Broadway run on 19th November.

The following evening, we were invited to a special screening of a 35 mm print of the original 1954 Godzilla feature film at the Japan Society. Japan Society is the premier organization connecting Japanese arts, culture, language, business, and society with audiences in New York and the world. The event also had food and drinks sponsored by BentOn, Brooklyn Kura, Sapporo USA, and Moshi. After introductions by a few of the people involved with the society, we were first treated to an exclusive trailer for the new Godzilla Minus One movie and it looks absolutely incredible! I can’t wait to see it on the big screen!

Then we screened the film. I’ve seen the original Godzilla before, but never on a big screen. Japan Society has a beautiful building with a full movie theater, and it was a packed house. The audience was clearly into the film and it was a lot of fun. Afterward, there was a reception with free Japanese food and drinks, and I discovered a wonderful beverage called Moshi Sparkling Yuzu, which is a sort of sweet carbonated tea drink that was delicious. I even got to meet Kentaro, a Japanese film star and director; you might remember him from Kiss of the Dragon and Rush Hour 3, among other things!

All in all, while NYCC 2023 was another great convention, this year’s after-con events were some of my favorites yet!