My Favorite Things: TheaterMania’s Editor Shares His 2025 Holiday Gift Guide

Forget about bright copper kettles and warm woollen mittens. Those are fun, but they’re not what I want when I light the menorah this year.

Obviously, because of my job, my house is filled with tote bags, scented candles (so many scented candles), and even a miniature HwaBoon or two. While my wife thinks we have more than enough — David, do you really need another show-branded coaster? is a constant refrain —  my very specific kind of derangement knows there’s no such thing as too much merch.

So, here are some of the Christmas presents I want this season. I’m sure some of you will them, too.

I’m a sucker for a shirt that lists a bunch of names &. Here’s a great one I discovered in our TheaterMania swag shop, representing the current and ongoing Sound of Music tour. Listing all of the Von Trapp children, it will be a great party trick to see if you can name them all from memory, and if you forget, you can just look down.

To purchase this and other goodies, visit the official TheaterMania store here.

Shameless Plug Alert: I already have this, but I highly recommend it to you. You may already know about TheaterMania’s daily discounts to shows on Broadway and beyond, but do you know about Gold? TheaterMania’s members-only club offers complimentary and deeply discounted tickets to theater across New York. Gold has something for everyone — theater, concerts, lectures, comedy, dance, and other cultural events. You can see as many shows as you like over the course of your membership, and you will break even with the purchase of one single Broadway ticket.

Help someone special make memories all year long with a Gold membership by clicking here.

These are two great “behind-the-scenes” books by friends of mine. History Hiding Around Broadway is by Teale Dvornik (aka the Backstage Blonde), a Broadway dresser, tour guide, and historian. The In-Between is a book of backstage photographs by esteemed theatrical photojournalist Jenny Anderson. if you’ve ever wanted to be in the “room where it happened,” these books are perfect.

Buy History Hiding Around Broadway here.
Buy The In-Between here.

Another friend who I will recommend any collector get in touch with is Laura Heywood (aka BroadwayGirlNYC), who runs the Applause Shop. Applause Shop is a charitable online store that re-homes theatrical paraphernalia including programs, sippy cups, opening night gifts, merchandise, and more, with a portion of sales going to organizations like Broadway Cares, Cancer Support Community, Planned Parenthood, and more. This How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying board game has teased me for years. Will this be the holiday season where I finally get it?

I’m also a sucker for books, music, Blu-rays, any and all of that junk. Here are the new titles that I highly recommend.

If you’re Wicked-obsessed, check out the LP releases of the Wicked and Wicked: For Good soundtracks. If you prefer the original Broadway cast, this release is very cool and has bonus tracks by Adam Lambert, Ledisi, and more.

The original Broadway cast recording of Monty Python’s Spamalot is also on vinyl now, featuring an only-heard-once-in-performance cut song!

Speaking of Monty Python’s Spamalot, Tim Curry’s new memoir, Vagabond, is an excellent read. (On the subject of memoirs, Liza’s comes out in March.)

David Byrne’s American Utopia is getting a Criterion Collection Blu-ray/DVD release. The show is amazing, the filming by Spike Lee is terrific, and I can’t wait to watch it over and over. You can too.

If you can’t make it to New York and want to read some of the newest plays, here are three great ones that have been recently released: Prince Faggot, by Jordan Tannahill; Irishtown, by Ciara Elizabeth Smyth; and the Tony-nominated Dead Outlaw, performed by the original Broadway company.

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