How long is the tour?

The guided walkthrough lasts about one hour.

Where do I meet the group?

Meet at The Delacorte Theatre, Central Park. Give the name on your reservation to your guide—no printed tickets required.

Is the tour wheelchair accessible?

Backstage areas include narrow stairs and uneven grass; accessibility is limited—contact the provider if you need accommodations.

What language is the tour given in?

Guides conduct the tour in English.

Are children allowed?

Children are welcome, but the tour involves stairs and backstage areas that may not be suitable for strollers or very young children.

How do I enter the ticket giveaway?

Entry into the Free Shakespeare in the Park ticket drawing is included with the experience—details are provided during the tour.

Backstage at Delacorte Theatre: Summer Friday Tour in Central Park

On a Summer Friday at the Delacorte Theatre, the city’s green heart hums differently. Located in Central Park, the Delacorte Theatre is an intimate, open-air stage where wood and stone meet the American elm alleys of the Mall. This one-hour behind-the-scenes tour pulls back curtains blue with history, lets you stand where actors face a lawn-sized audience, and includes a photo onstage, a commemorative gift, and entry to win tickets to a Free Shakespeare in the Park 2026 performance.

Start with the theatre’s setting: the broad natural bowl of the audience lawn, the stage framed by mature trees, the nearby Shakespeare Garden and the stonework that echoes the park’s 19th-century design. Key features on tour include the painted stage apron, the fly-rail area, the dressing-room corridors tucked under the stage, and the sightlines from stage right - elements that make the Delacorte a uniquely urban outdoor playhouse. The row of American elms along the Mall and nearby Belvedere Castle’s rocky outcrop create a contrast you won’t find in a typical indoor venue: theatercraft carved into landscape.

This tour is short - about an hour - but dense. Guides explain how weather, seasonal light, and audience sightlines shape staging decisions, and they point out the practical work that keeps an open-air production running: quick-change closets, rain contingencies, and the simple theater tech that makes Shakespeare feel immediate on a summer night. It’s a hands-on primer for theater fans, amateur stagehands, and anyone curious about performance logistics in a living park.

Practicalities are simple: meet at The Delacorte Theatre, Central Park, and give the name on your reservation to your guide - no printed tickets required. The experience is staged for groups: expect around 20 people per tour. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes; the tour includes narrow backstage stairs and short walks across grass.

What makes this a stand-out offering is how it ties the city's cultural legacy to a specific place. An onstage photo feels like a small rite of passage; the souvenir and ticket giveaway are reminders that New York keeps reinventing how it opens high art to the public. For visitors who want a condensed, insider's look at an enduring public theater tradition, this tour gives context, stories, and a moment on the boards that's both photographable and memorable. Guided walkthroughs are conducted in English and capped at about 20 guests, so they feel intimate - perfect for theater students, visiting drama clubs, and travelers who want stagecraft context without an evening commitment. The short footprint makes it easy to pair with a walk along the Mall, a stop at the Shakespeare Garden, or nearby attractions. Reserve early on summer Fridays; spaces fill quickly when the park is busy. It's an essential NYC ritual.

About Untapped New York

Untapped New York is a specialist tour operator based in Jersey City, New Jersey, offering immersive, history-focused experiences across the New York metropolitan area. The company curates guided walking tours, hard hat access trips, private tours, and urban exploration itineraries that reveal hidden architecture, abandoned spaces, and lesser-known cultural stories. Signature experiences include private tours of remnants of Old Penn Station with photographic documentation from noted photographers and railroad historians; Secrets of Grand Central led by award-winning guides; and multiple Ellis Island Hospital hard hat tours that explore century-old contagious disease wards, autopsy rooms, and JR’s "Unframed" exhibition. Other offerings include underground subway explorations, Gilded Age mansions walks along Fifth Avenue, and thematic cultural routes such as NYC’s Irish History Tour.

Tours are presented as focused, small-group experiences—private and public—designed for visitors and locals who want deep historical context and rare access. Untapped New York highlights tangible artifacts and architectural remnants, combining storytelling with visual materials to enrich each tour. The company works with specialist guides, photographers, and historians to document locations factually and compellingly. Booking options include private tours and scheduled public departures for select trips. Whether exploring abandoned hospital wards, hidden stations, or the opulent façades of Millionaire’s Row, Untapped New York emphasizes archival research, expert-led narration, and unique on-site photographs to convey the layered history of New York’s built environment. Scheduled experiences feature Remnants of Penn Station, Secrets of Grand Central, Ellis Island Hospital Hard Hat Tours, NYC’s Underground Subway Tour, Fifth Avenue Gilded Age mansion walks.