Legitimate theater and ballet strike me as presentations organized by homosexuals for the amusement of other homosexuals and women. Great restaurants are another matter, but then I live in Europe where one expects first-class food in every restaurant.
Munich offers world-class restaurants, theater, ballet, opera and other examples of "high culture" without the brutal negativity of New York City-but it's population density is about 1/6 that of New York City.
I lived within commuting distance of New York City for decades and I would offer that it was not John Lindsay who perverted the city but it was under his administration that the city was lost to the forces of the left, the unions and racial identity politics. I would not necessarily confuse coincidence with causation.
