Bandstand Rush Reports- Page 2

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 5/14/17 at 12:27am

^I did the secondary rush last weekend at like 6:30pm for a Saturday evening 8pm curtain. The seat was in the front mezz (Row C) on the right hand side, but I ended up moving to the center of my row. For $49 bucks, couldn't beat that type of seat. 

[@z5]

Posted: 5/14/17 at 12:41am

Yeah- I remember Color Purple had those type of rushes too after initial rush was sold out.I believe it was also similar seating for maybe just a few dollars more. That's what I did on the last week of the run back in January.

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 5/14/17 at 1:13am

Rushed this today at 5:30 (Saturday) after striking out at "Waitress" SRO and rush for "Glass Menagerie" and "Miss Saigon." Was told that general rush had been sold out, but I could get secondary rush on the side mezz for $49 or side orchestra for $59. I chose the former. Excellent full view from the second row of the front mezz, about 6 seats in. I wasn't impressed by the show, but the seats were terrific for the price and for how late in the day I got them!

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 5/14/17 at 9:41am

"I wasn't impressed by the show, but the seats were terrific for the price and for how late in the day I got them!I wasn't impressed by the show, but the seats were terrific for the price and for how late in the day I got them!"

Glad you like your seats, sorry you were not impressed with show. I saw it and really enjoyed it, the two leads were really good and the dancing was excellent. 

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 5/14/17 at 12:25pm

The dancing was definitely the highlight for me, and I agree, the leads (especially Corey) did a great job with what they were given.

[mjbway]

Posted: 5/16/17 at 8:09pm

People are making the "secondary rush" tickets sound way better as far as view and seating than the boxes - anyone have other strong opinions on the value for the different available seats? May try to do secondary rush tomorrow or Thursday, and normal rush on Friday if I strike out the other two days!

Thanks!

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 5/17/17 at 12:14am

Having sat in boxes on both the left and right for "The Color Purple," I'd say that if you get the front box on either side, you'll have a fine view, but if you wind up in any of the boxes further back (especially with an inside seat), your view will be quite obstructed. I'd say it's definitely worth the extra $10 ($49 per ticket) for a full-view front mezzanine seat. I haven't sat in the side orchestra at the Jacobs, so I can't comment on whether it's worth an extra $20 ($59 per ticket) to sit there.

[ntrackbar]

Posted: 5/17/17 at 11:08am

Walked by the theater today and the line was massive. So was CFA's and I am sure they were bleeding into one another. But it was thrilled to see so many people lining 45th Street. Theater thrives!

[HSky]

Posted: 5/17/17 at 12:19pm

Re: Jacobs side orchestra, I'm seeing Bandstand later tonight so I'm not yet familiar with how it makes use of the stage, but I often sat in the side orchestra seats in the first 4-5 rows that were sold as partial view for Once. I thought they were a good value for the price if you wanted to be up close. Depending on the side, my view of the same side door plus either the drum kit or Guy/Reza/Billy in the corner during the bar scene before "Sleeping" were blocked but for the majority of Once's staging, the view was fine.

[lm121362]

Posted: 5/20/17 at 9:03am

At 745 am on Saturday (5/20) there were 12 people inline

[kelsiinicholl]

Posted: 5/20/17 at 4:49pm

I was in line for 5/20 too. We got there around 9 am and we're about 20th in line with 9 or so people behind us! We got Box A on the right for the evening performance. Can't wait to see the show!

Updated On: 5/20/17 at 04:49 PM

[RCPanned]

Posted: 6/20/17 at 12:30pm

I was thinking of rushing for tomorrow's matinee. How early have people been arriving at the BO for rush tickets? Any and all info is appreciated!

[Malka2]

Posted: 6/20/17 at 1:08pm

I rushed Bandstand last Sunday. I got there when the box office opened and was about 10th in line. They had both $35 box seat and $49 unobstructed view available, so I got the $49 ticket. It was front row mezzanine! I was pretty excited!

If you can get there half an hour before they open you might be more certain that you'll get a seat, but there's no crazy lines. Good luck!

[bwayandstuff]

Posted: 6/20/17 at 1:13pm

Me and 2 people I was with showed up at 2pm last Friday and got 3 "secondary rush" seats for $49 for an 8pm show. Seats were in the second row of the mezz and to the side but full view!

I rushed CFA on Sunday and noticed people getting in line for Bandstand rush around 7-7:30.

[broadwaygirl10]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 9:33am

My dad is waiting for me now and he got there around 9. He said there were 15-20 people in front of him. Will update with seat locations. 

[RCPanned]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 12:09pm

broadwaygirl10 said: "My dad is waiting for me now and he got there around 9. He said there were 15-20 people in front of him. Will update with seat locations. 

 

Nice! Can't wait to hear about your experience!

 

[Addipia94]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 8:30pm

I rushed today! Despite the rain (thinking that could hinder people from rushing super early), my sister and I got to the theater around 7:45am. We were second in line. People were friendly so it was nice chatting, which helped the time pass for sure :) 

Was offered the box seats for rush price but decided not to take them (partial view), so bought the $49 front row mezzanine seats which were more right of the stage. The view was great and we felt close to the actors and didn't miss any of the action. 

Overall, great experience and loved the show! Hope it finds its audience now that the cast album is out!!

[broadwaygirl10]

Posted: 6/25/17 at 6:26pm

broadwaygirl10 said: "My dad is waiting for me now and he got there around 9. He said there were 15-20 people in front of him. Will update with seat locations. 

 

"

OK, so I asked my dad to get second rush ($49) bc I was going with my cousin and it was her first bway show so I didn't want her to have a partial view seat. However, he said that there were $35 seats available when he got to the B.O. Our seats were good, second row mezz two off the end of the row House left (Row B, seats 21-23). We could see most of the stage, but the very edge of Stage right (bar thing) was cut off. However, basically everything is center so it was fine. I'm thinking $49 rush is just whatever's left in the mezz?  Show was incredible, highly recommend it (bring tissues). 

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 6/25/17 at 11:39pm

Without meaning to here comes probably another long comment. I saw Bandstand for the second time this afternoon. The first time I saw it was the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend and I wondered how much of the enthusiastic audience response then was due to the holiday weekend. The new Times critic had written

If “Bandstand” really worked, the finale would find you laughing and crying. Instead, you might just make like the dancers and shrug"

According to these criteria, Bandstand had worked when I saw it. It produced heartfelt tears (even in me, a little) and broad grins. I thought that the show deserved more attention than it got for bringing up a subject that had never even occurred to me. Having volunteered at a homeless shelter in the well-off village of Port Jefferson on Long Island, in the early 90s, I had been exposed to the heartbreak of the returning veterans of Vietnam. Over 50,000 men were killed in action, but an equal amount returned home with a permanent handicap of either mind or body. Basically there were a lot of alcoholic vets living on the streets of this affluent village. The veteran brother of a pretty young girl who was a volunteer at the homeless shelter had been in effect sentenced to life in a big, cavernous psychiatric institution run by the government.

So why had it never come to the attention of most that their must be many forgotten World War II vets who had come home in the same sad condition of the Vietnam vet? They had had similar or worse experiences evicting the fight-to-the-death Japanese from their well-entrenched defensive positions on so many muddy, disease-ridden Pacific Islands?

The immediate cause of my returning was hearing the cast album. I really like the wall of sound that it put up. I had pretty good exposure to the best of the swing era due to my parents' interest in it. It was the music that they had grown up to. I thought I might like the show even better knowing the music and understanding the lyrics.

A lot of theatergoers blame Bandstand's failure on the lack of knowledge or interest on almost all parts of the population in swing music. Chicago was set in the jazz age and its original semi-failure could be blamed partly on lack of interest in that music. But when the Encores version caught fire everyone discovered that this music was pretty great. 

It's just a noisy hall, Where there's a nightly brawl, And all that jazz.

So you might be able to say the same about swing right now: off the radar. But one odd thing is that the CEO of Sirius Satellite radio said a few weeks ago that the biggest negative response that they had ever gotten, by far, to an announcement that a channel was being dropped was the response to the news that the 40s station was being dropped. It was restored. Where did all that response come from? Some day you may appreciate, if you don't already, all the gifted musicians of that time. Benny Goodman with Gene Krupa ("Sing! Sing! Sing!", Duke Ellington ("Take the A Train", Artie Shaw ("Begin the Beguine". 

So far I haven't said anything about rush. Par for the course. I was going to say that Telecharge's regular discount prices may be low enough to avoid you a trip. The last three rows of the mezz are $59.00 for every performance except the Wednesday matinee. And you can be pretty sure that you'll be able to move down, probably into the front mezz, at just about every performance.

About today's show, for starters Corey was out. I don't think many bothered to ask for a refund as most didn't know him. His understudy, Jonathan Shew, wasn't as attractive in the role as Corey, but as a guy in his first Broadway show, he did well enough. Acting and dancing the role is hard enough, but having to go over to the piano on a moment's notice and play the instrument and play it well is a lot to ask.

Once again this show, which appears to be one that could be on a respirator at any time, grabbed the audience in the 2nd Act. There were tears and smiles and a strong standing "O" for the company, but most impressive was the great roar that greeted the end of the show's climactic number, "Welcome Home." 

I think that the audience really grew attached to the whole band. Not just Donny and Julia, but the heavyset Irish alcoholic who got off a number of good one-liners, the drummer who rolled over three times in the jeep, doing serious damage to his mental faculties, the detail oriented trumpet player. The roar was for all the band members who had pulled off a long shot of even being able to function together as a group in a successful band.

 

 

 

Updated On: 6/26/17 at 11:39 PM

[Addipia94]

Posted: 6/26/17 at 10:21am

OlBlueEyes said: " If “Bandstand” really worked, the finale would find you laughing and crying. Instead, you might just make like the dancers and shrug"

According to these criteria, Bandstand had worked when I saw it. It produced heartfelt tears (even in me, a little) and broad grins.

[...]
There were tears and smiles and a strong standing "O" for the company, but most impressive was the great roar that greeted the end of the show's climactic number, "Welcome Home.""

 

Totally agree with your analysis of the Time's review. I attended the matinee on 6/24 and everyone seemed moved to tears (or at least close). Sometimes I wonder if this critic attended the same show I did :P Also, I'm not sure this has happened to others who saw the show, but when Laura Osnes came out she got a mini entrance applause, which was a bit surprising considering the demographic of the audience during matinee performances. The audience was almost on their feet after "Welcome Home," and people were cheering for a solid 2 minutes after the number. Sure, at times the book is a bit weak, but the music is so enjoyable it fills some of the gaps - for me at least!

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 6/26/17 at 11:35am

As someone wrote, it's too bad that Isherwood's warm review was not published in the Times.

Despite the release of the cast album, the Tony performance, the Tony win for choreography and word of mouth, there's no sign of business picking up. Advance sales are dismal, even when the "advance" is just a week or less.

The only hope is to have Kelli O'Hara take over for Beth Leavel for a few months (I know Beth is great in the role but we're talking survival) and have Ben Brantley review the show in the Times. Even if he doesn't like the show, he'll at least go easy on it and spend two-thirds of the review praising Kelli. (Just about always deserved.)

 

[Rhoda4]

Posted: 6/26/17 at 2:08pm

4 of us saw the show this past Saturday.  LOVED IT.  We had $69.00 tickets upstairs that I had purchased ahead a few weeks ago when I was in the city. It was a great view and I felt the price was more than fair for such an enjoyable show.  I am really hoping good worth of mouth continues and the show has a long life.  

Updated On: 6/26/17 at 02:08 PM

[dmrockon092]

Posted: 7/3/17 at 6:18pm

Since it's been awhile since a report has been given, I'm curious if anyone has rushed lately. I'm planning on rushing for Wednesday matinee. 

What time is best to arrive?

Do Laura and Corey perform at most matinees? 

[Addipia94]

Posted: 7/3/17 at 7:22pm

They both performed on a Saturday matinee when I went. However, I know Laura and maybe Corey too, are performing in DC for the holiday on Tuesday. I'm sure they will be back for Wednesday's performances, but you never know. Both performers have a good track record of performing matinees. 

[sciencegirl]

Posted: 7/4/17 at 10:25am

I rushed last Weds matinee. Got there at a little before noon, so long after the box office opened. Got extreme side (last 2seats in the row), front row mezzanine. Missed a little of the action on stage right, but thought they were great seats. Good luck!