CNBC Article: Nobody wants to see a Broadway show — Page 2

Sutton Ross said: "Yeah, they make you up the price for resale. I wanted to resell my ticket for exactly what I paid and it said "the location of your seats are selling for on average of 350 (ish)". And it's like, I don't care? Im not trying to fu*king gouge people. Ridiculous."

Pre covid, I would take Amtrak from Philly to NYC often. Because Amtrak is so unreliable, many times the train delayed too long and it would get in after the start of the show so I would list my ticket for resale. I hate when Ticketmaster would do that and not let me list the ticket for sale price or lower. I’m not trying to make a profit- just trying to get rid of the ticket so someone who can make it can get there in time. I learned to always get pdf tickets and sell on stubhub instead because Ticketmaster resell was a pain.

Updated On: 8/14/21 at 07:14 PM

Amtrak is awful. I have many horror stories. But the worst was when the train’s engine died and we were stranded in NJ, got in NYC at 2:30 (arrival should have been 12:49), and missed half of Hadestown. On the train home, I find out Rob McClure was in the quiet car with me and experienced the wonderful Amtrak experience of that afternoon and he had to miss the Beetlejuice matinee.

Updated On: 8/14/21 at 07:47 PM

Honestly, just because you read an article with an obvious edge or ax to grind, doesn't mean you have to believe it. As for the comments, come on now. You should know by now that they are over-populated by the MAGA/ crazy crowd that want to see the Evil New York City be destroyed as an act of God. Incidentally, I read that NYC added over .5 million new residents recently. These "journalists" have discovered how to click-bait these sentiments regardless of the truth of the matter. It's a sad fact about our sick society today.

It seems rather irresponsible for people to suggest Broadway will follow the (temporary - it’s about to end!) UK protocol of temporarily shutting down shows if that’s not what will happen on Broadway. Are they trying to scare people into not wanting to buy tickets? I hope there is a coordinated marketing effort for Broadway shows to help challenge some of these ideas and give confidence in people to return!

In any case, it also seems silly for anyone to expect things to bounce back right now 100% pre-pandemic. This should not be seen as a catastrophic failure. If shows can break even or even make a small loss opening right now until the situation improves surely this could be more economically viable than keeping shows completely closed indefinitely.

The show must go on, we have a vaccine that is widely available and we just need to move on. The market will decide what number of shows and the nature of shows that can stay open. People can choose to attend or not. It’s time to get things running again!

Updated On: 8/15/21 at 06:05 AM

binau said: "It seems rather irresponsible for people to suggest Broadway will follow the (temporary - it’s about to end!) UK protocol of temporarily shutting down shows if that’s not what will happen on Broadway. Are they trying to scare people into not wanting to buy tickets? I hope there is a coordinated marketing effort for Broadway shows to help challenge some of these ideas and give confidence in people to return!"

What I am about to say is going to sound kinda Trumpy, but there's truth to it.

That is exactly what they are trying to do. Over the past 18 months, it has become increasingly clear that the media has more power over people, than they ever thought they did before the pandemic. They influence how we think, as well as how we behave. They know that the fear-inducing headlines will immediately draw people to an article. I will be the first to admit that I have fallen victim to this countless times, over the past 18 months. But it doesn't stop there. Because what do people do, when they're scared? They read more. Google has become an easy form of doomscrolling, and the pandemic has made that profitable for these conglomerates. And here's the thing: it's not going away. When they have realized the influence they have on people's behavior (and, thus, their wallets), they're not going to yield that power; they're going to wield it. Because, at the end of the day, the NY Times, CNN, Fox News, NY Post, The Atlantic, any media source you can think of, exists to make profits. The pandemic fear has helped them do that. So, for as long as Covid is around (which it will be for the rest of our lives), you're going to continue to see articles that seek to use it to scare people.

Now that's not to say that I think the media is "the enemy of the people." I more consider them a necessary evil. I believe that a free and independent press is absolutely vital to our democracy, but we can't pretend that none of this has truth to it.

So, to your last point, yes. Broadway's marketing effort is going to have to counter all of this. It's part of the adapting the industry is going to have to do, and I sincerely hope they are prepared for the challenge.

Updated On: 8/15/21 at 07:46 AM

BroadwayRox3588 said: "binau said: "It seems rather irresponsible for people to suggest Broadway will follow the (temporary - it’s about to end!) UK protocol of temporarily shutting down shows if that’s not what will happen on Broadway. Are they trying to scare people into not wanting to buy tickets? I hope there is a coordinated marketing effort for Broadway shows to help challenge some of these ideas and give confidence in people to return!"

What I am about to say is going to sound kinda Trumpy, but there's truth to it.

That is exactly what they are trying to do. Over the past 18 months, it has become increasingly clear that the media has more power over people, than they ever thought they did before the pandemic. They influence how we think, as well as how we behave. They know that the fear-inducing headlines will immediately draw people to an article. I will be the first to admit that I have fallen victim to this countless times, over the past 18 months. But it doesn't stop there. Because what do people do, when they're scared? They read more. Google has become an easy form of doomscrolling, and the pandemic has made that profitable for these conglomerates. And here's the thing: it's not going away. When they have realized the influence they have on people's behavior (and, thus, their wallets), they're not going to yield that power; they're going to wield it. Because, at the end of the day, the NY Times, CNN, Fox News, NY Post, The Atlantic, any media source you can think of, exists to make profits. The pandemic fear has helped them do that. So, for as long as Covid is around (which it will be for the rest of our lives), you're going to continue to see articles that seek to use it to scare people.

Now that's not to say that I think the media is "the enemy of the people." I more consider them a necessary evil.I believe that a free and independent press is absolutely vital to our democracy, but we can't pretend that none of this has truth to it.

So, to your last point, yes. Broadway's marketing effort is going to have to counter all of this. It's part of the adapting the industry is going to have to do, and I sincerely hope they are prepared for the challenge."

This is nothing new. Pulitzer published crime stories with screaming headlines as if there was a "crime wave" when numbers were actually down. Hearst (or maybe it was citizen kane) "you furnish the pictures, I'll furnish the war' - have you never heard of "yellow journalism" - or "if it bleeds, it leads" for TV news - or when Walter Cronkite was the "most trusted man in America" - and I'm not even going into Fox "News" role in spreading disinformation.

bway0 said: "Amtrak is awful. I have many horror stories. But the worst was when the train’s engine died and we were stranded in NJ, got in NYC at 2:30 (arrival should have been 12:49), and missed half of Hadestown. On the train home, I find out Rob McClure was in the quiet car with me and experienced the wonderful Amtrak experience of that afternoon and he had to miss the Beetlejuice matinee."

I can fully agree that Amtrak is ridiculous mostly from the stories I hear, even though I've been lucky as hell to never have experienced one of them myself. Too many horror stories to not believe that Amtrak is terrible. But I have to wonder why he uses/used Amtrak when there's NJT that's cheaper and ggeeennnerally more reliable...note that I say generally.

That said...yeah that article is somewhat ridiculous, but I imagine there'll be many day of, last minute purchases from those who feel comfortable. I DO agree with the assessment that tickets are just as expensive as ever and just like the industry itself, it's like no one used this long pause to rethink how to make pricing more accessible.

JennH said: "bway0 said: "Amtrak is awful. I have many horror stories. But the worst was when the train’s engine died and we were stranded in NJ, got in NYC at 2:30 (arrival should have been 12:49), and missed half of Hadestown. On the train home, I find out Rob McClure was in the quiet car with me and experienced the wonderful Amtrak experience of that afternoon and he had to miss the Beetlejuice matinee."

I can fully agree that Amtrak is ridiculous mostly from thestoriesI hear, even though I've been lucky as hell to never have experienced one of them myself. Too many horror stories to not believe that Amtrak is terrible. ButI have to wonder why he uses/used Amtrak when there's NJT that's cheaper and ggeeennnerally more reliable...note that I say generally.

That said...yeahthat article is somewhat ridiculous, but I imagine there'll be many day of,last minute purchases fromthose who feel comfortable. I DO agree with theassessment that tickets are just as expensive as ever and just like the industry itself, it's like no one used this long pause to rethink how to make pricing more accessible."

I'm baffled that orchestra seats for The Music Man are going for $500 a pop (according to comments on othr threads here). I mean, how many people go to the theater alone? So it's $1,000 for just two people, and presumably they are going out to eat before or afterwards. I'm not knocking the material, the stars or this production. I just don't know who can afford this, no matter how good it is.

I’m someone who generally travels from the west coast 2-3 times per year, buying higher end tickets in advance and seeing several shows per trip. Sadly, I have no plans to return yet, for one reason only - Covid.

I don’t yet feel comfortable sitting in a theater (or the plane to get there!). It’s not the crime rate (I regularly visited in the 80’s when the murder rate on 42nd street alone should have been a deterrent!). It’s not ticket prices or any of the other things mentioned. I’m simply not ready yet.

I’m fully vaccinated but don’t trust that the protocols are enough. I think it’s time to require vaccines for public transportation and all indoor venues AND have trustworthy systems for proof, but that hasn’t happened. If the data shows that current protocols are enough (by hard data), that will make me reconsider. Until then…..

Updated On: 8/16/21 at 12:38 AM

I can't speak of Broadway because I don't live in the US and right now don't have any plans to visit, but as shows start planning their reopen in my country, I wonder if I'm going back at all, even if cases fall down to a negligible number.

I say this as someone who saw almost 40 shows in 2019: do I really miss paying crazy expensive tickets that could probably be a lot cheaper? Do I miss the people talking, singing, chewing and now with the added element of wondering if they are inteligent enough to keep their noses inside their masks? I almost cried when I saw the first comeback announcement, but today I woke up thinking about all of that.