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

[RippedMan]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 6:38pm

I had a ticket for $35, great seat (thanks LincTix) and now I'm pasted 35 and have to pay full price. Ugh. But hey, happy to support theater. 

[RunnyBabbit]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 6:43pm

As some others have mentioned, I’m really interested to see what happens with tickets currently listed for resale. I looked at a couple random dates in October for Six on Stubhub. Nearly 20% of the theatre’s seats were listed for resale (for obscene prices, naturally). I’m sure some of that is just people seeing if they can make a buck, but I doubt it’s the majority.

If the vast majority of those tickets start getting returned 2 hours before show time, I can see the unlimited refund policy going away in no time.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 6:53pm

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. 

[bway0]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 7:14pm

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

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 7:34pm

Great advice. And damn, Amtrack suckssssss.

[bway0]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 7:47pm

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

[gracie61]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 8:55pm

Well I'm coming back. Bringing my daughter and 9 yr old granddaughter to NYC in June. So not right awayI guess. But we have tickets to Music Man, and had conflicts in the spring, so summer it was for the best seats! Waiting yo see what else will be playing that will be family friendly to add one more show. While I've taken my granddaughter to regional and touring shows, it will be her first trip to Broadway. I'm a subscriber to the local theater here in Austin that hosts the touring companies, so we will see Lion King and Willie Wonka that way, it's in the tour package starting in Dec.
Was thinking about Aladdin since we had tickets for the touring show that got canceled, but we will see.
Hopefully they will have the vaccine for her age group by then. My daughter is a huge Huge Jackman fan, so this is her bday present.

[gracie61]

Posted: 8/14/21 at 8:55pm

Well I'm coming back. Bringing my daughter and 9 yr old granddaughter to NYC in June. So not right awayI guess. But we have tickets to Music Man, and had conflicts in the spring, so summer it was for the best seats! Waiting yo see what else will be playing that will be family friendly to add one more show. While I've taken my granddaughter to regional and touring shows, it will be her first trip to Broadway. I'm a subscriber to the local theater here in Austin that hosts the touring companies, so we will see Lion King and Willie Wonka that way, it's in the tour package starting in Dec.
Was thinking about Aladdin since we had tickets for the touring show that got canceled, but we will see.
Hopefully they will have the vaccine for her age group by then. My daughter is a huge Huge Jackman fan, so this is her bday present.

[RunnyBabbit]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 2:29am

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."

So so many horror stories from Amtrak. Although pre-covid I had switched over to mostly taking Megabus from Philly because it was so much cheaper (although that’s not really the case anymore) and had to pad in an extra 2+ hours. Still almost missed Bette Midler’s first show back as Dolly because of traffic. And then my shoe ripped in half while I was trying to power walk to the theatre. I sat down in my seat the second the lights went down.

My worst Amtrak though wasn’t Broadway related. I once got stuck about 50 yards from the platform at 30th Street coming back into Philly. For 3.5 hours. We just sat there until 2am.

[Impeach2017]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 3:15am

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. 

[BroadwayRox3588]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 5:03am

Lot of points have been raised already, but I have a couple of thoughts.

I am rather tired of people trying to use the situation in London as a reason that Broadway shouldn't reopen. We do not have the strict contact tracing protocols that the UK has, and thus, would not have to stop and start productions for the same reasons as the UK. I follow Dr. Blythe Adamson on Twitter, and she has a great deal of confidence in Broadway's protocols, and the ability for the show to go on.

I find John Kenrick incredibly annoying in this article. If we follow his line of thinking, we might as well just keep Broadway closed until 2024. There will never be a "right" time to reopen, but if we were to postpone the reopening again, I think you'd start to see a massive exodus from the industry. Artists can't live like this for another year, so it's honestly now or never. In this article, Kenrick seems like one of those "Zero Covid" people, who at this point annoy me as much as anti-mask people do.

[binau]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 6:05am

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

[bway0]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 6:06am

RunnyBabbit 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."

So so many horror stories from Amtrak. Although pre-covid I had switched over to mostly takingMegabus from Philly because it was so much cheaper (although that’s not really the case anymore)and had to pad in an extra 2+ hours. Still almost missed Bette Midler’s first show back as Dolly because of traffic. And then my shoe ripped in half while I was trying to power walk to the theatre. I sat down in my seat the second the lights went down.

My worst Amtrak though wasn’t Broadway related. I once got stuck about 50 yards from the platform at 30th Street coming back into Philly. For 3.5 hours. We just sat there until 2am."

I hate sitting for any reason. So when the train stops I get very nervous it’s not going to start again. But sitting that close would make so me mad!

I (unfortunately) like Amtrak because if the train runs as scheduled, then I can get in and out of the city and not have any extra time. I normally go solo so I like to get in and out as quickly as possible, but when I go with friends we take an earlier train in so they can see a few things in/around Times Sqaure. 

We almost missed Hamilton because of Amtrak! Thankfully we took an earlier train as the power went out at Newark Airport (and through to NYP). We had to go through the airport to pick up, get a bus to the city (45 min+ drive), and run to Richard Rodgers from Port Authority. It was close and we just made it.

[BroadwayRox3588]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 7:46am

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

[ACL2006]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 8:42am

I plan to return as much as possible. Hoping for discounts to start popping up soon especially if these shows aren't selling like the article says. Right now it's looking like TKTS will be the best option.

[ggersten]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 11:01am

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. 

 

 

[ArtMan]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 12:49pm

I know Las Vegas shows  don't really compare to Broadway shows.  However, at least, the one thing they have in common, are audiences who want/don't want to see them.  I am planning a trip August 24, hopefully tropical storms/hurricanes, mechanical issues, recovery from surgery and most important fools who won't wear their masks, won't interfere with my plans.  I am really surprised how few seats have been sold for these shows even up to curtain time.  Of course, the big name concerts do well.  No one will be performing that I am interested in seeing.  But alot of shows seem so empty, I'm surprised the performance goes on.  One show in particular that I wanted to see, Extravaganza at Bally's, I paid full price with full Ticketmaster fees.  At that time, ticks4tonight had not reopened.  Had I waited, I could have easily gotten a seat for half the price.  I am seeing seven shows while there.  Obviously I am not fearful of returning.

[JennH]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 1:05pm

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. 

[BCfitasafiddle]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 2:14pm

So I'm a nobody , huh? Kidding. I will be there as much as I can.

[joevitus]

Posted: 8/15/21 at 11:28pm

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.

[HogansHero]

Posted: 8/16/21 at 12:30am

joevitus said: "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."

A few answers. First, a lot of people have plenty of money and Broadway shows don't actually require that many of them. It's also a luxury product. Second, as evidenced by hundreds of posts on this site, people of more modest means who are theatre lovers have not spent anything for theatre tickets for (literally) 99 weeks are chomping at the bit to see live theatre. If they averaged $25 a week, and stockpiled that money, they would have $2475 to spend on theatre tickets. [this is per person mind you] This does not include savings on eating out, drinking out, transportation, clothing, dry cleaning, and for some of us, hair and makeup. [And this of course is not a complete list.] There are many impediments (reluctance, travel restrictions, and so on) but while many of the shows opening or reopening will have trouble selling enough tickets to be sustainable, The Music Man certainly is not one of them. It's the 30 shows that lack any mojo that are worthy of concern.

[Olivia11]

Posted: 8/16/21 at 12:38am

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

[Lot666]

Posted: 8/16/21 at 8:09am

When the CDC announced that vaccinated individuals could stop wearing masks and Phantom announced their reopening, my husband and I, along with seven friends who are also vaccinated, bought tickets for reopening night and began planning a three-day weekend in NY. We've all booked airfare and are holding hotel reservations (with no money down), and some of us have also purchased tickets to other shows (i.e., Caroline, or Change and Jagged Little Pill). 

The Delta news has certainly blown up since our planning started (thanks to the anti-vax/anti-mask idiots), and while it's certainly concerning, I am appalled by what Cameron Mackintosh did to Phantom London and I think I'm more frightened by the prospect of his inevitable hacking at The Majestic than I am of COVID-19 at this point. We're currently playing the "wait and see" game like many others, but I am highly motivated to be at Phantom's reopening performance.

Updated On: 8/16/21 at 08:09 AM

[sparksatmidnight]

Posted: 8/16/21 at 8:30am

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.

[JennH]

Posted: 8/16/21 at 8:41am

joevitus said: "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."

Exactly. Now the answer you're looking for is...rich people. That's who can afford it. I go to shows alone most of the time actually. I can only think of two times in the past 5-ish years I went to a show of any kind with someone. In a city that seems to be as busy as ever now that we're not a pandemic hot spot anymore, it's just as much of effort to get someone to go to show with you as it is to get someone to come see YOU in a show. But I digress. I get needing to make a profit and pay off a shows' investment, but even rear mezzanine seats are ridiculous. I dropped a bit over 100$ to see Waitress the second night back. I did try reopening night itself, but those tickets were generally significantly higher and I just shook my head and gave up hope to see any shows' reopening night. I would have loved to certainly, but not as those prices.