Can someone get me a BILLY ELLIOT house seat for Dec?

[CapnHook]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 2:26am

I'm doing rush/lotto/TKTS for SHREK, ALL MY SONS, and EQUUS -- but BILLY ELLIOT is the #1 show I'd like to see and I'm willing to pay for a full priced ticket. I just would like to sit Orch Center, close-ish to the stage.

Anyone willing to let me use you as a connection to get a house seat? I only need one.

Thanks muchly!

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 2:51am

No, you can't use me as your connection. Gee, I'd like a million dollars tomorrow. Can you send me an advance from your student credit card?

Why would a person you do not know, go out of their way to get YOU a house seat? For what reason? Are you friends with me, or are just another GET ME SOMETHING GOOD FOR FREE because I'm entitled to an expensive, very hard to get Bway House Seat, and I'm just gonna sit here in North Carolina waiting for you to mail me my ticket.

What's with you internet beggars? Didn't your parents teach you that it's impolite at the very least to ask strangers for favors?? Especially for "non-essentials".
Rant over.
Updated On: 11/24/08 at 02:51 AM

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 5:42am

Since everyone and their mother seems to want to see this AND you were willing to pay full price...you should have purchased your ticket a while ago. And yes...asking strangers for favors is rather rude.

And from what I've heard, there aren't too many "bad" seats at BE.

[B3TA07]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 6:41am

...really?

[mwill]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 8:01am

Somebody could but I seriously doubt they will.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 10:15am

Are you friends with me, or are just another GET ME SOMETHING GOOD FOR FREE because I'm entitled to an expensive, very hard to get Bway House Seat

House seats aren't free. The poster said he was willing to pay full price.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:06am

House seats aren't released in advance. Not even to the performers nor the producers of the show. A certain amount of house seats are 'reserved' per performance (seats which are never put on sale to the public). Whenever they see how many house seats they need (for their purposes), they release the additional seats that were held but not needed back to the box office for sale. This 'release' can happen the week of the performance or as close as the day of the performance. This is how people get house seats at the last minute -- they're released to the box office when it opens that morning and when cancellation seats are released shortly before showtime.

So... even if you KNEW Elton John, he couldn't get you a house seat until shortly before the performance.

And yes... 'house seats' are not free. Actors have to pay for them as do the producers and investors of the show. Yup, even Harvey Fierstein, Patti LuPone and Stockard Channing have to pay for the 'house' seats' they have access to.

[Calvin]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:18am

Just a thought -- is there a cancellation line? Since you're willing to pay full price, that could be a way to get a good seat. It worked for me at the very sold-out Pajama Game a few years back.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 11:24am

there definitely is a cancellation line - i waited in it last weekend for the saturday night performance and was sold a front row center orchestra seat two hours before showtime. the box office staff is very good about keeping the people in line updated on the status of tickets and selling them as soon as they're released. it's definitely the best option if you want to try to go to a sold-out peformance. i'd arrive about three hours before showtime, though...the line grows pretty quickly.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 12:00pm

Wow - a lot of people certainly are getting worked up over this. And there's no reason to.

1) As already pointed out, a house seat is not a comp. It's a ticket request form that industry people involved with the show (actors, producers, tech, etc) can fill out and submit to the box office. I believe the rule is that they are notified two hours prior to curtain if they were able to fulfill the request or not.

2) I don't think it's impolite at all to ask the favor. There are genuine nice people out there. tinymagic, you seemed like one of those people when I met you in person, but gee, what a f***ing facade!

3) As for purchasing my ticket a while ago, that wasn't an option for me as I didn't know I was going to New York until a few days ago. I was planning on going to the box office to purchase my ticket two hours prior to showtime to grab released premium seats, but there is a chance I will not make it to the theatre until curtain time, hence why I'm seeing if there is a do-gooder out there who would like to pay it forward and fill out a house seat form for me.

Now everyone go take your chill pills.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 12:55pm

Good luck with getting in to see it. Even if you can't get an excellent seat, go for the rear Mezz...much of the impact of the choreography and statging will be better appreciated at a distance (My seat was Centre, Row G, and as excellent as it was, it was almost too close.)

As for the rest of you....

Remember there are many industry members or affiliates (theatre reviewers) here who may have extra comp tickets to share. I had only requeted a single seat for BILLY ELLIOT but when I got to the theatre I was given a pair of comps. Unfortunately it was 6:45 and the show started at 7 so there was no time to arrange to have someone join me and sadly a prime orch seat was used as a coat rack. When I am in New York I am always happy to have others join me and use the additional tickets when I get them.

CapnHook did nothing wrong in asking.

[LadyRosecoe]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 1:07pm

I agree, however odd the request may be, there will ALWAYS be genuinely good people on the site who are there doing good for others. Whether it is PMing people who participate in a thread a bootleg of whatever the discussion topic may be, or those who help out others with rush lines, I've seen many kind things happen as a result of someone asking for help.

[jarretSF]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 1:46pm

No harm in asking, wish I had thought of it, seeing the show 12/13 and sitting in the mezzanine. So looking forward to it!

Updated On: 11/24/08 at 01:46 PM

[LadyDramaturg2]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 5:15pm

difficult even for people on the "inside" right now to get House Seats to Billy Elliot...

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 5:19pm

CapnHook: Perhaps you will have luck getting a cancellation seat, or going to the box office right when they open. When I saw Jersey Boys, I got there about 9 am. I was seventh in line for SRO, but I decided last minute to buy regularly priced tickets (so I was first for that since the six ahead of me wanted SRO). I got a ticket for sixth row center. Three ladies near me got three front row center seats. I think you will have better luck getting the last minute released tickets at the box office.

[perfectliar]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 5:59pm

If you're willing to pay full price, then go do it... there are plenty of single tickets available for the month of December.

[uncageg]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 6:08pm

Brody, I got house seats to one of the top shows on Broadway 2 months before I saw the show. And the show was sold out solid. I paid in advance for them and picked them up the day before the performance.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 11/24/08 at 6:11pm

Elton told me to tell you to look for a PM from him soon.