Cutting in rush lines
Cutting in rush lines
notwearingunderwear
Swing Joined: 4/29/06
#1Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 8:53amAt Sister Act for half an hour and the first woman in line let a friend cut bumping people out of getting rush tickets. Someone has spoken to her twice and she refuses to move. Will the box office care if we all tell that she cut? Mostly just a bitch about how rude people can be.
After Eight
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/09
#2Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 9:13am
Do they give two tickets a person at the rush? If so, then maybe the friend would just get the second ticket and she wouldn't be cutting in. But if it's a question of one ticket per person, or if, in the case of two, each would be getting two tickets, then I would definitely tell the person in charge of the rush line.
Hope you get in.
iluvtheatertrash
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/9/04
#2Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 9:26amDO. NOT. BACK. DOWN. If they're getting 4 tickets now, that's not cool. This happened to me during THE COLOR PURPLE. I wouldn't back down, and when we got let in I raised Hell before they could buy tickets. You need to do the same. DON'T. BACK. DOWN.
notwearingunderwear
Swing Joined: 4/29/06
Vagabond Anarchist
Stand-by Joined: 10/29/11
#4Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 9:52am
Good luck. I had the same thing happen at Death of a Salesman after having been in line since 4am. Some people came a few hours later and joined their friends- and they all planned to buy 2 tickets.
Those of us in line for hours were furious and confronted them on multiple occasions, even tried to tell the man handing out wristbands, but in the end we still ended up royally screwed over and it was very frustrating... Some people...
#5Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 10:03amEvery single person should say something to the box office.
nasty_khakis
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/15/07
#6Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 12:31pm
I'm always so paranoid about that. Once, when seeing "Hair" in the park the group a little bit in front of us had a friend join them around 9am. We didn't say anything because we were still going to get tickets and we didnt want to cause a problem if that friend was just sitting with them and wasn't going to get tickets. We overheard them basically saying they were and around 10 2-3 more people joined them. We asked them politely to either not get tickets or move to the back of the line. They got rude and swore at us. We then got the line moniter to kick them all out (luckily we had made quasi friends with him the weekend before).
During Twelfth Night I got there at 5 am before my friend. I knew she was getting there any minute, but I still took the time to explain to the people behind me (only about 10 people at the time) that my friend was going to join me and would that be alright. Everyone was really nice about it and said that was fine. I do this in standard rush lines too if we plan on getting more than 2 and my friend is late. I would never join the head of the line at say 9:50 though.
You DEFINITELY have a right to immediately point out the problem to the box office worker as soon as they open/before they purchase tickets.
ghostlight2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/5/04
#7Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 12:40pm
I can understand if that happens once, nasty_khakis, but this
"I do this in standard rush lines too if we plan on getting more than 2 and my friend is late"
implies this is a common practice. Your friend should stop being late, or it doesn't seem to me that you're any better than the people you had kicked out. I mean, if it's a matter of minutes, I guess it doesn't matter much, but if it was enough time for 10 people to line up behind you, that sounds like a bit of a problem. The fact that your friend (plus one) has someone saving a place means that someone (and their plus one) who was on time won't get in.
Doesn't seem fair.
Updated On: 7/26/12 at 12:40 PM
bklynBridge95
Swing Joined: 1/15/12
#8Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 1:01pmThat's not right you need the tell them when this happens. They raised hell with me once because I was with a friend and we were the last on line and no one else had shown up for 10 minutes and she was in desperate need of the restroom so she ran into the hotel across the street and I held our place and when the people behind me showed up I explained the situation and they said it was fine until she showed up again and they started to a fight. The people ahead of us came to our defense, and they were saying how it wasn't fair because they had other people showing up to buy tickets. Then at the performance I see them in the street selling the tickets they bought that morning extremely overpriced it really pissed me off, they decided to pick a fight with me to help them turn a profit.
#9Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 1:01pm
I think it's all about being polite. If someone says immediately as they enter a line and as people join it that they have a friend coming and the people behind them are okay with it. Then everything is fine. But if the people behind you dislike the fact that you have a friend coming then when the friend arrives send them to the back of the line.
IMO I think people need to communicate with each other versus being mean or snarky with each other. Just be nice and open about what you are attempting to do and if there is backlash, understand it and follow accordingly.
dreaming
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/24/09
#10Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 1:31pm
I've been royally screwed a few times. I say not to let it go.
But, about the restroom thing-you should be allowed in 10 or 15 minute intervals to go to the restroom or get coffee-that's pretty sensible. I mean, if you leave for an hour that's one thing, but I always imagined people were allowed to go to the restroom (I've done that and am always certain to tell the people right behind me so they know I am in fact returning in about ten minutes).
A lot of this comes down to communication-and cordial, polite communication may get you what you want (not always).
As far as I'm concerned, taking a 10-15 minute break is perfectly acceptable. (Restroom and coffee breaks are sometimes necessary.)It's when you start leaving for extended periods or more people show up at the end in particular that it gets to be chaotic.
nasty_khakis
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/15/07
#11Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 2:30pm
I'm sorry, by late I meant "a few minutes later than me" and it's usually to just one person behind me. I do have one friend who IS always late, but she always just "joins me" in line and never tries to get two additional tickets herself and I always alert the people behind me that she's just standing with me, not getting additional tickets.The ten people was the one time in the park and if you've done Shakespear in the Park you realize how quickly a line can grow in just 5-10 minutes.
I'm in full agreement about not being able to skip a lkine.
ghostlight2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/5/04
#13Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 3:22pm
I was first on line for standing room for BOOK OF MORMON last year. It helps to befriend people on line as well as line monitors (if applicable). Obviously if you are waiting on line for many hours, you'll have to use a bathroom. When nature called, I asked the line monitor if I could find a bathroom and he assured me my place on line would not be lost.
I was gone and back in 5 minutes, and all was well.
The pesky b!tches who had the nerve to ask me to buy them a ticket (since I was only getting one) is another diatribe altogether...
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#14Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 3:30pm
I'm not sure what the harm in ASKING is.
The first time I stood in line for BOM, I was standing in line for myself and my sister. (We were only getting TWO tickets.) When my sis showed up, my niece was with her. I explained that unless we won the lottery, there wouldn't BE a third ticket. The girl in front of us, offered us her "other" ticket.
Was that wrong? I don't think so, but I was on the recieving end of it (well, my neice was.)
Attempting Lottery a number of times, I've often found someone else only looking for one that would be willing to 'buddy up'. Pretty much the same thing.
#15Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 3:42pm
If you're both singles and you want to "buddy up" with someone for lottery, I see absolutely nothing wrong with that. It doubles both your chances of winning and it's not anyone's business if you came as best friends or met while filling out the slips.
On the other hand, I must disagree with you dramamama a bit on asking someone to get an extra ticket who's already on the rush line. A couple of times when I've been getting only 1 ticket, most recently in line for SRO at The Book of Mormon, two different people went down the line pestering for an extra ticket. Neither of them had been in line all day and when I said I was getting one ticket, this one woman literally would not move and stood maybe three feet from me and begged for a ticket. To me, that is entirely inappropriate and rude. Not only did I not want to be anywhere near that woman much less have to stand next to her for the entire show, but since there is a finite quantity of spots, I didn't want to have someone else who actually waited in line miss out because of some pushy woman. She wouldn't leave for a solid five minutes but I stood my ground.
I think your situation is a bit different since you were already on line and it doesn't sound like you were pushy but I'd be leery to say it's fine to just ask someone to get an extra ticket.
#16Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 3:44pm^ Yeah, kind of like that.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#17Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/26/12 at 3:45pm
In the situation you describe, I totally see your point -- I don't know if that is what QuizKing was referring to.
(except he just confirmed that.)
After Eight
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/09
notwearingunderwear
Swing Joined: 4/29/06
#19Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 7:51amWe told the box office and they ignored the situation. I got one front row and Purchased a $39 orchestra seat. The woman who cut was not there nor was her friend she cut with. They bought the tickets for other people.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#20Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 1:11pmWere they made aware of it BEFORE they started selling the tix? Either way, I'd draft a letter to the Box Office MANAGER and the house manager (Are they the same person?). I'd even copy the owners. They SHOULD care.
#21Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 1:18pm
After a similar situation occurred at Legally Blonde long ago, I wrote a letter to the owner of the theatre and cc'd the house manager and received a personal phone call from the man in charge of the box office operations, Hershel Waxman from Nederlander, apologizing for the situation, offering me complimentary tickets to another performance of my choosing, and the woman who made the error was reprimanded and I didn't see her working the box office for quite some time after the incident.
Agree with dramamama, squeaky wheel...
#22Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 4:16pm
What are everyone's thoughts on only one person being in line but needing to buy two tickets if the person they're seeing the show with cannot wait in line for various reasons? I've done this a few times (have waited in line alone but needed 2 tickets - one time a friend was on the train in from NJ, another time my mom was driving in from MA and the other day my friend wanted to stay sleeping at the hotel) so all 3 times - all at Sister Act - I've waited in line alone.
The people around me all were OK with it but people in the line asking how many tickets I needed looked sort of put off when I said 2. Is it generally looked down upon to only have one person waiting in line? I've been rushing shows for years and Sister Act is the only show where people looked put off if I said I needed two when it was just me in line.
notwearingunderwear
Swing Joined: 4/29/06
#23Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 4:29pmEveryone is entitled to two whether or not you stand in line alone, you just aren't supposed to hold a place in line for another purchaser who was too lazy to get up before everyone else.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#24Cutting in rush lines
Posted: 7/27/12 at 4:42pm
Ally -- if it weren't "OK" they would only allow each person to purchase a single ticket. You are totally legit.
Chances are that those "counters" were hoping you were only buying one, making their chances a tad better further back in the line.
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