Grease Will NOT Offer Student Rush- Page 2

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 6:22am

I was agreeing with you, BwayBaby. I was just further commenting on the general stupidity of Americans.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 6:46am

The show is more-or-less sold out through September. Where would they assign rush seats if there are no empty chairs?

Common sense!

[Freckles1329]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 7:16am

Although they have no rush and no lotto, you would think the SRO wouldn't have to be if the show is sold out.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 7:20am

The whole point of SRO is for when shows sell out.

[Freckles1329]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 7:23am

Well, I saw 2 shows, not sold out SRO.

[Jellylorum]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 7:30am

"Sounds like it to me. A show runs on full price tickets, not on student rush. This won't affect how the show does at all."

"The show is more-or-less sold out through September. Where would they assign rush seats if there are no empty chairs?"

Agreed. If we were talking about shows like Company or Grey Gardens not offering student rush, I'd say it's a stupid choice. Student rush helps fill in seats that would otherwise be empty, though they do not give significant boosts to the box office. Plus, the more people there are seeing a show, the more likely that word about it is going to spread around. This would help an obscure, struggling show a lot. But we're talking about Grease. It's already sold out until September, and besides, does Grease really need the word of mouth that much? Everyone has heard of it. If there are people who haven't heard about it by now, they must have been living under a rock their entire lives.

Updated On: 7/10/07 at 07:30 AM

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:09am

I'm glad that it's sold out for two and a half months. Let's see what happens after that. The only word of mouth I anticipate to hear from New Yorkers is bitchiness from people who don't intend to see it and won't see it. I can't imagine ANY sort of word of mouth that would convince New Yorkers to throw away $120 a pop on GREASE.

Regardless, expect the discount codes to pop up come October.

I also have a feeling that this show is going to be Riedel's latest target.

Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:09 AM

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:57am

The fanbase and the people paying $25 for repeat viewings are not the people who keep a show open.

If you assume that about half a million people can see it each year, that's only an eighth of the television audience that sees it before Max & Laura leave... It won't close because it doesn't have student rush.

[Katecab99]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:59am

just to agree with ben1986 - i always say i would see absolutely anything for $25, and there's never been an exception to this point...

but $25 feels like it would have been a but much for this anyway, so now i don't have to stress over trying to rush at all.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:29am

I agree with all of you guys but... is it official they won't have rush? lets wait until the show actually starts.

And this won't be a flop. Also, advance ticket sales are crazy- weekends are sold out and weekdays are even hard to find good seats.

I'm so glad I got my seat in orchestra center row K =D

haha i loved that curtains quote!

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:46am

Hey, advance sales may be good now, but look what happened to Tarzan.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:47am

"Sounds like it to me. A show runs on full price tickets, not on student rush. This won't affect how the show does at all."

I agree. Student rush is usually about 20-25 seats in the theater for most shows. Selling out of $25 student rush tickets for each show isn't what is going to be making the show money.

Yes, it would have been nice of the producers to set aside the seats for students, especially since the show is targeted to teenagers, but why would they do that when there are people who would shell out $120 to see one of the most overdone shows in the country? People are going to see this show, especially since Grease is one of the most well-known musicals AND because it was featured on a primetime TV show, thus gaining some hardcore fans.

Once Laura and Max leave, I think the show's grosses are going to start dwindling if most of the people seeing the show are seeing it for those two.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 10:00am

It's to my knowledge that Max and Laura will never leave the production. They're playing Danny and Sandy until they get old and gray.

But in all reality, the show doesn't need them to succeed. I don't know how many ways to state that Grease is one of the most crowd-pleasing, successful shows of all time (and for good reason). If the 1994 revival could play for 5 years and make tons of money, this one will surely play for a while.

Now, you can dispute that theory by saying "well Yankee, the 1994 revival had a revolving door of celebrities." To which I reply "yes, but not everyone who had seen the show already went back and paid more to see Maureen McCormick, Linda Blair, etc. The show succeeded on its own, in all it's neon pink day-glo glory."

This production will last for quite a while, I believe, even when Max and Laura are long departed. Not only is the show critic proof, but it's the ultimate family show. Tourists will be flocking for years.

The only thing that could go wrong in this production (besides Max and Laura being awful, which I doubt) would be Marshall taking the piece too seriously.

[jv92]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 10:53am

Just a thought-
Grease has a huge advance which will probably keep it running for about 6-8 months. However, you need to have money rolling in after that advance runs out. Look at the shows that have had huge advances but flopped big time- Allegro, Ballroom? And those had big names attatched (R&H, Michael Bennett), just as big, if bigger, than the name Grease. David Ian should look into those two shows. They all seemed huge, but...

[logan0215]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 11:48am

Once Laura and Max leave, I think the show's grosses are going to start dwindling if most of the people seeing the show are seeing it for those two.

Insert stunt-casting here, DUH. It'll pick up with what Chicago is doing, and because the cast is younger they can dip into people who have done Hairspray or HSM for Disney.

I'm not shocked at all the there are no cheap seats being sold. What were the ratings for the show, esepcially the finale?

Also keep in mind that Grease is a huge tourist attraction, I don't know why so many people are saying its aimed at college students. What college students hasn't been IN Grease, nevermind seen it???

Its going to pull in part of the Disney crowd and then fans of whatever B-movie/washed up pop star are stunt-casted from then on out.

[folkyboy]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 12:00pm

well, I was GOING to check this out will I was in NYC...but not for full price...yeah right...

like you could get a TICKET. i laugh at all these people trying to talk about the potential of getting a ticket and how HORRIBLE it is they aren't offering lotto and such when the show is SELLING OUT. they'll eventually offer a rush when the show isn't making money getting people to PAY for those seats.

save your mom's $20 to go see Legally Blonde for the 100th time.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 12:45pm

Logan ~ The ratings for the show were NOT great. NBC was usually in third or fourth place with the show. Following it with the dwindling Apprentice didn't help matters.

[colleen_lee]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 1:04pm

In TV world the ratings were not great, but the number of people watching still translates over to a huge theater audience.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 1:10pm

"Do I smell a flop? Come on, really! The kids buying student rush would have helped a great deal. The producers, if they want a hit, would be smart to reconsider."

How do you think the 25 or so tickets selling at student rush prices would "help a great deal"? Student rush tickets are throw-away tickets for the producers ... its a gesture to help students who can't afford full (or even half) price tickets still be able to attend the show. But student rush tickets don't make a dent in their grosses. I agree that the target audience for Grease is the younger crowd, but to think that not offering student rush is going to hurt this, or any other, show, and that offering student rush will help a production is ridiculous. Its just a service that has no bearing whatsoever on the success or failure of a show.

[Bway2323]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:52pm

Just wait a couple months. Remember when A Chorus Line did the same thing? There was no sort of discount in the beginning with them either, and I even coughed up the 80 something bucks (over a hundred after all those damn fees) for a second to last row in the balcony seat to see it; before they raised those prices even higher! A couple months down the line, they started a lotto. They just want to force people who need to see it NOW and can't wait until it's been running for awhile to cough up full price. Then after the initial wave of 'have you seen it yet?!' goes by, I'm sure discount options will be made available.

And look how quickly ACL passed it's breaking even point.

[Kelly2]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:58pm

I think what Grease will lose out on though, by not offering Student Rush/Lotto, is the opportunity to build a fanbase, like Legally Blonde, Spring Awakening, Rent, Wicked, etc. etc. have all been able to build because of the ability to see it multiple times for an affordable price. And though in physical seats filled by said students/fans it will not benefit the show greatly, having a large and supportive fanbase can do wonders for the popularity of a show, and assisting it's staying power (case in point: Altar Boyz).

[bjh2114]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:08pm

Bway, the Chorus Line lotto didn't start a few months in. It started the week after it opened. October 12th was the first day.

[Rotel1026]

Posted: 7/10/07 at 10:57pm

It's funny to read how some of you feel that student tickets are so instrumental to the success of a show. So what if you're not spreading the word about the show? Your friends are likely all also students who would pay $20 to see the show. That's still not going to pay the bills for the show. If this show's attendance falls as badly as some of you seem to think it will, the show will be on TKTS, TDF, and have discount codes soon enough. Not getting to see Grease for $20 is not the be all-end all to your show going future.

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 12:06am

I'll probably never have the desire to see it, anyway...

[MaronaDavies]

Posted: 7/11/07 at 12:28am

Student rush and the availability of cheap seats CAN affect a show's shelf life. Case in point, again, Taboo. Do you really think Rent would still be here if they'd set all their tickets to the top price category back when it first opened?

If it's a hot show where you have a dedicated audience, or parents with children, and they're going to pony up the money for $120 tickets, you don't need rush/cheap seats. When you have a show that's supposed to appeal to a youthful audience and probably won't be critically embraced, you need those discounts. Who will fill the seats the kids can't afford? Not the NY theatre snobs. Selling 10 $25 tickets turns more of a profit than leaving 10 $120 or $70 seats empty.

And word of mouth and a fan base CAN help a show. See Rent. See Jekyll & Hyde. A lot of those kids come to the show multiple times, bring their friends, ask for (and receive) full price tickets for birthdays and holidays, and promote the show a lot more effectively than any PR firm ever could.