#1451
Posted: 5/15/16 at 12:22pm
I just texted SOLD to see if they were still taking requests (just out of curiosity) and they said that they are only doing premium tickets now
Hamilton Cancellation Line — Page 59
#1452
Posted: 5/15/16 at 12:30pm
It's probably a nightmare for the workers to enforce the rules bc I'm sure they aren't getting any raises for the extra work and they are likely paid the same rate as someone who works for a lower interest show. Who wants to deal with all this when you have no dog in the fight? I'd put in for a transfer to Phantom!
#1453
Posted: 5/15/16 at 12:38pm
broadwayfever said: "New rules for cancellation line went out the window tonight. Every single rule was broken. Security guards in on it...#Kickbacks.
Security guards put on a really good show in front us by telling the professional line holders that they had to buy a ticket for themselves and only one for their client...and then immediately go into the theater. However, in the end, they were allowed to leave the box office after purchasing the tickets and basically meet up with their clients in a different area to hand over the tickets.
You have to keep in mind that these security guards have been friends with the professional line holders, scalpers, and ticket brokers for a very long time. Kickbacks is how they maintain their good status with the security guards. Now they are at a crossroads. They don't want to lose their jobs but at the same time, they don't want to bite the hand that's been feeding them for so long with generous kickbacks.
Tonight was quite comical because thee same guard that was telling the line holders that they couldn't leave the theater after purchasing the tickets, was the same guard that let them out of the theater and said nothing to them...go figure."
That's just very sad. I have a feeling that the rule is half-hearted. It is apparent that the new rule's sprit is trying to reduce insane wait time. However, they stopped short of banning line-sitters. The enforcement got half-hearted as well.
#1454
Posted: 5/15/16 at 12:58pm
Anakela said: "It'd be a matter of finding someone you'd trust to do it, etc. but I'm sure there's a broke college kid or someone out here for a summer internship or something who would be up for putting in the hours in order to be treated to a ticket. Maybe we could start a BWW matchmaking service for this. :) "
I like this idea!
I was just talking to my daughter and we both are actually liking the idea of paying our dues and just waiting in line; maybe not overnight, but from early in the morning. It's not like there isn't plenty to see from that vantage point, and it certainly would be an experience! Plus, not sure if we'd have someone to stay with or not -- we know people in NYC but we wouldn't want to impose and not sure if they'd offer -- in which case the hotel alone would be a chunk of change. So we're willing to put in some sweat equity (bladder equity? sore-foot equity?) for the chance at tickets. Even one ticket would be acceptable -- I really want to see it but it's way more about her.
#1455
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:04pm
talinatter said: "I just texted SOLD to see if they were still taking requests (just out of curiosity) and they said that they are only doing premium tickets now
"This is interesting. On the one hand, depending on how long they're waiting there now, my chances of getting a premium ticket are lessened and I may have to wait for the $177 tickets but silver lining, at least we'd saving a ton of money and our chances of $177 will be better.
#1456
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:06pm
talinatter said: "I just texted SOLD to see if they were still taking requests (just out of curiosity) and they said that they are only doing premium tickets now
I wonder what the rationale is for only doing premium tickets - is it because it's less likely to annoy those behind them on line who wouldn't want to buy premium?
#1457
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:13pm
MISH2 said: "talinatter said: "I just texted SOLD to see if they were still taking requests (just out of curiosity) and they said that they are only doing premium tickets now
I wonder what the rationale is for only doing premium tickets - is it because it's less likely to annoy those behind them on line who wouldn't want to buy premium?
Well depending on when they release premium tickets, it's totally within the rules for them to buy these. They would have to leave the box office anyway if they are released early in the day, easy enough to then meet with clients to hand the tickets off, whereas we know the $177 are now a definite gray area for them and it seems success is dependent on the insistence of the other people in line to have the rules enforced/whether the security/bouncer dudes are allowing them to leave the box office to hand the tickets off.
"
#1458
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:21pm
ammurp said: "MISH2 said: "talinatter said: "I just texted SOLD to see if they were still taking requests (just out of curiosity) and they said that they are only doing premium tickets now
I wonder what the rationale is for only doing premium tickets - is it because it's less likely to annoy those behind them on line who wouldn't want to buy premium?
Well depending on when they release premium tickets, it's totally within the rules for them to buy these. They would have to leave the box office anyway if they are released early in the day, easy enough to then meet with clients to hand the tickets off, whereas we know the $177 are now a definite gray area for them and it seems success is dependent on the insistence of the other people in line to have the rules enforced/whether the security/bouncer dudes are allowing them to leave the box office to hand the tickets off.
Ah, thanks. Will seriously cut down on the number of people who are willing to use their services, I would think.
"
#1459
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:24pm
here is what SOLD said to me "Hi, this is Marcus. Yes, we are still taking Hamilton request. There has been a slight policy change, but we are still able to get customers in. However, we encountered a small issue yesterday and will now be reverting to a new plan to purchase premium tickets with a less wait time. There service is slightly more, but the seats are better. Depending on the time, we can deliver the tickets to your home, office, or hotel."
#1460
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:31pm
talinatter said: "here is what SOLD said to me "Hi, this is Marcus. Yes, we are still taking Hamilton request. There has been a slight policy change, but we are still able to get customers in. However, we encountered a small issue yesterday and will now be reverting to a new plan to purchase premium tickets with a less wait time. There service is slightly more, but the seats are better. Depending on the time, we can deliver the tickets to your home, office, or hotel."
First of all, from what I've heard, the premium seats might be better than SOME of the $177 seats that are eventually available (particularly unclaimed lottery seats), but not better than the true "house seats."
Second of all, if they plan on a shorter wait time, that means there may be other people ahead of them on line. Who's to say that some of them won't take premium seats?
#1461
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:43pm
i think they mean because premium tickets are released earlier in the day (before noon when i did it), that they have to wait less
#1462
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:45pm
MISH2 said: "t
Second of all, if they plan on a shorter wait time, that means there may be other people ahead of them on line. Who's to say that some of them won't take premium seats?"
My guess is that generally whoever gets there early enough to be in front of them (even with them coming a bit later), does not want to spend $508 on a premium ticket. But not sure.
#1463
Posted: 5/15/16 at 1:45pm
MISH2 said: "
First of all, from what I've heard, the premium seats might be better than SOME of the $177 seats that are eventually available (particularly unclaimed lottery seats), but not better than the true "house seats."
Second of all, if they plan on a shorter wait time, that means there may be other people ahead of them on line. Who's to say that some of them won't take premium seats?
But they may be still beginning to line up early with the thought that premium tickets are released earlier...but I wondered that too, how will they gauge how long to wait. And there's also the risk that no premium seats are released (although it seems many have recently). This will be interesting to see how successful they are.
"
#1464
Posted: 5/15/16 at 2:04pm
CarlosAlberto said: "A good friend of mine tried to score tix last night. She said it was a mess"
How long did she wait for? Overnight?
#1465
Posted: 5/15/16 at 2:44pm
I love the idea of a line matchmaking service! Since we're still a couple weeks out, I am kind of waiting to gauge how the line stuff goes over the next several days before deciding how to proceed for sure. This is all so exciting!
Big thanks to everyone for posting their experiences - it definitely makes my over-analytical mind so happy!
#1466
Posted: 5/15/16 at 3:07pm
talinatter said: "here is what SOLD said to me "Hi, this is Marcus. Yes, we are still taking Hamilton request. There has been a slight policy change, but we are still able to get customers in. However, we encountered a small issue yesterday and will now be reverting to a new plan to purchase premium tickets with a less wait time."
"I wonder how that would work if there are no premium tickets released. We've done the cancellation 3x. Twice we got in, and 1x we didn't. 2 out of those 3 times, there were no premium tickets that came out--we were actually waiting for those tickets.
I wonder how SOLD would charge if there are no premium tickets? I guess you still have to pay for the number of hours wait? At least that's how it was when they sat for us."
#1467
Posted: 5/15/16 at 3:37pm
Was the cancellation line a huge deal when Wicked and Book of Mormon were in their height of fame, or is this all a new phenomenon?
http://backstagebarbie.blogspot.com
#1468
Posted: 5/15/16 at 4:21pm
backwoodsbarbie said: "Was the cancellation line a huge deal when Wicked and Book of Mormon were in their height of fame, or is this all a new phenomenon? "
I was still a college student back when Wicked came to Broadway. From what I recall, the big thing back then was trying to win the Wicked rush lottery (yup got to see it via the lottery back in summer 2004 so never had to think about the cancellation line.)
As for Book of Mormon, the big thing was their SRO. I recall lining up at around 9am in front of the box office on a Saturday morning for SRO tickets priced at $27. The SRO line would wait outside while the cancellation line would wait inside the box office. From what I recall, students/young folks were the ones lining up for SRO.
#1469
Posted: 5/15/16 at 4:33pm
Frida3 said: "If I were doing the cancellation line from now on, I would do what the people in front of me did on Friday and take videos. Or even tell the guy who is supposed to be managing the line that you're going to be taking videos of him from when the line sitter goes to buy the ticket and if he lets them exit the box office or hand it over to their clients, then you're going to send the video to Nederlander Customer Service. So if they want to keep their job, they better do it right."
I really hope one of you has the balls to do this. :-/
#1470
Posted: 5/15/16 at 4:36pm
backwoodsbarbie said: "Was the cancellation line a huge deal when Wicked and Book of Mormon were in their height of fame, or is this all a new phenomenon?"
August 17th 2013 was probably not when Book of Mormon was in it's "height of fame", but that day my mother and I waited - at the most - 10 mins. in the cancellation line, and we sat in like the third or fourth row center. And, my mother is very cheap, so I know she didn't spend a lot on tickets!
#1471
Posted: 5/15/16 at 4:42pm
I have checked this thread every day since my last NY trip in March, where my friend and I managed to get tickets via the cancellation line thanks to the help of this thread. Ive been keeping track as my next trip is only 4 weeks away and blimey the wait time has escalated since March! I will definitely be doing the cancellation line, just need to keep up to date with this thread, right up until my trip. Unfortunately im going the week after the Tonys, which is quite worrying, but im still keeping positive.
The longest ive queued for theatre tickets is 22 and a half hours, but Hamilton now seems even longer than that, but its not so bad (waited 3 days for a film premiere last year lol). The only downside is i may have to give up on watching another show as i would be spending my evening in line instead
Thank you everyone who keeps this thread up to date with their line stories!
The longest ive queued for theatre tickets is 22 and a half hours, but Hamilton now seems even longer than that, but its not so bad (waited 3 days for a film premiere last year lol). The only downside is i may have to give up on watching another show as i would be spending my evening in line instead
Thank you everyone who keeps this thread up to date with their line stories!
#1472
Posted: 5/15/16 at 6:01pm
backwoodsbarbie said: "Was the cancellation line a huge deal when Wicked and Book of Mormon were in their height of fame, or is this all a new phenomenon? "
It was very easy to score tickets to Book of Mormon if you went the same day because you had 3 different options...in person lottery, cancellation line, and SRO line. Also keep in mind that Hamilton only has around 4 to 6 SRO tickets...most of which they give to cast family members or friends. Whereas, BoM would have around 26 SRO tickets.
#1473
Posted: 5/15/16 at 6:02pm
All of this vitriol against linesitters/waiters is irrational. Linesitters are not even in the same league as online scalpers. Line sitters have to wait in all sorts of weather, sleep on concrete, etc. for umpteen hours/days. It's really a contest of how much you want the the tickets. What are you willing to do/give up in order to attain them? Some people give up money. Other people give up time. Complaining because life isn't fair is not the answer. If the line sitter is willing to work to get what they want ($$) and the person paying the line sitter is willing to pay, the extreme "fan" should be willing to go the distance. There are people who will camp a week in advance for the latest iPhone or Jimmy Fallon ticket, and they are NOT line sitters. Real fans, who are not bandwagoners, get what they want by any means.
This isn't a kidney transplant we're talking about, this is freakin entertainment? The theatre does not give a fig about helping "impoverished" theatre patrons. 6-12 tickets a night is nothing compared to half the house online scalpers get. That's the real monster. They buy half the house and charge a 300% markup. Complain about that. Line sitters are people who do ACTUAL work for a living. People who are willing to wait in terrible weather over a number of days are generally worse off than any theatre goer.
I find this particular tantrum silly an woefully misdirected.
#1474
Posted: 5/15/16 at 6:12pm
happydude said: "All of this vitriol against linesitters/waiters is irrational. Linesitters are not even in the same league as online scalpers. Line sitters have to wait in all sorts of weather, sleep on concrete, etc. for umpteen hours/days. It's really a contest of how much you want the the tickets. What are you willing to do/give up in order to attain them? Some people give up money. Other people give up time. Complaining because life isn't fair is not the answer. If the line sitter is willing to work to get what they want ($$) and the person paying the line sitter is willing to pay, the extreme "fan" should be willing to go the distance. There are people who will camp a week in advance for the latest iPhone or Jimmy Fallon ticket, and they are NOT line sitters. Real fans, who are not bandwagoners, get what they want by any means.
This isn't a kidney transplant we're talking about, this is freakin entertainment? The theatre does not give a fig about helping "impoverished" theatre patrons. 6-12 tickets a night is nothing compared to half the house online scalpers get. That's the real monster. They buy half the house and charge a 300% markup. Complain about that. Line sitters are people who do ACTUAL work for a living. People who are willing to wait in terrible weather over a number of days are generally worse off than any theatre goer.
I find this particular tantrum silly an woefully misdirected.
"
I think it is completely correct for us to have problem with line sitters. They have their entire week to stand in line because it is their job! Us bother people must go to our schools and jobs like most people. If these people want to buy tickets so badly, then why don't they purchase online for scalper tickets rattan take away form us who are willing to wait by ourselves.
#1475
Posted: 5/15/16 at 6:47pm
happydude said: "All of this vitriol against linesitters/waiters is irrational. Linesitters are not even in the same league as online scalpers. Line sitters have to wait in all sorts of weather, sleep on concrete, etc. for umpteen hours/days. It's really a contest of how much you want the the tickets. What are you willing to do/give up in order to attain them? Some people give up money. Other people give up time. Complaining because life isn't fair is not the answer. If the line sitter is willing to work to get what they want ($$) and the person paying the line sitter is willing to pay, the extreme "fan" should be willing to go the distance. There are people who will camp a week in advance for the latest iPhone or Jimmy Fallon ticket, and they are NOT line sitters. Real fans, who are not bandwagoners, get what they want by any means.
I find this particular tantrum silly an woefully misdirected.
"YES!! I AGREE!!
Not everyone is able to sit in line for a long period of time. If you are young and strong and willing to sit in line...then sit and wait in line. If you don't want to sit in line and have the money to pay for someone else to do it, go for it!
If you can't do either and wish for a short line and short wait...then maybe you should wait for the hype to die down, and wait to see the show later."
Updated On: 5/15/16 at 06:47 PM
Tickets From $59
Tickets From $71
Tickets From $71
Tickets From $95