Wait, how did I have no idea this was happening? Is this going to be the show's second sit-down company, like Chicago? Or is it the launch site of a third national tour?
I think I read that it was a limited engagement, February 12 through September 8, 2019. I logged in with my sister's membership a week or so ago to look at prices, and side orchestra seats were $210 and center orchestra seats were $678. Yikes! I plan to wait until the cast is announced and then try my luck at last minute tickets, if at all. I saw it when it was here in May 2017 and thought that that cast with Michael Luwoye as Hamilton was great. I paid $199 for center orchestra back then.
The party line is simply that it is booked for 30 weeks with no further announcements.
I would read that as a open-ended sit-down for an undetermined period with unannounced plans thereafter (move to another extended run or launch a tour)
NYfanfromCA said: "I think I read that it was a limited engagement, February 12 through September 8, 2019. I logged in with my sister's membership a week or so ago to look at prices, and side orchestra seats were $210 and center orchestra seats were $678. Yikes! I plan to wait until the cast is announced and then try my luck at last minute tickets, if at all. I saw it when it was here in May 2017 and thought that that cast withMichael Luwoye as Hamilton was great. I paid $199 for center orchestra back then."
Any idea how much the mezz/rear mezz/balcony is this time? I can't remember exactly how much I paid for last time for my seat, but this feels higher.
MarkBearSF said: "The party line is simply that it is booked for 30 weeks with no further announcements.
I would read that as a open-ended sit-down for an undetermined period with unannounced plans thereafter (move to another extended run or launch a tour)"
To add on, the Nederlanders signed a deal to use the Kodak Theatre for tours beginning in I think 2020. I’d expect this to do what every other West Coast sit-down has done (in reverse city order, of course) and transfer to LA afterward for a run at the Pantages.
It seems pretty clear that the 2019 San Francisco run is not open-ended.
The ticket prices listed are $214, $111, and $686 for a "select number of prime seats." If it's like the last time, there won't be that many "prime seats," just a few rows. Yes, the $214 price is a little higher than last year's run, which is annoying. It's not like we would get Michael Luwoye and Joshua Henry again.
Have you seen something indicating that they would try to sell all the center orchestra seats for $686? That might be a bridge too far, even in the SF Bay Area.
That said, I still will probably spring for tickets at least once.
Phantom of London said: "Is this playing Puerto Rico first before going to the Bay Area? I thought the San Francisco engagement was announced as a sit down?
People on this board have different and conflicting definitions of “sit-down”. It’s not my place to tell people how they should define it, so I’ll just say I interpret the things I’ve read to indicate Hamilton will be sticking around a while.
And the SF Chronicle, after interviewing SHN about the reopening of the Golden Gate, said Hamilton will play at the Orpheum for “as long as there’s demand”:
It'll be interesting to see if this runs like “Wicked” in 2008/2009 for a bit over a year or if this more like “Phantom” in the ‘90s with a multi-year stay.
I remember the prices from when I logged in a couple of weeks ago, but I am online right now using my sister's membership, and can see all the current pricing. I picked a Saturday matinee in May. I am clicking on each section of the seat map and see:
Prime Orchestra, $678. Looks to be Orchestra Center Row E to Row O and even the side orchestra seats at least 2-4 seats over. Partial View Orchestra is $210, and Obstructed View is $210. That covers all of orchestra to Row 0.
From Row P to Row EE, it is Prime Orchestra in the Center from Row P to Row T, and off to the sides 2 seats in, up to at least Row S. All the rest of Orchestra, even Partial View, is listed for $210, even all the way to the last Row EE. ADA Wheelchair Space is $110, way in the back row.
Moving to the Mezzanine, Center Front Loge Rows A-C are $678. The rest of Loge, even Partial View, is $210.
Balcony is all $110, even the Partial View Balcony.
So at least for right now, the lowest price is $110 and that is the Balcony. A huge chunk of anything Center from Row E to Row T, plus the first three rows of the Loge is $678. Everything else is $210.
When I purchased tickets for 2017, Prime Orchestra was $524 and the sides were $199, but I don't think Prime went all the way to Row T. I don't recall the price for Balcony seats. I originally bought Prime seats in Row J for $524, sold them for what I paid, and bought very last minute Prime seats in row H for $199.
As for it being a more limited run, don't get me wrong, Hamilton is great. But the idea of both the Curran and the Orpheum having sit-down productions worried me. Yes, there's also the Golden Gate, but I personally like having theater real estate available for out-of-town tryouts and tours.
Phantom of London said: "Is this playing Puerto Rico first before going to the Bay Area?”
I think it’s very safe to assume the SF production will be the same cast as Puerto Rico (sans Lin). The PR run is through Jan. 27 and SF starts Feb. 12, and in an interview last week Lin said the company being assembled for Puerto Rico would tour the US after that.
The PR production should be starting rehearsal in about a month so maybe we’ll get a casting announcement soon! Any rumors?
Still grateful I got to see it last year by purchasing a season membership, for six shows including HAMILTON on Thursday evening from Row M center orchestra. Cost was $575 (or $595?). Regardless, $100 a show was a fantastic deal. I got tix soon as they went on sale a year or so before HAMILTON and took a buddy. Friends pshawed us for doing it, but when the time came they shelled out hundreds to see the one show. LOL
We also got to see the brilliant THE KING AND I, CURIOUS INCIDENT, INTO THE WOODS, and the very charming ROMAN HOLIDAY...which is assume is dead for Broadway, but hoping it has a regional life.
Got 2 orchestra tickets. right side (not listed as partial or obstructed view) in Row J. Once everything is added, it came to $219 a seat. Decided not to buy more as the cast is unknown, I've seen it 3 times before, and it's not impossible to get extra tickets.
Got mine too: 4 Loge seats. I entered the virtual queue at 10:03am and my number wasn’t admitted until 7:35 tonight. Several shows were already sold out, but there seemed to be generally good availability still.
I was impressed with the user-friendliness of SHN’s queue process. I was able to add my email address and turn my computer off. I received an email about 30 minutes before my place in line opened up and then again about a minute before, so I could get my computer started again for purchase.
Group sales were announced some months ago and I acquired the maximum allowed at this time - 120 seats. Additional dates should be announced for groups in advance throughout the open-ended run. My group attends the May 27 evening performance and we will have excellent seats in the center balcony. No group discount, but just $110 each. This was my location for the previous run and I thought that it was very, very good.
My group constitutes 369 people, so multiple trips to the show are expected. Some returnees and some "virgins".
The 2017 San Francisco run of Hamilton, for about 4 months, sold out quickly. Then partial and obstructed view tickets were offered, and they went fast. It wasn't impossible to get tickets, even good ones, if you played it smart. But you had to act fast.
Thus far, ticket sales for the longer 2019 run, from February to September, are going a lot more slowly. Most of the center orchestra is sold out, but there are plenty of good tickets available at almost every show, especially in the summer. Prices are higher, especially for the "prime seats," and the partial and obstructed view seats are already on sale without discounts. While the first day on Monday was a bit chaotic, and I waited in the virtual line all day to get a pair of tickets, it's calmed down since then. And now you can wander onto the SHN website and pick out plenty of good seats.
This is probably to be expected. The prices are high, many of the people who felt compelled to see the show in San Francisco have already seen it at least once, the cast is a mystery (not that I think that drove sales last year), and there wasn't much advance notice of ticket sales anyway. What I'm wondering is whether this is unusual, if it's a sign that the Hamilton market is softening a bit in places where it's already been. I took a quick glance to see how it's doing in Chicago, where the show has been running a lot longer. Tickets are available, although not many, for the Saturday night show. Prices are downright cheap ($92 plus fees for orchestra seats, compared to $219 in San Francisco) for midweek shows. Perhaps I should have flown to Chicago.
I assume sales will pick up, especially with the show getting some promotion due to Lin-Manuel Miranda's brief tour with Hamilton in Puerto Rico shortly before it arrives in San Francisco (and presumably with the same cast, sans Miranda). The producers will still make plenty of money with prime seats that cost nearly $700 and the rest at $219, not counting the balcony. But unlike the 2017 tour stop, they may actually need to promote the show a little and persuade people who like the show or the cast recording to fork over $219 a seat. My other guess is this: The San Francisco run won't last much longer than early September.
bear88 said: "This is more about the commerce of all this.
The 2017 San Francisco run of Hamilton, for about 4 months, sold out quickly. Then partial and obstructed view tickets were offered, and they wentfast. It wasn't impossible to get tickets, even good ones, if you played it smart. But you had to act fast.
Thus far, ticket sales for the longer 2019 run, from February to September, are going a lot more slowly. Most of the center orchestra is sold out, but there are plenty of good tickets available at almost every show, especially in the summer. Prices are higher, especially for the "prime seats," and the partial and obstructed view seats are already on sale without discounts. While the first day on Monday was a bit chaotic, and I waited in the virtual line all day to get a pair of tickets, it's calmed down since then. And now you can wander onto the SHN websiteand pick out plenty of good seats.
This is probably to be expected. The prices are high, many of the people who felt compelled to see the show in San Francisco have already seen it at least once, the cast is a mystery (not that I think that drove sales last year), and there wasn't much advance notice of ticket sales anyway. What I'm wondering is whether this is unusual, if it's a sign that the Hamilton market is softening a bit in places where it's already been. I took a quick glance to see how it's doingin Chicago, where the show has been running a lot longer. Tickets are available, although not many, for the Saturday night show. Prices are downright cheap ($92 plus fees for orchestra seats, compared to $219 in San Francisco) for midweek shows. Perhaps I should have flown to Chicago.
I assume sales will pick up, especially with the show getting some promotion due to Lin-Manuel Miranda's brief tour with Hamilton in Puerto Rico shortly before it arrives in San Francisco (and presumably with the same cast, sans Miranda). The producers will still make plenty of money with prime seats that cost nearly $700 and the rest at $219, not counting the balcony. But unlike the 2017 tour stop, they may actually need to promote the show a little and persuade people who like the show or the cast recording to fork over $219 a seat. My other guess is this: The San Francisco run won't last much longer than early September."
I wonder if it would also help to advertise that tickets *are* available? Because tickets sold out so fast last time, I get the impression that people assume it's too late. (Source: My Facebook feed )
We're going for our second time in May. I was getting over a cold during the first SF stop, so I'm looking forward to seeing Hamilton when I can fully appreciate it!
I believe a major distinction is that in 2017 it was part of the SHNSF season, versus 2018 when it’s an add-on with subscribers getting first access but no other incentives, such as discount rates. I don’t recall the exact numbers but 2017 season tix sales were double or so over previous SHNSF seasons. So the majority of seats were season tix holders — myself included. Or at least a large percentage of seats were taken up by season subscribers making it appear demand was higher.
I’m sure marketing will ramp up closer to February. The frenzy and wall to wall media coverage just isn’t there yet this time around. I saw it in 2017 — my one and only time — was impressed, thought it was close to brilliant. But I’ve moved on and won’t be seeing it in 2018.
LMM said quickly on Colbert last week that the Puerto Rico cast will be a new touring company in the States....so likely San Francisco as their first (long) stop?
roamermark said: "LMM said quickly on Colbert last week that the Puerto Rico cast will be a new touring company in the States....so likely San Francisco as their first (long) stop?"
It’s not uncommon for the West Coast sit-downs to be classified as tours. The First National Tour of Phantom (Christine Company) only played LA (1989-1993) and SF (1993-1998 ) before closing. Similar with Les Mis: classified as the Second National Tour (Fantine Company), it played LA (1988-1989) then SF (1989-1991) before closing.
To my knowledge, Wicked was never classified as a tour officially. Played 100 weeks in LA, transferred to SF for I think 88 weeks, then closed.
Well see what happens with this one. To earlier points, once the marketing machine gets moving those unsold tickets will move with tourists, people in town for conventions, etc. I’m sure it’ll sell fine. I would’ve been more surprised if these 7 months had sold out immediately.