Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Seating/Pricing Thread- Page 69

[Fosse76]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 6:01pm

WayTooBroadway said: "Again, that’s business. Flex/scale pricing (or whatever they call it) is not unique to CURSED CHILD or BOYS IN THE BAND. What I meant earlier... these are not “discounts” but just “price changes.” We know that producers have done this previously for (anticipated) hot ticket shows.

The same case goes for airlines. The seat next to you or behind you is probably more expensive.
"

Exactly. But people seem to ignore the possible ignorance of the producers' initial pricing scheme, and the requirement to purchase both parts. The show is, quite frankly, overpriced. What people may be willing to pay as a premium seat is doubled for this show, because it requires two performances. Tickets to the London production are pretty much half of what is being charged on Broadway (for premium seating, at any rate). Add to that the requirement to see both parts (try buying a ticket to one part; it is not easy or convenient), and also the fact that you don't get to pick your seats (or even section) and it's a harder sell. No doubt the refund policy was eliminated because of this. So now the producers are playing with prices, trying to sell the unsold seats by reducing the price. They really need to do a market adjustment on the ticket prices.

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 6:19pm

I think it is dynamic pricing combined with a staggered release schedule. So, when they release a block of tickets, the same algorithm determines price based on availability, in which case the best seat available is considered premium (no matter its location, similar to how row R is regular price for Hello Dolly with Bette, until it is the only seating left, at which point it doubles in price.

But when they release another block, then the same algorithm is in play, and depending on when you buy them and what other seating is available for that date, you can sit closer or further back for the same price.

It is only an issue if you think row equals price, which is not the case.

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 9:12pm

Dynamic pricing is one thing, but selling prime/premium seats at $20-40 per part is much different. It looks like that "fire sale" might be over, but, while it was happening, it sure did make some people angry. Don't get me wrong, I thought it was awesome, and I took advantage of it, but it definitely made some people's disillusionment as a result of the all-over-the-place pricing even worse.

Updated On: 5/22/18 at 09:12 PM

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 9:36pm

CT2NYC said: "Dynamic pricing is one thing, but selling prime/premium seats at $20-40 per part is much different. It looks like that "fire sale" might be over, but, while it was happening, it sure did makesome people angry.Don't get me wrong, I thought it was awesome, and I took advantage of it, but it definitely made some people's disillusionment as a result ofthe all-over-the-place pricing even worse."

That's a separate thing of the producers scattering low priced tickets throughout the house. People in this thread are such a tiny fraction of theatergoers, though, especially given the show's claim that 70% of their audience (as they said on theatertalk) are first-time Broadway attendees. Most people bought tickets, and then.... just showed up on that day and sat in the first and only seats they ever bought. 

I bought premium seating, and never bothered to look for better priced seats and just enjoyed the show. Mainly because I figured the odds of getting anything better on the center aisle were so slim it wasn't worth the bother.

[hermionejuliet]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 10:22pm

Exactly, this is a concentrated group of a specific type of ticket buyer which is fairly slim in the overall Broadway audience- especially as stated- with a ton of first time theatre goers for this specific production.
The majority of people buy a theatre ticket and never look back.

Also did a TON of premium tickets really go on sale for $20/$40? I saw a lot of balcony seats and very rear orchestra, which tend to skew this price anyway, but I'm thrilled if others got real steals of prime seats.

https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/features/the-price-is-really-right-dynamic-ticketing-could-transform-the-way-we-pay-to-see-live-events-8215701.html

The link above really explains the ticketing situation that we could be observing, and there several articles discussing it from the UK, so it seems to be more common there at this point. I would expect to see more of this in New York. It makes sense, the technology is there, and it seems to bring a profit in the end

I also agree that there does seem to be the addition of the large swath affordable seats - which can clearly be released anytime and perhaps change locations and release times based on house availability. As long as they stay in the ratio of 300 seats, they can really place these wherever they need.

And perhaps the staggering is still to deter scalpers. With no "on sale" time and unexpected releases of tickets that takes less financial investment, it still takes more work to try to find the deals if they are staggered.

All this to say that very few people will take the time to figure this out, but that it isn't about rewarding or punishing ticket buyer but simply trying to maximize profit. That might mean a deal at some times and an uptick at others. I would also expect that all this could change at the drop of the hat with the addition of a Tony or two or simply settling into the run and seeing what pricing seems to be the right mix to sell the most seats for the most money.

But again, it's a business, and they have 65(?) million to earn back before they make a profit!

Still loving this thread, and am thankful for everyone who is willing to share their observations and alert (hopefully) true audience members to a seat in their preferred budget or price point!!


 

Updated On: 5/22/18 at 10:22 PM

[broadwaynerdnewbie]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 10:24pm

Boys in the band producers brought the tickets and put them on stubhub that is screwed up if true.

[Wick3]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 10:42pm

broadwaynerdnewbie said: "Boys in the band producers brought the tickets and putthem on stubhub that is screwed up if true."

We'll never know for certain if it's true without concrete evidence but I have seen other Bway musicals have hundreds of tickets on Stubhub for weeks but 24-48 hours before the performance they suddenly mysteriously decrease to 30-50 tickets. I understand there is a high-end market for NYC ticket brokers (normally tourists who stay at top hotels or businesses with $$$ to spend to entertain clients) but I just find it fascinating.

See for yourself. Pick a few Bway musicals and just observe their ticket inventory on Stubhub. The other day I was looking at the Donna Summer musical. It had 200 tickets on stubhub 48 hours before the show but 24 hours before the show there were only 30 tickets on stubhub. 

[Nycat63]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:01pm

broadwaynerdnewbie said: "Boys in the band producers brought the tickets and putthem on stubhub that is screwed up if true."

It’s the only possible explanation.  If you look on stubhub you’ll see that for each show 200-300 tickets are on up for sale (the theater capacity is only 776).  The vast majority are in the center orchestra and priced 2-4 times higher than face (even premium face).  I can’t imagine scalpers took that much of a gamble, as this was the case before previews began when no one knew how the play would be received, and the locations and pricing are too methodical for it to be multiple scalpers.  I have never noticed anything like this - at least not on such a noticeable scale (1/3 of the seats) - happening with other shows.  Even if the rationale is to keep scalpers from buying up seats (I don’t know that it is), you’d hope they’d at least price them fairly but they did not.  I hope this won’t become a new trend.  

I brought it up only to compare HP’s system, which at least has allowed just about everyone access to the show - and for those willing to pay premium prices, at least we had access to good seats and for awhile could return if we found better or cheaper seats.  No, it wasn’t ideal and for non-locals like myself that don’t have the opportunity to snag last minute deals it stings a but, but at least I don’t feel like they are doing anything slimy.  

 

[LesWickedly]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:06pm

There is a reason so many tickets disappear. It obviously isn't true for all tickets, but when I try and list a ticket, it lists the sale end date as the day before the show. I don't think it is some big conspiracy theory, it just ends most sales the day before. Maybe there's an option to put it back up or some other way, but I don't think it is the producers pulling 200 tickets.

[Wick3]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:14pm

LesWickedly said: "There is a reason so many tickets disappear. It obviously isn't true for all tickets, but when Itry and list a ticket, it lists the sale end date as the day before the show. I don't think it is some big conspiracy theory, it just ends most sales the day before. Maybe there's an option to put it back up or some other way, but I don't think it is the producers pulling 200 tickets."

I didn't know that. Do you know why the sale end date is the day before? The times I bought tickets from Stubhub, it's normally within 60 mins before start of performance. What did you do when the ticket did not sell the day before the show?

[LesWickedly]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:16pm

Well I was putting my Harry Potter ticket that I was trying to sell on here up on there and once I did, it said the sale end date was 6/26 and the show is on 6/27. Not sure why. 

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:24pm

hermionejuliet said:

 "Also did a TON of premium tickets really go on sale for $20/$40? I saw a lot of balcony seats and very rear orchestra, which tend to skew this price anyway, but I'm thrilled if others got real steals of prime seats."

Starting on May 1, and continuing for about 10 days, really amazing seats kept popping up randomly for $20-40, some at the last minute, some the day before, and others even further in advance. I could be mistaken, but I think the last day I saw them for was 5/16, and those showed up pretty far in advance. I sat in orchestra AA for $20 per part, and I saw seats in pretty much every row in the front orchestra for $40 per part, as well as many others in rows K - T. The last day I saw one of these seats show up was 5/10, when orchestra H 9 was $20 per part a couple of hours before the show, and I was able to pass it along to a friend. So, yeah, it was pretty cool!

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:24pm

hermionejuliet said:

 "Also did a TON of premium tickets really go on sale for $20/$40? I saw a lot of balcony seats and very rear orchestra, which tend to skew this price anyway, but I'm thrilled if others got real steals of prime seats."

Starting on May 1, and continuing for about 10 days, really amazing seats kept popping up randomly for $20-40, some at the last minute, some the day before, and others even further in advance. I could be mistaken, but I think the last day I saw them for was 5/16, and those showed up pretty far in advance. I sat in orchestra AA for $20 per part, and I saw seats in pretty much every row in the front orchestra for $40 per part, as well as many others in rows K - T, and quite a few in the front of the dress circle. The last day I saw one of these seats show up was 5/10, when orchestra H 9 was $20 per part a couple of hours before the show, and I was able to pass it along to a friend. So, yeah, it was pretty cool!

Updated On: 5/22/18 at 11:24 PM

[V2David]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:43pm

I didn't know that. Do you know why the sale end date is the day before? The times I bought tickets from Stubhub, it's normally within 60 mins before start of performance. What did you do when the ticket did not sell the day before the show?

It's possible they are hard tickets (not electronic) and therefore the listings end early because there is no way for the seller to guarantee delivery on time for the show.

It's also possible that the sellers aren't brokers, and they either decide to unlist the tickets and go to the show, or (in the case of extra tickets) try to sell them at the show. 

Updated On: 5/22/18 at 11:43 PM

[Notreallysilent 2]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:45pm

The same exact thing happens in The london production where last minute they reduce tickets to those affordable prices. But it was only a few tickets at that price. Maybe two or three often singles though. I think it was just a choice by the show to maintain their stance that everyone should be able to see the show by making some of the last minute single seats affordable. The pricing thiufh for the show does seem to be all over the place. My question is how many seats did HP hold back??? Cuz it seems new tickets pop up everyday.

Also this is not related to the ticket thing, but idk where else to post this. They added an American online store for cursed child with the American apparel

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/22/18 at 11:59pm

LesWickedly said: "Well I was putting my Harry Potter ticket that I was trying to sell on here up on there and once I did, it said the sale end date was 6/26 and the show is on 6/27. Not sure why."

Usually depends on delivery method. If you take a hard ticket to the StubHub pickup center, it can be listed nearly until showtime (or after showtime for a concert). If you have a hard ticket, they need time for you to send via UPS. For a mobile ticket, they pad time for you to do the transfer process with the buyer. And an PDF can usually sell nearly until showtime.

[hermionejuliet]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 7:43am

CT2NYC said: "hermionejuliet said:

"Also did a TON of premium tickets really go on sale for $20/$40? I saw a lot of balcony seats and very rear orchestra, which tend to skew this price anyway, but I'm thrilled if others got real steals of prime seats."

Starting on May 1, and continuing for about 10 days, really amazing seats kept popping up randomly for $20-40, some at the last minute, some the day before, and others even further in advance. I could be mistaken, but I think the last day I saw them for was 5/16, and those showed up pretty far in advance.I sat in orchestra AA for $20 per part, and I saw seats in pretty much every row in the front orchestra for $40 per part, as well as many others in rows K - T. The last day I saw one of these seats show up was 5/10, when orchestra H 9 was $20 per part a couple of hours before the show, and I was able to pass it along to a friend. So, yeah, it was pretty cool!"

Ah, ok. I thought you were talking about Monday's release which seemed to basically released the same couple of seats for every day for the summer. That's great that there are still random drops like that.

That makes sense if they are using dynamic pricing and can scatter the affordable seats around and get rid of singles. I know the price change frustrates some, but as said it gives everyone a chance to see the show AND the majority of tickets don't end up on StubHub - works for me! 

[oldfriends]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 8:36am

Hi all I know this is a long shot but looking for a $20/$40 per part seat within June. If any of you are interested in selling yours, or if you see one pop up on the website, please let me know! (Thanks again, this thread is wonderful.)

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 12:04pm

Dress circle B 107 is on Ticketmaster right now for today's show, $40 per part. I'll hold it for someone from the board. Hopefully someone out there is interested! Let me know!

[broadwaynerdnewbie]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 12:24pm

I’m so thankful for this board honestly cause it’s much easier for me to keep an eye out on reasonably priced tickets. I think the one thing that frustrates me about the ticket process for this show is it picks the seats for you, so like you don’t have any way of knowing what seats are available for each date until it she’s you “the best seat available for your price point”

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 12:27pm

CT2NYC said: "Dress circle B 107 is on Ticketmaster right now for today's show, $40 per part. I'll hold it for someone from the board.Hopefully someone out there is interested!Let me know!"

Alright guys, I gotta run! Releasing this seat now, so if anyone is interested, head over to Ticketmaster! 

[cali8]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 12:30pm

CT2NYC said: "Dress circle B 107 is on Ticketmaster right now for today's show, $40 per part. I'll hold it for someone from the board.Hopefully someone out there is interested!Let me know!"

Dress circle B108 is also available for today's show, $40 per part. I just released it.

[vampire musical]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 4:04pm

Looking for a pair for both parts Sun June 3. Looking for Dress Circle or Orchestra if possible. If anyone has a pair they are looking to sell let me know. And willing to cover any ticketing fees you paid :)

[CatMac32]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 4:18pm

I have four tickets for Sunday May 27. Row C 5,7,9,11. I’m in CA and unfortunately there is a family emergency and can’t go. If anyone interested let me know. 

[(Insert Clever Name)]

Posted: 5/23/18 at 4:20pm

how much and where?