Reduced price previews

Remember when there was such a thing? I was talking to my sister about Saturday night's performance of Hello Dolly! and mentioned that it really wasn't a polished performance. There were several rough spots. She commented that we shouldn't have paid full price for our tickets. She also said she had once belonged to the Stub Preview Club where she got discounted seats for preview performances. Somehow I think we should bring this back.

As exciting as Saturday's performance was it was really a dress rehearsal but we paid Broadway prices to see it.

@Dramamama I agree that there are a lot of people in general who don't realize they are seeing a preview (notwithstanding enhanced transparency) but I was directly addressing the OP's situation in which they clearly did know. Given the opportunity, there are lots of people who would pay even more to see an invited dress of a notable show. Also, as noted, if one wants to see BP as DL for a discount, that 20% actually sounds kinda skimpy. This is a classic case of having your (gluten free) cake and eating it too.

Dollypop said: "In years gone by, there was at least a 20% discount on preview prices."

In years gone by, you could buy a cup of coffee for 15 cents and a car for $1,800. Things change.

Updated On: 1/22/18 at 04:43 PM

Dollypop said: "The 15 cent coffee tasted better than what we get at Starbucks."

No one has a gun to your head to go to Starbucks. Seriously, in the other thread you called it "An exceptional evening". You got what you paid for.

Dollypop said: "Yes, I understand that. However, I found out that there had been no dress rehearsal. What we saw was an Invited Dress, only we paid."

I think this is a reasonable complaint. Even if you did enjoy the night I can imagine feelin a little taken advantage of with this. You got to see her first real, full run in the role, though, which is kind of cool in its own right!

michaelhale said: "what's the point of calling it a preview? Seems skeevy to me to sell an unfinished product at a regular price."

The point of calling it a preview has zero to do with pricing and everything to do with when reviews come out. Some shows arrive in very finished form. Should they not have previews?

The subtext to all these comments is that people who are not putting up shows somehow inexplicably think they get a say in how a show is produced and marketed and priced. That is not how it works. And what exactly is "skeevy" about selling tickets at the "regular" price during previews if the market will support that. Oh and in the 2018 context, what is "regular." Tickets, in case you've been under a rock, are dynamically priced. If a show can sell tickets at the "regular" price prior to opening, presumably they hope to sell them for more post-opening if the reviews are good. So there's your discount.

Dollypop wrote: "As exciting as Saturday's performance was it was really a dress rehearsal but we paid Broadway prices to see it."



Well, isn't that a nice how do you do.

Dollypop said: "Oh, there's no doubt that I enjoyed the show. It's just that I was looking back at the way things used to be done and what we have now. Really, what we saw was a dress rehearsal on Saturday night."

Almost every show that runs for any length of time at some point sees the original leads depart and new leads join the cast. No show I've ever heard of considers those first few performances when the new leads settle in to be previews and they certainly don't discount for them. DEH didn't do it when Ben Platt left, Hamilton didn't do it when Lin left etc. etc. Some people hold off seeing a new cast, giving them time to settle in to the new roles because the first few performances might be a little rocky. Others like yourself wanted to be there for Bernadette's first night. While they may technically consider late February to be Bernadette's "official opening" out of deference to her stature, performances 9 months after a show opened with new leads but more than half of the original cast including a Tony winner who've been doing the show since last March are not really previews let alone dress rehearsals. Victor Garber missing a cue or fumbling over a few lines does not make it a dress rehearsal. This whole thread is kind of silly.

After Eight said: "Uncle Charlie, "This whole thread is kind of silly."

Then why are you participating in it?


Because you're here and that guarantees while it may be silly, it could also quickly become very entertaining.

^

And my own feeling is that it's kind of silly for someone who raved about the performance after seeing it, calling it "an exceptional evening" to start a thread 2 days later griping about how the show was dress rehearsal quality (not even full preview quality, mind you) and he felt he overpaid. I'm more than happy to respect someone's feelings about a performance if they can decide what they are.

And I don't disagree with you that the quality level of a new cast's first performance is a perfectly valid subject for consideration. If the focus of the discussion was on that rather than the lack of discounting, I'd have no issue with it.

But you did deliver the goods. You always do!