I don't think they've nearly enough to advertise why this production is different and unique, as compared to the original production which didn't close that long ago. The logos are even very similar, for goodness sake.
It's not like the original production was even that big of a hit as far as Best Musical winners go. This show has always been a bit of a hard sell with full-price ticket paying adults. (Not that adults can't and don't enjoy the show, but you can't sell orchestra seats at $137 a pop to a teen/college age fan base.)
Marie: Don't be in such a hurry about that pretty little chippy in Frisco.
Tony: Eh, she's a no chip!
There were heavy discounts throughout previews, including $39 rear mezz seats, which appear to have been pulled after the reviews came out. Previews were also comped to the gills; notice the almost 22% drop in attendance when they had to depend solely on paying customers?
I feel like they give away the house every night in previews counting on word of mouth and reviews to sell full price tickets after opening.
Marie: Don't be in such a hurry about that pretty little chippy in Frisco.
Tony: Eh, she's a no chip!
Which is normal. There have been discounts since day one. It's on TDF a lot, and I'm guessing, on TKTS daily.
They need to earn some might net, so not, it's not worth it to sell for less or near t much less than 50.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
I believe that most of the discounts were pulled after opening night, although it seems that they are coming back. There is a "new" one at BroadwayBox, but only for 20% off.
A show like this needs to rely on word of mouth to get people in the door. I don't understand the principle behind limiting the discounts relatively early in the run. If you can't get people in the door, there's no one to give the word of mouth. Several struggling shows have tried pulling discounts to beef up the box office numbers, but I'm having trouble thinking of a time when that strategy worked for a struggling show.
"What was the name of that cheese that I like?"
"you can't run away forever...but there's nothing wrong with getting a good head start"
"well I hope and I pray, that maybe someday, you'll walk in the room with my heart"
I have a very hard time feeling sympathetic for this show, mainly due to the lack of discounts available. Attendance is down because people can't afford the seats. They have to pick whether they want a higher capacity, or are ok with where their grosses are. Tix4Students tickets are up to $43 since Opening night, TDF is $49, and lotto loser is still $60-$70. It is not easy to get a cheap ticket to the show. If I had the opportunity to see this show easily for $30 that wasn't the lottery, I'd be back in a heartbeat.
VotePeron said: "If I had the opportunity to see this show easily for $30 that wasn't the lottery, I'd be back in a heartbeat."
Few shows would have a difficult time filling their houses for $30/ticket. The only problem is your dream ticket price wouldn't leave any shows standing on Broadway...
People can afford the seats, but those that can don't want to buy them for this show. It was never a really popular show beyond a younger crowd, and on top of that it's not an easy thing to sell the concept of a musical with deaf actors to a wide audience. The ticket prices aren't an issue here- it's just a hard sell and while it's a shame to see a worthwhile show struggle, it shouldn't come as a surprise.
I am a firm believer in serendipity- all the random pieces coming together in one wonderful moment, when suddenly you see what their purpose was all along.
Enough people don't want to see it. Period. Tickets being cheap won't change that. What does it make if 3 people buy tix at 30 bucks, or one does at a hundred?
The average tourist wants to see a successful show, not a bargain basement one.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
In all sincerity, do we really think the entire reason for mounting this production was to ignite the box office for 16 weeks? Sure, this is the world of commercial theater, but I doubt that those who invested in this production expected much of a return either way. The way I see it, this revival is happening because a group of individuals were very passionate about a piece of art and they were hoping to share their passion with even more people.
While sales may be abysmal even by those standards, I'm happy that people like that exist and that they chose to take on the risk involved with bringing this to New York. It's exciting to see art like this on a Broadway stage.
Really? Lower ticket prices does not equal more sales.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
I am totally on board with a show trying to make as much money as possible, but I think there is a time to be bullish and a time to be gracious. I am free to go tomorrow night, but their discount code is literally out of whack vs. the number of available seats? No?
I mean, if they can sell all of these at full price, good on them. But if you're saving these closer/aisle/center seats for TKTS, where you will get $75/seat, why not let me have one for $89 today? Surely, Ticketmaster has to have enough flexibility along those lines, no? They know how to change premiums to regular based on number at a certain point...
To be fair, I don't track the show regularly as far as how seats are selling and how early, but Sunday night is typically an off night for theater (although it is a holiday weekend). But that still seems like too many seats to be stingy with discounts, heh.
They do need to offer way more discounts- the audience for this show is young, and they just can't afford these prices. This show needs to be seen. It is one of the most beautiful productions I have ever seen, hands down. It's not fair to keep so many seats empty when young fans could easily fill them if the prices were lower. There's a reason all of the $60 tickets in the rear side mezzanine are always completely sold out. This show is likely not going to suddenly be a box office hit, but it is a game-changer with rightfully amazing word of mouth and needs to be seen by as many people as possible, not the relatively few people who are both well-off and open-mind enough to see an innovative show like this. I think Ken Davenport will be very popular if he makes this accessible to as many people as possible by lowering prices, even if it means losing money. This show has never been about raking in the money, it's much deeper than that.
I used a discount to get tickets for tomorrow nights show with no problem. I used MAIL1.
Personally I can't wait, I've wanted to see this from the time I heard about the original Deaf West production. This will be my son's first experience with it.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.