Shakespeare in the park ticket...how early to line up

[EM55]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 3:59pm

I know there are people who line up overnight outside the park, but does anyone have any advice on realistically when you can line up and still get tickets? Does anyone know how many are handed out per day?

[AC126748]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:07pm

If you go early in the run, especially during the week, you usually don't have to wait at all; the last couple years, I've been able to walk right up at noon and get tickets. Weekends are busier usually because people are off work. I don't think JULIUS CAESER will be a hard ticket to get, because there aren't any huge names in the cast.

[icecreambenjamin]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:13pm

Do you think Midsummer will be harder to get?  The cast is pretty flashy.

[AC126748]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:17pm

In the twenty-plus years I've been doing Shakespeare in the Park (including a few summers when I worked there as an usher), the only time I saw insane lines were for productions that had big marquee names (Streep, Hathaway, Pacino, etc). I think MIDSUMMER will probably attract a bit more attention that JC simply because it's a more familiar title, but I don't think Burstein, Ashford et al are going to draw the kinds of crowds that would require people to sleep overnight for tickets.

[EM55]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:18pm

Midsummer is what I am hoping to see, I don't live there so limited to chances on a vacation. I wondered too if that would be harder to see. Thanks for the reply AC126748, I appreciate the insight.

[JSquared2]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:19pm

icecreambenjamin said: "Do you think Midsummer will be harder to get?  The cast is pretty flashy."

Only "flashy" for theatre people.  There isn't anyone in the cast (so far) who means anything to the general public. 

[ChairinMain]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:27pm

So what you're saying is if I decide to hang out at around 10 am in the park the first week of Julius Caesar I'm probably just fine? 

[icecreambenjamin]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:33pm

JSquared2 said: "icecreambenjamin said: "Do you think Midsummer will be harder to get?  The cast is pretty flashy."

Only "flashy" for theatre people.  There isn't anyone in the cast (so far) who means anything to the general public. 

Yeah I meant flashy for theatre people.  I was just wondering if a lot of us will show up ridiculously early for that production

 

[AC126748]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:35pm

ChairinMain said: "So what you're saying is if I decide to hang out at around 10 am in the park the first week of Julius Caesar I'm probably just fine? 

 

"

Yeah, I don't think you'll have any problems. 

Another thing: the Public is really good about posting on their social media when they still have tickets available post-distribution, so follow them on FB and Twitter.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:40pm

Even if they do hand out a full allotment in the morning, the standby line has always been reliable for me, but that's also going early in the run, which is always the best option. 

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:50pm

Do I understand correctly that the Public now hands out tickets at noon and allows ticket holders to leave and come back at curtain time? Great idea, if true!

Back in the Dark Ages when I was attending, one had to remain in line all day in order to hold one's place. I finally stopped going because after 8 or more hours in the heat and humidity, I was too exhausted to enjoy ANY show.

[Marianne2]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:55pm

^ It's been that way for awhile now. Even when they had big shows like Into the Woods with Amy Adams, I was able to get my ticket and leave until showtime. 

Seems like they have added ways to get tickets as well. Like I was just reading there is going to be some available from the Today Tix app.

[AC126748]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 4:56pm

GavestonPS said: "Do I understand correctly that the Public now hands out tickets at noon and allows ticket holders to leave and come back at curtain time? Great idea, if true!

Back in the Dark Ages when I was attending, one had to remain in line all day in order to hold one's place. I finally stopped going because after 8 or more hours in the heat and humidity, I was too exhausted to enjoy ANY show.

 

"

That's correct and has been for as long as I've been doing Shakespeare in the Park (I started in the mid-nineties). They used to give the tickets out at 1pm, but they knocked it down to noon a few years ago.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 5:34pm

^^^ That's great to hear. When I left NYC in 1985, they had just started selling "premium tickets"--which I thought violated the whole idea of "free theater in the park".

I saw just one act of Raul Julia and Richard Dreyfuss in OTHELLO. I'd been in line for 10 hours by show time and temperatures were in the high 80s/low 90s.

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 5/5/17 at 6:45pm

EM55 said: "I know there are people who line up overnight outside the park, but does anyone have any advice on realistically when you can line up and still get tickets? Does anyone know how many are handed out per day?

It depends on how popular the show is mostly and to a lesser extent the weather (it's usually nice in the summer and they'll cancel if it's raining or something). I've had to go around 6 am and sometimes I've gone from 9 am-10:30 am and gotten tickets. It's impossible to say until the show has started its run and people have started lining up regularly. Quite a number of tickets are handed out. It's not like rush. But with everyone in line able to get two tickets, it's easier to judge from your place in line. If you're past a certain marker, they tell you to go home. I'll also point out that being close to the front of the line doesn't guarantee the "best" tickets. If you do settle in for a long wait, bring a friend or a book. It gets boring.

[broadwaygirl89]

Posted: 5/6/17 at 8:38am

Marianne2 said: "^ It's been that way for awhile now. Even when they had big shows like Into the Woods with Amy Adams, I was able to get my ticket and leave until showtime. 

Seems like they have added ways to get tickets as well. Like I was just reading there is going to be some available from the Today Tix app.

"

There are a few ways! They have an in person lottery downtown and a Today Tix lottery, which I've entered (and won) for Taming of the Shrew. I haven't actually gone in person to the park before.

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 5/6/17 at 10:07am

The good thing about getting there early and being one of the first 100 or so in line is that you get to wait under the trees--which is crucial if temps climb high that day. Also, you're much closer to the facilities if you need to take a restroom break or buy a sandwich from the concession stand.

[EM55]

Posted: 5/6/17 at 1:22pm

Thank you for all the help everyone! Appreciate it!

[EM55]

Posted: 5/6/17 at 2:36pm

One more question guys....how early do people start getting in the standby line?

[dev101]

Posted: 5/22/17 at 8:08pm

bump

[Hamilfan2]

Posted: 8/1/17 at 5:50pm

I am hoping to see Midsummer during closing weekend.  I know it will be pretty difficult but what time would you recommend I get there in order to ensure tickets?  I was going to try getting there at 10 but I fee like that will be too late.

[starcatchers]

Posted: 8/1/17 at 8:55pm

I got in the standby line around 4 this past Wednesday and was maybe tenth in line. They started giving out tickets around ten minutes before the show started. 

[chuckydisc]

Posted: 8/1/17 at 10:07pm

Hamilfan2 said: "I am hoping to see Midsummer during closing weekend.  I know it will be pretty difficult but what time would you recommend I get there in order to ensure tickets?  I was going to try getting there at 10 but I fee like that will be too late."

What prevents you from arriving early?

 

[cali8]

Posted: 8/2/17 at 12:21am

EM55 said: "One more question guys....how early do people start getting in the standby line?"

I got to the standby line around 6:10pm last Tuesday 7/25 (I didn't count but guessing around 35 people in front of me) and got two tickets just before the show started.

 

[brdway411]

Posted: 8/2/17 at 4:57am

I did first preview and got there at 6 am (4th in line).  Had a blast both in line and at the show. Not sure about now that it got a rave review. My friend Sam made some of the costumes.