#1
Posted: 2/22/07 at 12:49pm
I got a call from a guy I knew who went to my church two years ago. He called because he knew I liked Broadway and loved Rosie. Here is the gist of our call:
J: Andrew? This is Joe Schmoe from church.
Me: Oh yeah, wow, how are ya?
J: Very good. Listen, did you just happen to have been watching The View? "Spring Awakens" was on it.
Me: Yeah, I saw!
J: Well we're actually going to New York next weekend and wanted to see the show but didn't know how to get tickets. I went to the Ticketmaster website but they didn't have them. Is it sold out?
Me: I don't think so. Shouldn't be sold out for next weekend. But I don't think Ticketmaster has the show. You want to visit Telecharge.com.
J: Ah, okay, thanks.
...calls back 5 minutes later...
J: Hi Andrew its Joe from church again. Is this right, telecharge is telling me tickets will be $230 for my wife and I? I don't think their system is working right.
Me: It is. Tickets are $111.25 per person, plus Telecharge fees.
J: What!? You've got to be kidding me. $110 bucks per ticket??
A: Yeah, it's pretty sad.
J: Well what about that Lion King show. How much are tickets for that?
A: Same price. But all shows have cheaper tickets that aren't in the orchestra.
J: How do I get those? I didn't see an option for that on Telecharge but now that you mention it they did list something that said $60 or something like that.
A: There should have been an option to say which section you wanted to sit it.
J: Well, I didn't see that. Can you get online and do this with me?
A: Well, listen, what you should really do is TKTS.
J: What's that?
A: Outside the Marquis Hotel there is a TKTS booth that sells 50% tickets to certain shows. I'm pretty certain Spring Awakening is on there. Tickets should be about $58 each and if you're lucky they will be orchestra tickets. You only need two, anyway.
...and that was the jist.
Needless to say, if he didn't know me - a theatre person - chances are he wouldn't be seeing a Broadway show while in New York next weekend.
There's your average tourist. Uninformed. Bewildered by sky high ticket prices. Sad.
J: Andrew? This is Joe Schmoe from church.
Me: Oh yeah, wow, how are ya?
J: Very good. Listen, did you just happen to have been watching The View? "Spring Awakens" was on it.
Me: Yeah, I saw!
J: Well we're actually going to New York next weekend and wanted to see the show but didn't know how to get tickets. I went to the Ticketmaster website but they didn't have them. Is it sold out?
Me: I don't think so. Shouldn't be sold out for next weekend. But I don't think Ticketmaster has the show. You want to visit Telecharge.com.
J: Ah, okay, thanks.
...calls back 5 minutes later...
J: Hi Andrew its Joe from church again. Is this right, telecharge is telling me tickets will be $230 for my wife and I? I don't think their system is working right.
Me: It is. Tickets are $111.25 per person, plus Telecharge fees.
J: What!? You've got to be kidding me. $110 bucks per ticket??
A: Yeah, it's pretty sad.
J: Well what about that Lion King show. How much are tickets for that?
A: Same price. But all shows have cheaper tickets that aren't in the orchestra.
J: How do I get those? I didn't see an option for that on Telecharge but now that you mention it they did list something that said $60 or something like that.
A: There should have been an option to say which section you wanted to sit it.
J: Well, I didn't see that. Can you get online and do this with me?
A: Well, listen, what you should really do is TKTS.
J: What's that?
A: Outside the Marquis Hotel there is a TKTS booth that sells 50% tickets to certain shows. I'm pretty certain Spring Awakening is on there. Tickets should be about $58 each and if you're lucky they will be orchestra tickets. You only need two, anyway.
...and that was the jist.
Needless to say, if he didn't know me - a theatre person - chances are he wouldn't be seeing a Broadway show while in New York next weekend.
There's your average tourist. Uninformed. Bewildered by sky high ticket prices. Sad.
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
--Aristotle
