Tips on obtaining discounted tickets on-Broadway

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 1:19pm

I am always asked how I get my discounted tickets. So, I have listed some (and will list more later) tips on how to save money and still get the most out of broadway, on my personal website blog:

http://broadwayreviews.googlepages.com (click on "Tips on tickets"
at the top)

If others have their own ways, please let me know so that I can list them here too. I would love to have feedback!


Updated On: 6/18/06 at 01:19 PM

Posted: 6/17/06 at 1:29pm

lotteries

"clubs" where you pay like $100 per yr, but get $2-$4 tickets

mailing lists like telecharge & tm insider discounts

[whatyouown223]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 1:38pm

www.broadwaybox.com

[ChrisLovesShows]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 1:56pm

I've gotten some fairly good discounts through the Playbill club. (Join at playbill.com, then login periodically to see discounts.)

Students, military personnell, and others can join TDF and get notified regularly of discounts. I took a class at the local community college last year and this qualified me. Check the website to see membership requirements (TDF = Theatre Development Fund - they run the TKTS booths.)

Broadwaybox.com is hit and miss, but always worth a look.
Theatre Development Fund

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 4:42pm

Thanks for the post. Have you tried broadwaybox.com? Can you tell us a little something about your experience with it?

[theaterFrEaK07]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 4:50pm

Is theatremania.com reliable? Im always nervous when it comes to buying discount tickets.

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 4:57pm

I have not ordered anything from them personally yet, because I always find cheaper tickets in other ways that are listed on my website (above post). But I think that they should be reliable. They have a kiosk setup in Virgin Records in TIMES SQUARE if you feel uncomfortable ordering online or over the phone.

Theatremania is well recognized by many boxes around town. Many small productions advertise thru them, as their website is very thorough. I would not feel apprehensive from ordering tickets from them.

I bought from smartTIX a few weeks ago over the phone and charged my credit card. Everythng was fine. Usually, these organizations add $1-2 fee for their service.

Updated On: 6/17/06 at 04:57 PM

[Harpo]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 6:05pm

I have used Broadwaybox several times and there have been no problems. I've gotten some great seats as well.

I thought that maybe the seats would be worse than full price tickets, but they are the same as if you were paying full price. Nice way to save some dollars. I also have a TDF membership but you don't know in advance what seats you will get.

[ILoveMyDictionary]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 8:35pm

^ Yea, I've never gone wrong with Broadway Box. It's wonderful.

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 8:54pm

TheaterMania or BroadwayBox do not sell tickets, they just collect discount codes. You buy tickets at either TeleCharge, BroadwayOffers or TicketMaster. BroadwayBox gets paid for every purchase you make through their site (or you can just copy the code, go to broadwayoffers.com and buy the tickets yourself).

Updated On: 6/17/06 at 08:54 PM

[lfae]

Posted: 6/17/06 at 10:03pm

I have a question and I figured someone in this thread might know the answer, about student rush :)

I know you show your student ID to prove you're a student, but are only IDs from US institutions accepted? Because I'm Australian, friend is Canadian, both of us ARE students...will we be able to try rush for anything?

Believe me, I HAVE looked all over, but nowhere seems to specify!

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 1:58am

Dear lafae,

It doesn't matter if you are an US citizen or not to get student RUSH tickets. In fact sometimes they forget to even look at your ID. (Today I saw Forbidden Broadway again and asked for a student RUSH price. He gave me 50% off the normal $60; the guy never looked at my ID.) If they do ask, just show them any school ID with your picture that has a valid date and perhaps says student. Mine doesn't say anything and I have never been questioned by a Broadway box office. (I couldn't see all the shows that I have listed on my site (way above) plus others if I paid normal admission prices. I'd be broke.)

The Metropolitan Opera house has student RUSH too, for certain performances. They are not as consistent as before. But you can ask the box for a list of dates. Tickets are $25 for midweek performances and $35 for Fri and Sat. They claim that you need to be under 29 years of age. But I have never been asked by them. I don't think that they care. I have seen many performances at the MET.

Have some more questions, I'll be happy to try to answer them.
If you have a particular show in mind, I can ask the box office next time I am in town if they offer student RUSH.

Best,
tears
Updated On: 6/18/06 at 01:58 AM

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 2:01am

Thank you for the clarification Tiny-toon. I'll be sure to mention that on my site.

[Jinks]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 2:12am

Your ticket information is inaccurate for most of the discount ticket sources. Did you do any research or have you actually gotten tickets/discounts from any of them? The reviews are lame as well. Are you sure you're not a fifteen-year old? That scientist thing sounds fishy.

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 2:43am

Dear Jinks,

Let me know which things are inaccurate and will correct them.
I just wrote the page this morning and am still working on it.

My take-home strategies for obtaining discounted tickets are student RUSH tickets, the TKTS booth, and a few box offices around town that offer courtesy tickets to the public. (I am not a fan of the clubs and don't use them because I can obtain cheaper tickets elsewhere. However, I will list them on my site since others do.)

I've seen too many shows in NYC, not to know what I am talking about in terms of obtaining tickets. In terms of my reviews, they are not analysis of plays that the critics supply. They are in fact reviews for the general public. I try to convey to the general public whether a show is family oriented or not. If the show is perverted as many of them are in NYC, I will say that I my review, however immature that sounds to you-- in order to warn the public.

Last year, for example, Margo Jefferson at the NYTimes lost her position, because she recommended "Where do we live?" as her critic pick. There was literally anal-intercourse on stage, which she neglected to report in her review that drew people to the play. However professional the critics seem to be, they do not serve the public!

Of course, my reviews are not for everybody either and I don't mean to offend. But some of the critics have been dipping from my reviews. So they can't be that bad.

-tears

[lfae]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 5:31am

Thanks for that 'tears' :)

[hushpuppy]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 9:40am

I too raised an eyebrow while reading some of tearsforhari's reviews.

You are certainly entitled to your off-beat opinions (for example, suggesting that AVENUE Q won the Tony over WICKED due to the predominantly gay Tony voters pressing their agenda. Hmm, why then did the relentlessly heterosexual JERSEY BOYS win over the gay-friendly DROWSY CHAPERONE?), but you failed to do your homework when, in your POTO review, you state that BOMBAY DREAMS was 'another musical by Andrew Lloyd Weber'. ALW was a producer of the original London production, and is credited with 'based on an idea by Andrew Lloyd Weber' in the New York production, but you imply that he wrote the show, which is not at all the case. Your writing is, at best, sloppy and misleading, and, at worst, blatantly untrue.

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:17am

Hushpuppy,

Just think about that year when Avenue Q won the Tony: Avenue Q, I am my own wife, Frozen all won awards and all either had gay or sadistic themes. There were a lot more that the critics at the NYTimes were pushing that year as well. I remember going to many of them and literally having penises stuck in my face, sometimes within a feet or two. As I asked in one of my reviews: Why is it considered art in Manhattan to see male-genitalia flung onstage, but inappropriate to see the female body? If I raise an eyebrow by my reviews, it should cause you to ponder how over-the-line and lopsided shows on or off Broadway have become.

As far as Bombay Dreams, AR Rahman is the composer. He has sold over a million albums of his music from Bollywood movies. In fact, many of the scores of Bombay Dreams were directly taken from movies likes "Taal", "Laagan", and others. (Have you seen any? I doubt it.) According to the documentary, Andrew insisted that AR Rahman to put some of his Bollywood hits in the score. In fact, Andrew himself rewrote some of the other music to fit into a musical format. (Did you know that?) Of course, Andrew is only accredited as the producer, but the musical was sold to the public with Andrew's name because the public here is not well acquainted yet with Bollywood.

By the way, Bombay Dreams was a great, new musical for the family and intermixed couples, but got severely panned by Ben and others. I took much offense to their short-sitedness, which prompted me to express my opinions to them. I went four-five times and saw that the general-public genuinely liked the show. You couldn't even get seats the last weeks of it.

Ok, I am renaming my site, the police of broadway.

-tears

But, of course, a sophisticated taste require us to listen to the critics and accept Frozen as good theatre.
Updated On: 6/18/06 at 11:17 AM

[Jinks]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:17am

HitShowClub is a SINGLE company that provides discount codes and dinner/ticket packages. TKTS does not only sell tickets to critically panned shows. There are hits on their board that are years into their run, as well as shows that were critically lauded but aren't for the tastes of many of the General Public, (ie. Lieutenant of Inishmore). You make no mention of discount codes, which many of the listed sources provide. With them you are most often able to get seats in the first ten rows if you will look ahead ninety days or so. Discount codes should be the number one source on your list. If you want to do your readers a favor, direct them to:

http://home.nyc.rr.com/frugaltheatergoe

They accurately explain nearly every source of discounts for Broadway tickets. Take a page out of their book...

[blueroses]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:44am

Jinks, that was a terrific site--thank you! I've bookmarked the link.

I've had luck with the codes on BroadwayBox, Theatermania and Playbill. In fact, I just paid $56.25 a piece for Sweeney Orchestra seats (50% off!) for 4th row orchestra on July 2nd. There's a special promotion going on during a few weeks from June through July, where seven shows are half off (including Hairspray, Spelling Bee and a few others I can't remember).

Here are the codes and dates they'll be honored (all of the codes are the same, not a typo):

Bridge and Tunnel
June 16-July 2nd
$43.74
Code: FLAG 06

Hairspray
June 30-July 2nd
$55.00
Code: FLAG 06

Phantom of the Opera
June 30-July 4th
$43.74
Code: FLAG 06

The Producers
June 30-July 7th
$43.74
Code: FLAG 06

Spelling Bee
June 30-July 7th
$47.50 FLAG 06

Sweeney Todd
June 16-July 2nd
$56.25 FLAG 06

The Wedding Singer
June 16-July 2nd
$56.25 FLAG 06

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:45am

Jinks,

Thanks for the info. Of course, I will put that link and another one of Takin Broadway's that list the shows offering RUSH.

I list student RUSH as number one, because it is the best discounted price out of all of them. (Much cheaper than those codes above). My opinion is that if the show doesn't offer RUSH tickets, take your money elsewehere. For the out-of-towners, who need to book in advance, then maybe the other types of organizations make sense.

Yes, the pages probably do accurately explain each show's and organization's policies. But nothing is better than a ilve person who goes regularly telling you how it really is. For example, I was just explaining earlier that the MET offers student prices that are also listed on those pages. But this last year, they have not been giving them out as regularly. In fact, they are letting their seats go vacant rather than offering student RUSH on everyweekend that I have attended recently. (sucks) So much for their policies.

Thanks again.
Updated On: 6/18/06 at 11:45 AM

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:54am

Take Phantom, for example-- that is a theatre where you get what you pay for. They never really offer discounts. They'll charge you the $46 (above) and put you right in front of the $20 seats, which are not significantly different in terms of viewing pleasure, or give you the $20 seats on a Saturday for that price. Who ever said that these organizations and other sites look out for the public interests? At least, mine does.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:56am

I think that if tearsforhari's hateful views are any indication, no one should take anything he/she says seriously, including the so-called expertise in obtaining discount tickets or the scientist at Yale claim.

[Calvin]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:58am

Just think about that year when Avenue Q won the Tony: Avenue Q, I am my own wife, Frozen all won awards and all either had gay or sadistic themes

Quick question: Why are "gay" and "sadistic" lumped together as analogous themes?

[tearsforhari]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 12:11pm

My "favorite" critics at the NYTimes likes two types of plays generally: the gay one and the sadistic one. "Reckless" and "Frozen" are two such examples of sadistic ones. "Where do we live" is just one example of a gay one. They hate shows like Phantom and other Andrew Lyod Webber's work. I can like either. But I speak against shows like Reckless and Frozen that were off-broadway originally and only moved to broadway in order to become eligible for the Tony. The price of admission increased 10 times, without additional sets; they contained sick, melodramatic themes that I suspect most would not like to take their children to see on-Broadway. I think that they are best suited off-broadway.