#1
Posted: 6/6/13 at 2:30pm
Here's what happened.
The articles said that the signup would begin at 12, with the drawing at 12:30. I arrived at 12, went up to the front for a slip, and was told they were being handed out at the back (even though no one was there when I arrived). I walked back to the end of the line, which was now about ten or fifteen people longer than when I first got there. The guy who was running it was standing there, trying to say that the line was closed. Apparently, they began handing out slips early and STOPPED giving out slips at 12. I and a few other people complained and said we were here early and sent to the wrong place. He said he believed us and let us get in line, but we still got no slips.
A little while later, the girl who was collecting slips in the box came down the line and stopped a few people ahead of me, where the slips had stopped. She yelled to the rest of us that she would be right back after she found out what was happening.
She never came back. What happened next, at 12:20, was the line suddenly started moving toward the theater because they were starting to draw names. Even though the drawing was supposed to begin at 12:30. So everyone at the back of the line crowded up to hear, because no one in charge thought to bring a megaphone and we couldn't hear anything.
I found the girl who was collecting slips before, and she said, "Oh, did you not hear my announcement?" [You mean the announcement you just yelled from 100 yards away? No, I did not.] "What we decided was that the lottery would be for good tickets in the orchestra, and then we will sell the rest of the tickets down the line, first-come-first-served." I pointed out there was no line anymore, and she just told me to get back in line and wait. So I did.
They drew names. And kept drawing names. And kept drawing names. More and more people crowded up, so soon I looked behind me and realized I was suddenly the back of the line, even though I had started in the middle.
Eventually, after almost two hours, they drew the last name and said they were finished. A bunch of us asked about the first-come-first-served tickets they had promised, and they said, and I quote, "Oh, we decided not to do that. We decided that it would be fairest to just put all the tickets in the lottery and allow for more winners."
How that is fair to the people who were never even allowed to enter is beyond me.
When we all made that point, they stated that they even made up more slips for the people at the end of the line, but those of us in the middle were skipped and ended up completely screwed.
They claimed there was nothing they could do and just walked away.
I was misled twice: once when all the press implied that you could enter if you arrived anytime between 12 and 12:30; and once when I was told to wait and I would be able to purchase tickets.
On top of that, nothing was communicated at all. If they had made an announcement (an AUDIBLE announcement) that there would not be tickets to purchase after all, I would have left and not stayed there waiting for nothing at all.
On top of that, I heard some names called as winners more than once. There was no policing or organization whatsoever.
It's not like ticket lotteries on Broadway is a foreign concept. The Tonys have offered student rush before. So why was this so poorly planned and run?
I am not exaggerating when I say that was one of the most disorganized, infuriating, frustrating, and unfair experiences of my life. I am going to write letters to the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League, as well as posting all over message boards and social media.
I know they did not have to offer any sort of student rush, but they did and so the expectation was that everyone who followed the rules would have a fair chance to win. That was not the case, and it reflects really poorly on the Tony Awards and the organizations who run it.
The articles said that the signup would begin at 12, with the drawing at 12:30. I arrived at 12, went up to the front for a slip, and was told they were being handed out at the back (even though no one was there when I arrived). I walked back to the end of the line, which was now about ten or fifteen people longer than when I first got there. The guy who was running it was standing there, trying to say that the line was closed. Apparently, they began handing out slips early and STOPPED giving out slips at 12. I and a few other people complained and said we were here early and sent to the wrong place. He said he believed us and let us get in line, but we still got no slips.
A little while later, the girl who was collecting slips in the box came down the line and stopped a few people ahead of me, where the slips had stopped. She yelled to the rest of us that she would be right back after she found out what was happening.
She never came back. What happened next, at 12:20, was the line suddenly started moving toward the theater because they were starting to draw names. Even though the drawing was supposed to begin at 12:30. So everyone at the back of the line crowded up to hear, because no one in charge thought to bring a megaphone and we couldn't hear anything.
I found the girl who was collecting slips before, and she said, "Oh, did you not hear my announcement?" [You mean the announcement you just yelled from 100 yards away? No, I did not.] "What we decided was that the lottery would be for good tickets in the orchestra, and then we will sell the rest of the tickets down the line, first-come-first-served." I pointed out there was no line anymore, and she just told me to get back in line and wait. So I did.
They drew names. And kept drawing names. And kept drawing names. More and more people crowded up, so soon I looked behind me and realized I was suddenly the back of the line, even though I had started in the middle.
Eventually, after almost two hours, they drew the last name and said they were finished. A bunch of us asked about the first-come-first-served tickets they had promised, and they said, and I quote, "Oh, we decided not to do that. We decided that it would be fairest to just put all the tickets in the lottery and allow for more winners."
How that is fair to the people who were never even allowed to enter is beyond me.
When we all made that point, they stated that they even made up more slips for the people at the end of the line, but those of us in the middle were skipped and ended up completely screwed.
They claimed there was nothing they could do and just walked away.
I was misled twice: once when all the press implied that you could enter if you arrived anytime between 12 and 12:30; and once when I was told to wait and I would be able to purchase tickets.
On top of that, nothing was communicated at all. If they had made an announcement (an AUDIBLE announcement) that there would not be tickets to purchase after all, I would have left and not stayed there waiting for nothing at all.
On top of that, I heard some names called as winners more than once. There was no policing or organization whatsoever.
It's not like ticket lotteries on Broadway is a foreign concept. The Tonys have offered student rush before. So why was this so poorly planned and run?
I am not exaggerating when I say that was one of the most disorganized, infuriating, frustrating, and unfair experiences of my life. I am going to write letters to the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League, as well as posting all over message boards and social media.
I know they did not have to offer any sort of student rush, but they did and so the expectation was that everyone who followed the rules would have a fair chance to win. That was not the case, and it reflects really poorly on the Tony Awards and the organizations who run it.
Nothing matters but knowing nothing matters. ~ Wicked
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
"He's a tramp, but I love him."
Everything in life is only for now. ~ Avenue Q
There is no future, there is no past. I live this moment as my last. ~ Rent
