25 replies to this topic

[JME52K]

Schuttep, on 26 February 2013 - 10:53 AM, said:

I've noticed over the past few years that I have a stock of theatre tickets of events still to see that is growing and growing. At the moment I have tickets for 43 upcoming shows.

I still see roughly the same amount of shows each year (around 75 - 90) but it seems to me that theatre tickets are being put on sale so far in advance that I am buying many many more well before the actual show.

For example, I bought all the Michael Grandage season over a year in advance of the start of the actual performances. Now I can see why he would want assurances that tickets would sell for what he might have seen as a "risky" venture, but it seems to me that more and more theatres and producers are trying to get us to buy tickets long before the actual shows themselves. Many West End shows are booking into 2014 already and I recently bought tickets for the Priscilla tour in Brighton for January 2014. But, unless my memory is flawed this didn't seem to happen so much just a few years ago.

I know I don't HAVE to buy tickets so far in advance but if I want decent seats for the shows I'd like to see, I feel obliged to go for it, meaning I have the assurance of getting good seats and producers have the assurance of a sold ticket.

Thoughts?

I know what you mean. I got an email saying Wicked was coming to my local theatre in what I thought was June 2013. I knew we were booked in for another show on that day and thought it had been pulled only to realise the Wicked tour  was for June 2014! I've seen it twice in London so may hold fire for a while.

[theatrepaul]

I don't think it's such a new thing. I remember years ago when Oliver was announced at the London Palladium with Jonathan Pryce. There was a real frisson of interest and I booked tickets about a year ahead. I do agree that it would be better to wait until later. One of the issues I had with the Michael Grandage season was thinking about my diary over a year hence. In the end I didn't and just booked for the early productions

[armadillo]

Seems to have worked for Grandage - there are surprisingly few seats available for Henry V (if you want a particular date, you may find only premium tickets available ) and he's still got another 8 months to sell tickets.

[Jon]

Henry V has Jude Law in it so its unsurprising its sold well, wonder how Midsummers Night Dream and The Cripple of Inishmann are long as they both have stars in them.

[freckles]

KevinUK, on 27 February 2013 - 12:09 AM, said:

I hardly ever buy in advance, and I never pay top price. I find that a mixture of spontaneity and Google means that on any given day, there are great seats to be had at less than the prices they tell you at the box office. However I do favour day seats anyway.

This is me too; it is very rare for me to book more than a couple of months in advance & that has to be for a really good deal.

I really am not organised enough to book over a year away; I always worry that I will commit & then something will happen to mean I can't go. Or lose the tickets!

High profile comedy & music gigs have become ridiculous though; you have to be so organised & persistent and I do think a lot of them are way too early.

[Michael]

mallardo, on 27 February 2013 - 07:45 AM, said:

I'm still trying imagine 43 sets of tickets in one pile.

http://img839.images...6102/memegc.jpg