[NEOPAL]An open letter re: Playhouse Square's ticket policy for "Wicked"

Fri Apr 21 06:37:07 PDT 2006

<html><div style='background-color:'><DIV class=RTE>A few weeks ago, there was a discussion here regarding “is theatre as we know it dying?", and what theatres can do to keep audiences keep coming back.  In light of that, I’d like to offer the following story.  It’s long, so if you don’t want to read it, let me sum it up for you…if you want to keep theatre alive and well, don’t alienate your patrons. </DIV>
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<DIV class=RTE>I make it a point to pay for the best seats if I really want to see a show.  But I’m only willing to pay for <EM>good</EM> seats, and as anyone knows who’s been to the State Theatre, there are some appallingly bad seats that sell for a hefty price.  Too far out to the sides, and you can miss a great deal of action due to poor site lines.  Too far to the back or too high up, and you see no expressions, no subtlety, no detail, and often times the sound quality is sorely lacking.  I simply will not spend money for seats if I know they aren’t worth the price.  And, while I will pay top dollar for one or two shows a year,  I can not pay the going rate in either ticket prices or donations to get a shot at good seats as a subscriber.  I used to be a subscriber, but I could only get the really good seats by buying tickets a la carte.  I dropped my subscription for exactly that reason. </DIV>
<P>So I’ve been waiting…and waiting…and waiting for the public sale for “Wicked.”  And I’ve been more than a little annoyed about the multiple “subscribers-only” sales. (Funny, though, how some tickets were available on-line from a ticket broker for ridiculously inflated prices – two to three times the regular rate -  as much as three months ago.  Sounds like scalping to me, and authorized or not, I don’t do business with scalpers.)   </P>
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<P>Yesterday, I happened to mention to a co-worker that I was taking next Friday morning off so I could go to the box office when the public sale started.  She is a subscriber and was kind enough to offer to buy tickets for me so that I could, just maybe, get a chance at good seats.  We looked on-line and could find no “subscriber’s only” section, so she called the box office.  I listened in to the call. </P>
<P>Basically, she was told, “tell your friend to forget it, there are no good seats left.  Well, there may be a few, but they’ll be gone by the time the public sale hits, so she shouldn’t waste her time coming down here if that’s all she wants.”  She was also told that we couldn’t come to the box office or order by phone or internet, subscriber or not.  The order had to be in writing  - which sounded to me like we would have no way to give a yay or nay to the seating choices at the time of purchase -  and it had to be in her name, which I expected, but that “it doesn’t matter who’s credit card you use.”  Hmmmm, guess my money’s still good, even though my name and status as a non-subscriber isn’t! </P>
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<P>And now we’re hearing that the only way to get guaranteed seats to next year’s tour of “Spamalot” is to be a subscriber.   </P>
<P>I find this policy to be both elitist and insulting.  I fully understand the need to offer perks to encourage subscription and that “first dibs” on performances is one of those perks.  I understand that, and I <U>expect</U> that.  But I think Playhouse Square has taken it WAY too far with <EM>multiple private sales to the point of exclusion</EM>, and with their announcement regarding “Spamalot,” it sounds like this is going to be an on-going practice.  End result - they are effectively preventing a large portion of their patron base from having any reasonable chance at getting decent seats.  If they think this is going to encourage someone like me to want to be a subscriber...well, think again.</P>
<P>I’ve probably spent a few thousand dollars at Playhouse Square since living in this area, but with this practice, I can now do no more than hope that house seats, reserved blocks, or unadvertised performances are actually available and will be released as a “last minute offer, new show added” marketing ploy. </P>
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<DIV></DIV>I’m sure that “Wicked” and other big shows like it will sell out, so my feelings probably don’t matter one bit to the management at Playhouse Square.  And I’m sure some of you will say, “that’s life, money talks, and if you ain’t got it, you don’t get to play.”  No kidding.  But here’s a thought – not <EM>every</EM> show will be a guaranteed sell out, so you might not want to p*ss off <U>any</U> part of your customer base by implying that they aren’t worth selling to if they don’t buy for every single show.  If you want to keep theatre alive and vibrant for an entire community, then make it AVAILABLE to the entire community.
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<P>T.M. Dean</P>
<P>Lakewood, Ohio</P>
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