Broadway “Regulars” UPDATE

[jlt19]

Jalapeñomel
What would you think/do about this situation?

New show, Swept Away, starts tomorrow. I bought tickets during its presale in June for a show in early November. 1st row, center mezzanine at $244 each.

Now it’s advertising Preview rates and there are 3rd row center (floor) for $140 each. I’m highly annoyed. I don’t want a refund, but I would like to “exchange” seats for the night.

I reached out to the shows FB page and they told me to contact the ticket company. Something similar has happened with our local Theatre (official Broadway tour place) and they’ve been great in helping out. But the ticket company isn’t the theatre box office or specifically associated with the show. They sell for all Broadway shows so what do they really care?

My question is, do you think I have a shot? They’ve also now just posted about the lottery, but I have no clue what’s entailed there. I’m half tempted to just buy the better seats. But I kind of also would rather use that same money and see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club because Ive loved Adam Lambert since American Idol.

I know my mind and I’ll be anxious about this nonstop, until I get it resolved.


UPDATE:
Thanks to you all, I reached out to Telecharge yesterday to inquire about my options. They called me within 5 minutes of sending an email and offered a full return/refund to then buy whatever seats I wanted. I am AMAZED at the customer service.

So now to choose which extra 1-2 shows to see! We’ll probably try the lottery or same day tickets I guess and see where it gets us.

[wildrice]

Don’t buy new seats! That would be silly when it sounds like you already have good seats. Are you sure these new seats actually have a better view? They may be closer but sometimes sitting further back allows a broader view of the whole stage. I don’t think being super close is a benefit in all cases.

[litebright]

I'd keep my seats and see another show! Like pp said, being in the front doesn't necessarily mean a better view -- or better sound quality. I remember back in my college days, the cheapest seats for the orchestra (the ones they sold to university students for like $15 each!) were actually in the very front row, because the sound quality is typically designed to be much better towards the middle/back of a venue. Box seats are located where they are for a reason, and that's right at the level that you'll be at--with an unobstructed view!

I did a quick image-search for the set and it looks like it has some elements that are very vertical. You may well end up being able to see/absorb more of the action from the mezzanine than the first few rows.

And IMO, if an answer involves "and see another show," that is usually the right one.

[jinkies]

I love Adam Lambert so would definitely choose to see a second show.

I also really like front row balcony seats for shows, so would be happy to stick with the original seats.

[Jalapeñomel]

Oct 28, 2024 19:30:56 GMT -5 jlt19 said:

Jalapeñomel
What would you think/do about this situation?

New show, Swept Away, starts tomorrow. I bought tickets during its presale in June for a show in early November. 1st row, center mezzanine at $244 each.

Now it’s advertising Preview rates and there are 3rd row center (floor) for $140 each. I’m highly annoyed. I don’t want a refund, but I would like to “exchange” seats for the night.

I reached out to the shows FB page and they told me to contact the ticket company. Something similar has happened with our local Theatre (official Broadway tour place) and they’ve been great in helping out. But the ticket company isn’t the theatre box office or specifically associated with the show. They sell for all Broadway shows so what do they really care?

My question is, do you think I have a shot? They’ve also now just posted about the lottery, but I have no clue what’s entailed there. I’m half tempted to just buy the better seats. But I kind of also would rather use that same money and see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club because Ive loved Adam Lambert since American Idol.

I know my mind and I’ll be anxious about this nonstop, until I get it resolved.

Mezzanine is way better than orchestra, IMO! 

don't buy the other seats! 

[purplepenguin7]

How did you buy the tickets? If you bought directly from the theatre/shows website the box office should be pretty helpful. They maybe even refund you the difference. If you call the box office directly you should be able to get a straightforward answer.

[mofongo]

How much are the tickets you purchased selling for now?

[litasail]

Oct 29, 2024 9:02:20 GMT -5 Jalapeñomel said:

Oct 28, 2024 19:30:56 GMT -5 jlt19 said:

Jalapeñomel
What would you think/do about this situation?

New show, Swept Away, starts tomorrow. I bought tickets during its presale in June for a show in early November. 1st row, center mezzanine at $244 each.

Now it’s advertising Preview rates and there are 3rd row center (floor) for $140 each. I’m highly annoyed. I don’t want a refund, but I would like to “exchange” seats for the night.

I reached out to the shows FB page and they told me to contact the ticket company. Something similar has happened with our local Theatre (official Broadway tour place) and they’ve been great in helping out. But the ticket company isn’t the theatre box office or specifically associated with the show. They sell for all Broadway shows so what do they really care?

My question is, do you think I have a shot? They’ve also now just posted about the lottery, but I have no clue what’s entailed there. I’m half tempted to just buy the better seats. But I kind of also would rather use that same money and see Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club because Ive loved Adam Lambert since American Idol.

I know my mind and I’ll be anxious about this nonstop, until I get it resolved.

Mezzanine is way better than orchestra, IMO! 

don't buy the other seats! 

Agree

[mrsslocombe]

+1 that 1st row mezzanine is way better than 3rd row orchestra. I'd be annoyed about the price difference, I don't think they should be $100 more expensive, but your view is going to be so much better. Anything closer than row 10 in orchestra is too close IMO.

[livinitup]

I will bend myself into pretzels trying to work out the best-seat-best value-best-view for ticket buying (this applies to sporting events, too) so, I have a strict “love the tickets you get” policy.

This was put to the test when I took my (then) pre-teen to a reboot of Cats on broadway and we were in the last row in the orchestra. We were next to the production board. Ugh. Well, in the part when they dance off the stage and interact with the audience, the White Cat danced all the way down the aisle and straight to my daughter. And gave her a high five (paw 5).

Best seats ever.

[twilightmv]

I don’t price shop seats once I have my tickets. Deals pop up all the time, and there’s the TKTS booth with cheaper tickets, etc. The only time I ever did anything after buying seats was when I friggin bought them for the wrong day. Miraculously, even though I bought them on Ticketmaster and was shit out of luck there, Telecharge was able to get my tickets canceled and repurchased there. I don’t know how they did it. Magic, I think.
So I would say it’s technically possibly but unlikely so I would pick a second show!

ETA: I just read back my texts from that time to remind myself of details. Looks like I contacted the box office and they got my tickets refunded and then I was able to rebook through a Broadway direct link they sent, which was telecharge.

[jlt19]

Oct 29, 2024 13:42:05 GMT -5 twilightmv said:

I don’t price shop seats once I have my tickets. Deals pop up all the time, and there’s the TKTS booth with cheaper tickets, etc. The only time I ever did anything after buying seats was when I friggin bought them for the wrong day. Miraculously, even though I bought them on Ticketmaster and was shit out of luck there, Telecharge was able to get my tickets canceled and repurchased there. I don’t know how they did it. Magic, I think.
So I would say it’s technically possibly but unlikely so I would pick a second show!

ETA: I just read back my texts from that time to remind myself of details. Looks like I contacted the box office and they got my tickets refunded and then I was able to rebook through a Broadway direct link they sent, which was telecharge.

Interesting. The tickets were purchased via Telecharge, so maybe they will do something.

I wouldn’t have looked for any deals, but I follow Swept Away on FB and the deal is in my face constantly. Like it’s mocking me!

I bought presale because I didn’t want to lose out on this particular weekend and had no idea how well it would sell.

While my row of tickets is mostly sold out, you can tell my same seats would be $140 (vs $244) if they were available.

I may reach out to see about getting a refund, because hey; why not? But if they say no, I’ll stick with the mezzanine and plan on another show or two.

Thanks for all the opinions, it’s made me feel MUCH better!

purplepenguin7 mofongo