While Ticketmaster’s Verified Fan® program earned mixed reviews for its ability to curb ticket scalping for last Wednesday’s (Aug. 30) sale of the “Springsteen on Broadway” 39-date run at the Walter Kerr Theatre this fall, Bruce Springsteen fans rejoiced in the news that the Boss has extended it well into 2018.
At around 3 p.m. on Aug. 30, amidst excitement and frustration for hundreds of thousands of would-be ticket buyers, Ticketmaster and Springsteen announced that the initial dates had sold-out and that a new batch of shows–39 more, bringing the total (for now) to 78–would go on sale. That takes place tomorrow (Thursday, Sept. 7).
Fans began receiving emails on Wednesday night (Sept. 6) indicating whether they had received their “golden ticket” (i.e., a code) or had been relegated to standby.
Once the new dates were announced, the seller of this pair soon lowered the asking price to “just” $5038 each. By Sept. 6, they were no longer listed
Shortly after tickets went on sale last week, ticket buyers became ticket sellers. Seats began showing up on various secondary ticket sites, with some “fans” marking up tickets in Orchestra Row A that were purchased for $850 to the previously unheard-of price of $10,025. Per ticket. Social media platforms “blew up” with references to various Springsteen songs like “Hungry Heart” and “Held Up Without a Gun.”
Some misguided fans expressed anger at Springsteen for price gouging, while failing to recognize that, if someone actually paid those princely sums, Springsteen wouldn’t be the recipient of the largesse.
Still, loyal Springsteen fans expressed frustration with the lack of inexpensively priced tickets. For every fan able to buy a pair of seats in Row A of the balcony, there were presumably thousands more that couldn’t get the lower-priced seats and chose not to pay for those at the loftier price points. That didn’t prevent the initial dates from selling out quickly. Total attendance for those 39 shows adds up to 37,400, or the equivalent of just two dates at Madison Square Garden that Springsteen routinely plays with the E Street Band.
Ticketmaster stated that its Verified Fan® program is a “unique fan-first technology intended to level the playing field to combat bots and get real tickets into the hands of fans who intend to go to the event.” And while the system limited buyers to just two tickets, it didn’t prevent purchasers from gaming the system and pricing them as they saw fit.
Caveat emptor.
Ticketmaster indicates that if you’ve previously registered for its Verified Fan® program, “you’ll be automatically carried over for the new run.” For those that didn’t, a new registration phase took place but closed Sept. 3. Complete details are here.
“Springsteen on Broadway,” a solo show–“just me, the guitar, the piano and the words and music”–will play at the 960-seat Walter Kerr Theatre (219 West 48 St.) in New York City. Performances begin Tuesday, Oct. 3, with an official opening on Thursday, Oct. 12.
Springsteen on Broadway Performances
October 3-7, 10-11, 13-14, 17-21, 24-28, 31
November 1-4, 7-11, 14-18, 21-22, 24-26
December 5-9, 12-16, 19-23, 26-30
January 9-13, 16-20, 23-24, 26-27, 30-31
February 1-3
2 Comments so far
Jump into a conversationquick check of the first night on Stubhub shows 66 tickets second night 41. Let’s call it 50 out of 975 seats. So 5% of tickets ended up in secondary market.
A quick look at Hamilton on 10/3/17 shows 486 seats out of 1,329 on Stubhub or 37%.
Might also be interesting to compare the average prices. The Springsteen $ amounts blow those Hamilton #s away.