Tuesday, November 02, 2021
HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD Will Bring Back its 'Friday Forty' Tickets
www.broadwayworld.com: The Broadway production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has announced the return of the popular "Friday Forty," where every Friday at 1:00 PM ET the show will release a limited number of $40 tickets for every performance the following week. Entries begin on Monday, November 1st at 12:01 PM ET with the drawing taking place on Friday, November 5th for the next week of performances.
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4 comments:
I think initiatives like this and the hamilton lotteries are fascinating, especially on such high profile shows like those that grace the stages of the great white way. The reason I think so is the inherent classism of broadway and these strange efforts from huge shows to be more “accessible” to lower income people who want to watch theater. It rings strange to me, as the institution of broadway is built to exclude poor people but now some of these shows have nights where they allow the regular people into their fancy theater. Now, shows that do have programs like this are probably better than shows that do not have fluctuating ticket prices, but I still believe all broadway shows should be working to lower their tickets across the board or at least create a much larger range of prices for different locations in the theater (I.E. orchestra, Mezzanine, or even private boxes.)
This is certainly a step in the right direction in regards to theatre accessibility. $40 compared to tickets that are usually at least $100 is nice to see on Broadway. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the problem is fixed but it is at least bringing awareness. Theatre, specifically on Broadway, is inaccessible. And sometimes it can feel a little alienating to not be able to afford it. Many of my peers have seen multiple shows on Broadway and I could never even fathom seeing a show in New York. I would need to fly to New York (and back), hopefully with a friend for safety, pay for tickets, a hotel, transportation in New York, food, etc. It just isn’t a feasible thing for me or my family. Seeing Broadway put active effort into this concept of theatre accessibility is huge for low-income families. I don’t think it’s fair to have this only be an occasional event though. I can’t imagine having had this opportunity when I was little and now I might actually be able to afford it. I hope moving forward more shows consider this idea.
I think that it's really important that shows do this as much as possible. I think that Broadway in general is a very white group of people across the board from actors to production to audiences and that's mainly because it's not very accessible to people who are underprivileged because of the high monetary factor. To be cast or work on a Broadway show you have to live in or near NYC which is not easy and then to attend a Broadway performance, you have to be able to afford the $100+ dollar ticket. It's a very cis, white culture which I'm seeing more and more break down as our industry progresses and I think that Harry Potter is following the right trend in the fact that they are having more accessible ticket prices. I hope that more and more Broadway houses are able to do this as they come back from being shut down as people everywhere are dying to see in person performances but still have to pay their own bills.
I was so worried that after COVID that Broadway shows would stop doing things like Cursed Child’s Friday Forty or other forms of Broadway lottery, as in many cases these discounted tickets are the only way that young struggling theatre artists are able to see the shows in their industry. It's heartwarming to know that even though Broadway has struggled for nearly two years to get back on its feet and be allowed to open its doors to the public again that they are still able and open to offering forms of lottery tickets. I think I see Broadway almost like a corporation, so to hear that they are still willing to lose a certain percentage of money by offering tickets to people who can’t afford full price is really exciting and makes me feel optimistic about the future of theatre. I hope that in the near future more shows are able to open their lotteries again.
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