Tag: Shows

Theatre tickets are, quite simply, difficult to come by. Gone are the days when a member of the audience went to the box office in person and bought a ticket, used a ticket agency or even called the theatre to make a reservation, then sent a cheque or postal order by mail.

Today, online booking has become a fast and effective means of buying tickets for productions all over the world, but even this method of securing tickets to a show is not guaranteed, with tickets reaching extortionate prices, or being snapped up by those with theatre memberships before the tickets have chance to reach the general public.

Even ticket touts and supposed half-price ticket booths which flood the West End Theatreland of London often have little to no availability of tickets for big hits and equally popular shows, with many selling out weeks in advance. Book of Mormon, for example, is already booking until January 2014 and must be booked months before the date the audience wishes to see the show.

It has also become evident that unofficial ticket vendors have been able to offer tickets for many times their original cost, such as like offering a pair of tickets outside the Gielgud, where Helen Mirren is starring in The Audience, for £500 a pair. However, it may be that the demand outweighs the ethics, with only those able to afford the tickets able to see the shows too. Many audience members are unable to afford tickets of prices such as these, and therefore will be unable to see the production.

However supply is limited to the number of seats a theatre has to sell and for hot new shows, more tickets cannot be printed, just released for sale further ahead. Ticket buying has become complex, full of choices and requires skill in navigating around the many apparent discounts, booking fees and obstacles even before the journey to the theatre, with many desperate audience members prepared to pay almost any price.

If you are busy this spring planning your summer theatre outings to London’s West End then make Singin’ in the Rain one show near the top of your list.

It has been announced that the West End show, on par with its 1952 MGM version of the musical, is set to close in August 2013. This will be ahead of a national tour of an all-singing, all-dancing troupe – complete with umbrellas – around the country in 2014, closing with a run in Chichester where the show originally played in July 2011. The UK-wide tour is understood to start in November 2013, with a proposed opening in Manchester after spending just eighteen months at the Palace Theatre in London.

2012/13 has already seen many productions join and leave the West End in quick succession, making theatre turnarounds very quick, with only just enough time to settle the tan tights and tap shoes before having to move on again. However, touring productions give theatre fanatics in other parts of the country, without the chance to journey to London to see huge shows such as Singin’ in the Rain, the opportunity to feast their eyes on an array of talent. Touring companies also provide many performing jobs for those who may struggle to secure roles in London, but who have no trouble taking to the road, performing whilst travelling.

The musical is directed by Jonathan Church, artistic director at Chichester Festival Theatre, and has choreography by Andrew Wright, who recently ‘Best Choreographer’ at the Whatsonstage Awards. Adam Cooper is currently playing Don Lockwood in the show, a role he has played since the production opened in Chichester, with Jennifer Ellison recently joining the cast as Lina Lamont.