A leading West End theatre ticket expert has shared some of his secrets on how to bag a bargain – or at least not pay massively over the odds.
Steve Rich, founder of Theatremonkey.com, which identifies cheap deals, offered his advice after a Guardian Money report last Saturday highlighted how some London shows, including The Book of Mormon, charge £200-plus for their best seats. It found many venues are using airline-style “dynamic pricing”, where the cost of a ticket changes according to demand.
Two leading exponents of dynamic pricing are the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and Delfont Mackintosh, which between them control a sizeable chunk of the West End.
Rich is not a fan of this system but says in some cases it is “actually bringing cheaper good seats to people at the last minute”. He cites the musical Bend It Like Beckham, currently previewing at the Phoenix Theatre, with premium seats at £75. “They have been dribbling out tickets at £15 in the stalls for some performances,” he says. Money checked on the ATG website this week and, sure enough, there were several dates with £15 seats, some just rows away from £75 tickets.
Rich says it’s worth checking the official ticket sites around 24 hours before a performance, and then from around 10am-10.30am on the day. “Quite often you will see seats start to fall in price.” Another tip is to “book early for anything with a star name in it, as prices will almost certainly go up”. This has been the case with American Buffalo, starring Damian Lewis.
Then there’s the “upper circle trick” where you buy the cheapest ticket in the upper circle or balcony. “On a quiet night the theatre will close them, and you will be promoted to the costlier seats downstairs.”
