Theatre Watching On A Budget - Part Two

Continued from June 25th post...

6.Buy A Subscription: Think of buying a subscription as buying in bulk. For instance if you are partial to a particular cereal brand,you wouldn't hesitate to go to Costco and buying six boxes at once. The same logic applies to series subscriptions. If you want to see 90% of what a theatre company is featuring in a season, then it is cheaper to subscribe. In addition to average savings of 25% per ticket, subscription holders usually enjoy various extras such as premium seating, free or discounted parking and access to special events. Don't like one or two tickets in the series? Sell them on craigslist or Ebay.

7. Package It: If going to a show is part of a special occasion celebration, going to dinner is probably inevitable. Take advantage of dinner packages available through the theatre's restaurant partners and nearby establishments. The packages usually offer discounts on the price of the meal which can then offset the price of the ticket. Dinner for two at Lawry's the Prime Rib is usually $100 per couple without drinks, but the inclusive three-course Robert Falls Dinner for Two special costs only $89.

8. Watch Preview Performances: Theatre companies often have "preview" performances that are held before opening night which are, in essence, open dress rehearsals. Unlike dress rehearsals,which are usually invitation only to friends and family of actors and producers and sometimes the media, previews are open to the public. Although they are considered performances because admission is usually charged, these performances can be paused, repeated and edited to resolve last minute issues in the show. Because of this, theaters usually charge less for admission. Tickets to the Bailiwick Repertory Theatre's "Lesbians Who Kill" for the opening night performance is $25, while the preview shows cost only $15.

9. Take Advantage of Your Status: Like most institutions theatres usually offer student, senior and, sometimes, military discounts. Students usually get the best deals: Steppenwolf offers student rush tickets for $15 dollars and the Goodman offers "radically discounted tickets - just for students" for only $10.

10. Experience All Types of Theatre Chicago Offers: Don't limit yourself to one kind of show or venue. Chicago has more shows than what Broadway In Chicago offers, and more venues than the old standards, Goodman, Steppenwolf, and Second City. There are many performances out there that are affordable and good. Here is a sampling of shows for under $15:
Messing With a Friend at the Annoyance Theatre - $5
Bloody Bess: A Tale of Piracy and Revenge at Storefront Theater - Goldstar tickets - $10
Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind at the Neo-Futurarium - $8-$13
The Hunchback of Notre Dame at Bailiwick Rep - Goldstar ticket - $12.50

Theatre Watching On A Budget - Part One

Yes, going to see plays is a luxury. Today's increasing grocery and gas prices make it nearly impossible to have anything left over to buy theatre tickets, especially when some shows cost more than $100 per seat. Fortunately, even in these fiscally difficult times, there are ways to enjoy live performances for less money. Here are five of ten frugal tips to see Chicago shows for less:

1. Buy from discount ticket websites and organizations: Although it can be hard to find discounts to the "must-see" shows, deeply discounted and half-price tickets are available for purchase from several organizations. Some tickets are discounted so much that they only cost as much as a movie admission. I have actually found free tickets on occasion. The most popular outfits are HotTix and Goldstar.
   


2. Be Spontaneous: Planning is an inherent aspect of human life, but spontaneity also has some perks. Most theatres (Goodman and Steppenwolf, among others) offer half-price or cheaper tickets the day of the performance. These discounted tickets, often referred to as rush tickets, are available as early as 10:00 a.m. the day of the show until the hour before the curtain rises. So if you have nothing on your agenda, go call the theatre box office and try your luck on some cheap seats.
   


3. Say Yay to Weeknights and Matinees (and Nay to Friday and Weekend Evening Showtimes): Recognizing that people are usually too busy during the workweek to go to a play, ticket prices are often cheaper during "off-peak times." Tickets are usually cheapest during weekday matinees and weeknights, they increase in price for weekend matinees, and are usually most expensive on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.
   


4. Sit in The Balcony: Balcony seats are always cheaper than floor seats. Balcony tickets to "Wicked," for example, cost $34.50 - US $64.50 while orchestra seats range from $87.50 - US $147.50. Of course the view is better from higher priced seats, but seeing a show you've been dying to see from the balcony is perhaps better than not being able to see it at all.
   


5. Go with A Group: The more the merrier and almost always cheaper. It's a rare production that doesn't want a full house, so most theatres offer discounts for groups (usually ten or more). As an added bonus, most theatres offer groups opportunities to go backstage, meet actors and directors, and participate in post-show events. Make sure to check each theatre's group sales section or call the box office to see what advantages they offer in addition to your group's admission to the show.
   

Goodbye, George

"I think it's the duty of the comedian to find out where the line is drawn and cross it deliberately." -George Carlin

The pony-tailed and irreverent George Carlin died Sunday night in California of heart failure, and the world is now less funny. The "counterculture comedian" graced many Chicagoland stages throughout the years, including the Chicago Theatre where he was scheduled to appear on October 11th. He was 71 years old.

With a career in comedy lasting more than 50 years, Carlin was a film actor ("Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure"), author (“When Will Jesus Bring the Pork Chops?") and was even the narrator for the beloved children series, "Thomas the Tank Engine." He loved stand-up comedy above all, however, and was still performing an average of 90 concerts per year. Carlin amassed three Emmy nominations, six Cable ACE awards and thirteen HBO specials for his stand-up performances. Before his death, Carlin learned that he was going to be the recipient of the Kennedy Center's The Eleventh Annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor which will now be given posthumously.

His “Filthy Words" routine is perhaps his best known work.

The Daily Herald's Ted Cox writes about Carlin and his legacy in his article, "Carlin pushing boundaries until the end." His piece also includes anecdotes of Carlin by Chicagoland theatre owners and comedians.

What the Tony Wins Mean to Chicago

Eight days - more than a week - after the 62nd Tony Awards telecast on Sunday, June 15th, theatre blogs and theatre sections of news sites are still abuzz of Chicago's big wins.

As I watched "August: Osage County" and Chicago's Shakespeare Theatre win the awards, I knew that the wins will mean something big and something good for Chicago and its theatre scene. I just didn't know exactly what, and how to put it into words.

Good thing there are other people who can. My Inbox last week was filled with articles about how the Tony wins will impact Chicago and beyond. These two were among the best:

Chicago Tribune Theatre Critic, Chris Jones, writes about how the wins will change not only Chicago's theatre scene but the entire city and the nation. He sets us straight about what realistic changes the Tonys might bring and what are simply pipe dreams, "So what does it all mean? Does this win Chicago theater permanent fame and fortune? A Broadway pipeline? A chance to retire the Second City moniker for good? More theaters? More jobs? More audiences? More media coverage? More funding? Does it maybe even help with the Olympics?"

Pat Craig, of the Contra Costa Times, writes about how last week's Tonys were important to lesser known theatre communities, "What makes this so appealing is that it continues to build the body of evidence that New York is no longer the center of the American theatrical universe. While the motto "If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere" continues to apply to theater and New York, there is no rule anymore about having to start out there."


There is no doubt that the awards are big news to Chicago, which has always seemed to play third fiddle to New York and Los Angeles in the theatre scene. Watching the telecast last Sunday was sincerely an exhilirating moment of my life as someone who loves theatre and this city. "Finally," I said proudly. The victory that night was not only for the Steppenwolf Theatre and the Shakespeare Theatre and Tracy Letts and Rondi Reed and Anna Shapiro. They were for all of us Chicagoans.

Get Your Kicks...at Chicago's Newest Theatre Company

The Route 66 Theatre Company was introduced today as the newest member of Chicago's theatre community. Why Route 66, you ask? Because its mission is to,"cultivate dynamic, relevant, and provocative stories that bridge the 2,448 miles of cultural divide" by producing live theatre in Chicago and Los Angeles.

Its first production will be the Chicago premiere of John Kolvenbach's "On An Average Day," co-produced by VS. Theatre Company of Los Angeles, previewing on July 30th and opening on August 2. The LA Times described the play as: "richly humanistic play about two brothers, one schizophrenic, one "normal," but both tortured by the after effects of their emotionally isolated childhoods."

The play premiered in London in 2002 and starred Woody Harrelson and Kyle MaLachlan. The Chicago production will star Jeff-Award winning Chicago actor, Stef Tovar, and Los Angeles actor Johnny Clark. Tovar is also the artistic director of the Route 66 Theatre Company.

For a review of the Los Angeles production of "On An Average Day," click here.