I've thought about joiningTDF...what has been your experience? Good? Bad? Indifferent? Have you been pleased (not pleased) about the choices of shows and where the seats are located? Thoughts, tips and comments are greatly appreciated. I saw 21 shows last year so I think I would save money.
I just joined recently. Got 4 tickets through them for 4 different shows and have been pleased with the location of them. They have been full view orchestra tickets 6th row and closer(Daddy Long Legs was front row).
What I don't care for is having to wait 30 minutes to an hour before curtain to pick up the tickets. Allegiance was the only show I could pick up my evening ticket hours before curtain.
TDF is definitely a great deal for those who qualify.
The first year I joined, I went crazy and saw a lot of shows. I was like a kid in a candy shop. Then I realized that even though TDF prices are reasonable, I still needed to watch my Visa bill. So I've slowed down quite a bit and have gotten more choosy about what I see.
Plus, the prices have edged up a bit over the past couple of years. Broadway musical are usually $47 on TDF, Broadway plays $41. Off Broadway musicals and plays range from $18 to $32, depending on the venue. And as you know, you don't know where you're sitting until you show up at the theater. I find my seats are usually in the rear orchestra and the mezzanine.
And, of course, while TDF has a good selection at any given time, it doesn't have everything. But if you keep an open mind, you certainly can see a wide spectrum of NY theater for very good prices.
I particularly like how TDF usually gets Broadway shows in early previews, so if you act fast, you can see a show that goes on to be a hot ticket.
The cost to join is certainly low, so why not sign up and see how you like it?
Been a TDF member since I was in high school, close to 20 years. For the most part, I love it. Even with gradual increase in prices over the years, you still end up paying significantly less than you would at TKTS or using a direct mail discount. Aside from the blockbusters, most shows end up on there. If you live in the city and have a flexible schedule, you can take advantage of the shows that drop a performance on TDF a day or two in advance. I've only had maybe one or two bad experiences, but in one instance (where I ended up with a severely partial view seat) TDF actually refunded the cost of my ticket, no questions asked, when I wrote them to complain.
What I don't care for is having to wait 30 minutes to an hour before curtain to pick up the tickets. Allegiance was the only show I could pick up my evening ticket hours before curtain.
I was told by a friend of mine (who works in a box office) that the reason for this is because TDF seats often aren't assigned until 2 hours prior to a performance at the earliest.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
I joined TDF a few months ago and have seen three Broadway shows. Two times I was in the mezzanine (one of the listing explicitly said that the seating would be in the mezzanine) and once I was in the orchestra - I paid $41 for the seat before fees and it was a $160 face value seat. That one show paid for the membership threefold. I mostly use TDF when a show doesn't offer student rush.
Even if you only use it a handful of times, it pays for itself.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
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