ROH seat prices

[Mary]

But several posts have expressed admiration for the orchestra during the Mayerllng run, my own included.

 

As regards costumes and sets, doing a backstage tour made me realise what amazing care goes into them. There are some productions that seem disappointing- yes, sure. But not the 3 act ballets, for example- they are wonderful.

 

I am also very aware of the way the organisation looks after the dancers, and nurtures such a wealth of talent- look at the RB- and how many of those dancers go off to other places, and spread the good work around. The place takes care of injured dancers, keeps most of them in fabulous condition, it  has world class facilities backstage, (try looking round the back of the Coli by comparison, as was pointed out in a recent post, or for that matter any West End theatre, and I have looked because I have family working in wardrobe round the West End- conditions for the artists and technicians alike  are often pretty deplorable.)

 

Then we have a beautiful building, open most days, where you can wander round,  sit and read a book, have a coffee etc -  go to the loo!- right in the heart of central London.

 

No,  the more I think it over, I just can't agree that one gets a poor experience at ROH: taking it all in all I feel I get a really excellent experience- although, of course, things are not perfect.

 

I have moaned a fair bit in my time, but having recently lost a great amount of cultural riches in my local area, I am starting to think about how 'you don't know what you've got till it's gone'......

 

I think we should support our cultural centres, make suggestions for how they can carry on without raising prices any more, certainly - but stick up for them, because frankly they are under threat.

 

 

 

 

[Blossom]

Interesting article by Richard Morrison in The Times on Friday which makes a very valuable point:-

We need more philanthropic contributions to maintain our great arts organisations

We shouldn’t sneer at the backgrounds of these philanthropists or view them with suspicion actually lucky to have people who value the arts/ want to give back/make contributions for the greater good

Existing philanthropists are aging or have passed away and we need to find new blood to fill the gap to maintain cultural institutions for the future.

 

I wonder  how much the particular issue we are discussing could be impacted by increased philanthropic engagement.

 

 

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/we-can-only-save-the-arts-if-we-stop-sneering-at-big-business-5lvf7gxx9

[postie]

I was virtually sitting in the pit, but on 12 Sept 2019, I sat in Stalls Circle row B for £28. Magic Flute.

 

I'd need to be milking one of those 'equity release' magic money trees now.

[Blossom]

I received a reply from Alex Beard today which largely responded to my concerns and demonstrates that they are strategising beyond raising box office prices which is good to know. It doesn’t solve the short term problem.  I do wonder how many of the 40% of tickets under £50 are to under 30s on a fixed price Young ROH ticket and how well they are managing to retain these visitors, especially once they exit the scheme.
 

 

Dear [Blossom],
    
Thank you so much for writing and for sharing your views and insights. 

There are indeed significant challenges facing us, alongside many other theatres and arts organisations, caused by the present cost-of-living crisis. General inflation is exacerbated by soaring energy costs (a threefold increase from £1.5m per annum to more than £6m in this year alone), the need to support lowest paid members of staff by continuing to pay at least the London Living Wage (a just under 10% increase this year), and now a 19% real-terms reduction to the public subsidy we receive from Arts Council England. 

Audience attendance and box office income is vital to balancing our budgets and sustaining the remarkable community of artists and craftspeople here, particularly in the context of reduced tourism numbers and a gradual audience return to the West End post-pandemic. Although some prices have had to increase, we have been able to sell more than 80,000 tickets to members of the Young ROH scheme since August last year, and more broadly maintained almost 40% of our tickets at £50 or less. We will keep prices under close review to ensure that we achieve as near full houses as possible while increasing our box office income to offset growing costs. 

But box office income alone will not be enough, given the scale of the financial challenge. As you suggest we must also look to other sources of revenue to help manage cost inflation, coupled with the prospect of a recession that might extend far into next year. We are exploring opportunities to extend commercial/corporate sponsorships, alongside a concerted fundraising effort and philanthropic activity to extend non-box office revenue. This will be joined by a drive to engage and develop the audience of the future through the work of our dedicated Learning & Participation team to bring ballet and opera to communities and classrooms around the country. Our aim is to balance our budgets while keeping the arts forms open and accessible to as many people as possible. 

On your separate point about the the number of Royal Ballet productions, we did reduce the number of productions in the wake of the pandemic, partly to reduce our costs but also to ensure we could continue to deliver the highest quality performances as the organisation adapted to a restructured operational environment. We hope from next season onwards to achieve a small increase in the our number of productions, subject of course to affordability.

The road ahead is one of the most challenging we have ever faced, but with the ongoing support of our Friends, Patrons, as well as the continuing engagement of new audiences, we can ensure that ballet and opera here will not just survive, but thrive long into the future. 

Best wishes,
Alex Beard

 

 

[bridiem]

9 minutes ago, Blossom said:

I received a reply from Alex Beard today which largely responded to my concerns and demonstrates that they are strategising beyond raising box office prices which is good to know. It doesn’t solve the short term problem.  I do wonder how many of the 40% of tickets under £50 are to under 30s on a fixed price Young ROH ticket and how well they are managing to retain these visitors, especially once they exit the scheme.
 Although some prices have had to increase, we have been able to sell more than 80,000 tickets to members of the Young ROH scheme since August last year, and more broadly maintained almost 40% of our tickets at £50 or less. 

 

I find it frustrating when figures like this are used without any detail. e.g. does the 40% include Linbury tickets? And the tickets for contemporary triples are so much cheaper that that would sway total % figures considerably.

[jmhopton]

Sent another email to Alex and Kevin more in praise of the ROH. I'm not going to continue emailing, just didn't want them thinking I'm the sort of person who only emails when I want to complain when there are so many things I love about the ROH and especially the RB.

 

Dear Alex and Kevin

 

I just felt I had to write and say what a fabulous run of Mayerlings we've been privileged to see. I saw four casts Vadim, Matthew, Ryio and Marcellino and they (and their female companions)  were all really excellent. You wouldn't have thought Marci and Francesca were debuting the roles of Rudolf and Mary such was their total command of their roles. Francesca especially was totally mesmerising as Mary as I knew she would be but Marci gave such a detailed, nuanced performance as Rudolf as to be quite a revelation. I loved seeing Melissa Hamilton as Mary as she is a great dancer but doesn't always get cast a lot in leading roles so it was wonderful to see her in such a terrific acting role. She is so much more than a flexible body. Laura Morera is wonderful in anything she does; such a joy to see her as Mary again as I was privileged to see her with Bonelli in the last run (was it her debut? Can't think why). It's a role that was made for her and she certainly delivered then and this time both as Larisch and Mary. It would be my dream to see her partnering Vadim in the next run and for it to be filmed for the cinema. That would be a total dream come true. What can I say about Vadim's performance that I haven't already? It was just such a total revelation; his acting skills and the way he actually made you empathise with Rudolf. I was on the front row of the grand tier for both performances (something I've never been able to afford before) as I didn't want to miss a single second and it was worth it. Just sad if we're going to have to wait 3 years for him to perform it again. The Forum published a link to a Guardian survey of your best theatrical performance of the year and I (in common with several other Forum members) nominated Vadim for our best performance. I have heard back from one of the organisers asking if it would be OK to include my comment in the final roundup and of course I said yes. Not just to highlight Vadim's amazing performance but to publicise the RB which in these harsh economic times needs all the publicity it can get. However, I'm sure he emailed many more people than they can publish so whether it makes it or not I'll have to see.

 

I am just emailing as I didn't want you to think I'm always being negative about the ROH with my previous comments on prices and casting etc. I only comment because I care so much about the ROH and am anxious that increased costs may deter people from attending, especially in this harsh financial climate. For many people, theatre isn't a necessity and something they can easily cut back on, especially if it involves travel and a meal out as well as the performance itself. For me, attending the ROH is like coming home. It is a necessity not a luxury. I just worry as to how many performances I can afford as I love seeing different casts. I've been to London more often this year than I have the centre of my home town of Preston or indeed any other UK town or city and that is just because of the ROH and especially the RB. Am slightly disappointed with the rep for the rest of the season. After the excitement of Mayerling it will seem a bit tame to settle down to the 'ordinary' princes of Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella though of course I'm looking forward to the debuts, especially of Cinderella, absent for far too long.  I would have liked at least one of Coppelia, Fille or Don Q, especially Fille, one of my favourite ballets, and has been away from the stage for too long. Perhaps we could have Coppelia next Christmas again. It seemed successful in 2019 and would be wonderful to see it again, especially if it could be twinned with a great mixed bill.

 

I also want to say how much I and all opera and ballet enthusiasts appreciate all the access and outreach work you do. The cinema broadcasts, filmed rehearsals, streamed Insight events and other activities you promote all have to be organised and paid for and we are so grateful you do this. Just a pity they often tend to end up on paid for channels like Marquee TV and not on free to view TV, to further promote your great work to people who may otherwise never have thought opera and ballet could be for them. The new streaming initiative is another great step forward, though it would be good to see a greater range of offerings there. However, few (if any) opera houses in the world offer the range of 'extras' offered by the ROH. 

 

It's always lovely to hear from you but don't feel obliged to reply. I just wanted you to know how much the ROH is appreciated by ordinary enthusiasts.

 

It only remains for me to wish you and all the hard, dedicated workers at the ROH a very happy Christmas and a prosperous and successful New Year.

 

ps All I want for Christmas is the Ashton triple bill to be streamed, pleeeease.

 

Alex's reply yesterday. Very prompt as I only emailed over the weekend.

 

Dear Joan

 

What a wonderful email to receive on my arrival at work today.  Thank you so much for taking the time to write and for sharing your thoughts on the various performances and artists.   Your support, generosity and love of ROH and ballet means a huge amount to us all.

 

Wishing you a very happy Christmas and may you enjoy many more performances in 2023.

 

With best wishes

 

Alex

 

 

 

[Sim]

Alex is right, Joan. How lovely of you to write such a positive email. Let’s hope they take some of your programming suggestions on board!

[Dawnstar]

I've just been searching my emails to check which seat I'll be in for a forthcoming Nutcracker & came across my ticket for the one Nutcracker I managed to actually see last year. That was stalls circle B16 & it was £76 last year. The same seat, I gather, is £101 this year. I know prices have gone up this season with inflation etc. but that's a heck of a jump in price.

[Sophoife]

Pre-Covid my brother and I had a joint subscription to the Australian Ballet. Second-level pricing. Five shows a year. The price increased year on year.

 

For 2017 it was $636 each for second-rank seats. For 2018 the exact same seats cost us $812 each, which is $176 or (I think) a 27% increase.

 

2019 increased by a further 22%, so we went down a pricing level and that was $765 each. Our original level would have been over $900.

 

We worked out that this year, 2022, our original subscriptions would have cost us over $1,000 each. From $636 in 2017 to over $1,000 in 2022 for the same seats.

[Don Q Fan]

Living up north, for example, as you well know fans have the added costs of (now horrendous) train fares, and a hotel, if no matinee is available. For the same money, or indeed less, I can fly to Amsterdam or Berlin, to name but 2 cities, and see top class ballet in a great seat for a much lower ticket price.  Since Avanti trains prices are wickedly high for terrible service, and ROH now pretty much overpriced for the seats I like, I have either stayed local or gone abroad and generally become a lot more choosy as well since covid lockdowns taught me to do without. Hey ho. 

[jmhopton]

Yes indeed Don Q Fan. I am seriously thinking about cancelling the 2 Sleeping Beauties I have booked in Jan. The tickets were £70 each but the added cost of trains, accommodation and a couple of meals out means I won't get much change out of £400. Given I have 3 other SBs booked and several Cinderellas I feel I have to start economising. Instead I will go to my second performance of Ballet Theatre UK Beauty and the Beast at the Lowther Pavilion, Lytham (near Blackpool) on 17th Jan. A fabulous production, very professional, and a net outlay of £15.

[LinMM]

Yes I had a top price seat at Brighton Dome for Beauty and the Beast of £19-50 so good value for money!! 

[LinMM]

Would like to add would have paid at least twice as much to see BTUK so even if the top price had been £50 would have been prepared to pay between £35 and £50 to see them so perhaps they are not charging quite enough……. though probably better to be performing to much fuller houses and charging less. 

[alison]

There may be a better thread for this, but can anyone access the seating plans for the second run of Sleeping Beauty?  I'd like to see the prices for some of the less-good seats, and it's impossible for those in the first batch which have already been sold.  When I click on the "click for seating plan" option I can't access anything beyond the beginning of March.

[MJW]

1 hour ago, alison said:

There may be a better thread for this, but can anyone access the seating plans for the second run of Sleeping Beauty?  I'd like to see the prices for some of the less-good seats, and it's impossible for those in the first batch which have already been sold.  When I click on the "click for seating plan" option I can't access anything beyond the beginning of March.

 

Hope this helps...

seat prices.pdf

[Diandri]

In my email inbox this evening was a ROH marketing blast regarding a 25% discount for Sleeping Beauty for shows 17, 18 & 19th Jan so it looks like they've overpriced this run as there are lots of empty seats & the code appears to apply to any price bracket (but I haven't tried the really cheap seats).  Code is AURORA25.

 

 

[alison]

3 hours ago, MJW said:

 

Hope this helps...

seat prices.pdf 262.07 kB · 7 downloads

 

Thanks, MJW, yes, it does - although it doesn't have the Friday Rush seats on it, of course.

[Guest oncnp]

Speaking of seat maps, looking at the seat maps for the new McGregor triple, 3 of the performances have 23 (!) price bands and the others have 17

 

Beauty and Woolf Works have the more usual 12

[Candleque]

On 03/01/2023 at 15:26, Diandri said:

In my email inbox this evening was a ROH marketing blast regarding a 25% discount for Sleeping Beauty for shows 17, 18 & 19th Jan so it looks like they've overpriced this run as there are lots of empty seats & the code appears to apply to any price bracket (but I haven't tried the really cheap seats).  Code is AURORA25.

This is great; thank you @Diandri

Given the price of the seats, I'm delighted the ROH is doing this promo. Fwiw, I'm a Friend and have never ever had an email with a discount. Is there a special list or way to know about these? 

[bridiem]

5 hours ago, Candleque said:

This is great; thank you @Diandri

Given the price of the seats, I'm delighted the ROH is doing this promo. Fwiw, I'm a Friend and have never ever had an email with a discount. Is there a special list or way to know about these? 

 

Good question. Perhaps they're only sending it to people who haven't booked for any performances so far? If so, that's not actually fair. (They could incorporate some sort of rule against returning full-price tickets already booked if you booked a discounted ticket.) Mind you the tickets are so expensive now that even with a discount I wouldn't feel able to book any more tickets.

[Guest oncnp]

2 hours ago, bridiem said:

 

Good question. Perhaps they're only sending it to people who haven't booked for any performances so far? If so, that's not actually fair. (They could incorporate some sort of rule against returning full-price tickets already booked if you booked a discounted ticket.) Mind you the tickets are so expensive now that even with a discount I wouldn't feel able to book any more tickets.

 

I didn't receive the e-mail either and when I went to book for the 18th (at any price point), there was no option to put in the code. The discount may be tied to the e-mail. 

[LinMM]

I received this email and I’m not a Friend and neither have I booked Beauty yet. I’ve only booked Woolf Works so far. 
But I can’t use the dates anyway. 

 

[annamk]

My daughter got the email - she's not a friend and hasn't booked any tx but I didn't receive it and I am a friend and have booked tx.

[bridiem]

So it seems that if you're a 'Friend' you don't get offered discounts that others get offered. Doesn't seem very Friendly to me.

[Guest oncnp]

2 hours ago, oncnp said:

 

I didn't receive the e-mail either and when I went to book for the 18th (at any price point), there was no option to put in the code. The discount may be tied to the e-mail. 

OK - I lied. The way I was looking bypassed the screen to put the code in. 

 

The 25% off code does appear to work whether you got the re-mail or not

Edited January 6, 2023 by oncnp

[Timmie]

13 minutes ago, bridiem said:

So it seems that if you're a 'Friend' you don't get offered discounts that others get offered. Doesn't seem very Friendly to me.

 

I'm a Friend and I got the email with the code. I haven't bought any Beauty tickets and I would think that's the criteria. I vaguely remember it being the same a few years back with La Fille Mal Gardee.

[bridiem]

12 minutes ago, oncnp said:

OK - I lied. The way I was looking bypassed the screen to put the code in. 

 

The 25% off code does appear to work whether you got the re-mail or not

 

But in general you wouldn't know about the code unless you got the email...

[bridiem]

1 minute ago, Timmie said:

I'm a Friend and I got the email with the code. I haven't bought any Beauty tickets and I would think that's the criteria. I vaguely remember it being the same a few years back with La Fille Mal Gardee.

 

OK, thanks - so the issue is not that one is a Friend but that one has already booked for Beauty. Still seems wrong to me.

[Guest oncnp]

1 minute ago, bridiem said:

 

But in general you wouldn't know about the code unless you got the email...

 

Exactly. Would be interested to know what the marketing logic was (if there was any)

[alison]

Anyone remember the days of the Friends' telephone offer line?   

[LinMM]

Well I just happened to have a look at 14th Feb Beauty and was amazed at how many seats there were available! 
I suppose in real life business when you get close to a final date for a sale you would reduce the price rather than have left over stock etc. 

I don’t know if this is the thinking here they have started to worry there may be a lot of unsold seats. 
In that instance I don’t blame them. 
Friends do get the opportunity to book the cheapest seats if they want to on most booking sessions including booking all the good standing seats!!!  Also all the most interesting Clore events!  so they don’t do too badly though realise this does come at membership prices! 
To be honest its quite nice to have a rare offer of discount for tickets from ROH but means they probably did overprice originally so no doubt will duly take note. 

 

[capybara]

Sleeping Beauty is coming hard on the heels of The Nutcracker and the festive season, also before tourists come to London. So the ticket situation is really not surprising and could have been anticipated.

 

The ‘offer’ hasn’t (yet) made much of a dent in sales, especially not in the seriously overpriced lower areas of the House.

[Dawnstar]

8 hours ago, bridiem said:

Mind you the tickets are so expensive now that even with a discount I wouldn't feel able to book any more tickets.

 

Quite. I had a look to see if I could upgrade to a better seat for 19th January but even with the 25% discount the cheapest price in the stalls was still £113. When SB was last on I was able to get stalls for £96 with the package booking discount.