day #24: better the devil you know, than the devil you don't

i have wanted to go see book of mormon since it debuted on broadway back in 2011, but the tickets have been sold out/too expensive/ok fine i haven't really tried to get any, pretty much since that day. in doing research on how to get discounted tickets, i came across their rush tix policy and decided that my day 24 challenge was going to be about trying to get (cheap) tickets to book of mormon.

there are three ways to get cheap tickets on the day of each show:

1. enter the book of mormon ticket lottery: show up at the box office between 2.5 and a little before 2 hours prior to showtime, write your name on a slip of paper and indicate if you would like 1 ticket or 2 tickets. at 2 hours prior to showtime, they draw names for the 20-22 seats they have available. tickets are $32 each.

2. standing room only tickets: show up at the box office about 2.5 to 3 hours before showtime and wait in the SRO line until show performance. the announcer said if there are more than 20 people in line already, you probably won't get in. tickets are $27.

3. cancellation line: show up at the box office about 2 - 2.5 hours before showtime and stand in the cancellation line until show performance you might have a chance of getting a ticket if someone doesn't show up for their seat. tickets are face value, usually around $150.

i knew any of these were a longshot, but i decided i would try for the lottery and let go of the results. if i got in, AWESOME. if not, then i would just get to see what the experience was all about so i could try again next time. i showed up at 4:30p, 2.5 hours before the 7pm show and entered my name into the lottery for 2 tix. as it turns out, they accept slips of paper up until 4:59p, so there really isn't any benefit to coming early since it's all a random drawing. NOTED. i asked a few people in line if they had done this before, and there was a couple that was visiting from london who had tried the day before but hadn't won, and today was their last chance to win before they left. to be honest, i was rooting for them more than myself.

standing room only line - already people lined up at 4:30!

announcing what the procedure is, cracking jokes

at 5pm, i came back to the box office and the crowd had grown exponentially from 1/2 hour ago. i snapped a pic of the crowd - and this is just one side! there were as many if not more people on the other side of the box office as well.

all in all, there were about 300 people who had entered their name in the lottery and only 22 seats available. my hopes were high, but i knew that it was a long shot. every time the announcer said it was someone from new york, there were whoops and hollers, everyone hopeful it was their own name. and every time a person won regardless of who it was, the group cheered and clapped for them, silently hoping that good karma would come back around and theirs would be the next name called. when the last name was drawn, i smiled. it wasn't mine, but i had done what i set out to do - and tonight wasn't my night to win. sadly, the couple from london didn't win - but i did see them make a beeline for the SRO line so hopefully they were able to see it before going home.  the whole experience only lasted about 10 minutes - not bad for such an amazing discount.

before i go out to LA for the summer, i have 3 more chances to win the ticket lotto - and you bet your ass i'll be trying again. i'm definitely more prepared for next time, knowing to bring a snack and a friend in case the lottery doesn't pan out so we can get a chance at the standing room tix. either way i WILL see this play before i'm 30.

i can't remember who told me this story, or if i read it in an article somewhere, but there have been quite a number of actual practicing mormons who have seen the show. in fact, there was even someone from utah in my ticket lottery group who won, and i kept thinking - i hope she knows it's a satire. but anyway, the story goes that there was a guy who was sitting next to a few of the mormons during the show and he kept thinking how strange it was to see them at a play that was basically poking fun of their religion. after a while, he leaned over and said "excuse me, i just have to ask - why did you come to see this play?" and the mormon guy pursed his lips, and said back:

"better the devil you know, than the devil you don't"

day 24 - complete!

xoxo
meags