Cheap Tickets London

The TKTS ticket booths in New York and London sell Broadway and Off-Broadway shows, music and dance events and West End theatre tickets, respectively, at discounts of 25–50% off the face value.

New York

New York City's TKTS (pronounced "Tee-Kay Tee-Ess", not "tickets") first opened in 1973 and is operated by the Theatre Development Fund. There are three locations: one in Duffy Square (at 47th Street and Broadway, the north end of Times Square); another at South Street Seaport in Lower Manhattan (replacing the office formerly located in the lobby of the World Trade Center, which was destroyed in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks); and a third in Downtown Brooklyn (Jay St. and Myrtle St. Promenade). The Times Square booth sells day-of-performance tickets only, while the South Street Seaport booth sells tickets to evening performances on the day of the performance and matinee tickets the day before.

Pavilion

The original TKTS pavilion in Times Square was designed by the Manhattan architecture firm of Mayers & Schiff Associates and was inaugurated by Mayor John Lindsay. The city had a capital budget of $5,000 to build the pavilion, a sum that was obviously insufficient. But the city did have an "operating" budget, which the architects used in a plan based on renting, rather than buying, the pavilion's parts. The sales booth was housed in a rented construction trailer; the armature around and on top of the trailer was made from rented scaffolding parts. Interwoven through the armature was a continuous white canvas ribbon emblazoned with the "TKTS" logo. Foundations could not be dug under the booth because the subway structure is just below ground level. To hold down this giant "wind kite" the architects utilized pile driving test weights (also rented). The pavilion received many design awards, including the American Institute of Graphic Arts' Excellence in Communications Graphics; The City Club of New York's Bard Award for Architecture and Urban Design; and the N.Y. State Association of Architects Certificate of Merit for Design Excellence.

A new TKTS booth for the Times Square location began construction in May 2006 and was completed in October 2008. During this time, the TKTS booth was temporarily relocated to the nearby Marriott Marquis hotel. After many delays, the new TKTS booth opened for business on October 16, 2008 on a renovated Duffy Square, with a ceremony featuring Mayor Michael Bloomberg and various Broadway performers. The booth is wedge-shaped, with wide stairs covering the roof, allowing pedestrians sit down or climb the steps for a panoramic, unobstructed view of Times Square. According to the Theater Development Fund, the final cost of the new booth is $19 million.

Operations

In the 35 years since the booth first opened, there have been 6 mayors and 51 million tickets sold. Theaters release tickets for sale by TKTS throughout the day, with more tickets often available within a few hours of showtime. TKTS accepts cash and travelers checks and now also accepts credit cards. The waiting times at Duffy Square are normally longer than at the Seaport location. Available shows are displayed on large signs near the ticket windows. The new booth has twelve sales windows.

Although it is immensely popular with tourists and New Yorkers who want cheap tickets, the TKTS booth has been the subject of criticism among some people in the industry who claim that the popularity of these half-price tickets has helped to drive up the regular ticket prices for Broadway shows. The theory is that if an increasingly large segment of ticket buyers purchase at half price, the shows must make up for that loss of income by raising regular prices.

London

London's TKTS was formerly known as the Half-Price Ticket Booth. It is operated by The Society of London Theatre and first opened in 1980; it is located in Leicester Square.

A new branch of TKTS has opened at Brent Cross Shopping Centre.

The Society of London Theatre has licensed the TKTS trademark from the Theatre Development Fund, but the two organizations are otherwise unrelated.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Hetrick, Adam. "Light the Lights: Duffy Square and TKTS Booth Reopen Oct. 16", playbill.com, October 16, 2008
2. ^ Jones, Kenneth."Spring 2008 Is Target for New TKTS Booth Opening in Times Square", playbill.com, October 10, 2007
3. ^ Dunlap, David. "Atop the New TKTS Booth, Ruby-Red Stairs With a View of the Great White Way", The New York Times , October 16, 2008
4. ^ "How TKTS Discount Tickets Changed Broadway", nytix.com, New York TV Show Tickets, 2008

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