Ticket Forgiveness (not the traffic kind!)

Last Fall, a friend and subscriber of the NYC Ballet purchased extra tickets for us and two other friends, for a date in the Spring when I’d be in the city. But in her haste to get to her seat for that night’s performance, she didn’t bother to look inside the envelope. Apparently, there was mayhem at the box office that evening, and the agent misheard the request, and gave her tickets for February, instead of May. When she finally looked at the tickets in March, she was dismayed, and we both contacted the box office (they were no help, because they didn’t work for the ballet company) and then NYC Ballet’s customer service. They initially refused to exchange the tickets for the correct evening, even though we both explained the circumstances, and that it was unlikely that four of us all forgot to attend the performance. I even contacted the development office, promising to make a contribution if they rectified the situation (and checking online, there were still plenty of seats available for the performance we intended!). Radio silence, until a few days before the date, when the organization grudgingly reseated us for the correct date. What a struggle, and not the best way to build customer loyalty…

I’ve recently learned that two performing arts groups in Rochester have generous “ticket forgiveness” policies. Geva’s “Missed Performance Insurance” allows 6-Show Season Ticket Holders to see a show they’ve accidentally missed, as long as there is availability (you need to get there no more than two hours prior to curtain). Similarly, the RPO has something called “Subscriber Standby,” which allows subscribers to exchange unused tickets for a future performance in the same season, again, subject to availability. So one more reason to be a subscriber!

Obviously, both Geva and the RPO would rather you notify them in advance so they can re-sell your unused ticket, in addition to exchanging your ticket for a future performance. And if too many people abuse these forgiveness policies, the organizations might have to get less forgiving. Now, if you realize your error after the run of the show at Geva, or after the final RPO performance in May (it happens – my parents once showed up at the Kennedy Center for a concert only to find an empty parking lot and hall – they didn’t realize the tickets were for the prior year…), you’re out of luck. But as long as you catch your mistake in time, neither Geva nor the RPO will be as rude to you as the NYC Ballet was to me!