Full version:
I found out about the Massey Hall concert long after tickets had gone on sale, so with the VIP presale not being an option, I ordered tickets online from the venue. My first thought was, well I'm obviously an idiot for not having kept a closer eye on the tour dates! But my second thought (after taking a brief pause from beating myself up) was, OK, well, get the best seats you possibly can at this point, but when you pick the tickets up at the box office on the day of the show, definitely ask them if any better seats have become available, just in case (I swear I had done this before at a different theater and that it had worked out). I really wanted a center aisle seat up close, especially for WBYL, but the aisle seats available online by the time I got to them were pretty far back, so I opted for seats quite a bit closer that weren't on the aisle. So anyway, a few hours before the start of the show, I showed up at the box office to get my tickets and asked if any better seats had become available (I figured it was unlikely, but didn't hurt to ask). The guy laughed. He was like, "No... that never happens." So then I switched to Plan B, which was to sit in my assigned seat but keep an eye on any better seats that weren't occupied, and if right at showtime they still appeared free, take a chance and sit in them. Of course, I realized that for the TV taping, they wouldn't want to leave empty seats near the front, and I did wonder how they would handle any potential no-shows or latecomers. Anyway, as I sat anxiously in my seat, things were looking promising for quite a while, but then I saw the seats being filled. I was a little surprised at how these larger, last-minute groups were suddenly arriving, but then I thought, oh well, I guess not everybody shows up early for a concert. Yep... I was that naive!!! Now I realize that the last-minute people flocking to these great seats were probably either the people being ushered up from rows that were much further back in the theater than my own row, or the people who got the free tickets they were giving out on the street, either of whom would have paid less for their seats than I did. If I didn't feel like a fool already for missing out on the VIP package, I felt like an even bigger fool after learning this! Not because of the way they handled the situation, but because I wasn't wise enough to figure out on my own how the situation was being handled. **smacks forehead loudly**
So, a lesson learned and shared!! There were better seats available (in fact, more than I would have expected), but I hadn't clued in on how many or how to get one. I don't know whether the box office guy actually knew what was going on or if he was totally oblivious to the situation like I was, but it doesn't really matter. Asking him if there was a better ticket I could exchange for was a totally fair question (there could have been a last-minute cancellation by a high standing regular patron of the theater, for example). But when I was unsuccessful at the box office, the NEXT person I should have asked about seats was the usher. By that point, who knows what might have happened. If I had been really friendly and outgoing, I might have learned about the unanticipated seating situation and been one of the lucky people who got moved farther up and closer to the center than their original seats, and maybe even been moved into an aisle seat. I don't think it hurts to ask nicely. You just never know.
Well, I hope this is helpful to someone! And now to nurse that throbbing headache that has resulted from smacking my forehead so hard...
