The uproar over the changes in seating at the Utah Symphony’s Abravanel Hall continues, with some irate patrons going to the media and describing the arbitrary repricing and roping off of seating sections as the equivalent of the US invasion of Iraq. The orchestra decided that their attempt to close off sections of the third tier as “a mistake” and instead decided to double the prices on those seats. Not exactly a good way to acknowledge a mistake.
The most interesting aspect of this story to me is that the orchestra management clearly lost sight of their loyal audience members. The most loyal ticket buyers are often not those who buy the most expensive tickets – most often they are those who sit in the cheap seats. They’re the ones who come for the music, not just to see and be seen by the city’s glitterati with a full symphony orchestra as accompaniment.
I think that it’s important to do things to try to stimulate audience growth, but offending your base is not the way to do it, they will vote with their feet and pocketbooks, and they will come back only after years of hard feelings, if at all.
You can find the full article here.
Clearly, the controversy is starting to take its toll, with rhetoric heating up on both sides. Here’s an example:
One patron, Lynne Finney of Park City, believes the orchestra doubled ticket prices to punish third-tier regulars who complained. After she called the decision to close the third tier “extremely stupid” in a March 10 Tribune article, Finney said Toomey called and berated her for complaining to the press.
“I care very much about the symphony. But that’s outrageous,” she said. “I’ve never heard of a corporate person calling up a customer and saying, ‘You can’t talk to the press.’ ”
Toomey says he spoke to Finney about the third-tier issue several times but denies criticizing her for her comments to the Tribune.
“I would never tell anyone that,” he said. “I don’t know what I’ve done to upset her. We’re bending over backwards for people. But some people are a little irrational. I’ve gotten letters from people who equate our decision to close the third tier with the decision to go to war with Iraq.”
Blogger Drew McManus has an ongoing report on the issue here.