Applause Theatre & Entertainment Service, Inc. applause-tickets.com is an unscrupulous bait and switch scalper of Broadway show tickets New York, New York
My family just came back from a week-long vacation in the Big Apple. What a great experience, thanks in large part to the New York Pass, a great package of over 50 FREE attractions and other discounts. Yes, we paid $200 per person for each pass, but we got to visit 15 attractions over 7 days and saved a bundle. We would definitely have visited more places if we were not so exhausted.
We trusted the guide book (that came with the package) so much that, when we were ready to see the Phantom of the Opera musical, we naturally turned to the only Broadway show ticket broker listed in the guide book. What a mistake. I searched the Internet for information about the Majestic Theatre, its seating chart and other show-related information. I checked a couple of online brokers to get an idea of what seats cost how much. I tried to book tickets directly on Applause-tickets.com but always got the "Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage" error (I am getting the error right now!). That left me with the phone option only.
When I called to inquire about the tickets for July 25, 2011 (Monday), I was told that I would get the best Mezzanine seats available for $125 each, and that was a 30% discount off the official price. I asked about the specific seats for those tickets, but the agent claimed he did not have them (a big lie!). He just insisted that I would get the best Mez tickets available. I thought he was ordering from the Majestic Theatre directly and tried to get him to confirm that, but he was very evasive. Since some good Mez seats can cost $200 each, I decided to trust this guy and bought two tickets for $250. Clearly, advertising in the New York Pass guide book was a clever ploy for Applause Entertainment.
I went to the theatre and retrieved my tickets at the Will Call window, as instructed by the Applause agent. I was puzzled by the price printed on the tickets: $96.50. During the intermission, I went to the door and asked a theatre staff member about tips for buying Broadway show tickets. His answer really surprised me! The best way to buy tickets is the box office at the theatre where the show is playing. The next best methods are (((competitors' names redacted))). You can always trust these official ticket brokers. Beware of all other brokers / agents. They are either horrible scalpers, or plain frauds.
Apparently, the theatre worker was 100% correct. There were still a few tickets available right before the show, with clearly listed prices. Sorry, there are no discounts. I also happened to have visited (((redacted)) the previous night during my Google search and knew that they provided seats for the tickets they were selling. I did not know about (((redacted))).
So to summarize my transaction with Applause Entertainment: they claimed they were giving me a 30% discount on the tickets, but in fact they have charged me a nearly 30% markup over the official ticket price! What a deal! In the New York pass guide book, they also claim they provide at least a 10% discount, "and sometimes much more" for Broadway shows. At least they have been consistent in making these false claims! We are dealing with professional scalpers. I will contact the New York Pass guide book publisher and file a complaint. I am sure they want to maintain their great reputation as a tour package provider.
Phantom of the Opera is a fantastic show. We thoroughly enjoyed it! It was our first Broadway experience, but I can assure you it was just the beginning! What is more, I now know how to get a good ticket at an honest price. I paid a small price as a first-time Broadway visitor, but I hope you can learn something from my experience.
Do NOT buy Broadway show tickets from Applause Entertainment or www.applause-tickets.com.
sorry, allowing you to give a competitors name would instigate others to just file against their competition, to only come back later to suggest their company, ..plus, if you post a competitors name more than likely they will show up on search engines as a Rip-off! - - your comments on this policy are welcome. CLICK here to see why Rip-off Report, as a matter of policy, deleted either a phone number, link or e-mail address from this Report. In this case we removed an alleged competitors name
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Dr. Dreisdale
United States of AmericaThank you for info about "Applause Tickets"
#3Consumer Comment
Wed, May 23, 2012
Thanks a million for sharing your unpleasant experience with "Applause Tickets" in New York City. I was about to recommend them to my boss, who in turn would have recommended them to all of his out-of-town clients for entertainment while staying in town.
After a bit of digging, I found your comments to be quite true. I spoke to several theaters who made similar comments: "Those people are in this business to make money, so they're not doing you a favor -- even though that's not the way THEY tell it!"
Gladstone could sell ice to Eskimos....
Buyer BEWARE!
Todd
New York,New York,
U.S.A.
Best Tickets at the best prices...
#3UPDATE Employee
Mon, August 08, 2011
Dear Harold of Frederick Maryland,
First of all, APPLAUSE Theatre and Entertainment Service, Inc. is a licensed New York City Ticket broker in NYC and bonded with all Broadway Theatres for over 25 years. We have been providing tickets to New York Pass Customers, as well as Hotel guests, Corporations and Consumers to much satisfaction through the years. We have become known for our friendly service, honesty, and fairness through the years and I can provide you testimonials from thousands to that effect.
Your information is clearly based on poor research. The first of which and most important isyou feel you were overcharged because the cost you saw printed on the ticket was $96.50. Did you ever look at the cost of Front Mezzanine seats at the theatre OR as you say the competitors site? If so, you would know that if you purchased that ticket at the theatre it would have cost you $131.50-$141.50 which is clearly posted as the cost of tickets in the Front Mezzanine. But you only paid $125.00How is this a disservice? You paid less than what you would have had you gone directly to the theatre. You say you checked a couple of online brokers and before calling us and knew what to expect that tickets could be as much as $200.00 each and yet you paid $125.00 again below the actual cost at the theatre itself and you are still calling your experience a mistake.
Also, there is not A competitor, but manyall over the States selling tickets on the internet and at all different prices. Everyone that sells or resells tickets does so with service charges and those are mostly based on the market value. We actually retail these same seats with the box office price of $141.50, including our very legal service charge @ $180.00 each. So that is what we mean when we accurately say that not only do you get 10% off of our retail, but sometimes as much as 30%. The $96.50 is a discounted rate of the normal $131.50-141.50 cost that we are able to get the ticket at and add our service charge and YET still offer it to you for less than you could pay at the theatre. This is also the reason that we suggest on our website that you CALL. So you may speak with a real live person that can inform you of the different options for buying tickets and to get you the Best tickets at the Best prices.
On top of that, did you call Applause to address your complaint? We are happy to explain our service to our customers as well as resolve ANY complaints that they may have. You dont stay strong in business for 25 years if you are unable to handle customer service related issues.
I just got off the phone with a customer and she said this has been the easiest and best experience I have EVER had purchasing tickets. My reply was Thank you thats exactly what I like to hear! Priceless!
The one thing I can personally assure you is that you were treated well and provided great service, as well as getting great tickets at a great price.
Sincerely,
APPLAUSE THEATRE & ENTERTAINMENT SERVICE, INC.