TKTS - tix for Lion King
 

Thanks for the previous posts regarding the TKTS booths at Times Square and World Trade. I found the info very helpful. <BR> <BR>What are the chances of getting tickets to the Lion King considering that the waiting list is a year?

Ain't gonna happen at TKTS. Best bet is try the box office about an hour before the show and see if any additional have been released. Sometimes this happens.

Lori's right. I would add that you won't be the only one there, so you probably should arrive at the theater well before that hour before.

My husband and daughter recently weekended in New York. We bought tickets ahead for Miss Saigon--their must see show--and while waiting to buy tickets for Forbidden Broadway at TKTS in Times Square, they were approached by a scalper who had two tickets for Lion King. They snapped them up: the tickets were in the LAST row of the HIGHEST balcony, cost $40, and they loved it. They also loved Forbidden Broadway, which they saw at the Saturday matinee performance.

Are you anywhere near Toronto? Lion King is opening there in April. Tickets went on sale in November '99 and the prices, with the exchange on the U.S. dollar, are excellent compared to what you'd pay to see it in NYC. You can get more info at www.ticketking.com. We're going to see it over Memorial Day weekend (we live in Michigan - only a 4-5 hour drive to Toronto). Good luck!

Jenn, you don't mention when you're going to NY. I'm going in June and got Lion King tickets in October. I know that was 9 months in advance, but when I bought them, there were seats available in all price ranges for every performance I checked. We were able to get excellent seats for our preferred date. Don't eliminate the possibility of getting tickets from Ticketmaster without checking it out first. You may get lucky--although you will pay full price. We were happy to do that because we had plenty of time to pay for the tickets long before the actual vacation. Good luck!!

I would definitely go to the box office on the morning the day of the performance. That's how I got tickets and I know lots of other people who have done this as well. They ALWAYS have some tickets available (they reserve a bunch every day for VIPs & friends/family of the performers and sell any unused ones before the performance). It is easiest to do this with mid-week (Wed.) matinees but it works on weekends & weeknights too. Get in line as far in advance as you can stand to. It is worth the wait. I got in line around 9 a.m. for a 2 p.m. matinee and was around 7th-9th in line if I remember correctly, and was admitted to buy my ticket at 1:50 p.m. The day I did it, 18-20 people got tickets that way. Some days it is fewer than that though.

Lisa, did I read your post correctly: you stood in line for almost five hours to buy tickets? I can't imagine any play being worth that to me--what were you seeing?

What's obvious from the last two postings is that it all boils down to one thing: Is it worth the wait in line for, say, five hours to get tickets at the sacrifice of doing something else while on trip to NY? I guess it just depends on how badly you want to see The Lion King. <BR>What it all does show is that unless you are extremely lucky, you'll have to wait that long if you want tickets the same day.

Marilyn: In answer to your question, it was the Lion King that I stood in line for, and yes, it was totally worth it. The weather was fine so it wasn't uncomfortable (several of us had brought lunch with us to eat in line and we shared with some of the others who hadn't realized the wait would be so long), I met lots of nice people, and I got to see the Lion King -- which was by far the best play or musical I've ever seen anywhere, and I've seen quite a bit of theatre in New York and London. Normally in New York I do the TKTS thing, but that was not an option for Lion King, at least not last summer. I realize that standing in line for several hours is not for everyone, and I probably would not have done it if it were my first & only trip to New York or if I didn't have long in the city, because there are too many other great things to see and do there. But I get up to New York pretty often for museums, theatre, visiting friends, shopping, restaurants, etc., so I'd already seen and done a lot, and seeing The Lion King just happened to be my #1 priority for that trip. And it turned out to be a good investment!