My wife and I were looking at acts coming to venues around us. We found a few acts we would consider seeing, but OMG the prices!
Cheap Trick, MGM Casino, $289 each ticket, then ticketbastard fees (33% - 40%) would push this to about $400 each ticket, add in dinner on our way, one drink for each at the show, and this is a $900 evening.
John Melloncamp, Goo Goo Dolls. $200-ish, $280 with fees, parking dinner and drinks, and we are in the $650 ballpark for the two of us.
We could skip drinks, but that is only saving $15 or $20. We have one drink at the show, rarely do either of us have a second.
OMG. That is waaaaaaaay too much money for a single night out. We have money, but $900 for Cheap Trick? I like them, but not $900 worth. I am not sure who I would go see for almost a grand. Maybe if Led Zeppelin toured? Maybe? This is another reason I don't go with my wife to Rolling Stones shows - that would be north of a $1500 night, plus travel expenses.
But will we ever go to another live show?
Well, we looked at some local theaters. Saturday night, my wife, daughter, and I went to see "Out Of The Blue", a local ELO tribute band. Tickets were $20 each, so three tickets with fees was $86. It was at the Goodyear theater - 1100 seats on the floor, 500 in the balcony. Very nice, updated theater. Dinner was $70 for three of us, so the night out for three and a drink each was $170. Two of us would have only been $115. The band was good, and we had a great night.
There have been threads here about "Why does anyone see / care about / play in / etc. a tribute band?" This is why. Cheap Trick - $900 a night out for two. A decent Cheap Trick tribute - $115 a night out for two.
I am starting not to care if I never see original artists again. I think "the monopoly" is starting to price themselves out of the market. The boomers and older Gen-X crowd won't be paying those prices for that much longer.
Cheap Trick, MGM Casino, $289 each ticket, then ticketbastard fees (33% - 40%) would push this to about $400 each ticket, add in dinner on our way, one drink for each at the show, and this is a $900 evening.
John Melloncamp, Goo Goo Dolls. $200-ish, $280 with fees, parking dinner and drinks, and we are in the $650 ballpark for the two of us.
We could skip drinks, but that is only saving $15 or $20. We have one drink at the show, rarely do either of us have a second.
OMG. That is waaaaaaaay too much money for a single night out. We have money, but $900 for Cheap Trick? I like them, but not $900 worth. I am not sure who I would go see for almost a grand. Maybe if Led Zeppelin toured? Maybe? This is another reason I don't go with my wife to Rolling Stones shows - that would be north of a $1500 night, plus travel expenses.
But will we ever go to another live show?
Well, we looked at some local theaters. Saturday night, my wife, daughter, and I went to see "Out Of The Blue", a local ELO tribute band. Tickets were $20 each, so three tickets with fees was $86. It was at the Goodyear theater - 1100 seats on the floor, 500 in the balcony. Very nice, updated theater. Dinner was $70 for three of us, so the night out for three and a drink each was $170. Two of us would have only been $115. The band was good, and we had a great night.
There have been threads here about "Why does anyone see / care about / play in / etc. a tribute band?" This is why. Cheap Trick - $900 a night out for two. A decent Cheap Trick tribute - $115 a night out for two.
I am starting not to care if I never see original artists again. I think "the monopoly" is starting to price themselves out of the market. The boomers and older Gen-X crowd won't be paying those prices for that much longer.
