UIEX: NYCB Fourth Ring Society ending?

The Unofficial Information Exchange (UIEX) received a tip from a quasi-sort-of-official-anonymous-perhaps-reliable source that NYCB's popular Fourth Ring Society, which allows one to join for an initial payment of $20-25 and thereafter entitles the member to $15 (now $17 with the facility fee) Fourth Ring tickets, will not be continued after this June and that NYCB may even close off portions of the Fourth Ring to sales if the rest of the house isn't selling well.

If this is true, NYCB is clearly over-estimating the loyalty of its low-end customer base if it thinks it can squeeze people into buying more expensive third ring and lower seats by denying them the cheaper options to which they are accustomed.

The Fourth Ring Society page is still up on the NYCB website.  Haglund will regularly check to see if it disappears.

If this sorry news is true, what a bad idea in a bad economy.  NYCB will be acting like it is the only one affected by the crummy economy.  Does the company really think that the people in the crummy, cheap seats aren't being affected by the crummy economy as severely as NYCB?

Here's how the fallout from the decision will go:

• People will push back by attending the ballet less frequently.

• People will push back by attending only those performances of ballets which they are sure they will like and will avoid risking money on new, untried ballets which they haven't seen.

• People will become accustomed to and comfortable with attending NYCB less frequently, substituting other activites in its place.

• Those Fourth Ring Society members who also are the lowest rung of donors will keep their $90 contributions to themselves this year.
  

It's not smart to treat your low-end customer base like you think you can grab a little more out of its wallet by twisting its arm behind its back.  Fewer customers will cry "Uncle" and hand over the money to the NYCB bandits than won't. 

Let's hope the Fourth Ring Society doesn't end.

Comments

[K]

The arts never seem to learn...it's better to have someone who comes multiple times a week for less money per ticket than to have a casual fan who comes only once a season and splurges on prime orchestra seats.

[Haglund]

Maybe they will re-think this one.

[diana]

Hi Haglund,

Of course you've heard the shocker news about NYC Opera leaving Lincoln Center. (OK, maybe it wasn't a shocker to you, you know everything!, but it was to me.)

It made me wonder whether NYCB is on thin ice.

What do you think?

[diana]

Hi again - forgive me if you've seen or posted this but I just found this:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/28/arts/dance/city-ballet-and-dancers-struggle-to-avert-contract-impasse.html

The numbers look frankly terrible.

[Haglund]

Diana, it's so good to hear from you!

Whether or not NYCB is on thin ice, their public position will always be that they ARE. If they can afford $723,000 for Martins, $370,000 for a general manager, $285,000 for a CFO, $320,000 for a musical director, $289,000 for a marketing director, $286,000 for an orchestra manager, $269,000 for a development director - all figures taken from the last Tax Form 990 - then, they're not on thin ice. Those are grossly overpaid employees when compared to what the positions in their peer group make. ABT's McKenzie got $282K per the last Form 990. He wouldn't qualify within the Top 6 of NYCB's salaries.

Obviously, you've hit my hot button, Diana. There's a lot that could and should be cut from NYCB's top administrative and AD salaries, especially when the incumbents are performing so terribly. They were in the red by $4.8 million according to the last filing, and yet they ponied up $723,000 for Martins. He's in charge, and he's not getting people in the seats and not getting the required donations. Regardless of the economy's part in all of it, he's not getting the job done, and he shouldn't be paid as though he WERE getting the job done.

Nice to hear from you, Diana. Hope you are doing well.

Haglund

[diana]

I agree with you that the current mgmt is not getting it done and is overpaid. But nothing is going to change. But it can't keep going on this way.

In my dreams Eddie Vilella (I think I am missing an L somewhere...) runs the company and Farrell runs the school. But I don't think that'll happen. Eddie's already in his 70s and Suzanne is happy where she is.

And it ain't gonna happen anyway.