The New Deal – "Society NYCB" – not kidding

The Fourth Ring Society has become Society NYCB, according to the mailing received today.  It's no Great Society, though.

For a $20 annual membership fee, the Society NYCB member has the opportunity to purchase tickets for $15.  There will be Blackout Dates, but NYCB prefers not to let you know about them at this time - even though they know full well what those dates are.  And don't expect to be sitting with your Society member buddies in the center of the Fourth Ring.  For each performance, NYCB will allot a minimum of 70 seats "in a variety of sections of the house."  They want the new Society members to fill in the seats on the sides and in the back of the bus orchestra and lower rings.  Call it the Fill-in-the-Blanks Society.

Society NYCB seats for the first week of performances (September 13-18) will be available for purchase by phone or at the box office on August 29th.  Thereafter on each Monday, seats for another week of performances will be released for purchase. 

This offer is only open to 2010-2011 Fourth Ring Society members. 

Comments

[B]

I received my "Society NYCB" letter over the weekend. As a 20-year Fourth Ring Society member, I can't tell you how disappointed I am. So how will this work exactly? Every Monday, will long lines form for that week's batch of tickets? And when those tickets are gone, is that it--no more tickets will be available?? I'd love to know who thought up this crazy idea. It smacks of desperation to me. I really and truly hope that NYC Ballet doesn't end up like NYC Opera.

[B]

I just re-read you post. Back of the "bus" is right!!! I can't believe that NYCB's management would treat some of its most loyal patrons with such disrespect.

[Haglund]

Hi B. Desperation is right! Every pricing scheme they have come up with will, without a doubt, FAIL and they will try to blame it on the economy - while paying their new Executive Director Katherine Brown in the neighborhood of a half million dollars in salary and benefits.

Keep writing and keep calling to complain. Keep telling them when you have chosen NOT to attend a performance because of prices or seating. Keep telling them when you have been dissatisfied with a seat purchased through the new Society. Here are some addresses:

kbrown@nycballet.com
pmartins@nycballet.com
kgirty@nycballet.com
rdaniels@nycballet.com
kplumb@nycballet.com
kleies@nycballet.com

The email address convention is fairly easy to figure out. You can probably reach any person in the administration by following it. I recommend filling up their mailboxes with anger and outrage.

[Julie]

Hey, think how lucky you guys are: I don't even live in or near New York, and haven't had the chance to even see NYCB! I'm green with envy!