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I didn't read all the posts (sorry ) but I have been lamenting this very thing! "Back in the day" I used to buy front row seats for shows at the Ahmanson, Pantages, and Schubert theaters. I was a member of the "Phan Club". Back when the tickets were reasonable I could go and see Phantom over and over and over again! (I know ... CRAZY!!! ) Now, if we even get Phantom in Los Angeles, the tickets for the first 10 rows are over $400!!! It's a good thing ALW came out with a DVD of an actual Phantom 25th Anniversary play! It's great on the big screen TV, but still not the "excitement" of seeing it live!
We consider live music to be our main 'vice' and are willing to pay for certain acts. We saw Pearl Jam 7 times last year with an average ticket price of about $85 a piece. We saw Soundgarden 5 times last year and those tickets were about the same, though the Atlantic City tickets were a bit more as I recall. One of the Soundgarden shows was a radio station festival that we picked up tickets for off StubHub at the last minute, and paid just $20 a piece for pit tix. We ended up pressed against the stage that night. Some bands charge more for general admission, but most of the shows we attend have GA for much less, and you can get as close to the stage as you like. Even though I'm short, I prefer GA for that reason.
Soundgarden is touring with Nine Inch Nails this summer and as much as we love them, I just could not justify the price they were asking for tickets. So, we'll once again look for last minute seats at a discount.
I often take my 18yr old daughter to shows, recently we saw Arctic Monkeys and the tickets were about $55 each. This was her first general admission show at Madison Square Garden, and even though we showed up after doors opened, we got a great spot just 4 deep in the crowd. She loved it, and I think it's pretty cool that she doesn't mind having her old mom tag along as her concert buddy.
We just paid about $80 per ticket (face value) to see Arcade Fire, though those tix were going for much less on StubHub.
Tickets for the shows we currently have planned in the upcoming months range in price from about $40 for a small venue in Philly, about $60 for an outdoor park show in Brooklyn, to about $100 to see Pearl Jam in England. I believe the most expensive ticket I've purchased in recent years was for Roger Waters performing The Wall, if I recall correctly, those ran us about $300 for the pair.
Luckily, I'm not interested in Gaga or Madonna or any of the acts that are charging upwards of $300 a seat. The last time we saw the Stones was at MSG in 2003 and those tickets set us back about $350 for the pair, and that was more than a decade ago! I can't imagine paying what they are asking these days; I recall seeing tix costing upwards of $1,000 a piece on their last go around!
I just got tix to see NIN/Soundgarden. I got them presale, thru NIN website. $140 for two & not the greatest seats which annoyed me because I was thinking since it was presale, I'd have a shot at good seats. Went back to look at primo status seats, which the average person can still get, & they were $525/ticket for dead center row f. If I would've had my credit card, I would've gotten those tickets, regardless of the price. I've never had great seats to a concert, it's such a bummer. But for NIN, I'll pay whatever it takes, they are amazing. I can't wait for this concert.
I just bought Fleetwood Mac tickets for $250 each. I got the lower level, I could have had floor seats, but too many people stand and then hubby and I would stand too. Can't do that anymore. Usually, I won't buy them at that price, but hubby had it on his bucketlist and since we're in ours 60's, this will be the last concert ever seeing them.
I'll never forget how outraged I was in 1974 when I had to pay 6 bucks for a concert ticket. I figured I could just barely justify it, because after all it was a triple bill with Eric Clapton, Carlos Santana, and Albert King, but I swore to god I was never going to pay that much again. I wasn't going to ever let anyone take advantage of me like that again, damn it!
These days? I rarely even go. I can easily afford 2, 3, or 4 bills per ticket, but I just refuse to pay it. It's not whether I can afford it, it's a question of whether it's worth it. And in most cases, it simply is not, no matter who they are or how good they are. I wouldn't pay that kind of money to have sex with these people, much less listen to them sing a half dozen songs.
We saw Book of Mormon in NYC last month. Our tickets were essentially in the nosebleed section of a teeny-tiny theatre with the most uncomfortable seats ever constructed...we sat with our knees under our chins. Ugh...
The tickets started out at $165 each...by the time all the "fees" were added, they had ballooned to $225. Good thing we enjoyed the show.
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) but I have been lamenting this very thing! "Back in the day" I used to buy front row seats for shows at the Ahmanson, Pantages, and Schubert theaters. I was a member of the "Phan Club". 
Back when the tickets were reasonable I could go and see Phantom over and over and over again! (I know ... CRAZY!!! 
) Now, if we even get Phantom in Los Angeles, the tickets for the first 10 rows are over $400!!! It's a good thing ALW came out with a DVD of an actual Phantom 25th Anniversary play! It's great on the big screen TV, but still not the "excitement" of seeing it live! 
