With one insanely successful NO DOUBT REUNION TOUR concert in the bag (I was filming that for a pilot we are doing for the Max Deale TV show, so I will blog about that concert story soon as I get the clearance to do so), I set my sights on the weekend shows they were doing in Orange County. I wanted to share this experience with the Squirrel and long time friends Adam & Megan Warren. The Squirrel had never seen NO DOUBT and I was positive she would love the high energy combined with the non stop dancing that the show ensured. According to Megan “nobody does it like Gwen”.
We had four shows to choose from in Irvine, but with work, babysitter scheduling for their kids, etc., it looked like Saturday night was the only viable option for us. It just so happens that Saturday night is EVERYONE ELSE’S first choice too, which made getting tickets that were both a good value and premium seating extremely difficult, maybe even the toughest ticket of the summer. NO DOUBT is from the OC and this is their reunion tour, so to say that the show was a big deal is a major understatement.
As was the case in Los Angeles, all of the tickets in the venue (minus the lawn seats) were the same price ($90 per ticket plus venue fees). Doesn’t matter if you are in the front row or the back row, the face value of your ticket was the same. Lawn seats were cheaper, but we were saving that option as a worst case scenario.
The Squirrel spent three days leading up to the event looking at tickets online. Prices were ranging from $100-$130 per ticket for the Terrace (the farthest seats from the stage), $120-$175 per ticket for the Loge, and $175-$500 per ticket for the Orchestra and PIT. By mistake, she bid on 5 separate pairs of tickets on Sunday night. Luckily she was outbid on all of them and we didn’t have to worry about re-selling them or going back for a third ND show (not that I would’ve minded, of course).
While looking online myself, I noticed a V.I.P. parking pass was available for $10. I checked on the Live Nation website, and those same V.I.P. passes were going for $40, so I grabbed it. Sweet! V.I.P. parking is a huge upgrade if you can get it, as the regular parking can take over an hour to get out of after a show. I picked up the parking pass on Friday. Now all we needed was tickets for the show. Easy, right!?
I had my eye on a few different groups of 4 tickets in the premium orchestra sections. One group was row B and one was row E (row 2 and 5 respectively). They were going for $999 and $1,199. I tried in vain to offer $400 for them and didn’t even get a response. These guys were set to make a killing with a 300% markup on their tickets. There was no negotiating with these guys. I wrote down where their seats were located…just in case (Which is a move in my book I call BROKER BACKFIRE. More on this later).
Saturday rolls around and the Squirrel was searching feverishly for the great deal that was sure to pop out at any moment. That moment never came. The best offer she found were for pairs of 2 seats together. That would mean four of us would have to cram into two seats. That can be done pretty easily at a concert like NO DOUBT where no one is going to be sitting, so we did have a few options. But ultimately we let them go. Besides, these seats were way too far from the stage to consider accepting that as our final option. It was 3pm and time to take off for Irvine…with no tickets at all. This was a tricky move considering the travel for both couples, the babysitter for Adam and Megan, and the fact that this was THE concert of the summer. It would seem as though there was a slim chance at best that we were going to pull this off.
I talked it over with Megan and decided that $150 was going to be the maximum we would pay per ticket. This is 50% over face value and something I would NEVER normally do. I wasn’t planning on doing it this time either, but at least now I knew where we stand. Megan did a little Craigslist searching while we made the drive, but nothing came up. We were on our own.
We arrived to the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in Irvine at 4:45pm. We drive straight past the giant marquis leading into the parking lot that boldly claims “NO DOUBT SOLD OUT”. I was ready to have to take on the scalpers, but after a close call earlier in the week with a group of 5 of them (that story coming soon), I would prefer to avoid that scenario if at all possible.
The Squirrel and I pull up to the box office/will call. The V.I.P. parking wasn’t going to be open for another hour or so. Already, the NO DOUBT fan club faithful were lining up to be the first to enter the General Admission lawn area. Guys dressed in Mohawks and Tutu’s, girls with the Gwen Stefani pig tails and crazy fashion statements everywhere. The will call and box office windows were deserted. Literally not one person was in line for either of them. I half figured that as I approached the box office window that read “ticket sales”, there wouldn’t be anyone there to talk to. But to my dismay, there she was.
A wave of Zen flushed through me as I approached the window. It seemed as though everything was slowing down. This is the play in my book that I call “OUT OF THE BOX.”
Almost jokingly I told the girl behind the window that I would like four seats together, lower orchestra, preferably row E or less (the first five rows of the orchestra are even better than the PIT tickets because you are just above their heads, with a clear shot of the stage).
I was fully expecting her to say one of three things:
- All we have are lawn seats available.
- We have four single tickets, but nothing together, and nothing in the orchestra.
- Sorry, didn’t you see the huge sign with bold lettering as you drove in that the show is SOLD OUT!?
But instead, she comes back at me with “I don’t have any that close, but I do have four seats together in row M of Orchestra 3 (that’s the 13th row of the stage right Orchestra section)”.
“Yeah, I guess those will do” I calmly replied. I look over at the Squirrel who doesn’t fully comprehend what is happening. The tickets are printed out and handed to me. As this is happening I feel this amazing rush coursing through my veins. I got so high from the feeling that my arms were numb. I started dancing out in front of the box office. A celebration was in order. I called Adam and Megan who were already on their way, and Adam said he was never worried for a minute, that I always come through.
This was, in fact, the truth. I have always come through when it comes to this. I have been so extremely fortunate over the years to have my ticket adventures turn out well. But of them all, this was absolutely a top 5 event experiences. To score like that is nothing short of amazing for me.
We met up with Adam and Megan and drove in together to the VIP Parking. Moments later we are in our seats. We enjoyed the two opening bands THE SOUNDS and PARAMOUR from our 13th row seats. About 5 minutes before NO DOUBT went on, I brought out my list of where those seats were located that were selling for $1,199 earlier. It was in the same orchestra as me, but down in row E, the fifth row. I brought Adam down with me to see if anyone was there. We walked down the side of the stairs so as not to cause attention to ourselves and made it down to row E. I looked straight across the row and there they were. Four seats are available on the far end of the row. The four empty seats next to the aisle, which is right next to Center Stage.
I hear Adam say halfway out loud to himself “Is this our row?” The person who was sitting down in the chair as he was passing said “Probably not.” Adam kept on walking. I signaled to the girls to meet us down there, and minutes later we were all five rows from the stage. And then the lights went out.
Madness ensued. The crowd was so loud it was overbearing. I figured if we got even one song in these seats, it is totally worth it. The worst thing that could happen if someone came with the tickets for those seats is that we have to go back to the 13th row. What a great consolation prize! But no one ever came to claim the seats. We got to enjoy the entire show from the 5th row. The last three songs we upgraded one final time to 3rd row in the center.
There is a difference between going to see a show and being A PART OF the show. Tonight, we were a part of the show.
Rock On.
Max
Upcoming Blogs:
No Doubt Los Angeles: Ticket Jedi in Training
George Thorogood at The Greek
Depeche Mode
Dodgers
Aerosmith/ZZ Top
….and many many more.
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