I get that art has to make money to survive in a capitalist society. In their pursuit of rich tourists with money to burn, the people who run Sleep No More are insulting their core audience. But when there are tickets left, it’s awful to offer them only at inflated prices. If the show is really full, I understand there is no more space for anyone to enter. If Punchdrunk really is the future of theater, shouldn’t students at least be able to attend affordably?Įven Punchdrunk’s supporters, the “Keyholders” who donate directly to Punchdrunk and were welcomed with unique experiences and events at Drowned Man, are not recognized at all at Sleep No More. Student discounts are common at many other NYC shows, and The Drowned Man offered low priced concession tickets for students, young people, and the unemployed. Sleep No More has also never offered discount tickets. Instead, we are facing a massive price increase. There has never been any kind of program to welcome frequent visitors. (Which, because of the massive secrecy, we only find out about last minute from other fans who went to recent shows.) We go to accompany friends, or because we had a bad day at work, or because we hope to catch interesting casting.

Ironically, it’s often the most devoted fans who want to buy tickets last minute. Other shows offer discounts for last minute tickets. Right now (Sunday afternoon) if I wanted to go to the Monday show, I could only buy a $255 “champagne table.” If you try to buy tickets at the door, even to a show that isn’t sold out, they may offer only Max’s List prices. Saturday after 5pm all the tickets to the Saturday late show switched to Max’s List prices, even though there were plenty of regular priced tickets available at 4:45pm. It seems to vary per timeslot - for example, you can usually only buy a same day ticket to a weekday show at Max’s List prices now. Regular priced tickets now automatically convert to inflated prices once a certain theshold is reached. The real problem is that they are reducing the availability of regular priced tickets in favor of these price gouging options. Maybe they can even start paying their interns. I hope (but somehow doubt) that it goes to increase the salaries of the cast and staff. Presumably anyone who chooses this is rich enough to afford it. On one level, fine, let people pay an idiot tax if they want to. If three people attend together, they still only get one bottle - a $510 bottle of champage. A single guest who buys this is paying $170 for a bottle of champage. The latest indignity is the “Champagne table.” This comes at a 200% markup - a show where tickets are $85 has champagne tables for $255. I don’t try to take her to Manderley anymore. Both times, we stood in front of a velvet rope, looking at empty seats that she was not allowed to sit in, and we left because my friend was in pain. But she has mobility issues, and can’t stand for extended periods of time. I knew she’d love the aesthetic of the bar. Twice, I tried to take her to Manderley Bar after the show, to watch the band.

One of my best friends lives a 5 minute walk from Sleep No More. These people are literally just paying for a table that used to be included with a regular ticket, and that they won’t sit at if they actually go in to watch the show that they are ostensibly attending. Now, often all the seats are “reserved” for those who pay a 50-60% premium for “Maximilian’s List.”

New fans may not even realize - you used to be able to sit anywhere in Manderley. It started getting ridiculous a few years ago, when they roped off the tables at the Manderley Bar. The pricing manipulations at the McKittrick Hotel have gotten out of hand.

Sleep no more one on ones