"I tried to figure out a way to cheat the system, but I was unsuccessful," said freshman Jay Kim, an engineering major. Sound familiar? Many Tufts students, with and without ticket strategies, sat with fingers poised over their keyboards at 10 p.m. on Monday Oct. 29, hoping to be among the lucky few to get tickets for what Tufts and singer songwriter Billy Joel are calling "An Evening of Questions, Answers, and a Little Music."
Considering how few tickets were available, some students did not have high expectations for getting them.
"I didn't really expect to get tickets because so many people tried for them," sophomore Ally Fleming said. "So rather than being disappointed, I'm just happy that he chose Tufts."
However, not all Tufts students are as detached. Sophomore Christina Zahara questions the random method of distributing the tickets.
"How is it that despite being seated in front of my computer at 10 p.m. on that Monday and clicking away at the same link as everyone else that I couldn't get tickets, but the girl down the hall did?" Zahara said.
Other Tufts students puzzle over the same question, including some who were unsuccessful despite having enlisted the aid of friends who themselves were not interested in going to the concert to get tickets for her.
Freshman Nina Soares complains that the concert, for which she was unable to get tickets, will disrupt her classes.
"I was unable to get tickets and the fact that my blues class is being either reconvened or cancelled the day of the concert so that they can set up Cohen Auditorium just adds insult to injury," Soares said.
Problems with the overloaded website were a cause of disappointment for some students.
"My request couldn't get through because of some kind of computer error," freshman Mike Gnade said. "And the tickets were sold out so fast that it was too late for me to reset the page to the request form after the error message came up."
He added that his friend also had problems with her request form. "When she tried to get tickets, her request was accepted, but she never got the e-mail saying that she had actually gotten the tickets," Gnade said.
The successful strategies of some determined students were fueled by their enthusiasm for the artist. Freshman Brian Kessler was a fan of the "Piano Man" long before it was announced that Joel would perform at Tufts.
"Billy Joel was popular in my household since before I was born. We listened to him all the time; for example, when I was younger, we played Billy Joel cassette tapes in the car on road trips. When I read the Daily article that that he might come to Tufts, I was skeptical that it would happen," Kessler said.
Kessler created an elaborate plan to procure tickets, which ended up being a success. "My strategy was to find out the exact address for the subpage that had the tickets on it - that way I didn't have to go through the TuftsLife link, saving me a lot of time," Kessler said. "I kept refreshing the page, and finally it lit up. I had my social security number on the [computer's] clipboard already. I typed in my name and got two tickets."
I'm really looking forward to the 13th," Kessler added.
Other students will be in attendance tonight because friends who were successful in getting tickets have chosen them to come along. Senior David Kraemer says that both he and his girlfriend were unable to get tickets to the show, but are going nevertheless.
"Luckily, her brother and a friend of mine each got two tickets, so she and I get to go, too," Kraemer said.
But as it turns out, it didn't require an engineering background to come up with a sneaky plan to get tickets. In the case of freshman Susie Jabaily, all it took was luck.
"I was at my computer at 10 p.m. like most people," Jabaily said. "And I thought that I might as well try for the tickets. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I only requested one ticket, but that wasn't really a strategy to get into the concert. I only requested one ticket because I only needed one ticket."
Students fortunate enough to have gotten tickets are looking forward to a unique performance where Joel will reflect on his music. Last Sunday night, A&E aired a two-hour Billy Joel special taped live at the University of Pennsylvania. The program featured Joel performing hits and favorite songs from throughout his career. Guest pianist Richard Joo performed selections from the newly released classical album, "Fantasies & Delusions." At UPenn, Joel talked about his music and answered audience questions, in addition to his musical performance. Now Tufts students are eagerly awaiting the same opportunity.
For students unable to get tickets to see Joel and Joo, there may still be hope. According to information on Tuftslife.com, tickets unclaimed tonight will be distributed "in a matter yet to be decided." The website promises to post information on unclaimed tickets before the show.
Still, if you cannot obtain the golden ticket for entry into Cohen Auditorium tonight, there is a free alternative. As part of World Music Week 2001, you can attend "Rhythm is Cure," a night of southern Italian music and dance with Italian folk musician Alessandra Belloni at 8 p.m. in Goddard Chapel. Since admission is freely available, there is no need to park yourself in front of your computer an hour in advance with a surefire ticket-getting scheme up your sleeve.
