Performers at Tufts' second−annual Cage Rage Concert last month played to a below−capacity audience, the result of unusually low ticket sales due in part to issues with the new online ticketing system.
Only 1,400 of the 2,000 available tickets were sold this year, compared to last year's event featuring Passion Pit as well as K.Flay and Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, which sold out entirely, according to Concert Board co−Chair Kelsey Schur, a senior.
Schur and Office for Campus Life Assistant David McGraw both cited problems with TuftsTickets.com, the website that the university began using this year to sell event tickets online, as a major factor resulting in this year's lower ticket sales. Schur said that Concert Board received a number of emails from students facing challenges while attempting to purchase tickets.
"I think that discouragement that happened with problems with the ticket service probably cost us a hundred people at least."Schur, said. "We did what we could."
McGraw explained that while the number of tickets sold to Tufts students was roughly the same as last year's number — around 1,000 — there was a significant decrease in the number of tickets sold to students from other colleges.
"Maybe it was just a bad weekend when friends weren't visiting," McGraw said.
Concert Board co−Chair Marc Turner noted that the use of Carzo Cage as the concert venue required them to choose a weekend when athletic teams would not need gym access, and thus the weekend available was one during which many teams had away games, a factor which could have impacted sales.
The lower profile of the performers — Matt and Kim and Timeflies — could have also impacted the number of tickets sold.
"I think most people would agree that Passion Pit are a larger and more well−known group than Matt and Kim." Schur said.
Higher ticket costs this year — a result of the Programming Board's overspending on the Passion Pit show — could have also resulted in the lower number of ticket sales, according to Turner.
"Last year, tickets were a little cheaper, but last year they went way over budget on the show and we had to make sure we didn't," he said.
Turner also attributed the lower ticket sales to the timing of the event and scheduling conflicts with I−Cruise and other weekend activities, considerations that did not impact last year's event, which was held on a weeknight.
"Last year, it was on a Tuesday, so a lot of other people had plans already for Saturday and I think that played a big part." he said. "I think that we would have sold out on a weekday."
The 2010 concert was more costly than this year's, according to Turner, and as a result, Concert Board was unable last year to fund Jumbo Jams, the annual winter show. With the lower price tag of this year's event, he said, Concert Board will be able to bring back Jumbo Jams and spend more money on Spring Fling.
Schur put to rest any concerns that the lower ticket sales will affect the Spring Fling budget. While the money for the two events is technically all part of one account allocated to Concert Board, she explained that the money for Spring Fling is put aside in a separate fund and is never used to finance Cage Rage.
"Spring Fling's our biggest priority and we actually have a little more budgeted for it this year," Turner said.
Instead, McGraw explained, the lower ticket sales from Cage Rage may slightly affect the winter concert. He said that the only difference students would see is a possible relocation of Jumbo Jams from its usual venue at the Somerville Theatre to an on−campus venue.
"It shouldn't affect Spring Fling; if anything it may impact the location of our winter show." he said. "I really don't think the students will see much of an impact with the artist or the performance or anything when it comes to the winter show."
