With the grand opening of the Overture Center for the Performing Arts, 201 State St., less than two weeks away, ticket sales are right where they should be, according to Michael Goldberg, the center's vice president for programming.
\To say that ticket sales are not booming hardly respects the current reality of the box office, at least for the Overture grand opening festival, or for the 2004-'05 season of 'Overture Presents',"" Goldberg said.
Eight performances are scheduled for Overture's opening week, which starts Sept. 18. Goldberg said that of these, two performances are sold out, four are at 90 percent capacity, and two are half sold out. He added ticket sales for the season are 80 percent ahead of where they were at the same time last year, and they have already sold twice as many Broadway series packages for the coming year than they did last season.
""It is true that the organizations will have to sell a lot of tickets in the years to come, but I'm not concerned where ticket sales are at,"" Goldberg said. ""I have no doubt, with the exception of the two performances that are halfway; my expectation is they will be a full sell-out.""
""We are incredibly excited about this year, and we can't wait to move into the Overture Hall. ... It is a real showcase,"" said Ann Stanke, executive director of the Madison Opera. Stanke added the Madison Opera's performances are not sold out, but they are the only company doing two performances of the same production. Stanke said moving to Overture has increased their budget by 40 percent, but that has not affected the prices of tickets for the regular production season, which is ahead of other years.
A number of businesses have been forced to close or change locations because of the construction of the Overture Center, which has put added stress on the box office to sell tickets. However, City Council President Brenda Konkel said the owners of two of those businesses, Miller's Market and the Army Surplus Store, retired, and Dotty Dumpling's Dowry relocated to 317 N. Frances St. The Radical Rye is the only business still being affected, with owner Karl Armstrong looking for a new location.
