when i first heard that prince was going to play croke park in dublin (which is massive )...i thought it was very unlikely that prince would be able to fill a 82000 capacity stadium in a small country like ireland at the prices they are looking for...the prices are a joke as far as i am concerned....if they had done what he did at the o2 gigs .....31 quid a ticket....i am sure it would have sold out but asking for 100 quid a ticket for someone who hasnt had a hit for donkeys years in a country like ireland seems badly misjudged....
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i am a die hard fan but even i wasnt going to play 200 pounds for a stadium gig ???...not after seeing him at such close quarters 4 times last year in london...i got two seated for 100 pounds which is more realistic price...
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prince is the greatest live performer on the planet but he hasnt had so called hit songs for well over 10 years so a bit of thought should have went into this gig instead of pricing it out of a lot of people's reach who would have liked to have seen him live...
[Edited 6/9/08 14:22pm]

blackbob said:

Oh

I reckon a lot of people agree with u. It cant be a good sign when you get can still get the best blocks for lower tier seats (in blocks of 8 tickets next to each other) on TM a week before the concert.

It is not unusual for TM Ireland to release tix that are amazing upto the day. I worked for TM for years and it seems to be an increasing tactic to hit the touts. I can guarantee you that on the day there will be pitch tickets released and I would actually put a positive bet on gold circle too. You have to check everyday and very often as they do not announce them. They sell immediately by word of mouth.
Also a lot of people who bought tix had their card ceclined so those tix go back into the pool.
They even did this with the 3 U2 concerts that were 'SOLD OUT' in Croke

studal said:

3 nights sold out, that says it all, this gig has never been listed as sold out!

It's been a miss-judgement, it won't be the first miss-judgement and I doubt it'll be the last.

I'm sure those of you going will enjoy it and you'll be able to say " I was there"

studal said:

I am well aware of TM releasing good seats in the last week - at the o2 I checked the TM website about 100 times a day when i should have been working!!!

However - at the o2 only a few tickets were released in the final week and these were snapped up straight away. On TM now there seems to have been good lower tier seats available for a long time.

whatever plebs...

razor said:

I wonder if the ticket prices reflect the one-off nature of this gig. There's only one show here to cover the costs of getting Prince, his touring crew, his gear, etc. across the Atlantic. Perhaps prices would be lower if he were touring Europe for a few months?

I understand the hitting the touts bit and i think it has worked this time, as you can actually get cheap tix on ebay as a result, i think, of fans purchasing more than one set like me to get nearer to the stage. So the tix end up on ebay cheap. Makes a change from all the ludicrous prices the touts have been charging for years for premium seats etc. So you dont need to miss out, you can go real cheap - mine are on sale for starting bid of £10 for 2.

I do think it is an unusual venue and a high price and why a one-off? Actually im not sure I believe it, I think he will announce (well okay not actually announce as we all know he doesnt really do that) but I think some other gig will be sold for London to promote the book in September.

They wouldnt do that until after croke so as not to affect those sales and July would be about the right time frame to start selling tix in London.

Before everyone hates me Im sorry but I do think Croke is an odd place to choose for a one off as its not exactly central in Europe, France would have made more sense, but then I dont think Prince is about 'regular' sense, who knows why he does what he does?

OK you all seem to be under the impression that Prince was sitting at home one day and decided...let's play Ireland.

He didn't.

The promoters were sitting in the office one day and decided... what do we have to do to get Prince. They contact his people. They ask a price. Prince says the price. The promoters say ok. They have the venue. They have to cover all costs and make a profit for themselves. They announce the gig. they sell tickets. Hey presto. The concert. Prince would have had a minimum involvement with this. The price is not unreasonable for Ireland. Ireland is a very expensive country. The gig is in Ireland and if people from other countries want to come brilliant but it is an Irish gig and not a European gig and therefore only advertised properly in Ireland. On the day there will be very few empty seats. When I was in the O2 there were empty seats all around me and across the venue. Empty seats always happen.

Just go. You will regret it if you don't. I can't help thinking if this was in Wembely Stadium of The millennium Stadium there would not be the same consternation.

Thanks for the info. So, I now understand that the promoter has to negotiate a price with Prince, the promoter pays for the venue, the promoter handles the ticket sales and keeps the profit (or eats the loss), etc.

But I'm still wondering... does Prince have to pay travel and gear-shipping costs out of his own pocket? Does he get reimbursed for this by the promoter? Or does he build the anticipated travel/shipping costs into the overall price he negotiates with the promoter?

studal said:

No there wouldnt because London is after all London.

I wasnt meaning to be horrible about Ireland, not at all. I think most of us know how it actually works, but at the end of the day whether its his advisers or him, someone chose to do Croke as a one off, Im wondering why?

Ive read its a very large stadium, so maybe he fancied doing an open air gig for a change, seeing as he did so much at the 02 last year that must have been tedious after a month.

syble said:

You see. In Ireland this is not a 'ONE OFF'. Each year Croke Park gets a special license to do summer gigs. It is usually 3 but this year it has been 4. Celine Dion. Neil Diamond. Westlife and Prince. So it is the promoters in agreement with the GAA who own Croke Park who decide who they would like. It does help if the artist they want is touring of course but the offer so much money that in reality you would be mad to say no.
In all actuality Prince and the band travel quite light compared to his touring hey day. He has got costs down to a fine art form. he is known for his money shrewdness. I would harbor a guess that the bulk of the staging will be all ready there and he will just bring in his bits that he wants. So again costs down and more money in his purple pocket. This is a pure business move. Easy money. Minimum risk. Low cost gig.

studal said:

I didnt mean his gig was a one off at croke, i meant in Europe.

I know but you are missing the point.

This is him JUST THE HIRED ACT.

No - I understand your point! I know hes hired and i understand what you are saying, but I am sure he would not play it if he didnt want to, he doesnt need the money afterall, westlife do etc they are definitely hired acts.

Many venues must send begging letters to get him to play especially after the 02 stint, they'd all love that kind of booking!! and ticket sales.

Im wondering why he agreed to play, what tipped the balance for him to agree.

But then we'll never know will we.