Seems to me there's no reason there can't be a layered figure... I think amount of seats that had a body watching the show is an important thing to know. Which of those were comp'd is also important. So is how many were bought at full price (or, perhaps, above a certain level of cost) or discounted. In the scheme of things is my $40 rush ticket really gonna matter compared to a $120 ticket in the row next to mine? So that different is important too. But also... capacity is capacity, and people in the house who didn't pay are still contributing to the capacity, and are still seeing the show. It's not part of the sales numbers but the body count of viewers is worth knowing too. If I get a comp it's not always true that I wouldn't have paid otherwise, or that I'm going to see it as a favor or obligation or whatever... how many people saw the show any given night matters on its own level. And that includes people who stood in the back.
Hey, if previews don't count toward the length of the run for some insane reasoning, then sure, balance it out by counting comp seats as part of capacity even if they use capacity to mean tickets. |
