The Gran Teatro De La Habana Is Guarded Against Ticket Scalpers

The Gran Teatro De La Habana Is Guarded Against Ticket Scalpers / 14ymedio

14ymedio, Havana, 26 January 2016 — The National Council of the
Performing Arts has taken measures against the resale of tickets at the
Alicia Alonso Gran Teatro de La Habana. The Ministry of Culture,
which controls the theater, emphasized that the new controls have been
established jointly with the venue to eliminate "the unscrupulous action
of the resellers."

Each person who lines up to get seats can appear at the window only once
and must show their identity card. From now on, an individual can only
buy four tickets to one performance, or two for each event if they are
buying for two different events.

The Security and Institutions of Culture Company will increase the
number of agents around the ticket window and the theater doors when
there is a show of great interest to the public. In addition, the
National Revolutionary Police will identify possible resellers.

"We are confident that the planned measures will help us stop the
speculators in a decisive way, we will work so the Alicia Alonso Gran
Teatro de La Habana remains a referential place for young people," the
venue has stated in a note published in Juventud Rebelde (Rebel Youth)
newspaper.

Earlier this month, in the Letter to the Editor section of that
newspaper, the journalist Jose Alejandro Rodriguez complained that "the
Cuban State has financed an extremely costly repair of the Alicia Alonso
Gran Teatro de La Habana" and "it no more than reopens the doors of the
venue, and the traditional claque of resellers has regrouped and
exercises their hegemony in the line at the entrances for the
performances of the Cuban National Ballet."

The reporter published the letter of an indignant reader who explained
how the resellers would offer tickets to the place for 10 Cuban
convertible pesos (CUC – about $10 US), when the official price is 30
Cuban pesos (about $1.20 US). "If they try to sell them right before the
performance starts, it's 15 CUC," she complained.

In October of last year this newspaper mentioned an ad on the popular
classified site, Revolico, saying that "reasonably priced tickets for
the Ballet Festival" were for sale. In that case, in addition to those
sold by the so-called coleros (people at the line), tickets were also
available from ones given to intellectuals, artists and people linked to
the Cuban National Ballet, at a cost of between 20 and 25 Convertible pesos.

Source: The Gran Teatro De La Habana Is Guarded Against Ticket Scalpers
/ 14ymedio – Translating Cuba -
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