CHEAP SEATS – PART II

Looking to experience more of San Diego’s theatre scene without saying curtains to your budget? We’ve got the secrets to snagging discount play tickets at the San Diego Repertory Theatre, North Coast Repertory, Cygnet Theatre, smaller and more intimate theatre stages in town, and through half-off ticket providers. With all these steals for San Diego stages, there’s simply no room for full-price foolishness at the box office.

Photo credit: Joanne DiBona/San Diego CVB

San Diego Repertory Theatre
At the San Diego Repertory Theatre, anyone with a valid student ID can purchase play tickets for a mere $18. Price includes parking validation for six hours at the Horton Plaza. San Diego Repertory Theatre presents six contemporary productions and four annual festivals (September-June) in the Lyceum Theatre, located at Horton Plaza in downtown San Diego.

North Coast Repertory Theatre
During the run of a North Coast Repertory Theatre main stage production, ten tickets will be made available for $20 each at the theatre box office beginning at 12 noon. You can buy up to two tickets, cash only. Call ahead to make sure that these tickets will be available for that day’s performance. North Coast Repertory Theatre features seven top-notch productions year-round in an intimate setting in Solana Beach.

Cygnet Theatre
The best time to catch a play at Cygnet Theatre is during their preview shows when Section B seats are only $17 and Section A goes for a mere $27. Groups of ten or more can save $4 more off of those preview prices, so gather your crew together to catch a play at this avant-garde theatre company. Cygnet performs at the intimate performance space at the Old Town Theatre.

Smaller stages, bigger savings
Even in a county bursting with the top-drawer theatrical attractions above, the best cultural values can be found at the smaller, community theatre companies. Prices are cheaper (full-price tickets go for the same price as bigger theatre’s half-off tix) and your seats are closer to the stage. Best of all, you’d be supporting talented and passionate, albeit mostly unpaid, actors who are performing for the pure love of it.

Plus, many of these smaller troupes offer Pay-What-You-Can nights, a perfect chance for you to ‘try out’ a theatre or play company. Just sign up for their email list and you’ll be the first to know when these are offered. Don’t know where to start exploring San Diego’s intimate theatres? See below for some of my picks or check with the San Diego Performing Arts League to find a theatre company to fit your play preference.

Moxie Theatre –Plucky actors and gutsy and intriguing productions.

Mo’olelo Performing Arts Company– Socially relevant and emotionally searing productions.

OnStage Playhouse – A community theatre in downtown Chula Vista that produces six plays a year.

Diversionary Theatre - one of the oldest LGBT theatres in the country, produces edgy dramatic productions and playful musicals, located in University Heights (my ‘hood!).

Compass Theatre – Formerly 6th@Penn, cutting-edge and offbeat shows known to shock.

HALF-OFF TICKET PROVIDERS
The San Diego Performing Arts League runs the tried-and-true Arts Tix booth at Horton Plaza, a small, but mighty hut with fat half-off deals for a wide range of live performances including theatre, music and dance. Better yet, they’re the only discount ticket provider that gives 100 percent of its profits back to the arts. Arts Tix also has a branch in Escondido at the San Diego North Convention & Visitors Bureau. Visit their Web site first to see what’s for sale that day.

Another sweet site for deep discounts is Goldstar.com, which has a large collection of half-off tickets (I’ve seen tickets for as little as $4) for theatre performances, as well as sports events, tours and other San Diego events.