Exclusive:West-End 'lottery' ticketing system to come to Fringe for first time

A ticketing "lottery" system for sold out shows similar to that used in London's West End is to be brought to the Fringe for the first time.

Audience members will be able to use website Sold Out Board enter a draw to get the chance to buy final tickets for festival shows which have no remaining capacity.

The practice has been common in the West End for a number of years, with a small number of tickets for popular shows held back for the lottery system, often at discounted prices.

The project is to be piloted at this year's festival with a limited number of sold-out shows hosted at venues including Shedinburgh, run by Baby Reindeer producer Francesca Moody, as well as producer Berk's Nest - which is behind Paddy Young's Will Sir Be Laughing Alone. Other venues are yet to be confirmed.

Sell-out shows at Shedinburgh (pictured) are to be included in the pilot. Pic: Andrew Perry | Shedinburgh

Sold Out Board is the brainchild of theatre entrepreneur Celia Dugua, who was the producer of and behind ticketing operations for Operation Mincemeat's London run, with the support of theatre charity Stage One’s 5 at 50 programme.

She said: “At the Fringe, the highest praise is not a five-star review. It’s your name written up in chalk on the sold out board that every box office keeps, a running list of the shows that filled every seat that day. To be chalked up is to have arrived.

“In a world where AI algorithms and the biggest PR budgets are increasingly shaping what people are booking, Sold Out Board is a recommendation signal that is a pure reflection of human demand.”

Celia Dugua. Pic: Clemence Rebourg. | Clemence Rebourg.

Ms Dugua said the scheme allows producers to collate data from people keen to access a ticket for a particular performer which they can use for marketing future shows.

She said: “Behind each sold out board is an act of waste, because the people who tried to book those shows and could not are lost. And the next time the company performs, they start again from nothing.”

“A show’s real asset is the relationship with the people who love it, or wanted to and could not get in. That is how a Fringe hit grows into something bigger. A sold out board should be more than a trophy, it is an opportunity to speak to a group of patrons telling us exactly what they want to see next.”

Darcy Dobson, producer at Shedinburgh, said: “The Sold Out Board is a brilliant piece of innovation, genuinely democratising last minute access to in demand shows. Anyone who's been to Fringe knows how gutting it is to miss out on the sleeper hit tucked away in a tiny venue because it sold out overnight.

“Industry insiders have historically always had access to last minute tickets through back channels, but this gives all Fringe lovers a fair shot at getting involved in the fun. That's exactly the ethos Shedinburgh was built on, which is why we're so proud to be a founding partner.”

Unlike in London, where tickets are often sold at discount prices, the Fringe lottery will only give audience members a chance to get their hands on a standard-price ticket which would otherwise not be available. The tickets which are entered into the lottery are generally those held back by venues for press or other available comps.

Joseph Smith, chief executive of Stage One, which supported the creation of Sold Out Board, said it could have a “huge impact” on the industry.

He said: “Great producers don't just bring brilliant shows to audiences – they think about how the whole ecosystem can work better for fellow producers, artists, venues and the public. Celia's project reflects exactly the kind of entrepreneurial thinking Stage One exists to support, and we're delighted to be backing producers like her who are developing their practice, launching companies and kick starting their careers.”