It seems that nowadays everyone is trying to make a quick buck, even if it makes someone else’s experience worse. This is also seen at shows and venues. Overselling has become a problem at a number of venues, and though this may seem like a small problem, it can lead to people leaving early, parties getting shut down, and sometimes, death.
When you go to a sold out show you understand that it will be a little tight, but you never want to feel like you have no room to breathe. Venues with multiple stages are able to sell more tickets because they technically have more room, but they are not being truthful in how many people each DJ will bring in. For example, a headliner is going to bring in more people than an up-and-comer. A common way from venues to oversell their shows is to sell enough tickets for two stages, but not admit that most people will be at the headlining show.
There has been a number of times that venues oversold and their mistake leads to death. It sounds drastic but it is what is happening. During an emergency, overselling an event is extremely dangerous. It is difficult for everybody to leave a venue safely and can lead to trampling.
So what can we do to fix this problem? Though it may seem like many times our voices are not heard, keep speaking out against what you find frustrating, call on venues that keep overselling their events. Hopefully, venues will get the idea that they are not going to win on overselling, and their events are going to continue to be shut down. Though your night may have felt ruined because of overselling, it is so much more than that, people can get hurt if overselling keeps happening.
What do you think we can do to stop venues from overselling? Let us know on our Facebook or Twitter!
Important things happen in Pacific Northwest nightlife, and DMNW will send you alerts!
