Written by: Chelsea Mastrocola
After tickets to the recent Mac Miller concert on September 21 sold out within minutes, students expressed widespread disappointment and frustration with Student Entertainment Events (SEE).
“By the time the internet page loaded for the tickets. It was sold out” Daren Yeezy Barnes posted on the official Facebook petition to move Mac Miller to Cole Field House.
Students were frustrated that with a school of over 23,000 students, only 800 tickets were available for the event, which was hosted in the Grand Ballroom of the Adele H. Stamp Student Union. Senior business major Ben Goldstein started a Facebook group petitioning SEE to move the performance’s location to a larger venue, particularly Cole Field House. Almost 1,500 people joined the event, and students expressed their frustration with the small venue.
On the official petition, Antonette Marianne Tubera said:“If SEE moved it to a larger venue, wouldn’t it potentially increase ticket sales which means more money for Mac/SEE? So many people want this. I just don’t get it.”
The answer to Antonette’s question is no, according to SEE. The organization released a comprehensive response to students listing the reasons a change in venue was impossible.
President of SEE, Chelsea Soobitsky said that moving to a larger venue, such as Cole Field House, increases reservation and production costs significantly, and given the amount of time before the concert, orchestrating said changes would be impossible.
Ms. Soobitsky also provided the specifics of the issues in an email sent to frustrated students that contacted SEE. Along with being more costly, moving Mac Miller to Cole Field House would violate the contract between Miller and SEE. When SEE decides to book an artist, they immediately prepare a contract stating the amount of money ensured to the artist, which most times is dependent on the venue and the amount of people. All contracts for student events, including this one, are not only between SEE and Mac Miller. They also involve university officials, which make it even harder to change the terms of the contract.
Freshman Stella Song said: “I think they really underestimated how big Mac Miller is.”
However, SEE did adequate research. According to Soobitsky, they organized a poll last spring in order to get a feel for the interest in Mac Miller amongst the university student body. When they found considerable interest, and after taking into account the capacity of the shows Miller has performed previously, SEE decided that the Grand Ballroom would be the most appropriate place for the event.
All of these aspects made moving Mac Miller to Cole Field House impossible. As unfortunate as it is, there will be other chances to see Mac Miller perform. Luckily, for those who could not get tickets to the fall show, Mac Miller will be performing December 1 at the new Fillmore venue in Silver Spring, Md.
