Lottery vs Cancellation line

Some popular Broadway shows offer $25 front row seats by lottery. Come to the boxoffice 2 and a half hours before the curtain rises; your names will be placed in a hat. 30 minutes later, names will be drawn with sales limited to 2 per person. Other sold out shows release a limited number of day-of-performance tickets if you're willing to stand in line that day for at least 2 and a half hours. This week, I had friends visiting from out of state and for the first (and definitely last) time, I went on a cancellation line. We arrived at the New Amsterdam Theatre hoping to score Mary Poppins tickets around 525 pm. There were already 8-9 people ahead of us. Between trying to schedule a dinner date with a relative, two hungry and exhausted kids with their frustrated parents, it was quite an experience. I thought it would be like the lottery where you can find out half hour after lining up if you got tickets or not. So I figured we'd have time to meet up with his cousin. She wisely told him that we won't know until minutes before the performance. Dinner with her was out of the question. So we set a time goal, deciding to wait until 7 pm then leave. Unfortunately, the guy from the boxoffice came out around that time and sent my hopes soaring when he sent half the people home. I never wanted to see Mary Poppins as badly as I wanted to that night! Eventually, he'd come back with offers of 2 tickets, but one upstairs and one downstairs. If someone refused them, he'd move on to the next person in line. Everyone pretty much refused them. Around 815 pm it was over; my hopes were dashed. It was stressful yet it wasn't so unpleasant because we got to talk to the other people in line. Most notably an elderly couple visiting from merry old England who sailed in on the Queen Mary. We all cheered and clapped when they did finally snag the last tickets. The gentleman managed to take a bow before he went and forked over $110 to the ticket agent. We all ended up in fairly good spirits afterwards. My friend's husband joked that it seemed like we were on a reality tv show testing human endurance ( I immediately thought of "Boiling Points"). So if you have the time and perseverance, try the cancellation line. Otherwise, order ahead of time or try the TKTS booth. (early, natch)