Parents wait early Sunday morning for tickets to their child’s recital at the Dance Theater in Heron Bay. Photo by Jill Fox.
By: Jill Fox
It’s 7 a.m. on Sunday morning, and around 100 parents are waiting in line at the Sawgrass Center near Heron Bay – not for tickets to an Ariana Grande concert or free samples from Dunkin’ Donuts. This was for the chance to nab the best seat to their child’s end-of-the-year dance recital.
Since 2005, Dance Theatre at Heron Bay has occupied this location, as well as four others in the tri-county area. With nearly 2,000 performers, the logistics of ticket sales for their annual recital can get complicated, so the studio sells assigned seats on a first-come first-served basis.
Parents are told tickets would go on sale Sunday, April 28 at 8:30 a.m., and they could secure their space in line as early as they desired. By 8:00 p.m. Saturday night, that’s exactly what one father did who didn’t get the coveted first spot in line last year; this time he was determined to get it.
One family with three daughters in dance classes decided to forgo the aggravation and hire a family friend to do the waiting for them. Sam, a Coral Springs high school student arrived at 10 p.m. and was paid $100 for her time.
Kris, a father of a nine-year-old daughter, who takes jazz, ballet and acro classes, has been securing his spot in line for four years at 11 p.m. He said he waits in line every year because his wife tells him to.
Arriving at 11:30 p.m., is a woman laying on a cot near the front of the line who said her daughter has been dancing since she turned two and this has been her routine for the past 11 years.
“We pay a lot of money for dance, so we want to make sure we have good seats to see her perform.”
One mom, who arrived at 6:30 a.m. Sunday morning said this was her sixth year at Dance Theatre, and she had never seen such a long line.
“People seem more prepared this year with their coffee and folding chairs,” she said.
The recital will take place on June 1 at the Coral Springs Center for the Arts at 2855 Coral Springs Drive. From the looks of this weekend, it may be a sellout.
Author Profile
- Jill Fox is an Emmy Award-winning writer and producer. She has worked in public relations and television for over 20 years. Fox lives in Parkland with her husband and their two children.
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