Our Favorite Theater Resources
Discount Programs & Deals
TDF (Theatre Development Fund) Membership
$42/year, unlocks $11–$60 tickets across Broadway, Off-Broadway, and dance. Eligibility isn't just "under 30," also covers students, teachers, union members, artists, freelancers, retirees 62+, and more. Requires ID/proof upload, recertify every 4 years.
HipTix (Roundabout Theatre Company)
Free to join, ages 18–40. Gets you $30 tickets to all Roundabout shows (Todd Haimes Theatre, Studio 54, Stephen Sondheim Theatre), plus invites to member parties. There's also HipTix High: free for ages 14–18, $10 tickets.
MTC35 (Manhattan Theatre Club)
Free to join. $35 tickets to every MTC production for members under 35, at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre and both City Center stages.
LincTix (Lincoln Center Theater)
Free to join, ages 18–35. $32–$35.50 tickets to every new LCT and LCT3 production at the Beaumont, Newhouse, and Claire Tow theaters, plus Broadway transfers. Purchase in advance instead of racing a rush line. Note: enrollment opens periodically rather than staying open year-round, so it's worth checking status before sending someone there.
Student Rush
~$35–45 tickets sold day-of at the box office, first-come first-served, valid student ID required. Policy varies by show, Playbill keeps the fullest running list.
Rush, Lottery & Same-Day Apps
TodayTix
Digital rush and lottery for many Broadway and Off-Broadway shows. Rush tickets release around 9am day-of; lotteries open on their own show-specific windows.
Broadway Direct Lottery
Some shows run their own digital lottery. Free entry, winners notified the day before or day-of.
Hamilton App Lottery
Runs entirely outside the usual channels, Hamilton's own app, its own $10 seats, its own rules.
Resale / Peer-to-Peer
Theatr
Broadway- and live-event-specific resale marketplace. Fee-free for sellers — you can only list at or below what you paid, which keeps it fast (about 40% of listings sell within 10 minutes) and keeps prices honest.
SeatGeek
Deal Score rates every listing by value, seats are verified, and interactive seating charts show the actual view before you buy. Broader reach than Theatr, but standard resale fees apply.
TickPick
No-fee resale — the price you see is the price you pay. Smaller Broadway inventory than SeatGeek or StubHub, but worth checking before paying a 20-30% markup elsewhere.
StubHub
The broadest reach of any resale platform, with a buyer guarantee on every sale. Fees run 10–40% on top of face value, the tradeoff for having the most inventory for in-demand shows.
Logging / Tracking Apps
Mezzanine
iOS only. Log every show with ratings, seat location, and notes; scan a Playbill to add it instantly; see a map of everywhere you've seen theater and stats on how your year stacks up. The most fully built-out "Letterboxd for theater" option.
Theatregoer
Pulls tickets straight from your email, adds home screen widgets for upcoming and "on this day" shows, and syncs across devices via iCloud.
Show-Score
Less a personal log, more a decision tool, audience scores that often diverge sharply from critics, useful for catching shows that got panned in print but are beloved in the room.