When theaters want a full house, Web site puts locals in the seats

Even though they live in the entertainment capital of the world, Las Vegas locals can feel shut out when it comes to access to shows, concerts and parties on the Strip.

With tickets to popular shows topping $100 and access to some events requiring VIP status, it can be tough for the typical Las Vegas resident to feel welcome.

That's where Bryce Krausman and houseseatsLV.com come in.

Krausman, 30, is co-owner of the Web site with business partner Suellen Meyers.

The site is a good fit for Krausman, who was born and raised in Las Vegas and found work in entertainment.

The site, founded in 2005, is an Information Age outlet for what theater professionals call "papering the house." That's when producers of an event distribute tickets to concierges, cab drivers and anyone else they think can draw a crowd to a particular event. The idea is to use complimentary tickets to augment the paid audience so the venue is full during a performance.

Thanks to previous work at MGM Grand Garden arena and as a publicist for the Blue Man Group, Krausman has experience papering the house the old fashioned way.

Now with the Web site he and Meyers let technology do much of the work. Las Vegas locals can subscribe for $39, $89 or $169. In exchange they get free tickets to events happening almost every day on the Strip such as shows, concerts and awards programs.

Question: How does houseseats work?

Answer: Houseseats works in that when shows have extra seats to fill they partner with us. We have a database of people who are all locals. The locals in essence get to see a show for free, they just pay an annual fee. That is how we make our money. Then we are able to supply the show with a list of people who they need to fill the theater.

Question: What is the incentive for the show?

Answer: The incentive for the show has always been to keep a full house. If they have a reporter coming into the show or they have a celebrity in the house or they just generally want energy for the show. Performers perform better for a full house than for a smaller house. The incentive for them is they don't have to do this process themselves. We give them the opportunity to get locals who don't typically buy tickets. They get a new, fresh local body in the hotel.

Question: Why is the local audience so important?

Answer: When you think about shows on Broadway or any other market, after September 11, 2001, they really asked a lot of the (New York metropolitan) area to come back to the shows. We bounced back pretty quickly from September 11. But we didn't have a locally cultivated market, we still don't. What houseseats is doing is bringing the local to the property, allowing our Web site to be the conduit for the hotel's message.

Question: Why do you think there is a disconnect between the locals and the productions?

Answer: The hotels here on the Strip ... they go after the 40 million plus people who come here. They don't know who the (local) customer is. We know who the customers are, every single one of their names.

Question: How did productions fill the house before the Internet and what value does your site add to the process?

Answer: The value we add is time. Papering is the technical term in theater to fill up a theater. The hotel usually relies on a system. Whether it is a public relations company or employees or any of those it takes time. It takes phone calls, faxes, e-mails. Our system works online. It works automatically. When you put the message out to locals that they can get tickets to a show, they log onto a specific account with their e-mail addresses and passwords, they can reserve tickets in real time and a list is generated. There is no back-end work on the phone or e-mail, it is all automated and the show gets a list. You give us tickets and we'll give you a list.

Question: How did the Web site start?

Answer: There is a company in New York that we know of and they do this; it's been around for 20 plus years, Theater Extras. We were inspired by the way they do it. My business partner (Meyers) brought me the idea. She and her sister both worked on shows. We went from there, creating a site in October 2005. We were live on the Internet in December 2005.

Question: How long did it take to go from concept to a live Web site?

Answer: We are still working on it. Once you have a Web site it is like you went and bought a house. You are always making renovations. There are still things we change. On the outside the member doesn't see anything. But on the inside we make it easier on the member and easier on us. We were pretty much with the current Web site we have now, that was done in April 2006.

Question: How did people find out about it?

Answer: Word-of-mouth. Our very first member was my friend Margerita. She said, "I want to be the first one to sign up," and she was. Those people told friends. We did rely on friends and family to come into shows when we needed to fill them, so we went to friends and family first when we (launched) the Web site. After the first month we started seeing people I never knew.

Question: How many people have signed up?

Answer: I never tell anybody (the number of members). We always tell the productions we can fill 50 to 1,000 seats. That is sort of the roundabout figure.

Question: Is one of your goals for the Web site to provide full-time employment?

Answer: Yes. It is one of those things right now; that is full-time hours. I am sending e-mails back to members in the middle of the night when I am awake because I have been working through the day and returning phone calls. Members are thrilled to get a personal response back from us. Some companies you get an auto response. We'll be right back with you in an hour.

Question: What do you think makes a good Las Vegas show? And what are the things that undermine a show?

Answer: The marketing is important. I think word-of-mouth is the strongest thing.

But I don't think it is a bad thing that shows come and go. If you look at Broadway some shows stay forever and some shows are there and gone. Their run is over. It is a great thing to offer your guests or the locals a chance to see another great show. We've had "Chicago," we've had so many amazing shows in Las Vegas that had their run. But they don't need to run forever. I don't think we are Broadway West, I think we are more like the best of Broadway.

Contact reporter Benjamin Spillman at bspillman@reviewjournal.com or (702) 477-3861.