The times are a'changing and now there are more ways than ever to track down the latest theatre deals.  Gone are the days of queuing up outside a theatre on the day with your fingers crossed that the show isn't quite as much of a hit as its producers had hoped, just for the chance of a last minute discount at the counter.  These standby rate tickets are always a possibility, particularly in the week, for students and senior citizens, but what about your regular Joe Bloggs?  A show needs to be selling quite poorly to increase the ordinary customer's chances of a counter discount - and who wants to see a flop?

Luckily nowadays a brief spell cruising the internet saves you a wasted journey. Many theatre ticket sites are well aware that people want to snap up a bargain so will either have a page of offers on their site, or will proudly announce them as soon as you hit their first page. If they are an agency they are probably making just as much money on these tickets as they are on full price shows, as they will have bought them from the theatre at lower discount still. For that reason you don't always have to be suspicious if an offer seems too good to be true, it is no different than a high street store putting their sale items in the window. Once you are in, you may be tempted to book for something else, and even if you are just picking off the plum bargains, a sale's a sale!

In fact, why not make the special offers come to you? Nowadays there is no need to do all the work - many theatres and booking agents are linking their websites to social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter.  In this digital age you can be chatting to your friends and have a special offer for a show pop up on your news feed if you are signed up. Even if the companies aren't hip enough to have linked up with these sites, many will have an option on their own website or registration form where you can sign up for a newsletter from them. Rather than having random offers bombarding you through the mail, these will usually come via email, possibly bringing to your attention a show or deal you weren't even aware of. These can always be quickly deleted at the click of a button if they aren't tickling your fancy, as well as being more environmentally friendly that postal junk mail.

The latest theatre deals in the comfort of your own home?  Whoever said shopping should be hard work!