I love the performances at Stratford, Ontario. I would go to them more often if they weren't so expensive.
This season, due in large part to the economic downturn, attendance at the performances was so low that many of the performances scheduled for later in the season were canceled. However, additional gubmnt funding has been provided so that more of the performances could go ahead as scheduled.
But of course increased gubmnt funding per se doesn't mean customers will be any more likely to attend the plays. So now, recognizing that the marginal costs of having one more person in a less-than-capacity-filled theatre are near zero, Stratford is offering balcony tickets for $29 for many of its performances.
One problem with this strategy is that those who booked tickets well in advance will be distressed at having paid more. And now people will tend to hold off buying tickets in the future, waiting for the deals at the end of the season.
It's a classic short-run, price discrimination maximizing strategy that might not be so profitable for the longer run.
Addendum: it reminds me of the problem that many minor league sports teams face when they have a large number of ticket give-aways during the season. They then find that fans start waiting for the give-aways in the future, making the marketing of the tickets all that much more difficult.