Ticketing issues lead to delays, obstructed views for some at Elton John's Indy stop

For Edith Belitza, of Muncie, Friday night's Elton John concert at Gainbridge Fieldhouse represented "a lifelong dream" for herself and her wife.

"This is something we definitely set money aside for," Belitza said in a phone call Saturday. "We don't normally spend $1,000 on two tickets. We're both retired teachers."

As she presented her tickets at an upstairs entrance, Belitza was told they were invalid. She was sent downstairs to the box office, where a mass of people had seemingly suffered the same fate.

One hour and 45 minutes later, with a little less than half of John's show already over, her unobstructed balcony seats were suddenly converted into spots behind the stage, where she could only view a small screen and the back of John's head.

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As this was the 75-year-old singer's farewell tour, she and others are not likely to get a do-over.

The Fieldhouse released a statement late Friday evening noting the show had a series of reschedules, and the venue has since begun a remodeling project that affected seating.

"We regularly communicated with ticket holders, with those who were impacted by seat reconfiguration, and we have brought additional staffing to the box office and in our guest services in anticipation of a high volume of issues. We apologize to the fans who were delayed entering the show or had issues with their seats."

John's performance was delayed several times from October 2019 until Friday.

It's unclear exactly how many people were affected by the ticketing issues.

IndyStar reached out to Gainbridge on Saturday afternoon seeking further comment on the seating issues.

Belitza called the sound quality at her seats "terrible," and she had no view of John's elaborate staging or the video vignettes that accompanied many of his songs. She has since received a refund of her purchase from StubHub.

Jim Fangman and his wife drove from Batesville, about an hour southeast of Indianapolis, for the show, he said Saturday. They bought a pair of tickets for about $750 as a 2018 Christmas present and later spent an estimated $300 in hotel, meal and gas costs.

The couple arrived at 6:30 p.m., and their tickets were judged invalid. They waited first in one line, then another before reaching a box office attendant, whom Fangman said explained their seats were among those reconfigured during the remodeling.

Gainbridge was not able to link Fangman's tickets to Vivid Seats, a third-party resale company, because they were apparently bought and sold through Vivid by a broker, Fangman said he was told.

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He contacted Vivid, but the company could not locate the broker. After trying several other fixes and being denied new seats by the venue, the couple gave up around 9 p.m.

Fangman said he previously received emails after the show's several postponements confirming his tickets would be honored — and not any notice of the need for new seats due to remodeling.

In response to an IndyStar inquiry, Vivid Seats said Fangman would be refunded. Fangman confirmed his refund.

As of 7:45 p.m. Friday, 15 minutes until showtime, there were easily hundreds struggling to find a line to the box office.

Some, like Belitza, had purchased their tickets through third-party vendors such as StubHub, while others had done so through Gainbridge. Some had purchased tickets years in advance, others earlier that week. Several frustrated would-be concert goers announced they would be leaving and seeking a refund.

On Twitter, Meghan Gray shared a similar story and photos, saying she was sat behind the stage when she bought unobstructed tickets on the other side of the venue.

Belitza and others on social media said the number of people who got in late was more likely 1,000 people or more.

Rory Appleton is the pop culture reporter at IndyStar. Contact him at 317-552-9044 and rappleton@indystar.com, or follow him on Twitter at @RoryDoesPhonics.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Hundreds hit by ticketing issues at Elton John's Indianapolis show