While not quite Broadway prices, D.C. theater tickets can put a serious dent in the collegiate budget. Thankfully, many District thespian hot spots offer young theatergoers discounts on select showings.
Washington National Opera
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
2700 F St., NW
Generation O at the Washington National Opera is the self-proclaimed “premier young professional arts-lover program” in the District. Members can choose at least three operas from a limited selection for 50 percent off regular ticket prices and are also eligible to receive exclusive discounts via email and free attendance at lectures.
The Shakespeare Theatre Company
610 F St., NW
Young Prose Nights at the Shakespeare Theatre Company invites guests between 21 and 35 years old to enjoy a pre or post show happy hour as well as a play for under $30. The next nights are Wednesday Feb. 8 and Wednesday Feb. 15 featuring Shakespeare’s “The Two Gentlemen of Verona.”
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
641 D St., NW
The eclectic Woolly Mammoth Theatre offers perennial $20 tickets to any performance for theatergoers under the age of 30, available a week before the show’s first performance. The group also typically offers “Pay-What-You-Can” tickets for the first one or two performances of every show, only sold that evening, two hours before the curtain goes up.
Round House Theatre Bethesda
4545 East West Hwy, Bethesda, Md.
Bethesda’s Round House offers $10 weekday and $15 weekend admission to savings savvy guests under the age of 30. They also offer all patrons $10 Tuesday tickets for side orchestra and side balcony seating at selected performances. The next discount event is a production of “Next Fall” on both Feb. 14 and 21.
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
2700 F St., NW
The Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage features a free show everyday, offering a broad range of performances ranging from the Children of Uganda Choir to Mike Flaherty’s Dixieland Direct Jazz Band, both of which will be featured later this month. Past performers include rapper K’naan and rockers OK Go.
The Kennedy Center also offers discounts and the occasional free ticket for guests between the ages of 18 and 30 through their “MyTix” ticket program. Current deals include $10 tickets to National Symphony Orchestra performances.
Ford’s Theatre
511 10 St., NW
The historic Ford’s Theatre features a limited number of discount tickets for patrons under 35 years old at select performances, the next of which is “Necessary Sacrifices,” which focuses on the encounters between former President Abraham Lincoln and abolitionist and former slave Frederick Douglass, on Jan. 24 and 26.
