“The Book of Mormon” is ending its long-standing in-person lottery in favor of going all digital.
The lottery was one of the last in-person lotteries currently on Broadway and has been in place at “The Book of Mormon” since 2011, the year the show opened at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre. Starting Sept. 4, the show will only use its digital lottery, which had coexisted alongside its in-person offering.
Representatives from the show, produced by Scott Rudin and Anne Garefino, declined to comment on the reason for ending the in-person lottery. However many shows have been moving toward digital lotteries in recent years, with “Wicked” as the only show currently on Broadway to solely have its lottery in-person. “Wicked” also offers student rush tickets at the box office.
“Mean Girls” and “Once on This Island” also have in-person lotteries, as well as digital lotteries.
The use of online lotteries has grown in recent years, with the lotteries largely hosted on sites affiliated with the theater owners, such as Lucky Seat, owned by Jujamcyn Theaters, and Broadway Direct, part of the Nederlander Producing Company of America.
Digital lotteries can attract more entrants than in-person lotteries, due to the convenience of signing up, and can be used to create buzz about the show online, as many offer options to post about the show online to increase the odds of winning.
Since its beginning, “The Book of Mormon” lottery has been hosted at the theater by Christopher Catalano, who tweeted a farewell Friday.
It is official, @BookofMormon lottery is going digital. I will host all 5 last live lotteries this weekend.
The past 7.5 years, I have helped almost 100,000 people see the show that changed my life.
Forever thankful for the opportunity to share so much joy.
Always,
Lotterydude
— Christopher Catalano (@lotterydude) August 31, 2018
