There are some celebrities who people believe are worth waiting in line for. It isn’t just teen stars that are causing all the fuss, nor is it just teens waiting in queues for a glimpse of the celeb they love. People of all ages are willing to do just about whatever it takes to get close to their favorite celebrities, even if it means standing in record-breaking lines.
Hillary Clinton
Nearly 1,000 people waited in line outside the Union Square Barnes & Noble in Manhattan to meet Hillary Clinton at her first book signing for her new memoir Hard Choices. Thank goodness the book release was in June 2014 so the people sleeping in beach chairs on the sidewalk overnight didn’t freeze, especially since this queue came with rules: no asking questions, no requests for Clinton to personalize her autograph, no requests to pose for photos or selfies, and no carrying anything that doesn’t fit in a pocket.
Beyonce
Interestingly enough, some Beyonce fans are asking for concert venues to bring back the physical queue where first-come-first-served is the rule to follow and there is a cap on the number of tickets you can purchase. People are quickly out of luck when they try to snag seats through the online queue, mostly because the majority of tickets go to promoters, sponsors, and other VIPs. In the UK, tickets to Beyonce’s summer 2013 tour saw 3 million fans applying for tickets online in just two hours but tickets to the 11 shows sold out in 15 minutes. And, at Manchester Arena, where people waited overnight in line, queues were shut down when gangs of thugs hijacked the queue.
Justin Bieber
He may make headlines more for his bad behavior than his music, but Justin Bieber can do no wrong in the eyes of his Beliebers, especially the 150 fans in Rio de Janeiro who camped out for 50 days before the start of his concert last November to ensure they got a front-row spot. Police banned the under-18 crowd from spending the night in front of the Sambadrome, where people took turns sleeping overnight to reserve their seat. The queuing was not without troubles, with safety and health inspections, robbings, and jeering from passersby.
One Direction
Stamina knows no bounds when it comes to teen idols, and the British pop group One Direction’s fans queued for 40 hours to get their hands on concert tickets. Many of the band’s fans are under 18 so parents often get roped into camping out with their teens. Camping out in general is an unusual choice for concert-goers in today’s internet age, but some 1D fans weren’t taking any chances, hoping their physical presence could help them snag tickets to their idols’ show.
Lady Gaga
Lady Gaga has her dedicated legions of little monsters, and they made themselves known at the opening of a new H&M flagship store in Manhattan’s Times Square last winter when the artist was making an appearance to cut the store’s ribbon and promote her album. Freezing temps didn’t prevent fans from standing in line for 10 hours, with a line snaking around three blocks, just to get a glimpse of Lady Gaga.
Harry Potter
The recent opening of Diagon Alley at Universal Studios in Florida shows just how die-hard the legions of Harry Potter fans are. It was an endurance test for parkgoers who waited for two hours just to get into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, and many then queued up again to board the attraction’s signature ride, Escape from Gringotts, which by afternoon had a posted wait time of 450 minutes (enough time to watch the last three Harry Potter movies). Even though many wielded wands, there weren’t any spells that could get the line to move faster. Do you operate a venue that regularly hosts high-profile acts? Or are you about to host a special event featuring a big name for the first time? Talk with a Lavi expert about how to manage the queues to keep your facility in good working order and keep excited fans under control and happy in the queue.
