Tickets for tonight’s Accent Speaker’s Bureau show with Neil deGrasse Tyson, a nationally renown astrophysicist, ran out in 30 minutes.
The free tickets were handed out at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts box office at noon Tuesday for students. There are no public-viewing tickets because they usually come from leftover student tickets.
The event starts at 8 p.m. at the Phillips Center. Doors open at 7 p.m.
Accent Chairman Josh Holtzman said he didn’t expect the tickets to go so fast.
“We were all surprised by how quickly the tickets sold out,” said the 22-year-old UF political science and history senior. “But of course we’re sorry that there weren’t enough tickets for everyone to get in.”
Holtzman said he did not know exactly how many tickets were distributed, but the center has about 1,600 seats.
However, he said, for those who didn’t get tickets, the event will be recorded and projected on screens outside.
In response to student concern about the lack of tickets, Holtzman said, some ticketing processes are out of Accent’s control.
“We’re always interested in improving our operations and learning from our experiences, and after the show, we may re-evaluate some of the ticketing procedures to create a more equitable distribution.”
He said Accent does not approve of students selling the tickets, and he has advised his staff to monitor Craigslist and delete posts that solicit money for tickets.
Dragana Tabakovic, a 21-year-old anthropology junior, received a ticket.
“Since it’s sold out,” she said, “I’ll probably get there at 5 at the very latest.”
Contact Alexa Volland at avolland@alligator.org.
