Waitaki people who want to see Dame Kiri Te Kanawa sing in Oamaru have to be quick to buy the few tickets left. When they go on sale on Saturday from 10am, they are expected to sell out within minutes.
Waitaki district people had preferential bookings last Friday for the one-off "An Evening with Dame Kiri" concert in the Opera House on March 27 and all 200 tickets set aside went in the one day.
"This was a great surprise to the organisers and the community but unfortunately means that many local people may have missed out," Opera House director Megan Peacock-Coyle said yesterday.
Traditionally, local people have been slow to book shows, sometimes even expecting to pick up door sales on the day.
Initially, it was expected it could take up to a week to sell the preferential tickets to Waitaki people before bookings opened to the rest of New Zealand on Saturday.
Another 150 tickets have been allocated to sponsors of the concert, leaving about 150 still to be sold.
Mrs Megan Peacock-Coyle said there had been many inquiries from Waitaki people for tickets after they had sold out. There had also been calls from around New Zealand - and even one from the United States - wanting tickets.
Because of the inquiries, tickets were expected to sell quickly.
Predictions were that the remaining 150 could be sold online within 10 or 15 minutes, meaning people who queued at the Opera House this Saturday could miss out.
