The Adventures in Wonderland fiasco of 2013 AKA The Ultimate Greed of 30 Seconds to Mars

During the Q&A of Artifact at the Toronto Film Festival, Jared said ” We’re not anti corporation, we’re not anti company. We’re anti-greed”

Well with the new Adventures In Wonderland formerly known The one and only Golden Ticket. The following has ensued.

Since The One And Only Golden Tickets (GT), now called Adventures In Wonderland (AIW) never allowed pictures or video recording during their Meet & Greet sessions, no one but those who have previously attended knows what happens during those events, so let’s make a quick summary…

During the This is War tour , a GT meant that you would queue for hours prior to the meeting time (yes, we DO queue for hours too, despite having early entry, because there were around 100-200 GT’s sold per show and with only half the stage available for GT holders, you were not secured a front row spot) and when the hostess arrived, she would take you inside, give you a color wristband depending on your package and you would go into the venue to wait again till the GA holders were let in. When the show finished, you would be taken inside a room, sometimes with no access to a toilet, given your bag, poster, laminate and the hostess would then give tell the crowd the rules. The group was to spread out in a circle, no cameras or cellphones allowed (or they would take them), have your item that you wanted signed out and ready, oh and only once signature per band member. After a while the guys would come into the room and sometimes Jared would stand in the middle of the group and chat for a little while at this time Shannon and Tomo would hang back in the back of the room and goof around and just  have fun. Then they would start signing (usually having Shannon and Tomo going clockwise, and Jared alone going counter-clockwise). The 10 seconds it took for them to sign PLUS the few minutes they’d stop in order to collect the present you brought them were the only minutes you were given as a meet and greet. Which seems short for the amount of money, but it was usually quite fun, explaining to them why you were giving them those presents, why they were important or significant. After the round of signatures, they guys would pose for pictures. At this time we were told that we were only given one photo so if we wanted someone else in our photo that is the only photo we were going to have. Also, there was no hugging the band members. Again, we would all queue and get our picture taken, sometimes in between saying hi to the guys again, or while answering to one of the guys who asked you where you came from, etc, but ALWAYS WITH NO PRIOR WARNING from the photographer that the picture was about to be taken. And that was it! It was short, too damn short, but it was fun, and it was something we would recommend to others in a heartbeat. “WAS” is the key word here.

With 2013 we are now in the mist of a new album and a new tour. There was an issue with the fans about the increase of the prices in the GT’s, but it was a bit understandable with the financial crisis, and Jared explained that the costs were for insurance, staffing, gift bags and that the band actually made nothing off of the GT.  We were told by Jared himself that GT’s would change, they would be more “limited in order to make them intimate and personal” https://twitter.com/JaredLeto/status/270563971768143872 .  We, the fans were satisfied with that at that time. We understood that things cost more, and if they were going to be fewer people than yes a higher price, but it wouldn’t be the 100+ people in each M&G as it was before. Less tiring for them, maybe a bit more time to just goof around. Ah but then changes started to happen…

For some unknown reason Golden Tickets (GT) became Adventure in Wonderland (AIW) and once some of the tour dates were listed, the new AIW packages were listed and included the following:

• Ticket to the show
• Early Entry (skip the long lines)
• Meet and Greet with individual photo with Thirty Seconds To Mars
• Pre-signed poster with all three band members signatures
• Exclusive merch pack including: t-shirt, commemorative laminate, mars tote
• Golden Ticket concierge

Pre-signed poster means that the guys will no longer sign anything in person (let’s hope it doesn’t mean the signatures will also be printed, then it would be a total rip off!). Some people seemed ok with this, they thought it would save some time during the M&G which they could spend talking to us while we were giving them our presents, etc. While others weren’t too happy with the idea.  What if instead of the poster,  you wanted another picture signed because you love that picture? Forget it. What if you wanted an album booklet signed? Forget it. What if you wanted one of your previous M&G pictures signed? Well, forget it! What if you wanted Shannon to sign in a different picture because your friend who lives in a remote island far away is a huge fan and you know she’ll never get to meet him but you wanted to make her happy? Forget that as well!…..But we accepted that and no one complained.

Then AIW sent out an email to all of us who had purchased the VIP packages. Great news for they had added two new things to the list of features in the AIW packages. “Remarks from Thirty Seconds To Mars” and “Question and Answer period with Thirty Seconds To Mars”. Sounds great huh? Oh but they added a PS at the end. “Due to security reasons giving gifts to the band personally is no longer possible. You have to label each present accordingly and they will collect them and give them to the band later”. As any marketing worker will tell you, you have to sweeten things up if you are delivering bad news.

So, let’s review this email. They add a Q+A and Remarks (for those of you who don’t know, remarks from a band is simply when they enter the room they say hello to the group as a whole) no longer would there be any one on one meet and greet and the ability to present each member with a personal gift is now forbidden. Some people spend months making a gift for each member, their heart and soul is poured out into that gift.  So basically now you don’t get to MEET the group anymore, you are merely a member of the audience during a Q+A session. That’s what a “boutique experience” means?

In a nutshell, everything that was the “special experience” has been taken away.

Jared said on the VyRT chat: “GT IS A LUXURY ITEM. ITS NOT JUST ABOUT MEETING THE BAND ITS THE WHOLE EXPERIENCE.” and “GT IS NOT THE SAME AS COMING OUT THE BACK OF A VENUE AND SAYING HELLO. ITS AN ALL NIGHT EXPERIENCE THAT GIVES YOU UNPARALLELED ACCESS”…..The whole experience of what? unparalleled access Jared said ” We’re not anti corporation, we’re not anti company. We’re anti-greed to what exactly? We live the concert the same way GA holders who have queued for hours/days do. We get a t-shirt, a bag, a hello from the band to all of us as a group, a Q+A and a picture. That’s it? Well, we paid for a MEET AND GREET, as it is stated in the AIW website. So where is the Meet and Greet?

Despite countless emails and tweets to AIW, the company owned by Jared Leto himself who organizes these GT’s, we have received NO ANSWER as to if we would get to talk to the band face to face as we did in the past, and not only by the Q+A, or if the solutions offered regarding the gifting issue have been even considered, so we decided to let our voice be heard publically. This could have been so easily solved by replying to us.

We do not believe in nagging and complaining, but in offering solutions for the problems we are faced with, so here are some solutions that the Echelon have come up with:

1)  MAIN ISSUE: GIFTING – AIW says “due to recent developments, there are significant concerns regarding security and gift giving.  Unfortunately the band will not be able to accept gifts in person until further notice.” Never has a fan given anything that could cause harm to the any of the band or the crew during a Meet and Greet. Therefore, this new arising issue is a non issue.
AIW SOLUTION: “If you are planning to bring a gift, please make sure it’s labelled and we will have them all collected and distributed accordingly.”
OUR CONCERN: Echelon spend MONTHS creating those gifts for the band. Often, those gifts need an explanation as to what they mean, or why they are especial. By not being able to give the gifts personally and explaining their meanings, you are making people feel they have wasted/will waste their time and effort in making them.
OUR SOLUTION: Collect all the presents when we enter the venue and have the concierge or security staff check each and every present while we are watching the show. When the show is done and all presents are safe and approved by AIW staff, allow us to deliver our presents PERSONALLY to the band.

2)  ISSUE: Pre-signed poster
OUR CONCERN: Why pre-signed poster? Why can’t it be a picture I choose or an album booklet or my previous M&G picture? Is it so people don’t take they Haiti books or Notes From The Outernet books to get them signed? Since we know those are sold at a higher price at the Mars Merch Store. Also the posters are made of very poor quality and some fans travel far to these concerts. The posters do not travel well and are often even torn before leaving the venue.
We bought the Haiti, Vyrt, NFTO books AND paid for a GT, so what is the problem if I want MY book signed? That I would not pay for the signed version of the book from the store since I prefer to have it signed in person? Think about it: Unsigned NFTO book ($75) + GT ($400) = $475. Signed NFTO = $150. Boy, that’s bad bad maths!
OUR SOLUTION: This is our Meet and Greet experience that we paid our hard-earned money for. Therefore, we should be able to have whatever we want signed by the band members.

3)  ISSUE: The official photographs
OUR CONCERN: If you look through the archives, 30% of the M&G pictures are awful. People (both fans AND the band) with eyes closed, looking somewhere else, talking to each other… For a “special picture to remember a special moment”, this should be something that should be taken seriously and professionally.
OUR SOLUTION: Either have the photographer to check each picture before the fan leaves, or shoot 2 or 3 times to make sure the photo will turn out right. This is something done by many bands, as seen in this KISS Meet & Greet fan video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdLL-5hY0BI

4)  ISSUE: No pictures or video recording
OUR SOLUTION: ALL bands allow this at their M&G which is a nice bonus for those who cannot attend or are considering if it is worth it. What is the big deal? That people will actually see what happens at a M&G? Well, some cheeky fans actually recorded some videos, and here you can see Shannon’s suggesting to the girls to take pictures during the M&G https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDUPbhgB-W4&NR=1

5)  ISSUE: GT’s restricted to Tomo’s side
AIW SOLUTION: This was a GT problem before the name change to AIW, When apparently GA holders complained they couldn’t get a front row spot despite queueing for hours, AIW decided to divide half the venue’s barricades for GT holders and half for GA, which meant not all GT holders would get front row.  30 Seconds to Mars is the only band who punishes those who actually spend hundreds of dollars on VIP tickets by sectioning them off in either 1/2 to 1/3 of the barrier. Some shows the VIP people were in the far corner looking at speakers. The VIP’ers were always on Tomo’s side,this in turn upset both the VIP and the GA fans as some wanted Shannon’s side and others wanted Tomo’s.
OUR SOLUTION: This one is easy, sell less GT’s. But let’s be honest, this is a business, and even though it was promised by Jared that GT’s would be “VERY  limited” this time (https://twitter.com/JaredLeto/status/270563971768143872) time will tell but AIW has already added more packages to some of the already sold out shows. Also, Jared said they would look into the whole Tomo vs Shannon’s side (https://twitter.com/JaredLeto/status/270557421141893120)

While 30 Seconds to Mars was on hiatus the GT started doing VIP’s for other bands, The Jonas Brothers, Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie to name a few. The prices for the packages were half the cost of the of 30 Seconds to Mars. Additionally, the packages included, sound check, 3-5 pictures, hugs and lots of joking and laughs.

During the Q&A of Artifact at the Toronto Film Festival, Jared said ” We’re not anti corporation, we’re not anti company. We’re anti-greed”

If this is indeed the case, then how come the AIW packages are 250$ for a non Meet and Greet but just an early entry and a gift bag? Lets say the ticket costs 50$, does this gift bag contain 200$ worth of product? There is no added insurance, crew or any of the extra costs that Jared said were the reason for the higher rates.

The next package is 350$ and that is the basic package, on floor general admission

The next package is 700$ and the difference is that you sit on the side of the stage. You get to look at the back of Tomo for the entire show.

And last but not least is the 900$ package which is sitting on the side of the stage and guaranteed on stage for Kings and Queens. So you see the back of the band the entire time, then come out on stage and get shoved to the back of the stage by the people who paid 25$ and were picked by the management because they have nice boobs or are guys and are now in front.

So where is the great experience, what are we taking home with this?

I will close again with the quote from Jared during the Q&A at Toronto Film Festival Jared said ” We’re not anti corporation, we’re not anti company. We’re anti-greed”

With these prices and the lack of special experience for the Adventures In Wonderland all that is seen here is greed.