Bringing in the Young

The under-40 crowd is the Holy Grail of every fine-arts performing group and presenter in America. Everybody wants it -- but nobody knows where to find it. "Every year expeditions went out holy grailing, and next year relief expeditions went out to hunt for them," Mark Twain wrote in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court." "There was worlds of reputation in it, but no money."
Now, though, it looks like somebody has finally found the money. Goldstar Events, a California-based online company that sells half-price tickets to live performances in Boston, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, is successfully reaching young audiences with personalized Web-based marketing techniques that match buyers with events.
To become a Goldstar member, you go to www.goldstarevents.com and fill out a simple seven-question form that asks you to choose your favorite kinds of entertainment from this list: classic rock, classical music, comedy, family, film, jazz, popular music, spas and massage, social events, sports, theater and two catch-all categories, "performing arts" and "unique ideas." That's it -- there's no membership fee. (Goldstar makes its money by adding a small service charge to each ticket.) You then receive a weekly e-newsletter listing available performances in your area, along with special last-minute email offers. Tickets are bought online and picked up at the box office at the time of the show.