Half-Price Tickets

If high prices keep you from attending plays, concerts, sporting events or exhibits, consider joining Goldstar.com, an online seller of half-price tickets—with a service charge averaging about $4.50 per ticket.

Goldstar operates in eight cities: Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Boston, Chicago, San Diego and Washington, D.C. Sign-up is free and gets you a weekly e-mail list of current and upcoming local events. You may find about 100 events at any given time, from classes (how to become a mystery shopper) to concerts.

Although the top events may not make the list, there are plenty to choose from. You order online but the theater chooses the seats, so there’s no guarantee you’ll get great ones—but Goldstar says you probably won’t get the worst either.

Caroline E. Mayer is a consumer reporter and lives in Arlington, Va.