Hi all, I'm new to the forum, but I found it because I have a major concern.  We are a small CT in Alaska with very firm policies about tickets sales.  We have open seating, reserved seats are purchased when they are reserved, a no refunds policy, and we do seat late comers. 

Joe is partly correct on this information.  First off, you need to make it clear that the information of seats and tickets.  Ultimately, yes you can sell a seat if the current purchaser does not make an attempt to arrive at the designated time.  (Airlines do this all the time.)

I know of several theaters that practice a "Student Rush" policy wherein they will sell off any seat not reserved or sold 5-10 minutes before curtain. These seats are sold first come, first served (parties are often split up as only single seats remain) and the price is greatly reduced.

This is a lot like travelling "standby" at the airport. There is often a long line of hopefuls waiting to get a seat -- any seat -- at a reduced price.

I have never heard of re-selling an empty seat that has already been purchased or reserved by another party. You said so yourself that " weather, distance from the theatre and ... moose have a tendancy to cause occasional late arrivals" and therefore late arrivals seem to be EXPECTED in your area.

I, for one, would be furious to discover my seat had been resold after battling the elements and wild beasts only to arrive a few minutes late to the theater.

While offering these latecomers a full refund might not be necessary (or fiscally feasible), it would be the polite thing to do. Offering them another seat for another performance is also polite -- but not necessary. (If nature and distance are such obstacles, returning another day might not even be possible for some customers). Establishing a firm "No Refunds" policy is important, and if the seat goes empty for whatever reason, at least the theater has received income for the ticket price.

If the ticket had been purchased in advance (by credit card or check), then holding onto these items -- and not processing them -- until AFTER curtain time might be an optional policy. As long as you make clear to the purchaser that unclaimed seats (ie 15 -30 minutes before curtain) will be resold, this gives you the option of returning the money and re-selling the empty seats to patrons who are eager and available to see the performance.

Selling the same seat twice does not seem legal nor ethical. Forcing these late-comers to re-purchase (pay twice) to see the same show only adds insult to injury.

What we used to do in our small theater was to simply take reservations over the phone. No one paid for their ticket until they arrived. We only promised to hold the tickets until five minutes before curtain. Then we would sell the tickets to anyone that was waiting. I don' t remember there ever being a problem.

Just to point out a few things in my original statement.