NEED TO KNOW
- The Oprah in Conversation tour kicks off in Sydney on December 4.
- Tickets are still available for all five shows.
- Star is concered about the sluggish sales and venue sizes have been reduced in Brisbane and Auckland
- It’s Oprah’s first time back in Australia in 10 years.
- Melissa Doyle is moderating the Oprah In Conversation shows.
When Oprah Winfrey announced in August that she would be returning to our shores for the first time in 10 years, there was widespread excitement among her fans.
Sadly, that enthusiasm hasn’t translated into ticket sales for her five-date Oprah In Conversation tour of Australia and New Zealand.
The event is being hosted by journalist Melissa Doyle and promises to be “a rare opportunity to hear first hand from the media trailblazer in a moderated conversation.”
But Oprah’s tour crisis is overshadowing the whole event.
At the time the tour was announced, Oprah shared her excitement with Aussie fans via Instagram.
“Can’t wait to be back in Australia and New Zealand for the first time in 10 years!” she wrote in her post.
“Bring your friends, cousins, siblings — everybody!”
The tour kicks off in Sydney this week but there are still “lots of tickets available,” an insider tells New Idea.
“This would be causing Oprah and her management some major headaches.
“It’s not a good look for one of the biggest stars in the world to perform in front of empty seats.”
It’s a far cry from Oprah’s 2015 Australian tour, which was a total sellout.
The star, 71, was also swamped by fans in 2010, when two episodes of her talk show were filmed here.
She described that experience as “life-changing, mind-expanding, once-in-a-lifetime extraordinary.”
But sadly, this time around, sales have been so sluggish Oprah’s Brisbane and Auckland shows have been forced into downsized venues.
“This is not the kind of reception that a celebrity of Oprah’s stature is used to,” our insider adds. “She’s worried.”
Pricing could be to blame, our source says.
With the cheapest tickets starting at $109 and premium packages retailing for almost $450, it is a “huge outlay for a star who is no longer a regular on TV”, adds the insider.
Maybe she needs to reinstate a few of her famous giveaways…
