Trevor and Gwen Doorley with their children Ciara (left) and Aedan, who were disappointed by technical issues at the performance. Photo / Sarah Ivey
Trevor and Gwen Doorley with their children Ciara (left) and Aedan, who were disappointed by technical issues at the performance. Photo / Sarah Ivey
Disappointed punters who took their children to a showing of How to Train Your Dragon Arena Spectacular in Auckland at the weekend won't be getting a refund, the boss of the Australian entertainment company responsible for the production says.
Global Creatures chief executive Carmen Pavlovic said most people went awaysatisfied and it was only a minority of the 46,000 who saw the show at Vector Arena who complained.
It was the Saturday morning performance that has drawn criticism from parents who say a scene was deleted because of technical difficulties with the massive dragons.
Glen Eden dad Trevor Doorley said he wanted a part refund of the $416.48 for two adults and his children Aedan, 5, and Ciara, 7, saying the pricey experience was not worth it.
Another parent, Craig Young, said it was clear the story had "big gaps in it" because of the problem, and supported a partial refund because people did not receive what they paid for.
Others said they were waiting for responses from Ticketmaster and were upset that some had been offered tickets to other sessions.
Ms Pavlovic said complaints should be sent to Ticketmaster in the first instance although she would be personally responding to them. She was aware some people had been offered extra tickets but was unsure why.
However, no one would receive a refund because the show was still a spectacle, she said. The last flying scene did not occur but the rest of the elements of the production more than made up for it, she claimed.
"We feel we've delivered the show ... Our rule of thumb is - did we or did we not deliver value to the customer? I just think it was a small hitch that stopped us.
"I just feel they had all the amazing projection, and the acrobatics and every dragon appeared that was supposed to appear. I really believe in my heart we delivered an experience."
