Featured image credit: Sky Stadium
Wellington’s Sky Stadium is hoping to achieve a sell-out for an event no fans will actually attend.
The venue in New Zealand’s capital city has teamed up with the Wellington City Mission for ‘The Silent Night’ – a crowd-less public event designed to help ensure all Wellingtonians get to celebrate Christmas.
The Mission is experiencing need for services in excess of four times more than pre-COVID levels, leading the team to predict that there will be a spike in demand this Christmas as New Zealanders grapple with the cost-of-living crisis.
To help generate emergency fundraising to see it through a time of great difficulty for many, it is hoped Sky Stadium will be a sell-out, with 34,000 ticket holders showing their support by staying away for the unique non-event.
By purchasing a ticket but not attending, 100% of the cost of tickets will be donated to the Mission to fund initiatives including supported transitional housing, as well as food support through the Social Supermarket, which enables clients to choose the food they need.
At Christmas, the Mission also operates a free toy store enabling parents to choose a gift for their children as well as providing a festive lunch for those in transitional housing and offering food deliveries so people can celebrate in their own homes.
Tickets in the stadium bowl start at NZ$10 (£5.17/€5.89/$6.06) for bronze level, with NZ$20 (silver), NZ$50 (gold) and NZ$100 (platinum) tickets also available, as well as corporate packages priced at NZ$175 (individual) and NZ$2,000 (box).
Shane Harmon, chief executive at Sky Stadium, said: “Sky Stadium is proud to be hosting The Silent Night to raise funds for the important work Wellington City Mission does to support individuals and families who are struggling at Christmas and throughout the year. An event unlike any other, we hope that tickets will sell out, while the stadium remains empty.”
Murray Edridge, Wellington City Missioner, added: “At Wellington City Mission we expect to see a marked increase in the number of Wellingtonians who need our help this Christmas. So, we are asking the public to help us by supporting the feel-good event of the year, coming together as a community to raise important funds to help our fellow Wellingtonians by buying a ticket and not attending. Let’s fill the Sky Stadium with nothing but your generosity this Christmas.”
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