General Terms and Conditions of the Dresdner Musikfestspiele
The General Terms and Conditions govern the relationship between the Dresden Music Festival (DMF) and its visitors. They are part of every contract for the purchase of tickets. The General Terms and Conditions apply to the events of the Dresden Music Festival. Lost tickets cannot be refunded. Once an event has started, the right to the reserved seat expires.
1. Ticket Sale / Ticket Reservations
1.1 Ticket Prices
Depending on the nature and location of the event, the events of the Dresden Music Festival have different seating plans, price categories and seating groups. The Dresden Music Festival reserves the right to change ticket prices. The ticket price includes the checking of coats.
1.2 Advance Sales
Ticket sales begin in November of the year prior to the Festival; tickets are sold at the published sales points. Ticket orders received by mail up to this point will be filled according to a lottery system, without regard to the date when the orders were received.
If the desired ticket category is no longer available, an available seating category will be offered in writing as a substitute.
If the number of ordered tickets exceeds the capacity of seats, the Dresden Music Festival reserves the right to limit the number of tickets sold per person for the performance in question.
For tickets sold by mail, phone and online, a system and handling fee of 1.50 Euros will be added to each order.
By paying for the tickets offered by the time indicated, the purchaser agrees to this offer. Tickets can only be paid for in Euros. If payment is not received by the indicated date, the Dresden Music Festival has the right to dispose of the reserved tickets as it sees fit. Payments received after the due date will be refunded by wire transfer, minus the handling fee.
Purchased tickets can be mailed to the purchaser upon request; there is a fee of 3.00 Euros, of 5.00 Euros if you take 7 tickets or more for this service and mailing takes place by regular mail, at the purchaser’s risk. Purchased tickets will be mailed until two weeks before an event. After this, tickets can also be picked up at our box office or at the evening box office. Tickets that are not picked up will be cancelled without the possibility of refunds or exchanges.
1.3 Online Purchases
Payment for tickets ordered online can only be made using a credit card (MASTER or VISA) issued by a bank licensed in Germany as well as via paypal, by redeeming a gift certificate or a credit of your customer account.
If the debit is refused or cannot be carried out because of other reasons within the card holder’s responsibility, the tickets lose their validity.
Via print@home, a document (ticket) is created which the presenter will honor and which entitles the holder to attend the event in question (the only exception are events co-produced with another venue, marked in the program with a K). Every print@home ticket may only be printed out once. Reproducing a ticket is punishable by law and will be prosecuted. The Dresden Music Festival is entitled to refuse admittance to the holder of a print@home ticket whose barcode has already been invalidated; this applies to the event in question and to further events of the Dresden Music Festival. Any attempt to gain entrance to an event with a copied or otherwise invalid ticket will be prosecuted. To print your own tickets, you must have the Adobe Acrobat Reader software installed, which can be downloaded free of charge from the Adobe website:
1.4 Gift Certificates
Gift Certificates for events of the Dresden Music Festival can be purchased. These are valid three years from the date of their issuance and can be exchanged for tickets at the DMF Visitor Services. Specific events or seats cannot be guaranteed. Vouchers cannot be paid out in cash, either wholly or in part.
2. Group bookings
For group bookings (of 10 and more tickets) a fee of 1.50 Euros will be charged per ticket. The invoice amount must be credited to the account indicated on the invoice by the deadline stated. When the amount is credited the payment will be considered made and the tickets will be mailed to the customer. If the funds are not received by the deadline, the reserved tickets cannot be claimed.
3. Special Offers and Reductions
3.1 Visitor Program »Zugabe«
Registration for the visitor program »Zugabe« can only take place during ticket purchase transactions with the DMF Visitor Services. Personal data collected as part of this process are subject to German data protection laws, will be treated confidentially and not passed on to third parties. Participation in the visitor program may be cancelled at any time. The use of services and benefits arising from participation is only guaranteed subject to availability.
The following price reductions are part of »Zugabe« Premium:
- Reductions on the same amount of tickets for all bookings
- Reductions on all bookings within one season
- only for purchases from the Dresden Music Festival directly in person, by phone or in writing
- reductions only apply to the DMF’s own productions
- furthermore, purchasers of at least three »Zugabe« Premium tickets or elective subscriptions within the past three years receive a 15% discount
Previously booked tickets can be credited; however, ticket prices cannot be reduced retroactively. These offers cannot be combined with other forms of reduction.
The membership card is non-transferable, tied to the customer number and valid for one season.
3.2 Reductions
Reductions in ticket prices are granted to the entitled groups only with the appropriate proof of identity (e.g. student ID). Reduced tickets are only valid in conjunction with this proof of identity and are non-transferable. Subsequent discounts on already purchased tickets are excluded. Reductions do not apply to tickets purchased online. If the entitlement cannot be proved, the DMF is entitled to payment of the difference to the full price.
4. Ticket Returns
A refund or exchange of tickets is not possible. Expired tickets cannot be refunded. The Dresden Music Festival reserves the right to change dates, programs, casts and performance venues. These do not entitle customers to a refund for their tickets; an exchange may be agreed upon mutually in this case. Should a performance be cancelled without replacement, the price of the ticket will only be refunded if the original ticket is presented. Handling and shipping fees are not refundable. If performances are interrupted or terminated in mid-performance, ticket holders can only claim a refund for their ticket value if the performance is cancelled before the first intermission or, in the case of performances without intermissions, before half of the performance time has elapsed. Such claims can only be made within 30 days after the date of the performance by presenting or mailing the tickets to the Visitor Service office. In case of the interruption of open-air events because of inclement weather, ticket holders have no right to returns and refunds for their tickets. If an open-air event must be interrupted or terminated due to inclement weather, the ticket price will only be refunded if the original ticket is presented and if the cancellation occurs before the first intermission, or, in the case of performances without intermissions, before half of the performance time has elapsed. Beyond the refund of ticket prices described above, no further claims for expenditures or damages can be made.
5. Commercial Resale of Tickets
The commercial resale of tickets is not permitted without prior approval of the Dresden Music Festival. The DMF reserves the right to take legal action in case of violations of this rule. Furthermore, the DMF is entitled to exclude anyone responsible for such infringement from future ticket sales. The sale of tickets without commercial interest is not affected by this regulation. The DMF may refuse to sell tickets to persons who sell tickets commercially or who make tickets accessible to such persons. The Dresden Music Festival is not liable for the validity of the tickets sold and issued by other ticket sales points or for their services or prices.
6. Day and Evening Box Offices
The day and evening box offices at the performance venues normally open one hour before the performance is scheduled to begin. After a performance has begun, latecomers can only be admitted to the auditorium during an appropriate break in the performance. There is no right to be admitted to a performance once it has begun. If a visitor is refused admittance due to his late arrival, he has no claim to a refund of the ticket price.
7. Video and Audio Recordings
In consideration of the artists, photography is not permitted during performances. Video and/or audio recordings during the performances and concerts are prohibited. Noncompliance with this rule leads to liability and may result in eviction from the rest of the performance/concert. Individual events may be recorded for radio and/or TV. This may lead to the obstruction of sightlines. Audience members declare their consent with such obstructions. In case a performance is recorded on video or audio media by persons authorized by the DMF, the visitors declare their consent to potential recording of their persons, and that such recordings may be broadcast or published without further claims for remuneration or recompense.
8. Coat Check
Coats and luggage can only be taken into the auditorium if they do not disturb other visitors. Coats and luggage can be checked during the event. In principle, animals cannot be checked or guarded during a performance. The ticket price includes the fee for checking coats and luggage. Checked coats and luggage are insured. Checked coats and items will be handed over in exchange for the cloakroom ticket without any further examination of the rightfulness of the ticket holder’s claim. Items may only be delivered to a visitor without a cloakroom ticket if he can convincingly claim rightful ownership. Cloakroom personnel must be informed immediately about any mistaken, damaged or missing cloakroom items as well as the loss of a cloakroom ticket. In case of lost cloakroom tickets, the visitor is responsible for paying the cost of a replacement.
9. Liability
The Dresden Music Festival, its representatives and agents are only liable for damages of any kind suffered by a visitor at the DMF performance venues if such damages were caused intentionally or by gross negligence. The rules of liability for loss of life, limbs or health remain untouched inasmuch as they refer to typically foreseeable damages.
10. Property Rights
The General and Artistic Director exercises the rights of property with the help of his agents, especially the evening personnel.
Visitors must follow instructions given by the personnel at the venues.
Visitors can be refused admittance to performance venues if there is reason to assume that they will disrupt the performance or disturb other visitors. Visitors can be expelled from a performance in progress if they disrupt the performance, disturb other visitors or occupy a seat for which they do not hold a valid ticket. Admittance can also be refused to visitors who have violated these General Rules and Conditions repeatedly. Such visitors have no claim to refunds of ticket prices already paid or any other claims for damages or expenses.
Persons disrupting the sale of tickets or disturbing visitors can be expelled from the performance venues. The sale of tickets within the box office premises or anywhere else within the performance venues or their grounds is not permitted.
Visitors are not allowed to occupy another seat but the one indicated by their ticket. If a visitor changes seats without permission, the Dresden Music Festival is entitled to demand the difference in ticket price, to send the visitor back to the seat indicated on his ticket, or to expel him from a performance.
Mobile phones, watches or other technical appliances emitting acoustic signals must be switched off during performances.
Smoking at performance venues is only permitted in the indicated areas.
11. Lost and Found Items
Any kind of item found at the performance venues must be delivered to the ushers or cloakroom attendants. The further treatment of such found items follows §§ 978 ff. BGB.
12. Data Protection Laws and Participation in Lotteries or Competitions
I hereby declare my permission for the DMF to collect, process and use my personal data for the purposes of customer service. Customer service includes any measure conveying important information to the customer that is to his advantage. I have been informed that this permission can be revoked anytime without any disadvantage. The DMF has declared that my data protection rights are guaranteed without reservations and that none of my data will be shared with third parties. Entering lotteries or competitions requires a minimum age of 18. Dresden Music Festival employees and those involved in the concept and implementation of such lotteries are excluded from participation.
By entering a lottery, the participant expressly declares his consent to his data being saved by the Dresden Music Festival for the period of the lottery and beyond. Collected data will be electronically processed and used according to the rules of data protection. None of the participant’s personal data will be made accessible to third parties.
13. Validity and Final Clause
These General Terms and Conditions become valid on September 1, 2015. At the same time, the Dresden Music Festival’s previous General Terms and Conditions become invalid. If any clause of these General Terms and Conditions should be invalid, this shall not affect the validity of the other clauses.