Excited Hamilton musical fans in the UAE rush to buy tickets

Broadway show has its Middle East premiere in Abu Dhabi next year

Hamilton will make its Middle East debut at Abu Dhabi's Etihad Arena in January. AP Photo

Fans of the award-winning musical Hamilton have rushed to book pre-sale tickets ahead of the acclaimed Broadway show's Middle East premiere in Abu Dhabi next year.

Pre-sale tickets went live on Friday at 11am for those who pre-registered through Etihad Arena’s website. Such was the popularity of the offer that some fans had problems getting through.

Many Hamilton fans were able to purchase tickets but one Dubai resident said when she first logged on to her Platinumlist account she saw on the top of the screen that there were more than 3,000 users attempting to buy tickets at the same time.

Despite the rush by thousands to snap up the offer, she later received an email from Etihad Arena with confirmation of her successful purchase.

Etihad Arena apologised via its Instagram account for any inconvenience and then issued a statement saying customers would have a chance to purchase tickets after a day of great demand.

“Due to the high ticket demand, our purchase platforms experienced a large volume of traffic, which resulted in some challenges to complete their purchase," the statement reads.

"Rest assured, we have identified the causes and have diligently resolved them as quickly as possible.

“We want to assure everyone that each and every individual who signed up for the pre-sale waitlist will receive their chance to purchase their tickets as promised.

“We sincerely appreciate your enthusiasm for this historic production coming to Abu Dhabi, and for the first time in the whole region.”