I really enjoyed Ricky Gervais' show and had some very decent laughs and unexpected moments during his set. Loved his energy and he knew exactly how to please and have fun with the crowd.
However, I have a problem with the show on more of a logistical point of view. Nowhere in the series of emails that I have received from ticketmaster or place bell (and there were a lot) was there anything about parking information or road closures around the area. All I got was that the doors open at 6 pm and if we are not in before 7h30, there is a chance that we will not be allowed in the show.
We booked the show on the premise that it starts at 8 pm: had we known that the schedule would shift to an earlier hour, we would have first and foremost checked if we can make it before booking the tickets. It's not fair to inform the crowd of scheduling changes that might conflict with their time after they buy the tickets.
For personal reasons, we couldn't make it before 7 pm, but we thought that if we arrive at 7, then a whole half hour would be enough for us to find our seats. To our very surprise though, when we got there (by car) there was a big commotion on the road all around the area, traffic and chaos.
The access to the arena and the arena's parking spaces (if there are any) were completely closed off and we had to figure out a place to park and maneuver around very heavy traffic and angry drivers. There was absolutely no sign, no information, nothing on parking lots, spots or anything of that sort. After driving around the place multiple times and without ease, we managed to find a parking lot. It was already 7h30 at this time and we were stressed and nervous that we would be blocked from entering the show as per the information in the emails we have received. So we had to run as fast as we can (since the parking lot was blocks away from the venue) and wade through heavy traffic and busy intersections to get there.
This was far from being a pleasant experience and I am quite disappointed that a show of that caliber would be met with such dreadful organization and logistics, especially since I have attended so many concerts and gigs before in other arenas and places and I have never experienced organization of this mediocrity. I would strongly recommend that information regarding parking spots and road closures be included in the event information emails in order to prepare ticketholders and keep them aware of what to expect, where to go and how to get there safely and without stress or chaos. Thank you!