The World Series comes to Milwaukee: who benefits, who's not so lucky

Milwaukee is hosting a World Series. That's a sentence that hasn't been written in nearly 50 years and for some the excitement is palpable, and for others there's a nervous uncertainty.

The Milwaukee Brewers are facing the Tampa Bay Rays and Games 1 and 2 are scheduled for Oct. 23 and 24 at American Family Field. Many people and businesses throughout the city are feeling like winners in this playoff run, but there are a few places and events that are missing out on the fun.

Here is a look at who got lucky with the arrival of the World Series, and those who are seeing the big payoff.

What a time to live in Milwaukee. With maybe the exception of the 2021 Milwaukee Bucks NBA championship , the city hasn't had this kind of buzz in nearly 50 years. The World Series is putting Milwaukee on an international stage and generating an unexpected economic boost.

An estimate from Visit Milwaukee says Games 1 and 2 will generate $10 million to $12 million of economic impact . That is coming after early rounds of the playoffs brought in roughly $3.55 million per home game to city businesses .

Lucky: Milwaukee Brewers (duh!) and World Series merchandise

Fans have waited 44 years to get new World Series gear and they have been flocking to stores to grab what they can .

The MLB Shop, Dick's Sporting Goods, Rally House and Lids all promptly released the collection of championship series gear after the Brewers swept the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But none of this would be happening if this team didn't put together this magical run to the World Series to give fans and the city this moment .

If you want to go to a World Series game but don't have a ticket yet be prepared to pay more than a ticket the Super Bowl . The most expensive ticket has been as much as $15,000.

"Demand for postseason tickets has been extraordinarily high, and the inventory of seats for individual purchase for possible World Series games at American Family Field will be extremely limited," Rick Schlesinger, the Brewers' president of business operations, said in an Oct. 15 statement.

Who would've known 11 years ago that putting $1,000 down for a ticket redeemable at any time for any Brewer game would be the bargain of the decade.

In 2015 the Brewers sold 1,000 "timeless tickets" to fans that they could use at any time in the future. For many fans, they held onto that ticket and are now cashing in on the promise. But some fans were upset with the location of the seats for the timeless ticket and the Brewers have been working with customers to accommodate them .

Lucky: Sports bars, restaurants and watch parties

Being able to celebrate this team with groups of strangers in community is one of the unique things about fandom.

And when the Brewers are on the road or if fans can't get a ticket at home, there have been plenty of bars and restaurants that have offered places for fans to gather and nervously cheer on the team .

The unlucky but dealing with it cheerfully

World Series games scheduled in Milwaukee Oct. 23 and 24 are affecting attendance and ticket sales for local performing arts groups with shows on those dates. But they're celebrating with the rest of Milwaukee and working out ticket exchanges with customers.

Unlucky: Milwaukee Bucks, Wisconsin Badgers

The Milwaukee Bucks started the season with a loss on the road against the Washington Wizards 128-116. And the Bucks have their home opener against the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 23, the same day as Game 1 of the World Series.

But Bucks were able to move the game from 7 p.m. to 3 p.m. and put out a statement saying:

"The Brewers' return to the World Series for the first time in 44 years is a special moment for Milwaukee and sports fans across Wisconsin. Congratulations to the Brewers and the entire organization on this tremendous achievement, and we'll be cheering them on as they begin their World Series run. The Bucks are proud to move our home opener to 3 p.m. in recognition of this historic occasion and thank the NBA for making this schedule change possible."

Milwaukee Repertory Theater has three different productions running on Oct. 23 and 24. Both nights are shaping up as low attendance, a Rep spokeswoman reported in an email.

The Rep's ticket exchange policy is "fairly lenient if they do it in advance," she said. No customer holding tickets has asked to cancel a ticket or for a refund, she said. Call the Rep box office at (414) 224-9490 for details.

"At this point it is mostly business as usual for us. Nothing special planned, except rooting for the Brewers!," she concluded.

The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra has classical subscription concerts scheduled Oct. 23 and 24. In an email message, a symphony spokeswoman said the games are affecting ticket sales for those concerts. "We're seeing an uptick in exchange requests, but relatively few cancellations at this point," she said.

Purchased MSO tickets are non-refundable, but ticketholders can exchange them for other eligible classics or pops concerts in the current season. That exchange service is free for subscribers; there's a minimal handling free for other ticketholders, she said. Ticket exchanges must be made in advance and customers must have the new date selected at time of exchange. Call (414) 291-7605 for details.

"As fans ourselves, we understand and share in the excitement of a moment 44 years in the making," the spokeswoman said. "Our focus is on being available to patrons, answering questions, and making sure they understand their options if their plans change."

The touring musical "Jersey Boys" is at the Marcus through Oct. 25, with performances at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 23 and 24 that conflict with the Brewers' World Series games.

"New ticket sales for Friday Oct. 23 rd and Saturday Oct. 24 th have slowed down, understandably, and we are still promoting group and single tickets for all performances," a Marcus spokeswoman said in an email message.

"Thankfully, we benefit from having a 6-day run of the show with 8 total performances that enables us to process each exchange request to attend a different performance while maintaining customer-first service," she said.

"We could not be more excited that the Brewers are in the World Series," the Marcus spokeswoman said. To underline that, the venue plans to have "themed concessions" for those performances.

Tie: Some Pabst Theater Group events becoming World Series watch parties

The Pabst Theater Group - which operates local venues Miller High Life Theatre, the Riverside Theater, the Pabst Theater, Turner Hall Ballroom, Vivarium and The Fitzgerald - has 15 events scheduled on confirmed World Series game days through Oct. 27, and up to six more Oct. 28 to 31 that could face off against additional games in the series if needed.

Several performances will continue as planned opposite World Series games - including Buena Vista Orchestra at the Pabst Oct. 23; Milo Rossi at the Pabst Oct. 24; Vincent Neil Emerson at Vivarium Oct. 24; All Them Witches at Turner Hall Oct. 26; The Parables Tour with Father Mike Schmitz Oct. 27 at Miller; and Old Crow Medicine Show at the Pabst Oct. 27.

But some events are incorporating the World Series into the night, Pabst Theater Group Chief Marketing Officer Lennora Jules confirmed. The game will be shown on TVs inside the Riverside Theater during the first two nights of Widespread Panic's annual sold-out residency, with the game also shown at the street parties before the shows. Buckfest at Turner Hall Oct. 23 and 24 will have screens showing the game. And a Rod Tuffcurls and the Bench Press concert at Vivarium Oct. 23 is now a World Series Game One watch party, with the band now scheduled to perform after the game ends.

Unlucky: World Series a 'disaster' for clubs like Shank Hall

Peter Jest, owner of Shank Hall , candidly suggests the Brewers World Series run is "a disaster" for local venue operators with previously planned events.

"When you're a small club and depend on 20 or 30 tickets to make the difference and the Brewers are in the playoffs, that's really going to affect it," Jest said. "But I've been promoting (concerts) for 43 years and its never happened. ... It's good for the city and they're a fun team to watch."

Shank Hall has already made some adjustments. Chicago-based blues band Cash Box Kings have postponed a concert planned for Oct. 23, due to the conflict with Game One. A performance of "Nosferatu Undead" on Oct. 27 during game four has moved up its start time to 6 p.m. so concertgoers can still catch some of the 7 p.m. game.

A concert with Rockford, Ill.-based Miles Nielsen scheduled for Oct. 30 will move to January if Game Six in the World Series that night is needed, Jest said. An Oct. 24 show with three touring bands, led by In Her Own Words, will have to proceed as planned due to their routing, with Jest saying they'll hope for the best.

Nevertheless, this has been exciting to watch for the Brewers fan, whose gotten in on the celebrations at Shank Hall with a picture of his parrot Echo holding up a Brewers pennant that's currently on the marquee.