House of Dancing Water shortened | Visitor accuses Melco of ‘unethical business practices’

Scenes from acts eliminated from the show, according to our source

Water-based entertainment show, The House of Dancing Water, has allegedly been eliminating the most iconic parts of its acrobatic show for some time, without prior notice to attendees.

According to visitor Mel Chang, who travelled to Hong Kong and Macau from Singapore with her family to see The House of Dancing Water, the show did not feature iconic acts including the boat masts, the Russian swings, the trapeze ballerinas and the anticipated high-diving act at the end of the show.

“I don’t know how that is acceptable. We flew in to Macau especially to see the show for the first time and we came with high hopes full of excitement and anticipation,” she told the Times.

Chang, who also voiced her disappointment on TripAdvisor, explained that she approached a staff member in the control box at the end of the show and was told that those acts were eliminated due to “technical difficulties.”

“We […] asked whether, due to the unforeseen circumstances or technical difficulties – which we totally understand – they are able to offer us a return voucher (similar to a courtesy credit) [that we can use] the next time we are in Macau so that my kids can see the acts they missed – and we were answered with a straight, ‘No!’” Chang complained.

According to Chang, staff highlighted article 5 of the terms and conditions listed on the back of the ticket, which reserved the show’s right to change the content.

Chang, who lives in San Francisco, noted that her request was transferred to an assistant manager from the box office at City of Dreams and was also informed that the iconic acts had been eliminated for the entirety of the previous week.

“There are many ways that businesses engage in unethical conduct, exploiting their customers, and even the public at large. To me, this is a classic example that illustrates the scope of unethical business practices,” Chang lamented.

“They knew beforehand there were technical difficulties. These technical problems didn’t occur overnight. In fact, for the whole of last week they already had these problems, according to [the] assistant manager at the box office,” she continued.

Chang stated, “the ethical thing to do would be to invest in repairing the technical problems and make sure they can deliver a 100 percent performance before selling tickets to the unsuspecting public.” She added that they “felt exploited by City of Dreams.”

The Times contacted Melco Resorts, the gaming operator behind the City of Dreams show, to confirm the complaint but did not receive a reply by press time.

The show was suspended for days last month also due to technical problems.

“The show pushes the boundaries of technical requirement and human performance,” Melco Resorts said in a note to the Times last month. “Some of the equipment has required special maintenance to continue to provide our audience with the same thrilling experience.”

Reports of mid-show cancellations were consistent with an anonymous email sent to the Times last month.

Another visitor last week also noted on TripAdvisor, “they cancel almost every show without warning in advance. Any technical problems are not an excuse because they can’t appear every time!!”

“These now trademarked diving feats were totally eliminated from the show I watched (21st Dec 2017) due to technical difficulties. No prior disclosures whatsoever and all ticket prices remain the same,” said another.