I am visiting NYC again, and still see the same thing. Why do so many people sit on the bleacher seats over the TKTS stand? What the heck are they looking at?
They’re resting their feet.
If you put a chair somewhere, people will sit in it.
Looking at tourists, which is how you can tell who the tourists are.
It can take 45 minute or more to get to the ticket window*. Some people send one of their group to stand on line while the rest sit.
*To save time, see a play instead of a musical and get on the “plays only” line at the far left.