Finally! A Documentary About The WORST Kind Of Theater People!- Page 2

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:07am

I posted one above. I have dozens more, as I'm sure most people who frequently attend the theater do. And none of them are good stories, I'm sure. Like Kad, my House Manager and front of house friends were all over this story on Facebook today and there's not one nice thing that anyone can say about this woman or any of her band of vulture friends.

[Kad]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:13am

When I worked at the Public, I saw her get into an argument with the house manager because he was asked by the rightful ticket holders to reclaim their seat from her (she has a habit of just... taking a front row seat near curtain). 

She regularly would fall asleep or eat during performances.  

I've heard a story that she once had an alarm clock in one of her bags go off during a show. Not an alarm on her phone- an actual alarm clock. Who knows if it's true? But she's the sort of personality who attracts a story like that. 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:16am

Hopefully the kid who's making this film reads all of this about her and decides to tell the REAL story about his "subject".

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:17am

Oh my God, I had to get this woman to move from her seat, I mean another person's seat, when I worked at an Off-Broadway house years ago. It was the most harrowing moment of what was admittedly a preposterously easy job.

[Kad]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:20am

Isaac Oliver, the NY writer/comedian who worked for years in the box office of an Off-Broadway house, referred to her as a "Times Square Babadook" on his Facebook today. 

 

Who knows why Cochran is so deranged in her pursuit of tickets or what kind of hard, ****ed up life she's had. But this documentary and article make it sound like a sweet tale of an old lady's devotion to art. And it ain't. 

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 01:20 AM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:25am

The " Who knew Lars von Trier made documentaries." line is amazing.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:35am

I spoke with Nicki at length in the lobby of the Public before a show (I had never met her before), and she seemed to be a kind enough women, if a little long-winded and kooky. Really interesting to hear all these horror stories about her. Even though my experience with her wasn't negative, somehow all these stories seem to make perfect sense. 

 

I've also encountered the crazy old white man on several occasions (at least I assume we're referring to the same person). He can be tough to talk to as well, but also just strikes me as more kooky than troublesome. 

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 01:35 AM

[Hellob]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:36am

It is kind of fascinating to explore why she chose theater as her drug of choice. From your stories and the video, she acts like an addict. She alienates family, hustles to get her fix, gets angry, has no understanding of her actions, etc. I've never heard of anyone literally having a theater addiction. Is she only after a ticket or does she bother the actors, too?

[Kad]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:39am

I've never heard of her harassing actors. Everything has been contained to front of house issues. 

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:43am

The Times Square Babadook line is going to keep me chuckling for days.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:46am

What is strange to me is less her obsession with getting the ticket and more the reports of her behavior once she is inside, which certainly don't seem like the actions of one who truly loves and respects the theatre.  It's almost as if she just uses the arena of the theatre as an opportunity to feed a desperate (perhaps pathological) need for attention from other people.

It sounds like once the performance actually begins, she isn't really very engaged in the performance at all - and goes out of her way to somehow make herself the focal point of attention.

 

Updated On: 2/18/16 at 01:46 AM

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 1:48am

I have seen her at several shows... I have only had two direct interactions with her. The first, I was waiting for a friend in front of a theatre - I was a few minutes early meeting at the theatre and had the tickets in my hand. She noticed that I was standing alone and holding two tickets and VERY much wanted my extra ticket. The other time, I was actually dropping friends off at a show after dinner and was just going to go home, but a gentleman nearby overheard my goodbyes and asked if I wanted a free ticket to the show seeing as someone in their group cancelled last minute and they did not want it to go to waste. She had apparently been trolling for a ticket nearby and was rather irate that I was given a ticket!

I have seen similar behaviors from the other "usual" suspects, so she is hardly alone. They would all make interesting subjects, but not in a reversal way. The number of times I have been at an invited dress and have encountered a group of them outside... I wish I had a nickel...I saw another one at another show march down the aisle and take a seat in the front row. The ticket holder came, and the lady just moved one row back.. it happened four or five times before she was nearly chased up the aisle...

[Fan123]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 3:14am

I have never seen/met this lady and so cannot verify anything about her; I'm also very wary of dealing with grievances by naming and shaming online. However if this lady does indeed have a long-established pattern of heavily harassing other people, it's concerning if this documentary is going to portray her in a positive light. If nothing else, it might encourage other people to start trying the same tactics to get tickets and seats.

 

There's a recent comment enquiring about this on the film's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/oneticketfilm); the film's account has responded "Of course we will show both sides of the story. The filmmakers are well aware of the relationship certain New York City theater owners and box office managers have with Ms Cochrane and are doing their best to reflect this in the film." Hopefully that will turn out to be true.

 

If there are a lot of theatre workers concerned about this, could a high-up representative from each theatre contact the filmmaker and offer to be interviewed or provide a statement? I'm sure it would be delicate to manage; there would be a risk of getting bad publicity if it was spun as "Nasty theatre people hate their own patrons, especially old ladies". Any statement would probably have to be fairly 'soft', emphasising preferred theatre etiquette and so forth rather than descending to name-calling. Maybe representatives from several theatres could tackle this jointly to soften the PR blow and provide credence to one another's statements. But I'm not in the industry so am not sure if this would be wise. In any case, it sounds as though the film is about done already.

 

By the way, does a Broadway theatre have the right to set a code of conduct (within reason) for anyone who enters it, and to eject anyone who violates that code (again, within reason, eg while also providing a ticket refund upon presentation of proof of purchase)? Somebody who gets a free ticket outside the door could argue "I was never informed of the code", but putting it up on a small-print sign at the door or something could cover that. I'm not sure of the laws around this.

[E.Davis]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 5:24am

Wait, is she really Equity or does she just wear that hat and pose as a due paying member in hopes of getting freebies?

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 6:15am

Now that I think about it, I think she might have sat next to me once. I remember a woman with a giant bag... not a big purse. It was like a shopping bag that looked like it could have had her laundry in it or something. I had to get up to let her get into the aisle (or it would have clocked me in the head) and then she kept trying to talk to me even though I had a book open and was clearly not willing to engage. I think there were people on the other side of us who eventually showed up and were willing to talk to her. She could not sit still and it annoyed me to no end through most of the show. I vaguely remembering her sighing a lot or making some other noise like she wasn't enjoying the performance. And she was wearing a baseball cap that I could see moving every time she turned her head (which was a lot). Towards the end of the show I just put my hand to the side of my face so I wouldn't see it in my peripheral vision anymore.

[best12bars]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 7:09am

How in the hell did she get her Equity card?

[KCW]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 7:13am

I have never met her but she seems like a few members here...

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 7:41am

I have encountered her far too many times at the theater to count. No matter which day I choose to see a MUFTI she inevitably will also be there too (or perhaps she just shows up to every performance of every MUFTI!) She is extremely aggressive when asking for free tickets and has followed me up and down the sidewalk before while I was waiting for my friends to arrive. 

 

Once she has a ticket then all hell can break loose. As others have mentioned she will simply barge into the orchestra section and take a seat in the front row.  I saw her give the staff at the Music Box absolute hell one time when she refused to move from the seat when the real ticket holders arrived. She treats each performance as opening seating and if she sits in the seat first, it's hers. 

 

And yes, the bags, the food- it's a nightmare. 

 

She is not the only vulture (free ticket scammer) to be banned from my off-Broadway theaters. A friend of a friend who ushers frequently at NYTW said they are warned about several of them, who use different alias to try to usher themselves and get into the shows. 

 

The thing is: the vultures always get in. Some schmuck always gives them a ticket and they get the last laugh at the end of the day. 

[Kad]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 8:29am

Yeah, she's Equity. She could have worked one gig years and years ago and just maintains her membership now- members do get access to some free tickets. 

[Huss417]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:02am

Over the years she and the other guy were like a version of Wheres Waldo for us. One or both would usually be at the theatre looking for tickets. There also used to be an older married couple that would wait on either side of the doors and keep asking for any extra tickets.

A couple of years ago was seeing an off broadway show and a this woman sat down behind us and started huffing that she couldn't see around my partners head. She asked to change seats with us. Told her sorry but we weren't moving. She started in a non stop slow motion of a constant tap on the back of our seats. with her foot. Finally I got up and grabbed the house manager who then asked to see her ticket which she couldn't find. As this was going on the couple whose seats these actually belonged to showed up. She was not getting out of the seat. The show was delayed while this was all going on. 

House manager finally got her to move and found her a seat which she bitched about. Curious to see how this documentary shows this woman.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:02am

Okay, here goes:

I'm involved with a very small, way-off theatre company. Nicki comes to all of our shows, some of which have been written by me. I often run into her at other shows or events around the city and she never fails to tell total strangers how wonderful my plays are and how she's my "biggest fan". She's always sweet, supportive and lovely. 

I HAVE, however, witnessed the horrors of a Nicky Cochrane experience. So, while I can't say I've lived them first-hand, I know how difficult she can be and how demanding. What I can say is this: 9 times out of 10, even if she does get a ticket AND a seat in the front row, Ms. Cochrane always enjoys her nap. 

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:10am

By the way, my day job is at a theatrical institution with lots of events. Nicki is a frequent attendee. My co-workers refuse to deal with her from years of past experience.

If you are patient and "kill her with kindness", she'll (sometimes) act in kind.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:32am

I'm less concerned with how she gets her tickets than how she behaves once she's inside. If she behaves so horribly, she clearly does not respect the theater at all. So to portray her as a "theater lover" is just false.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:40am

iluvtheatertrash, does she ask for free books too?

 

Now that I'm aware of this woman I thought back on the past and think I've seen her. If it's the same old white guy I see him more often (he's usually with some shorter, fat woman). Thankfully I've never had an encounter with her, most likely because I never engage with these vultures on the street. She's glad to have never crossed my path because I would shut that sh!t down real fast. 

 

This documentary seems very one-sided from the trailer. I don't see why anyone would give money to this nonsense because she seems like a deplorable human being. I'm sure the focus will be on this poor old woman whose "love" of theatre has alienated her from her family. When in actuality she is just an addict. She has to see a show everyday by any means necessary but once inside she couldn't care less which is why she eats and falls asleep. If I were her kids I'd be glad she keeps busy and doesn't bother me.

 

The one part of the trailer I found hilarious was her interaction with the MTC box office. Going up yelling about how she's heard of comps being given away but obviously she's not allowed to partake in papering services like normal people. After that attempt didn't work then she starts in asking for free Equity tickets. When the box office attendant says they don't have comps there to just freely give away she acts shocked as if this isn't the one millionth time she's been told this.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 2/18/16 at 9:48am

Clyde, ha! No. She doesn't. 

I'm definitely not defending her. TRUST ME ON THAT. I just have never been the recipient of her bad behavior - only a witness.