People who take vacant seats at intermission- Page 2
People who take vacant seats at intermission
#25People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/3/16 at 6:02am
I have only moved up once for a Broadway show- Kinky Boots. I had gotten lottery box seats and noticed that there were three seats in the front row that were empty all of Act 1. During the first act, I kept glancing over to see if they would ever be filled and they weren't. During intermission I was working up the courage to go and try and move up when the lady in the row in front of us commented on the seats and about moving up. Well, that was enough to get my butt and gear so I high tailed it down and had my parents follow me. LOL. Didn't cause any kind of disturbance and the actors after the show kept talking about how much they enjoyed all my enthusiasm and made doing the show fun. Joey Taranto even ran up to me as he was walking off stage after curtain call and grabbed my hand and said "We love your smiling!" LOL.
Darreyl with an L!
#26People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/3/16 at 6:22am
haterobics said: "Not sure how talking at intermission would make one concerned that the talking would continue into the second act... so that seems like a pretty big leap, no? I talk, empty my bladder, and use my mobile phone at intermission, too, none of which would translate into things I would do in my seat during the show."
Yeah, I don't get what this has to do with anything.
Since when do people NOT talk during intermission, usually comparing notes about what you think about the show so far at the very least. Where does that translate into them being rude during the show, to the point that you'd have to put a plan into place in the event it happens? tbh op, reading that in your post kind of irked me, ironically, assuming they were going to be rude, kind of makes you guys seem like the rude ones.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#27People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/3/16 at 7:03am
If people worried less about what others were getting....a better seat, a better price...and less about what others MIGHT do to offend them, the world would be better off.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
#28People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/4/16 at 11:58am
KJisgroovy said: "How do you know that they didn't arrive late? Do they have any less right of being in those seats than you had of having no one sitting there? It's amazing how quickly people become Abigail Williams.
Mind ya bidness.
Because they asked the person next to them if the seats were empty, and talked about what they would do if the people showed up. Plus, they were VERY (overly) chatty during intermission, making us wonder if it would continue once the lights went down. They were OK, although they were whispering to each other a lot during the second act, partially obstructing the view when they were head-to-head...
I would never move up, only because I would feel bad for anyone's view I might be obstructing that paid more for their tickets than I did, Just my opinion....
"
#29People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/4/16 at 12:15pm
My opinion is any empty seat at intermission- that you are sure is empty- is fair game unless you are otherwise directed by house staff. Taking empty seats before then could cause problems if the rightful ticketholders just happen to be late. And even then, some theatres hold latecomers in seats closest to the entrance to prevent disturbances, and they are free to claim their ticketed seats at intermission.
Regardless if you are sitting in the seat printed on your ticket or a seat you moved (or got moved) into, you should be respectful. But as a house manager, I wouldn't kick people out of empty seats they had moved into.
"...everyone finally shut up, and the audience could enjoy the beginning of the Anatevka Pogram in peace."
#30People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/4/16 at 2:25pm
For me, moving at intermission is always a contingency situation.
As a guy who is 6'7 and a 38" inseam, Broadway theatre seats are seldomly designed for my comfort. I never move prior to intermission, but if my seat is so unbearably tight that I lose circulation in my legs (which happens more often than you think), I'll ask to move to an open seat, or standing room/usher's chair if the former is not possible.
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dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#31People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/4/16 at 2:51pm
Oh, my, that IS tall. I'm only 5'4" and sometimes I feel like I have no leg room. My sympathies, quizking!
(But its all about suffering for your art!)
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
#32People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/7/16 at 12:53pm
I admit, the only time this bugs me is when I pay too ticket and am pleased that, due to an empty seat in front, I have a perfect view only to have it partially blocked then. That said, I suppose it goes to show that I should have taken it myself if I was so concerned.
#33People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/7/16 at 1:08pm
quizking101 said: "For me, moving at intermission is always a contingency situation.
As a guy who is 6'7 and a 38" inseam, Broadway theatre seats are seldomly designed for my comfort. I never move prior to intermission, but if my seat is so unbearably tight that I lose circulation in my legs (which happens more often than you think), I'll ask to move to an open seat, or standing room/usher's chair if the former is not possible.
"
6'7"? Holy crap. All 5 feet nothing of me would probably be a little disappointed if you moved in front of me, but I wouldn't fault you for it!
the artist formerly known as dancingthrulife04
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#34People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/7/16 at 2:26pm
I find leg room is the major problem being tall in the theatre. When I saw Evita this week my knees were actually pressed into the seat in front of me (I am 6'2"
. I tried not to move them at all but sometimes it couldn't be helped (cramps) and I noticed the woman in front of me turned back twice to give me an angry look. Anyway sitting back down just before the end of intermission, she turned back again and icily said "Young man, could you please not kick my seat" but then stopped when she noticed how tucked in I was and said "oh, I see that you are rather tall..." And I quickly and, I hope politely, apologized and said I'd do my best. After the show she did give me a warm smile so I guess I was "forgiven". Is young men ??
i do know how annoying it is to have your seat kicked so I could sympathize, although obviously it was hardly like some child kicking your seat.
StephieElise
Featured Actor Joined: 11/12/12
#35People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 8:53am
I've only tried to move seats once and was unsuccessful 
It was for the closing night of a show and leading up to it they had a series of competitions on Facebook to win pairs of front row seats. Throughout all of the first act at least 4 of these seats were empty. We thought it would be better to ask the usher rather than just move. We were told no as they would have to check with the box office, which was closed because it was halfway through the final performance. The thing was, the winners had to pick up their tickets at the box office so even if the rightful seat owners turned up they couldn't get in anyway! I would never change to a seat that was more expensive than what I had paid though.
#36People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 9:14am
I've never tried to move on my own, but I have been moved by ushers a few times. The most recently was at Providence Performing Arts Center for Cabaret. I was with a friend who has season tickets and so we were seated in her normal seats at the back of the oechestra (which was pretty empty) when another usher came over with a pair of tickets in the 10th row, so we moved. The same thing happened a few years back at Peter and the Starcatcher. I was with a different friend and we had comps from my father's radio station when we were moved to the 8th row center. Pure luck. Also a few times at different Broadway shows I've been moved up by ushers (both times at Roundabout shows).
And to the person who said they wouldn't want to pay full price and sit next to someone who paid less... Why is that? I distinctly remember going to see Shrek when I was in college and my friend and I scored excellent rush seats (we think they were house seats... They were 8th row right on the left aisle in the orchestra and we paid $37 each. Did we not have the right to sit there because we didn't pay premium prices??? I had similar seats at School of Rock a few weeks back, this time purchased at TKTS. Should my mother and I have been denied sitting in our orchestra seats because we paid half price at the booth and not full price at the box office? What about the people who use discount codes? School groups who get a deep discount and chaperones go free? (I have been in every one of these situations in the last few months... Including as a "free ticket" chaperone on a school trip to see Something Rotten.... Our group paid for 40 tickets and got 4 free, one of each of the chaperones... Did we not deserve seats because our tickets were free with our students' paid tickets?
#38People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 9:43am
Comparing an unsold seat at a show to a physical object doesn't work. If the bracelet is gone, the jeweler can never sell it for full price. But a theater seat can and will be on sale again the next night and the next and the next. But most importantly, a theater seat that's unsold at intermission is not going to be sold. The theater doesn't lose anything when someone moves into an unsold seat.
#39People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 9:50am
I remember one time years ago I bought a ticket at TDF for a Sondheim review with Carol Burnett. It was in the front row at the end. The sightlines were not very good so I went to the box office and asked if they had any available seats I could move into and the guy in the box office said in a curt and snotty way IF YOU WANTED A BETTER SEAT YOU SHOULD HAVE PAID FULL PRICE. I sheepishly returned to my seat but as the years have gone by I totally understand where he was coming from.
Many people arrive late, some after intermission and they expect their seat to be vacant when they are ushered into the theatre. In essence they have rented the seat for the evening.
Ring-a-ding
Swing Joined: 5/1/16
#41People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 10:11am
mariel9 said: "Comparing an unsold seat at a show to a physical object doesn't work. If the bracelet is gone, the jeweler can never sell it for full price. But a theater seat can and will be on sale again the next night and the next and the next. But most importantly, a theater seat that's unsold at intermission is not going to be sold. The theater doesn't lose anything when someone moves into an unsold seat."
Agreed. The seat is no longer being offered for sale by the theater after intermission. Seems more like going to a bakery at the end of the day, buying a cupcake, noticing an employee putting an entire cake into a dumpster, and retrieving it. If an usher tells you to go back to the seat you purchased, you should do it, of course, and I haven't ever and probably wouldn't move without asking an usher, but it isn't stealing.
#42People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 12:54pm
Explain to me why you think that's perfectly acceptable to do.
The seat is empty. The seat is unsold. The seat will never be sold. No one will ever pay to put their butt in that seat for that performance. No one is harmed in any way when people move into those seats. Some theaters intentionally move people into those seats. Other theaters know it happens and allow it. This bothers you. That's fine--you're allowed to be bothered by things that don't bother other people. But you aren't objectively right and you're failing to prove that your feelings are anything other than your own subjective feelings.
threetwoone
Featured Actor Joined: 7/30/09
#43People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 2:13pm
I was just in London with a group of 10 students of mine to see Wicked and they were all seated in row Y of the dress circle and I was seated in row C of the dress circle. (How I was seated in a much better seat is unrelated. I had no control over the tickets...)
My whole row was empty so at intermission I spoke with an usher and asked if it would be alright to move my students down to row C with me and she said "Of course, if the seats are empty at intermission you're free to move into them!" The seats the students moved into we're at least 4x the value of their original tickets and it was absolutely fine with the usher.
On a related note, I was seated in row 6 of the upper circle for Sunset Boulevard with Glenn Close and at intermission I noticed row 1 was empty. I again spoke with an usher at intermission and she said it was fine to move to row 1. This was also a more expensive seat...
Would I have moved without getting permission? No. Do I feel bad that these were all higher priced seats? Absolutely not. I got permission.
#44People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 2:56pm
Here's something that just occurred to me. When I fly, I pay at least $50 more for a "more leg room" seat. When I'm on the plane, I sometimes see some empty seats in that category. There are passengers who request to take those seats since they're empty. I'm always pleased to hear the flight attendance refuse to let them, stating that those seats are more expensive. And it's the fair thing to do.
How do we compare this to the theater seats?
<-----I'M TOTES ROLLING MY EYES
#45People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 3:16pm
The only seat moving that i have ever done at intermission is into a seat next to mine if a couple that was seated next to me leaves at intermission (or maybe moves to closer seats? haha). Then it can be nice to spread out a little if it is winter and there are coats at the seats, or if there is a better sightline not behind a tall person, or whatever.
I have also once claimed my purchased seat at intermission after a severe flight delay and then traffic/bus delay caused me to miss most of the first act on one of my weekend trips to NYC. On that one, i arrived about 15 minutes before intermission, and told the usher who approached me and said they were going to seat me in the back on an aisle by the door that i preferred to just wait in the lobby until intermission so that i don't disturb anyone. The usher replied ("you'll go where we tell you" ) and insisted that i had to go in and be seated, suggesting that the ushers in the lobby would have been disturbed by my presence and wouldn't let me wait there until intermission. Anyway, i sat in my purchased seat for the second act, despite getting some annoyance expressed to me from the person behind who had been enjoying having no one in front of her blocking her view. I did show her my ticket and she stopped protesting.
#46People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 4:50pm
I was in the last row in HipTix seats at Robber Bridegroom last week and the Left Orch was about half-full, so 5ish minutes before curtain, the usher came and told us, the whole last row, that we could all move down if we wanted. Which we did!
I've only done it twice before, once at the show I worked on so I was confident about it, and once at the request of the person I was with. I won't do it otherwise - I'm WAY too worried that the patron who was meant to be there will show up, even halfway through the second act. I refuse to cause a scene by accident (but have no qualms regarding pricing tears of seats).
Broadway Joe
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/15/10
#48People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 5:41pm
I actually never look to move down to the first couple rows, my idea of theatre heaven is when a show isn't that crowded I'll move to where there is nobody next to us, in front of us or behind us. It happens a lot when shows aren't doing so well and the mezzanine or balcony has rows of empty seats. It's so much more comfortable to be able to turn my legs to the side if I need to.
Updated On: 5/8/16 at 05:41 PM
thomaspaine
Chorus Member Joined: 3/15/16
#49People who take vacant seats at intermission
Posted: 5/8/16 at 9:18pm
I don't see why this is at all an issue if people ask an usher if it's okay. I asked if it was all right at Gentleman's Guide last year and the usher practically laughed and told me seats are up for grabs after intermission as far as they were concerned. I asked if I could move up from standing room to seats at Glass Menagerie and was similarly cleared. At Color Purple recently, I was in a rush seat in a box and could not see even one sliver of stage. The house manager said I could move at intermission, but I told him it really was impossible to see anything and I'd basically just be listening. He was like I can't stop you moving if lights go down and front mezz is still open. At two minutes til the show started, there were probably 60 seats open on the front mezzanine sides still, so I moved over and an usher kind of questioned me but then let me stay there. It's fine. Especially in that circumstance, if I were Cynthia Erivo or Jennifer Hudson and looked up and saw a nearly empty front mezz, I'd be pissed.
