A Question About Ushers While In Standing Room

[winston89]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 9:21am

This Saturday, I got a ticket for Mamma Mia that was in standing room. After the show had started, I heard the ushers behind me talking to one another to the point where I found it to be rude and distracting. Now, granted, they were only talking during the overture and during the very beginning of the show and then stopped. If it were the people standing next to me who were also in SRO, I would have no problem telling them to stop. Same if I were actually sitting during the performance rather then standing.

Now, this isn't the first time I have had a stiuation like this so I am wondering what to do. If the situation comes up again, do I just say nothing because they are the ushers, do I tell them in a polite way that their talking is getting in the way of me enjoying the show etc. What does one do in a stiuation like this?

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 9:24am

I heard the people in the light booth at the Nederlander screaming laughing during a recent perf. of GUYS AND DOLLS.

[Weez]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 9:25am

How about not fixing them with a look and simply addressing a "will you please be quiet?" to the general crowd? Hopefully most people will take that hint, and by not going "OI USHERS STFU!", it gives them a little leeway to believe you thought it was other audience members being ill-behaved. Beyond that, it's the same as for every other situation you feel needs attention but that the ushers can't handle: house manager. :P

[winston89]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 9:34am

If it's any other patron, I have no problem at all turning over to them and giving them a very stern "SHHH." However, my cuase for concern is that I feel like if I am doing anything that can even be considered rude to the ushers that I can get kicked out. I have run into ushers who do have a complex about them, who do feel like they are, in a way, the police of the theatre and can do whatever they want in there for the reason of they just feel like it. I just don't want to do anything that will get me kicked out of the theatre.

[Mamie]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 9:36am

Definitely. You're not only justified in expecting them to be quiet during the show, you really should tell the house manager.

[winston89]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 10:22am

If they were, let's say, talking for a vast majority of the first act or all of the first act, then I would have no problem going and finding the house manager. I would have depending on how long that they were talking for. But, considering that it was just during the overture (when a lot of people are still talking, long rant for another day) and at the very beginning. I decided to let it slide. The only real talking I had to deal with with was from some of the people comming to the theatre late, which, is something that I feel goes with the terroratory of being in Standing Room.

I now understand that if an usher is talking during let's say, all of act I then it would be okay for me to get the house manager etc. I wouldn't leave while the show was going on because I would want to see the show and not miss anything.

[Mamie]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 10:29am

That's true. Still, it would certainly be all right to 'shush' them! You paid to be there and they shouldn't be disrupting ANY part of the performance. (This is coming from a former usher.)

[Moviejoemovies]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 10:50am

Until I started reading Theatre Message Boards, I had no idea that Theatre Ushers seemed so intimidating to people. I've been going to the Theatre for 47 years and I never looked at an usher with fear. If an usher tried to evict me from the theatre because I shushed them, they'd have to call the Police to get me out and there would be a lawsuit. Why are you young people scared of ushers? We need to stop tip-toeing around these "Theatre Employees" who were hired to serve you. Imagine a waiter kicking you out of the restaurant because you complained about the food! I guess I'll hear it from current usher posters but that's my feeling.

[snowskittle]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 11:10am

So apart from the noisy ushers Winston, how did you like the show?

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 11:17am

This was an issue for me when I had standing room at Grease and Hairspray. Instead of dealing with them, I would bring it up wiht the House Manager.

[Jane2]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 11:25am

I'm pretty sure those ushers would be extremely embarrassed and would stop talking immediately if you shushed them.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 11:27am

Ushers can be fun sometimes, though - the lady who works the rear mezz at the Imperial is a DELIGHT. The only thing more fun than hearing her say "welcome to the rear mezzanine, the fun place" to every patron who walks in is watching her in-depth demonstrations of how exactly to hang up your coat on your seat.

[Amalia Balash]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 1:38pm

The head usher at the Imperial, who worked the area at the back of the right orchestra when I was there to see Billy Elliot, was a great source of stories during intermission. She talked about the different Billys, how wonderful the cast of August had been when they'd been at the Imperial, and how hidden the restrooms were in the old theaters. Ushers (or anyone else) talking during the show are definitely annoying, but I was glad this usher chose to talk to me during that intermission.

[winston89]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 3:21pm

Moviejoemovies, I have often felt that there are ushers out there who, even though they have no real power, like to feel like they are in a position of authority and act like they do. Now, while I understand that they don't I am the kind of person who would avoid starting up with someone if I can. That being said, during my times in SRO, I have often felt that, for whatever reason, if I tried to tell the usher to be quite, they would either try to kick me out because they felt like they were "in charge" (in charge of showing people to their seats yes, but their job isn't to be the police of the theatre) or they would feel like because they were an usher that they were special and didn't have to follow the same rules as everyone else.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 3:48pm

You were called tattletale a lot when you were younger, weren't you?

[sayokay]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 4:25pm

Just curious - HOW do you stand there for two hours? Don't your legs hurt :x

[CSonBroadway]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 4:35pm

"Just curious - HOW do you stand there for two hours? Don't your legs hurt :x"

Standing room isn't as bad as people think it is. With the cheap price of seeing a broadway show for 20-30 dollars, it's worth it.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 2/18/09 at 5:05pm

Generally, if an usher is talking, it might be because they are talking to a patron, so shushing them is fruitless. Whether or not the show is going on they still need to communicate with patrons if needed. Sometimes ushers need to communicate with each other regarding what is happening with patrons who may still need assistance, since half the usher staff leave within the first 20 minutes of the show. Since you said it only happened at the beginning of the show, I would attribute it to that. If it had occurred throughout the show (i.e., they seemed to be socializing) then I would talk to the house manager. Keep in mind though, that even though you paid for a ticket, standing room patrons aren't taken as seriously as patrons with seats, particularly with the ushers talking. Right or wrong, it's just the way it is (of course, that depends on the problem naturally). Since that early in the performance the talking can be attributed to ushers communicating with or about patrons it will most likely not result in anything...so make sure it was them socializing/not work-related before complaining.

"If an usher tried to evict me from the theatre because I shushed them, they'd have to call the Police to get me out and there would be a lawsuit."

Ushers don't have the authority to remove anyone from the theater. However, the Shubert Organization has excellent security staff, who will have no problem enforcing policies and backing up the ushers. If they ask you to leave and you refuse, the police will be called and you will be arrested for trespassing. Regardless of whether they were right to ask you to leave, once you are asked you need to leave. I've seen security drag people out of the theater before without calling the police first, so if I were you I'd leave. Unless you can prove they broke the law by asking you to leave, then your lawsuit would be dismissed.

"Why are you young people scared of ushers? We need to stop tip-toeing around these "Theatre Employees" who were hired to serve you. Imagine a waiter kicking you out of the restaurant because you complained about the food! I guess I'll hear it from current usher posters but that's my feeling."

Ushers are tasked with enforcing theater policy. If you are asked to do something (or not do something) by an usher, you need to follow the rule. By entering the theater you are agreeing to follow all policies of theater as enforced by the ushers. If you refuse to follow the instructions of the theater staff, the theater can legitimately ask you to leave. If you refuse, as I said above, you can be arrested for trespassing.