Any bad stage-door experiences? — Page 4

I had the experience of working with Ms. Neuwirth-she's not big on the crowds hanging outside the stage door. She'll sign autographs, but really prefers not to do pics.

Before I worked with her, I did stage door Chicago and she said, "I'll sign anything you want, I'm just not comfortable doing pictures". I don't consider it a bad experience. She was nice about it.

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I've had my fair share of bad experiences.
When I saw Wicked back in january, I waited in the freezing cold for a good half hour (which I have become accustomed to, since I understand the green takes a while), and Stephanie J Block came out. The majority was young children with theater groups, who were all very excited but ignorant. They kept asking every performer "Who were you in the show?" and even though most of them approached this very graciously, I couldn't help but be embarrassed for some of them. Anyways, SJB stormed out the stage door and stopped maybe every few people, though everyone was waiting for her. She grabbed mine and I told her how much I enjoyed and appreciated her performance, and she just nodded. After, I asked her how Sebastian was and she just said "FINE." I also requested a picture, and she replied "only if the camera on and someone is ready to take it". I was taking my own pictures, so she stood there for a brief second, posing, and then walked off before I could thank her.
I understand that it was very, very cold and that was probably the last place she wanted to be, but I couldn't help but be a little dissapointed, as I have heard other stories of how kind and friendly she was. Bottom line: They're only human.

"There is no excuse for performers being rude at the stage door. We all have bad days but must remember if not for the people buying the tickets, performers wouldn't have jobs. I don't "expect" performers to sign autographs, but I appreciate it. And when I see a performer being rude, I lose a lot of respect for them. Just like a lose respect for anyone in any other line of work who is rude to people who pay their bills. If stage dooring scares actors that much, then don't stage door. And then seek therapy because I don't see how one can perform in front of a large audience, but not be able to take some compliments from fans on a job well done outside of a theatre."

FlyingMonkey, are you for real? Suggesting that actors should seek therapy if they aren't into the stagedoor thing? That is one of the dumbest comments I have ever heard. How could you even say the actors shouldn't stage door if they're not into it? That is their entrance/exit to and from work; the actors are not "stage dooring", the fans are! Did it ever occur to you that the fans are invading on the actors' personal space? Why should actors be forced to take a different exit just to avoid signing autographs? Your comments are incredibly immature.

taylorPHENOMENON2, You must have caught Stephanie on a bad night. When I met her at the beginning of March you could tell she was in a hurry but she was so nice to everyone that was there(we had to wait about 45 minutes before she came out). Sorry that you were disappointed. I probably would have been also but like you said they're only human and have bad days just like the rest of us.

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I think one of the biggest keys to this whole thread is learning how to read body language. If I hang just to see a star come out, I usually just smile and compliment them and then stay the heck away. I don't move in, just play it by sight. They are tired, have to catch the train and god only knows what might have happened to them that day. (One time, an actress in a show I went to see had a death in the family that very day and still went on, god love her.) You simply never know what's going on inside their minds.

As for the whole stage door thing, well...it's a catch twenty-two. Being a stage door loser is part of the process of LIVE theater and I think most actors are being silly if you think that door is going to be empty when it's quitting time. That's simply a fringe benefit of doing a real production. (It's not like Kate and Leo were gonna walk out the back door of the Multiplex when Titanic was over). The charm of theater is that they go home when you go home, so a chance encounter is an extra treat.

Problem is there has to be compromise and when over-eager fans meet I-wanna-go-home performers, it's not always going to go smoothly. It's hard to be a chipper actor/actress when you've been doing it for so long and now you know there is an extra 10-15 minutes, possibly, waiting between you and that meal or you and your after show television before bedtime.

Sometimes it's better to just see the show, hang and give them a smile. Don't go near them, just be silently supportive. Keeps you from getting slapped. :)

Just my worthless two cents. In 20 years of doing this, I've seen it all...and it wasn't always pretty.

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re: bebe- I never stage doored Chicago but at the flea market this past year she was in the photo booth and I got a pic with her and she was one of the sweetest people ever. Granted it was for charity and was in a controlled setting but she is in no way a bitch.


The stage door experience at gypsy the other night was not fun. The actors were absolutely amazing and signed/ took pictures whatever but the crowd there was really rude and yelling actors names who were clearly going to GET to them. Sometimes I think its the stage door goers who make the experience bad. Not the actors.

I don't stagedoor. I did a few times back in the early 80's but it was nothing like it is today. My first time back to Broadway after 1981 was in April of 2004. And the show I decided to stagedoor was Wicked. I never got to see Idina or Kristin and just left after about 15 minutes as it was a bit insane. I decided that after walking past some stagedoors after shows, I didn't want to deal with it. I really wanted a signed playbill from COMPANY, so I got one through BCEFA when they were selling them at the theater. And if I want one in the future, that's how I will get it. I did stage door at Little Mermaid in December, but that was just to say hello to a cast member I got to know while the show was in Denver.

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Updated On: 3/17/08 at 01:37 PM

Thats so nice of SJB!

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Yul Brynner punched a 10-year-old Anthony Rapp in the stomach because he was "in his way". Pushing past people at a stagedoor is one thing, but hitting someone else in the production- especially a child- is never excusable, cancer or not.

If that actually happened, of course it was inexcusable, and I'm sure AEA/Rapp's parents had something to say about it.

keen on kean, I agree completely. In most of the stories here, I'm not seeing rude actors--I'm seeing ones who have declined to sign or take photos, who are tired, or who might not want to strike up long conversations. And many actors have had bad experiences with fans at the stage door, and are understandably wary.

I've also met Bebe Neuwirth away from the stage door. She struck me as being quiet and reserved, and she was extremely pleasant.

Every few months this type of thread rears its ugly head. The fact is that actors do not owe anyone anything and that New York theater is unique in that fans actually get to see and meet the actors they admire. In Hollywood, you would never get that close. Instead of appreciating this privilege, many fans are rude or ridiculous in their approach to stars.

People also need to understand that on any given day an actor may or may not sign or take pictures. They might be sick, have an appointment or just be tired and that is understandable. I have also seen the same actor be more or less patient on any given day depending on their mood and what is going on in their life. We all have bad days but when a fan holds a grudge over a period of months or years it seems unfair that the actor never has the ability to defend their position or to explain how they were feeling or what happened on that day.

When these threads pop up I always wonder why we have to dwell on the negative. It is the same negative attitude that prevails when someone starts a thread to talk about which show should or might close next. Why not highlight the positive?

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I recently visited a friend of mine who's ushering several different shows, and we were chatting about the fact that we're both dealing with stomach troubles. She said that if you visited any dressing room at any theater, you were bound to find medications and remedies not only for keeping the throat healthy, but also for staving off things like gastritis, ulcers, reflux, etc. She said everyone's got things like ginger tea, slippery elm, Nexium, etc. stashed in their dressing rooms.

Made me feel less alone, and also more aware of the stresses that come with following one's theatrical passions. I never was a stage door fanatic, but I am even more aware of the body language of an actor who just wants to go home and rest.

Updated On: 3/17/08 at 02:43 PM

taylorPHENOMENON2- I agree with what the others have said about SJB. I have met her probably close to 8-10 times, and she has been amazing.

But, I have to disagree with this opinion that performers do not "owe" the fans a good stagedoor experience (that includes autographs). I completely understand if someone is sick, stressed, busy, in a hurry, etc. However, it is hard to think of any occupation- not just the performing arts- where success is not based on a combination of Product + Service. I used to work at Starbucks, and I can tell you that even if I made the perfect mocha latte for a customer and in record time, it wouldn't matter if I just gave it to them without saying "Thank you, have a great day." I would have been reprimanded by my manager. In the same vein, all business is based on its products and customer service. My dad is the CEO of a fairly large company in the midwest, and he always tells me that he didn't get to where he was because he necessarily had better ideas than everyone else, but because he treated people- no matter who they were- with respect and dignity.

And let's think about the culture we live in. How many television shows, stations, radio shows, and magazines are dedicated not to talking about an actor's performance in a movie/tv show, but in their behavior outside of the industry? Tom Cruise did not lose his contract deal with a giant production company because his acting ability suddenly changed. He lost it because of his behavior, and people responded to that, and ticket sales plummeted. If you are in the entertainment business, you are in some ways a role model. Whether people are conscious of it or not, most look up to celebrities, and broadway fans see broadway performers as celebrities. I would be much more nervous meeting Sutton Foster than I would meeting Kate Hudson.

The fact is, performers' behavior most of the time affects how people view their performances. Especially when we're talking about kids. If you heard that someone was homophobic (think: Grey's Anatomy) would you be able to completely objectively watch them onstage? I know many of my friends could not watch Grey's Anatomy in the same way after that. Or think about politicians in this country; their behavior, or character, weighs much much more than their ability to lead. So, no, performers don't NEED to act a certain way. But could their careers be impacted by their behavior? Absolutely. That is how our society works. "It's not about aptitude, it's the way you're viewed."