At what age is it too old to stage door? — Page 4

I'll still stagedoor at the ripe old age of 42 (though I look 41,lol). You should see the stage door at Inherit the Wind. I think the teenagers would feel awkward over there. LOL.

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Haha. I went to the Inherit the Wind stage door. I had Christopher Plummer sign my "Sound of Music" soundtrack on vinyl. That probably pissed him off.

ETA: I just remembered how awkward it was at The Producers stagedoor when I wanted to meet Hunter Foster. Everyone that was there was waiting for Tony Danza and once he left the entire crowd disbanded, leaving me alone to wait for Hunter. Oh well. I still got to meet him.

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Updated On: 7/1/07 at 12:46 PM

Ha, the only time I've asked a performer to sign something from an old show of theirs was when I asked Hugh Panaro to sign a little Les Miz poster. But, at that point, I knew he wouldn't mind and it was a bit of making up for not stage-dooring him when I was fourteen.

But I agree with those who've said it's not a question of age, but a question of maturity, respect, and how one behaves.

I'm thirty-three. I usually stage-door, but not always. If I didn't care for a performance or such, I don't bother. If I do, it's because I appreciated the performance, I'd like to say so to the performer, and an autograph/photo is a nice memento...but I'm also not going to press the matter, either.

It's more about how you act at the stage door and why you're stage-dooring that matters more than the date on your birth certificate.

I've seen kids in their very early teens behave with a great deal of respect and maturity and I've seen so-called adults behave like idiots...grabbing at someone's ass, monopolizing their time when others are waiting, being pushy and demanding when a performer is visibly exhausted, but still being nice to the fans.

I've seen adults in their forties be unacceptably rude to "lesser" cast members and understudies because, "Oh, you're not so-and-so."

I've met people at stage-doors ranging from six (with her mom, of course) up into their sixties. Some are really lovely folks that I've actually become friends with. And some are just a disgrace.

There was one incident that always stands out for me. I was talking with Hugh...not even at the stage door, but at the subway stop nearby. A young woman who'd been at the stage door already was sitting on the ground and on her phone. She spotted Hugh, jumped to her feet, marched up to him, and shoved her cell phone right between us, and said, "TALK TO MY FRIEND."

Hugh was gracious about the whole thing and talked to her friend for a moment, even though he was running late for an appointment and I was running late for my own. I, on the other hand, probably would've taken her phone and tossed it under the tires of a passing taxi.

She was not a little bratty teen, she at least in her early twenties, and she was old enough to have better manners.

I didn't know Colleen Sexton was doing WICKED. Good for her!

I did it up until about 26, then I lost my nerve. I wrote about it on my blog. Now I'd do it only for big names I couldn't help myself to meet--Lea Salonga, Susan Egan, etc. I still WANT to with great performers in shows, but I just lose my nerve now.
Broadway Blog: Confessions of a Former Stage Door Johnny

First off, I'm also nineteen. I just got back from a trip with my parents to the city where we saw four shows. We went to Les Mis, Curtains, Grey Gardens, and A Chorus Line, stagedooring two of them.

The shows we did stagedoor were Curtains and Grey Gardens. At both shows I was easily one of the youngest people there. Most of the people at Curtains were at the stagedoor to see David Hyde Pierce, many of these in their 40s-50s. At Grey Gardens, there was one girl younger than me, and some lovely women who were in their 70s and 80s.

I have to say that I agree with the people who are saying that it is the level of maturity of the person stagedooring. As long as you treat them with respect and remember your manners, I think you can stagedoor at any age. It's a great way to end your evening at the theatre, and a signed playbill or photo of you and your favorite actress lets you feel like you have a little part of that show's history and lets you take home a little bit of the magic of live theatre.

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"I was going to stage door at Cats once back in the day, but decided against it upon seeing a crowd of ridiculously hyper/loud/obnoxious teens in homemade costumes.

I'll never understand how people could pull such a thing. Don't they realize that everyone (including the cast) thinks they're weird/creepy?"

I agree. I think the costumed fans mean well, but they don't really see how they are perceived by others. There's just a certain age limit for that. One of my friends and her son got to go backstage at Cats before the show, and the actor they were visiting painted the kid's face. But he was about 7, and at that age it was cute and understandable.

For the rest, though, I agree, there's no real age limit for stage dooring. It's about how many times you go, and how you behave while you're there.

46 here..and still a stage door Johnny...or Jimmy.

It actually depends on the show, if there's someone in the show I really admire and whether I have time to stay.

Colleen Sexton was extremely nice outside JEKYLL AND HYDE. Maybe she was just distracted the day you saw her in WICKED.
Broadway Blog: From the Mouth of Alan Jay Lerner

I'm fourteen, stage door all the time, and see people of all ages at the stage door. Of course, there are the shows that have their target audiences, like the twelve-year-olds at Legally Blonde, but still. And I have never seen anyone really freak out at the stage door, but I'd probably have a mental breakdown if I waited by Spring Awakening. Please, I cried just standing on the same street as the theatre!

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^ To each his own. But that's not going to stop anyone over 15 to stage door. I think it's a great thing to do, and never really looked at it as something limited to the youngins.

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Too old - death

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Apart from some certain legal issue things, there is NO age for anything...!
You should be able to do things as your life unfolds, whenever YOU are ready for them, not when society thinks you should do them.
Learn this one, and you will really enjoy your life, with no regrets