Denzel Washington to return to Broadway in OTHELLO? — Page 8

Just an FYI for those attending:

Othello is partnering with Yondr to ensure performances are phone-free. Upon arrival at the Barrymore Theatre, all phones will be locked in Yondr pouches by our staff and will be opened at the end of the performance. Guests maintain possession of their phones and can access them at intermission as needed.

Sutton Ross said: "Just an FYI for those attending:

Othello is partnering with Yondr to ensure performances are phone-free. Upon arrival at the Barrymore Theatre, all phones will be locked in Yondr pouches by our staff and will be opened at the end of the performance. Guests maintain possession of their phones and can access them at intermission as needed."

Following up on this to say that I received my ticket from Telecharge with specific instructions to print out the PDF attachment because phones will be taken.

BroadwayFanatic454 said: “Following up on this to say that I received my ticket from Telecharge with specific instructions to print out the PDF attachment because phones will be taken."

I’m all for the pouches, but it’s 2025: no one has a printer. Who wants to run to Kinko’s before the show?

Ok....lots of people still have printers. Yes, this will likely cause some problems with seating and slow down the process. I'm fairly certain that many people have become so used to etix, that they won't even read the comment about printing Tix. But note: phones aren't put into younder pouches until after they are scanned - so this is simply about seating.

Heck, I've had that message to print (not because of Yonder pouches - but saying that a particular theater didn't scan Tix) and got to the theater and they did INDEED scan. I can easily see lots of people not having a printed Tix. The ART used these pouches for Gatsby. No one asked to see in print my ticket, but I needed to remember the location. The older I get, the harder something that simple is to do!

Whether the phones are locked up before scanning or after, having an hand-held record of the seat number is kind of vital. Especially in a 1000-seat house…perhaps easier to manage in a smaller venue like the Pels or the Loeb Drama Center.

Would become a giant mess if the ushers were relying on people using the Honor System to tell where their seats are.

Every night at every show, there’s at least *someone* from upstairs who thinks their seat is in the orchestra. Sometimes they cause a fuss. Every night at every show, there are circumstances where an usher has to say “can I look at your tickets real quick” to be sure certain people are in the correct seats.

Updated On: 2/23/25 at 10:08 AM

I think concern over a lack of a printer is valid. I got rid of mine quite a while ago for lack of use- and I think I've only really needed to print something a few times since (something like a passport renewal). Most of my friends ditched theirs, too.

I do see many people in line for shows holding printed tickets, though. But I think it's an individual basis thing- age could play a role, as well as occupation or other needs. But it's no longer really a necessity to own a printer like it was even ten years ago.

At Liberation a gentleman scanned my electronic ticket on my phone and his device printed a receipt that had our seat numbers on it. Then we went downstairs and were handed the pouches for our phones. It was very convenient. If the Pels (424 seats) had one person scanning/printing then the Barrymore (1058 seats) can have 3 people doing the same. Or folks will just go to box office and ask for a printed ticket.

Cape Twirl of Doom said: "Tickets are scanned before phones are put in Yondr pouches, they then give you a small printed receipt with your ticket number printed on it. So if your ticket is on your phone you will be able to show the receipt to the ushers inside for seating.

They realize many people will only have digital tickets and have thought this through. It really was a very fast and easy process last night."

Was it a full house last night? Normally at the final dress rehearsals I’ve attended it’s not full (most folks asked to sit in mezz since creatives still have their makeshift desks in the orchestra.)