Fight nearly breaks out in audience at LOVEMUSIK- Page 3

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/7/07 at 11:07pm

What if you leave early and you still are late. When I was late to Wicked, we left at 10:00 AM, and it's normally a two-hour drive to NYC. Had we known there would be so much traffic, we would've left earlier. We didn't know the traffic would be that bad.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 5/7/07 at 11:10pm

I guess I'm weird. If I have to be somewhere I always allow extra time, especially if I know I'm going somewhere there's going to be traffic. Well, I did when I drove. Now it's public transport all the way. You couldn't pay me to have a car again.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/7/07 at 11:12pm

Well, we did allow extra time. It normally takes us 2 hours to get to the city. We left at 10, planning to get there at 12/12:30. We didn't realize the traffic would be so heavy.

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 5/7/07 at 11:14pm

Sometime you can't help being late.

But I agree with Jane2. Whenever I work front of house we always get people coming in and then going off to the bathroom. And of course I have to stand and wait for them before I can send them up to an usher.

I always feel bad when there are nice people who know they are late and wait..this old married couple came and sat on a bench in front of this large vent while waiting patiently. This other group kept trying to open the doors when I turned my back (though I could see them in the window). Idiot.

This lady by the vent was wearing a shawl and the vent sucked it up - luckily I told her in time.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 5/7/07 at 11:16pm

Ah well. Different strokes I guess. It's over now. I guess having lived in the DC area when I did have a car I knew to allow a ton of extra time if I was driving anywhere. Traffic's always worse on the weekends. Anyway, you got in. I wasn't there. Luckily it's a show that does admit latecomers. C'est la vie. :)

[CapnHook]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:17am

I always arrive to the theatre at least 1 hour before curtain. THEN I'll walk around and come back in a half hour. I've never been late.

EXCEPT once. I had to talk with a police officer about an incident I witnessed with a homeless man. I arrived to my seat at the tail beginning of the opening song in A CHORUS LINE.

Arriving late DOES happen.

[logan0215]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 1:28am

I find the Vegas (or possibly just Cirque du Soleil Vegas shows) rule:

If there are open seats available once the show has started, already-seated guests are welcome to take them and it is up to the ushers to place the late-comers in seats (more often then not, further back).

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 1:30am

Off-Topic, but seeing logan0215's avatar I want to congratulate Sherie Rene Scott on winning the 2007 Lucille Lortel Award for Best Featured Actress!

[jordangirl]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 6:25am

"Arriving late DOES happen."

Just make sure it's a show where they allow late seating. There are shows that don't. (And personally I love them even more for it.)

Life happening and being late I can understand. What really annoyed me when I saw Moon a couple of weeks ago was the girl in the center of my row (front...student rush) who waited until they blinked the lights at intermission to get up and climb over everyone, meaning she had to come flying back down the aisle and climb over us again when she "realized" the lights were going off.

[Jane2]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 10:15am

To sum up-having worked in foh for the past 7 years, in every capacity-I'm in a position to notice that the amount of latecomers to the theater these days is astounding, and more astounding is the unconcerned attitude of most latecomers.

It's gotten to the point that in some of our houses, we need extra staff to assist in late seating.

I'm not surprised, though, because this is in lockstep with all the other instances we talk about on these boards concerning people who lack consideration of others.

I'm telling ya, folks, this is the era of entitlement-"the rules are for other people, not me".

[jordangirl]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 10:19am

^ And if theatres would start making and enforcing late-seating policies, and making them known at the time of ticket purchase, perhaps it would start happening less and people would start taking res[posibility for themselves.

Of course, I believe in the impossible. I teach special ed. :)

[notabb]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 11:04am

I'm pretty sure it was Michael John laChuisa who talked about hitting someone rude with a rolled up program. It wasn't to be taken seriously though I heard one or two people did think he meant it!

[avab802]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:00pm

Sometimes I think people assume that being older gives them permission to act however the heck they want.

This is so true, and SO annoying. Almost every time I go to the movies, if there is a line of people outside the theater waiting to be let in, there is at least one elderly person trying to jump to the front of that line. I have no problem with people who use wheelchairs, or even walkers or canes, being let in first so they can find an accessible seat. But most of the people who try to jump the line are just as capable of waiting in line as I am. They feel entitled to be first just because they are old. If I ever get like that, I hope someone bops me on the head with a Playbill.
Updated On: 5/9/07 at 12:00 PM

[Jane2]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:15pm

^Interesting you complain about the elderly. I gave it a moment's thought, and realized that all the people who come late to theater nowadays are young.

" But most of the people who try to jump the line are just as capable of waiting in line as I am"

How do you know that? How do you know if an older person is just as capable of waiting in line as you are? Did you know there are many conditions that older folks get which makes it awfully hard to wait in line? I could be in that position in about 20 years!

Updated On: 5/8/07 at 12:15 PM

[Dover]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:16pm

When I was in college I was the merchandising manager for a Broadway show. This one afternoon, before the doors opened, one of my program sellers comes back in to tell me that she just got hit by some 85-year-old lady. I asked what happened, and she said that the lady asked the price of the program, was told, and then said "Hell no!" and hit her. I can't remember exactly how she hit her, but it wasn't just a light tap.

I know programs are expensive, but just because you're 85 doesn't give you the right to ask someone a question and then assault them because you don't like the answer. I was incensed. I stormed out there with the employee, and asked her to point the lady out so I could at least tell her what I thought of her behavior (calling security seemed a little extreme, even though that's what anyone else would have deserved if they weren't playing the old-lady card), but it was a Wednesday matinee and she blended in with the other 1,600 gray-headed ladies, and we didn't find her.

And on the subject of latecomers, I think they should be able to see the show, but only be shown to their seats at a suitable time. What that is needs to be figured out on a show-by-show and theatre-by-theatre basis. I was at Journey's End recently and they sat latecomers in our row about ten minutes into the show. We had to actually get up and exit the row to let them through, which I'm sure was thrilling for the people behind us, too. That's a tough show to find a good time for late seating, but I thought they could have done better. There's plenty of room in the back of the Belasco.

[Link Larkin Wanabe]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:17pm

I almost got into a fight last week at a show, but at least it was after the show as people were leaving. When a man threatens to beat up a woman in the audience, there is no way I'm not gonna throw down.

Akiva

[Jane2]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:23pm

Dover, there are plenty of patrons who don't mind being sat in the back, or in seats which weren't originally the ones they had. However, you do get the occasional patrons who will insist they sit in their assigned seats. It is often less distracting to seat them up front than to engage them in an often loud argument. I've experienced it many times.

House management can be tricky. The goal is to cause the least amount of distraction as possible. Many times that leads to taking an action that may seem annoying to many other patrons, but in actuality is the road to the least trouble.

Updated On: 5/8/07 at 12:23 PM

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:38pm

A couple entered SWEENEY during "A Little Priest". Explain to me why we should excuse/allow that REGARDLESS of the circumstances?

I might just be a compulsively early person, but if you pay 110$ to see a show, you might as well leave early enough to be positive you get there for the rise of the curtain. If someone enters five minutes late, I can deal with that. But there needs to be a "cutoff" point.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 12:49pm

But trash, you do not know why people are late.

It's impossible to know everyone's story. To judge EVERYONE who is late is hideously stupid...things happen. Sure, there are some people who are just slow and don't care - but I think you will find that most theatregoers aren't late on purpose. There are often events that are beyond our control.

The problem with a cut off time is that 5 minutes turns into 6 minutes, which turns into 10 minutes.

It's just not possible without creating even MORE of a disturbance.

Most latecomers that I have encountered are extremely aware that they are late and that they are disturbing you. They feel bad. They try their best to remain quiet.

And after the rustle that lasts all of 30 seconds is over, I'm over it.

[Mother's Younger Brother]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 1:08pm

Unfortunately, my observation is that latecomers tend to be the worst audience members for the remainder of the performance.

I get nervous any time I have empty seats around me as the show starts. At the very least, latecomers seem to continue to talk and giggle about the fact that they were late even AFTER being seated, and then of course it takes several more minutes for them to get settled, adjust their coats on the backs of their chairs, offer gum to the entire family, and then get up to pee 10 minutes later because they weren't at the theatre in time to do it before the show started.

I realize "life happens," but I think that's the exception, not the rule. Far more often that not, I think latecomers just don't plan ahead, and don't think about the courtesy of arriving on time.

I've worked in professional theatre box offices for over 10 years. I can't count the number of times someone comes in AT showtime to pick up their tickets and then asks, "They'll wait for us to start the show, won't they?" So many people just don't take personal responsibility, and feel entitled by purchasing a ticket.

[Jane2]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 1:37pm

"Most latecomers that I have encountered are extremely aware that they are late and that they are disturbing you. They feel bad. They try their best to remain quiet. "

It's fortunate for you that you've had such good experiences with latecomers on a personal basis.

I think MYB and I are talking about the larger picture-the general problem of latecomers to theaters.

[Dover]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 2:06pm

Jane2, I have lots of respect for house managers and ushers who have to handle belligerent patrons so as not to inconvenience others, but also without pissing off the patron so much that they go telling everyone and writing letters to the theatre owners, etc. about how rudely they were treated.

I spent over a decade working front-of-house on Broadway and I've seen lots of situations and the way the house managers handle them. Personally, I've often wished that any patron that gives attitude for something that is their fault (being late, not liking the seat they bought, etc.) should not be done any favors. But usually the managers placate them as much as possible, which I understand from a public relations perspective, but what I learned from that is that if you buy a seat in the nosebleed and then complain and yell like a total jerk that you're too far from the stage, you'll get moved up. A nice person who asks, "Excuse me, might there be a better seat?" will get the correct answer, which is that they have to sit in the seat they bought. I just don't like the way that belligerence is encouraged, especially when the theatre has done nothing wrong and doesn't owe the patron any apology.

Of course when the show is going on there's the added consideration of not disturbing everyone else. I like it when a patron is being really loud and purposely disturbing the whole audience because of their localized problem, to see them removed by the cops, in handcuffs if necessary. But that's just me. I think people like that need to get what they deserve or it just proves to them that bullying works. I applaud the house managers that do that, because they probably catch some flack from the owners for that kind of "customer service."

[jordangirl]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 2:13pm

"if you buy a seat in the nosebleed and then complain and yell like a total jerk that you're too far from the stage, you'll get moved up. A nice person who asks, "Excuse me, might there be a better seat?" will get the correct answer, which is that they have to sit in the seat they bought."

Actually I found the opposite pretty much every time I saw The Vertical Hour ~ up to and including the time I ended up switching seats with a girl I'd met in the lobby who needed to be further back to see the whole stage (she had front row and with the stage height couldn't see what she needed to for a class thingy). We handled that on our own, but as I got down front, the woman in the center seat was asking the usher very nicely if she could move. He was very polite and said it would be in the mexx or a box and she was fine with it. He looked at me and asked if I was ok there. I said I was (hyperventilating, but I was ok there...I'd initially had front row center for the 4/1 closing,. but lost that when closing moved up) and he said I could move over to the lady's seat if I wanted rather than sit on the end. Everyone was great in the whole situation.

[Jane2]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 5:18pm

"Jane2, I have lots of respect for house managers and ushers who have to handle belligerent patrons so as not to inconvenience others, but also without pissing off the patron so much that they go telling everyone and writing letters to the theatre owners, etc. about how rudely they were treated."


thank you Dover-you have outlined exactly why the job of house manager is sometimes so difficult. It's pretty damn hard to please everyone.

"
, but what I learned from that is that if you buy a seat in the nosebleed and then complain and yell like a total jerk that you're too far from the stage, you'll get moved up. A nice person who asks, "Excuse me, might there be a better seat?" will get the correct answer, which is that they have to sit in the seat they bought"

Well, that may have happened where you work, but I'll tell you-most of the people I work with have the opposite reaction. When a patron is rude, we're much less likely to break any rules or to even give them much, but when they are polite, we are more than happy to try and help them.

Updated On: 5/8/07 at 05:18 PM

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 5/8/07 at 6:04pm

Now that this story has come to my attention, because I'm too nervous about what will happen in the audience, and my parents worry about me seeing a show by myself all the time, I have officially decided that I will NEVER, EVER, EVER see another Broadway show for the rest of my life.

No, I am NOT joking. End of discussion.