Tall people blocking view in theatre

Having been in New York recently seeing many shows including Hamilton and Lazarus I was curious to know if anyone put up a thread about blocked views of the stage when very tall people sit in front of you at the theater.

I find it so frustrating when spending a lot of money for center orchestra seats to have my view completely blocked at the last minute when very tall people sit in front of us. I know it's not their fault but there must be a solution to this problem because one feels very awkward weaving and bobbing side to side to get a glimpse of what's going on on stage knowing that you're also blocking the view for the person behind you with continuous shifting in our chairs.I was very fortunate for the shows that I most wanted to see such as Hamilton the sightline was perfect being left orchestra 7th row right on the aisle.Thank god I was able to enjoy that show to the max! Can you imagine spending over $500 a ticket (premium)and not being able to see the show clearly. For the show Lazarus the incline at the theater was quite steep so this was very helpful to enjoy that show. For Phantom of the Opera a total disaster! Two 6 foot five people sitting in front of us. We wanted to change seats but the theater manager being very rude just brushed us off saying the show is completely sold out so there's nothing he could do.

Sitting on my down jacket helped to prop me up a bit but that the enjoyment the show was diminished drastically by this issue. We almost took the child bumper seats but that would not have been fair to the people behind us aside from the fact that they were made out of hard plastic and looked so uncomfortable....

I'm sure many people have had this problem but I've never seen a post or thread concerning this issue. I am 5 foot eight (not exactly short)but it seems like I frequently encounter this problem. I also had the occasion to have someone sit with a large hat with a pom-pom sticking right up that she wouldn't take off during the entire show! Any other people in my position..... and if so any helpful hints!

Updated On: 1/17/16 at 03:06 PM

I'm 5'4" and often have someone tall sitting in front of me. I either get seats on the aisle in the front of the orchestra, on the inner aisle in the left or right orchestra (the diagonal helps) or in the front row of the mezzanine - or a box if I am that desperate.

Updated On: 1/17/16 at 03:12 PM

Most theatres have cushions for the seats of children and shorter patrons so they may get a better view. Many house managers will also re-seat you if something is available. All you have to do is ask an usher.

I deal with this a lot, I'm just under 5'0" and usually just trust that the people behind me understand why I'm leaning to either side.

Last summer, at Chicago, I was so pleased with my perfect view, but just as it began, the tallest man arrived to fill the seat in front of me. At intermission, I asked an usher about standing room and she showed me a space, but then another led me to some empty, amazing seats, 6 rows from the front, centre aisle.

While this will not be helpful for some time, I know the staff at the Richard Rodgers is extremely helpful with short or tall people. My friend was too tall for mezzanine (legs didn't fit!) and they moved her to the box during If/Then.

This probably isn't relevant info anymore, since the boxes would be full.

I'm 5'3. It happens all the time. Mostly I'll just deal with it. If it's bad (like an entire head is blocking my view of most of the stage) I will try to shift over to an available seat if there is one. It's definitely a considerable part of why I do not generally purchase more expensive tickets. You could be in the third row and a tall person can very easily sit right in front of you.

I never would have thought this would be an issue for me as I am fairly tall at 6'1... but when I saw An American in Paris, I sat down in my center orchestra seat thinking I had the perfect seat until the couple who sat directly in front of me sat down. Both were Italian and the woman had to be 6'2. When she sat straight up properly, my view was blocked center stage and it was much worse when she would constantly play with her hair. I felt bad for the people behind me as I had to shift my position to be able to see thing. (But they were teenagers with a school group and the guy and girl behind me didn't seem to give a f**k about anything going on). By Act 2 the woman in front of me watched the rest of the show with her head on his shoulder, so my view wasn't obstructed....

but at 6'1 I have no room to complain about this issue and can really understand how frustrating it can be for people shorter than myself.

As for hats, you could always ask the person wearing the hat politely if they could take it off. Just explain your situation. Don't be rude.

Sure but those people whose view you are blocking with your height (which obviously you can't control) paid probably the exact same as you did for their tickets. Why don't they deserve to see the show?

FindingNamo said: "As other have pointed out, there...

And yet you don't offer a single one. What are they?"

1) Ask if it's possible to be relocated.

2) See if a booster seat is available, assuming they are not for children only.

3) Try to get a seat on the aisle.

And in response to Gypsy101: I'll admit that I'm a bit on the selfish side, but I'm not going to apologize for my height getting in the way of someone else. There are other situations where tall people have it worse off than people on the shorter side, such as long-haul flights.

Updated On: 1/17/16 at 04:45 PM

As a moderately tall person (5'11" I will tell you that view blocking is not reserved for the short, or caused only by the tall.

It's just a reality of theatergoing, what can you do.

I am 6 ft 2 and probably block view of people and wish I did not. My wife is barely 5 ft 1 and she has issues with seeing sometimes at shows. We see who is sitting in front of her and if a tall person is in front of her, we have switched seats. Years ago, we got her booster seat for "Jersey Boys" and while she was a bit embarrassed about getting one she was glad she did and could enjoy the show. BTW - The ushers were very nice and did not say anything about booster only being for children.

Updated On: 1/17/16 at 05:16 PM

I'm 5'1" and have been lucky enough to only encounter one instance of having a major chunk of the stage being blocked by a tall person. I happened to be sitting in the last row of of orchestra so when I brought the issue to the attention of an usher I just took the offered booster seat without second thought. However the booster seat was one of those plastic things they give children at restaurants (made by one of the companies that makes public bathroom baby changing tables) with a ridged child sized indentation that would've been too uncomfortable to sit on all show if I were any larger. I'm pretty small so managed by sitting with my legs crossed and getting creative (once again being in the last row came in handy) but for a good deal of adults it wouldn't have been a viable option. And if I hadn't been in the last row I would've had to ask to be reseated (and I hate being a bother like that and it would've separated me from the people I was with) because although I'm small an extra 5" boost wouldn't have been kind to those behind me.

I usually buy seats as close to the aisle as possible and look into the specifics of the theatre so I know what to expect if I've never been before. That bad seat happened to be through tkts. Theatres should really all have varying cushion heights so people who need it can get just enough of a boost to see without getting more than than needed and potentially blocking someone else.

Updated On: 1/17/16 at 06:53 PM