The Bitch of Ushering — Page 3

Matt, please post your work schedule for the coming year so I know when not to see certain shows. Thanks!

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wrq - I meant that hopefully an usher doesn't start talking about how much they dislike a certain show or performer to a family member of someone in the show.

Matt,
No offense but try a REAL stressful job like a NYC teacher, nurse, brain surgeon, special education teacher, hospice worker, etc.....
Your stories don't impress!

Holly hell, I can't read any more!

Mattbrain...what's your problem? Let me correct some of these HILLARIOUS stories:

-Some people come to the city to see shows on vacation. We all can't know what to do when we have a ticket to a different show. You're the one she's talking to, and your job is to do all you can to help her. SO DO YOUR JOB!

-If you lose something, do you not want some help finding it?

-Lots of people, particularly Theater people, are very open and friendly. Touching your shoulder and calling you sweetie was her just being nice. SHE EVEN COMPLIMENTED YOU FOR CHRIST'S SAKE!

So, my long winded point is...STOP BEING SUCH AN ASS!

Thanks

seconded, diva.

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As petty as a glove may seem, if it was worth a lot of money, wouldn't you want it back too? I don't understand why you would get annoyed at that; she was just describing it. Way to stereotype the lady too.

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Ok, TheatreDiva, I don't claim I have Asperger's syndrome. I've been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome. WhenURScrap, I'm 17. Wackjack, I work at a community theatre in Norwell, Massachusetts and if you met the people I'm talking about, you would totally change your tune.

And to paraphrase Luvinbroadway, "Your responses don't impress."

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All of you who are bashing Matt, etc...have you ever had a bitchy or horrible client/patient/student? At your own job, have you ALWAYS smiled and taken it on the chin? Come on. No matter how much you like your job, everyone has to deal with a bad situation from time to time. And everyone gripes about it.

Frankly, I'm amazed the ushers have as much patience as they do with the rude and disrespectful audiences they get. I've sat next to people on their phones, putting their feet on seats, and literally cursing out others who are trying to get through the row to their own seats. If they're this nasty to other audience members, they're not being nice to the ushers either.

Updated On: 11/26/06 at 09:01 AM

True, they should be professional and pleasant when they can, and there's no reason to treat a polite audience member with rudeness. IMHO it does work both ways, though. And they have a right to bitch about their work as much as anyone else.

As far as "getting more skills," don't make the mistake of thinking that because someone has a service job, they're automatically unskilled or uneducated. How do you know what the ushers do when they're not at the theatre?

For a lot of people, ushering is a survival job. I know of Broadway ushers, waiters and flight attendants who are retired teachers, law students, pharmacy interns, former Broadway dancers and starving actors, musicians, writers and dancers. There are others who work all day at "regular" jobs before going to usher. The guy who's handing you a Playbill might be onstage tomorrow, or mixing your medication, or arguing your case in court.

Also, as one who has worked in a (different) service profession with customers--it IS a tough job. I have a so-called "white collar" job now, and frankly, working customer service was a heckuva lot more stressful.

You're put in the position of having to deal with a lot of different personalities at once. You're quite often the "bad guy," forced to enforce rules that make people unhappy. Many people take their frustrations out on you. You're on your feet a lot. And often, that crappy job is the only one that will allow you to go to class/be with your kids/accommodate your disability/pay back your student loans/whatever. It's easy to tell someone to "get another job," but perhaps you should try walking in their shoes first.

Updated On: 11/26/06 at 09:36 AM

To the people who are saying "get schooling and get a better job!" and "try THIS if you want stressful!!!" you're just dumb. I did the school thing, it wasn't for me and I left and started working in regional theater pretty steadily when I was 18. I didn't come to NYC to work in a hospital or as an executive accounting blah blah computer technology whiz. When I'm done and over with performing maybe I'll try that out but right now it sounds pretty lame.

Ushering is fun but it's customer service and that can have its drawbacks when its 11 pm and you've been out since 8 am and you're tired and the entire audience is drunk (therefore pretty retarded) and since your theater is awesome enough to allow alcholic beverages they just get MORE drunk and think it's hilarious when they spill their $8 drink all over the stage. Would ANYONE in an ushering position, even someone who loves ushering with all of their heart and soul (come on, find me ONE USHER at any Broadway or Off Bway theater who loves it that much) will be a little pissed off, yo. Or when they're so drunk you have a group of four people running up and down the aisles because one of their friends - who thinks its hilarious - vomited on the floor? This has happened more than once at the theater where I work!!

I have worked EVERYWHERE, mainly in temporary positions. I have been a Jolly Holiday Elf at Macy's in Herald Square (you wanna try stressful, just work in the photo line the day after Thanksgiving). I have been an executive assistant to the President of John Jay College. I have ushered, I have held 9-5 office jobs, I have flyered for shows on the street, taken pictures of people in front of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree, worked in retail, bartended, telemarketed, worked in accounting, been a performer, walked dogs, and this is all in NYC. Every job comes with perks and every job comes with stress. I doubt ANY of you go to work every day just screaming with excitement. Performing is my main love and what I want to do forever but even in that I have my bad days of hating it because my tendonitis is killing me or it's a sucky audience of like 30 people who are all 100 years old and falling asleep.

I like ushering better than the 9-5 deal because its more fun and I have a lot of fun with the patrons, joking and laughing and I've even been tipped a few times for my assistance. But when you have to deal with people like the guy from playbill.com who told me to go **** myself when he was breaking the rules by taking pictures, or people who are vomiting in the seats, or when you're just having a bad day and you don't want to hear the same stupid question for the billionth time...you have every right to hate the job just as ever nine-to-fiver I know has complained about sitting at a desk all day and having to fax crap and having so much work piled on them.

I do not know ONE person who has NEVER complained about their job, even if they love it. Everyone has bad days and mattbrain was just sharing his stories with you all...why is it bad for him to complain about stuff who got to him in like, the 5 out of 23482 shows hes ushered...but it's okay for people who work really cool (lame) 9-5 jobs to hate going to the office and "crunching numbers" and "having meetings" and other officey words? Or people who work as waiters to have a chain letter crap going around myspace saying all of the 'rules' that people should follow when going to restaurants because waiting tables is a bitch and waiters are the most complainey people I know?

Or people who work in retail who say "if I have to fold that shirt ONE MORE TIME because these IDIOTS keep unfolding it to look at it and just THROWING IT BACK on the TABLE!?!?!" I think I actually said that 7391 times when working at Broadway New York for a short stint last summer and yeah, did I hate folding shirts with a PASSION!? Yeah!!!! But it was my job and I did it with a big ole grin on my face. "Oh eaarrrl I just knocked them there tshirts right on the ground there, dang it, excuuuse me ma'am can you git that fer me?" (southern hick accenty) DID I HATE THAT WOMAN? YES!!! but did I kick her in the face when I picked up the shirt? Or tell her to pick up the damn shirt herself? Nope!! Because as a retail service provider, it was my JOB to do it! and I'd say "Oh, no big deal!! Trust me, you're not the first person to knock a stack of shirts I spent 45 minutes folding on the floor today!! HAHAHA!! But it gives me something to do on my off time!!! *SMILE* Have a great day, ENJOY WICKED!"

Now I'm completely out of control and I've lost my mind, but I challenge ANY ONE OF YOU to say that on your worst day when your boyfriend broke up with you, and you had a splitting headache, and you were getting testicular surgery, and you just found out your great-great-great-grandma Harriet Tubman died, that you still went to work and absolutely LOVED every aspect of your job and were THRILLED to be there and absolutely NOTHING like a mundane question you've already answered 400 times or an obnoxious customer (or "client" if you're a big bad office worker) got to you. If you can complain, so can the LUUOA (Lowly Unschooled Ushers of America).

I would actually say the most difficult of the jobs I have hadn't been cushy office jobs...most of the time at those jobs I'd be playing on myspace or AIM, actually 'working' maybe 14% of the day and by 'working' I mean ordering lunch for my boss and sending a memo through a messenger service who des the work for you...office jobs are a BREEZE compared to service jobs! The hardest job I've ever had was telemarketing because who doesn't LOATHE telemarketers? Now I feel really bad when I tell them I'm not interested when they call me but what I really want to say is "I'm so sorry, I don't really have room in my life right now for an anally induced pancreas cleansing system, but I totes know how you feel, do you wanna talk about it?"

The end!!!!!!!!!!! Love me or hate me, just remember I will always love you, like Whitney Houston. and so will God and Jesus and "Spooks" the holy ghost.

*UPDATED TO ADD CAPS SO PEOPLE WILL "TAKE IT SERIOUSLY!!! YEAH!!!"

Updated On: 11/28/06 at 11:41 AM

or write a musical about your life and entertain us with it.

Sorry but it IS easy to get another job. I have done so many times when I have not enjoyed my job. Yes it takes determination and effort but heck, why stick at something and moan about it and have a miserable life when seeking new challenges which may or may not work out. But it is not a difficult thing to find other employment. it will not come to you, you have to go looking for it.

Amen, Bruce!

and I love you too shbrtalley!!! so much. is it too soon to ask you to move in with me?