The Bitch of Ushering- Page 5

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 7:17pm

Dear God, I love this woman.

[AudreyTwoTwo]

Posted: 11/26/06 at 7:34pm

I have a good ushering story! :)

When I went to see the Producers, and Hunter was sick, I was depressed and our usher was really nice and helped us get an exchange for tickets. Then, when we came back the next time, she remembered us. That was a little odd (it was about 3 weeks later, not like 2 days later), but she was still cool.

Another funny story is that when we saw The Boy From Oz, this usher was a little bit on the snobby side but it wasn't anything to complain about. But what was entertaining was that she would take people who really should have been on the other side of the theatre to be seated and tell them to go through all of these people and they'd all have to get up. I was having a good laugh.
When we came back for Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, she was doing the same thing. It was still very funny.

[etoile]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:11am

So at which of The Company Theatres do you usher, Matt? I want to be certain to avoid a place where paying patrons are held in such contempt by volunteers seeing a show for free.

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 12:11 AM

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:16am

He didn't answer me when *I* asked...

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 1:45am

Shame on the person who has no patience for 80 year old women who can't handle walking the stairs. You have no business working at a theatre. Or anywhere that you deal with older folks.

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 1:52am

to lolly - I guess I'll see you at work.

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 01:52 AM

[winston89]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:09am

I have a funny house staff/ usher story. When My dad and I went to see the Pillowman for the first time. There was an elderly women who was blind and had a guide dog with her waiting in the lobby with the rest of us to be let into the theatre. A house staff worker comes to let her in early cus she is handicapted. She signals to the women who clearly can't see cus she is bilnd. And kept signling for her to come one and wasdoing this harder and hard. The women was with a group of friends and one of them told her what the house staff member was doing. The bild woman responded by saying " Why don't you signal a little harder I don't know if I can see you clearly enough."

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:35am

Also a Pillowman story-I'm wondering where the heck the usher was when, during an early very quiet scene in the play, an elderly man was seated (late) and started yelling out "Am I in the right seat??" Of course he could be heard on the stage and throughout the entire theater. Then an idiot sitting near me, totally across the house, yelled back at him-"be quiet or I'm calling security!". Then the yelling back and forth. I was positive Jeff Goldbloom would stop the play.

[winston89]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 11:55am

Another story of the audience intrupting the action on stage. When I saw Rabbit Hole. During the final scene in play. This guys cell phone rings. It was going off for a while and the entier audience and Ms. Nixon and the actor playing her husband could hear it. It was clear that they were sturggling with thier lines cus the phone was distracting them. They played it very professionaly but every so often they had a look on thier faces that said "o my god why won't that phone shut up." It was during the time of the year when they collect for BC/EFA. And Nixon said very kindly that the person who's cell phone went off should donate double.

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:26pm

Good for her~!

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 12:32pm

"handicapted"

Wow, that sounds painful. I know that person must be 'sturggling'.

[avab802]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 2:23pm

The only really bad incident I've had ushering came when our theatre was putting on a special performance for the high school kids in the metro area. They wanted these kids to have a complete theatre experience so they decided to issue them tickets with seat numbers and have the ushers check the tickets, show them to their seats, give them the Playbill, etc. Well most of these kids couldn't have cared less about what seat number was on their tickets. They wanted to sit with their friends and they completely ignored anything we said.

I ushered at a symphony hall when I was in college, and the same thing happened there every time we had school groups. They would just move to be next to their friends after we'd seated them. It always turned into a big issue because they'd end up in seats that did not belong to their group, so we'd have to shuffle everyone around to get the non-school-group patrons seated in their correct seats. Sometimes if we could organize it amongst ourselves ahead of time we'd just tell the school kids they could sit anywhere in X rows and leave it at that.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 3:39pm

"handicapted"

Wow, that sounds painful. I know that person must be 'sturggling'.


Not cool, TheatreDiva.

Shame on the person who has no patience for 80 year old women who can't handle walking the stairs. You have no business working at a theatre. Or anywhere that you deal with older folks.

You kiddin' me? I feel for those people.

And, Lizzie, when did you ask me where the Company Theatre is (cough-cough-Norwell, Massachusetts-cough-cough)

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 03:39 PM

[kasim]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 4:06pm

winston89 --> that story of the blind woman ... thats soo wrong its funny.

poor dear ... i was trying to think of an excuse for him/her ... but having a guide dog is a pretty good giveaway.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 4:23pm

How come people can't learn to format quotes in some kind of legible manner? Some of the stuff you say is confusing enough as it is...

[colleen_lee]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 4:36pm

Good Lord, Matt, if that's you're idea of a "bad experience" then I'd hate to see what happens when you really end up in a challenging situation. You weren't being asked to do anything even remotely out of your job description, and from the sounds of it, the people were behaving in a downright polite and appropriate manner.

What exactly were you pissed about? Being asked to do your job?

[Kringas]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 4:58pm

How come people can't learn to format quotes in some kind of legible manner?

Word, sister. WORD.

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:02pm

Lolly-you're new at our theatre. I hope you grow to like it more as time goes by, and just a word to the wise-be careful what you post publicly about certain things that have happened there-you never know who reads this board!

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:03pm

""handicapted"

Wow, that sounds painful. I know that person must be 'sturggling'.


Not cool, TheatreDiva."


Uhm, I was commenting on the spelling. God Matt, use your brain.

[WhenURScrap]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:08pm

""handicapted"

Wow, that sounds painful. I know that person must be 'sturggling'.


Not cool, TheatreDiva."


Uhm, I was commenting on the spelling. God Matt, use your brain.


-----
Give him a break ... he's 17, complains about having to do his job as an usher when he gets to see a free show (when I can't afford to take repeated trips to NYC to see Broadway shows). Matt one question ... what are you going to be when you mature?

[Jane2]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:12pm

Lolly, I just reread all your long paragraphs about how tough and annoying ushering is. Please remember that ushering is unskilled labor and anyone can do it. You are as disposable as a tissue. You work for around 2 hours a shift. The only time you really work is during walk in when you direct people to their seats. Then, during the show you admitted you READ. You're supposed to be watching the audience and being alert for anything which could occur concerning the patrons. then you stand on the side while they leave. You get at least $10 per hour for doing almost nothing. If someone vomits, you are NOT the one who cleans it up. For godsakes, stop complaining. sheesh!

You said you don't care if someone has a cellphone on during the show. When and if you get on the stage, you might change your attitude.

p.s. I know who you are and you're new with us. Sick of it already?

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 05:12 PM

[WhenURScrap]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:14pm

I want an ushering job ... it sounds better than bagging groceries.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:20pm

"Give him a break ... he's 17, complains about having to do his job as an usher when he gets to see a free show (when I can't afford to take repeated trips to NYC to see Broadway shows). Matt one question ... what are you going to be when you mature?"

Well, for a start, the Company Theatre is a community theatre, it's not in NYC. And if accepted, I'm hoping to major in musical theatre at Emerson. For my audition, I'm going to be singing, "You Walk With Me" from The Full Monty and I'm doing a monologue from Angels in America. From there, I hope to become an actor/librettist/director.

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 05:20 PM

[lovelyspotlight]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 5:21pm

I actually think that ushering sounds like a fun job if you look at it with a positive light, rather than nit-picking every minor hardship it includes.

If you're a pleasant person and smile while speaking with audience members, I'm sure everything works out a lot better than when you're bitter and are out to hate everybody who drops a glove! If you're volunteering, it should theoretically be because you want to help. And giving patrons bad attitudes and thinking/talking nastily about them isn't necessarily helping. Helping would be doing everything you're asked to do in a timely fashion, without displaying any grievances.

I really don't quite understand what all the fuss is about. If you don't like ushering, just don't do it. If you don't like dealing with people, find yourself a job in a cubicle typing reports...or volunteering at an animal shelter instead of a theatre (if you're in it for volunteer hours).

Oh, and break a leg at your audition, Matt!

Updated On: 11/27/06 at 05:21 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/27/06 at 6:00pm

You know, lovelyspotlight, ushering does have its perks. You get to see the show for free. It's a great chance to get out on weekends. In my case, you get to be with the people you love. It's just those little moments that I believe I've blown out of proportion.

Here's my belief, folks:

I should've come back sooner with that flashlight for that woman with the glove.

I was still semi-green at this ushering thing when that woman with the wrong ticket came up to me.

The people who thought they weren't sitting together just didn't know the seating plan.

I should've been a bit more quieter.

But on the other hand:

People should really say thank you when you take their ticket or give them a program.

Like I've said before, I blow things totally out of proportion. Any other incidents, I'll just keep it between me and the folks. 'Cause I love ushering. I will be ushering this Saturday at The Company Theatre's production of It's A Wonderful Life. Perhaps I'll post a review.

See y'all.