The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater - Page 2
The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
#25The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:27am
Broadway Forever2 said: "Did the phones ring or something during the show.? That would be awful.
Yes, the phones must have rung taking Lin Manuel Miranda out of his moment in the performance.
#26The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:27am
DottieD'Luscia said: "Carlos, that behavior infuriates me to no end! I swear I want to grab the phone from their hands and smash it with my feet.
LOL Dottie. You and me both!
JM226
Broadway Star Joined: 11/10/15
#27The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:29am
Heck, I bet the actors would even chip in if it meant their concentration wouldn't be wrecked by some jerk in the second row playing games on his cell phone instead of watching the show.
i will bet you $1,000 they definitely wouldn't chip in but.... okay. i mean, what you're suggesting already happens. there are ushers assigned with the task of monitoring audiences for cell phone usage. the problem is that those ushers don't do a very good job, or it's simply not enforced enough. this is more of a philosophy or mentality shift needed -- not an actual change in the planning or strategy.
#28The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:34am
Saw An American in Paris last night and the man in front of me was texting towards the end of Act 1. Then he started to take a picture to send to someone when an an usher told him to put the phone away. And at the beginning of Act 2, someone's phone started ringing. I thought to myself, "Unbelievable".
#29The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:35am
JM226 said: "the problem is that those ushers don't do a very good job, or it's simply not enforced enough"
Yes. I agree with this. The "rules" are in place but they aren't doing a very good job of enforcing it because if they were we wouldn't be having this conversation.
I don't think it's asking much to put the phone in airplane mode or to shut it off until intermission.
I don't understand why people can't just wait until intermission to take care of whatever personal business they need to attend to, and if your personal business is that urgent that it demands your undivided attention maybe you shouldn't be in a theater in the first place.
I understand that "life happens" but back in the day when cell phones did not exist people went to the theater and got by just fine.
#30The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:37am
Years ago doctors had pagers or would tell the theatre management where they were sitting to be alerted for any emergency. To me that is the only reason a theatre goer needs to be in touch with the outside world. Two questions here if anyone knows the answers. Are there actually devices that can scramble phone signals? If so, why aren't they used and if not is it the theatre that worries that it would turn off possible business? Second question. Is it illegal to have a person texting removed from the theatre after a pre-show announcement warning has been made? Does the price of a ticket guarantee your seat privilege regardless of your behavior? To be honest, I find it no worse than a drunk in the audience ruining the show for me and we know that their behavior is reason for removal. I'm sure it wouldn't take long for the media to make it well known that texting or using your phones during a performance is no longer being tolerated.
KathyNYC2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/2/10
#31The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:48am
CarlosAlberto said: "JM226 said: "the problem is that those ushers don't do a very good job, or it's simply not enforced enough"
Yes. I agree with this. The "rules" are in place but they aren't doing a very good job of enforcing it because if they were we wouldn't be having this conversation.
"
That is a completely ridiculous statement. Ushers only have so much control over idiots and you can tell people over and over to turn off their phones/cameras but somehow they feel the rules don't apply to them. I've sat next to people who text but are smart enough to pay attention & then turn them off just when the ushers are nearing. You think it's easy for an usher who is maybe standing 15 rows back to pinpoint an open phone and get there in time to be effective...plus running up and down the aisles is distracting in itself.
Ushers can't make a scene and disrupt the show either/or block the view of others...so they have limited options on how to handle things. And I am not saying every usher is working at A+ level 100% of the time. But to make a blanket comment like we wouldn't have this problem if ushers did their jobs is completely naive and not putting the blame where it belongs.
ChiTheaterFan
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/9/15
#32The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:54am
It shocks me when people can't take responsibility for their own actions. I saw Hamilton Monday and was on the aisle in the second row. The four seats next to me were empty, until at the end of (ironically) Wait for It, the usher came as told me "you have to move! Where is your seat?" I said "it's right here." And she made me get out my ticket and show her. Now, none of the people who were late to the show actually had my seat, but I guess she was in such a rush to get them seated she didn't check. After they sat down, they all started whispering, so I immediately turned to them and shushed them. They quieted down quickly, but at intermission, the guy was talking loudly about how whoever it was who was responsible for them thinking the show was at 8 had gotten them tickets for the next night. I don't understand how you don't know what time your show is at. There's this magical thing called the Internet and whenever I have an 8 pm or 3 pm show, I obsessively check to make sure it's not at 7 or 2.
I also don't understand why the ushers will seat someone SECOND ROW CENTER 40 minutes into a show. You're really willing to disrupt the actors and everyone around who paid $375+ for tickets so some latecomers can see the last 15 or 20 minutes of the act? Why not just make them wait until intermission?
Miranda and the other actors in Hamilton make so much eye contact with the first few rows, I can't imagine they don't notice people texting/talking/coming late. I would think it would be so distracting.
I'm usually on email all the time for work. But I always check at intermission, and the world never ends because I'm off email for 60-90 minutes at a time. If there is ever a time when I can't be (and there have been those times) I don't go to a show. And my parents never had cell phones when I was a kid and somehow I'm still alive.
#33The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 10:59am
KathyNYC2:
You are entitled to your opinion but with all due respect the truth of the matter is that they are not enforcing the rules and are not doing enough.
No one is suggesting that the ushers disrupt the show what is being suggested is that theater management come up a more effective way to curtail the excessive and unnecessary use of cell phones during a performance. It is clearly a problem that is growing and not decreasing and it needs to be addressed.
Maybe the performers who are being affected by it will take it up with theater management. It's obviously disruptive even to the actors up on the stage.
For someone like LMM to go on facebook and post what he did and how it almost f*cked up his performance - - - that's major.
For someone the caliber of Patti LuPone to physically grab a cell phone from an audience member to get her message across - - - that's major.
You just can't turn a blind eye to this.
Clearly not enough is being done.
Cupid Boy2
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/5/13
#34The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 11:10am
sarahb22 said: "I think it would be great if every theater had someone whose sole job it was to stand at the back of the theater and watch out for texters. Whenever they saw one, they would notify the ushers who would go up to the perpetrator, take their phone, and tell them they could get it back after the performance. Do that and I bet idiots texting during shows would fall off real quick!"
Confiscating phones mid-performance would be beyond disruptive. The kind of people self-centered enough to text during a show are not going to hand over their phones without a fight. And what would happen if the perpetrator was sitting in the middle of a row?
#36The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 11:36am
You go PThespian!! 
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#37The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 11:37am
The problem is definitely with the people using their phones, oblivious to the world around them. However, PT, while YOU might be working your tuchas off at your job (and thank you) but not all of your colleagues do. (I don't know which theater you work at, obv.) I can't/won't complain until intermission -- but that doesn't do me much good, for Act I, does it?
I agree: if a text message is impossible to miss, then you shouldn't be at the theater. People don't care about anyone but themselves - which is the long and the short of it.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
#38The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 11:43am
It was important to turn your cell phone off before Lin Manuel Miranda tweeted about it
I like a good rhyme more than a good time
#40The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 12:30pm
I really appreciate your feedback PThespian from your perspective because it is informative. I know that there are ushers who do their best to try to catch people who are using their phones and/or are being disruptive. I wasn't at all referring to those that do. A very good friend of mine works for the Nederlander organization as an usher and he tells me a lot about his on-the-job frustrations with these rude theatergoers. Dealing with the public in a customer service capacity is not an easy job, I completely understand. I waited tables on the side for the better part of 3 years, so I totally get it. I didn't mean to generalize and place the blame on all ushers. That was never my intention. I have the utmost respect for people in the service industry whether they be ushers, waiters, concierges, housekeepers, etc.
KathyNYC2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/2/10
#41The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 12:39pm
CarlosAlberto said: "KathyNYC2:
You are entitled to your opinion but with all due respect the truth of the matter is that they are not enforcing the rules and are not doing enough.
No one is suggesting that the ushers disrupt the show what is being suggested is that theater management come up a more effective way to curtail the excessive and unnecessary use of cell phones during a performance. It is clearly a problem that is growing and not decreasing and it needs to be addressed.
"
You are disagreeing with my comments about ushers and yet you are reinforcing them at the same time. Yes maybe the theater management community needs to come up with a better way to handle the annoying situation of people using cell phones during a performers. That is not on the ushers...the ushers can only enforce the policies as written.
Yes the policies in place are not enough to take care of the problem. An usher is not authorized to take the phones away people who don't follow the rules, are they? And continually running up and down the aisles throughout the shows IS terribly distracting..and what else can an usher do when basically they are basically being ignored by some. Yes of course, there are better employees than others in all fields of employment ushers included. But to BLAME the ushers for the patron's rude behavior is passing the buck. IMO.
MVintheheartland
Featured Actor Joined: 11/19/13
#42The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 12:45pm
Perhaps at the beginning of a show a cast member can come out, and announce that whenever a cell phone goes off or there is texting, the show will stop until the phones are off (or the owners are evicted!).
Of course, this disrupts the concentration of the actors, and some shows may stop numerous times. Just wishful thinking.
#43The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 1:01pm
@KathyNYC2: I wasn't BLAMING the ushers. They're only following directives from management. I believe that management needs to sit down and look at the problem and try to find a better solution because the way it's going down now it is not working. So if that's what YOU got out of what I wrote I apologize. That was not my intention, let's be clear on that point.
#44The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 2:15pm
Has anyone else noticed that the people who tend to text/receive disruptive phone calls during shows are always the patrons sitting in the premium seats? I actually rarely have any issues with texters when I'm up in the rear mezzanine/balcony. You'd think the people who pay top dollar to see a performance would take their experience more seriously.
"Mostly, I loved the size of these people's emotions. Nobody has emotions this size anymore. Outsized emotions. Operatic emotions. Kushemski and Vanda are like Tristan and Isolde, they're Paolo and Francesca. Nobody's in total thrall like this anymore. Nobody's overcome by passion like this, or goes through this kind of rage." Thomas, Venus in Fur
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
#45The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 3:45pm
I've been at shows where the person next to me will wait until the last possible moment to turn off their phone and, unlike me, they don't shut it off but clearly put it on vibrate, silent, etc. Infuriating.
As for people coming late, I was just at a show where a guy showed up late, took forever to find his way to his seat (so the usher kept pointing her flashlight down the aisle), and then kept talking to his seat partner about why he was late, etc. I wish I could remember what my old teacher used to say but essentially, if you're going to be late, at least don't be any more disruptive than necessary.
#46The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 4:03pm
atuomala said: "Has anyone else noticed that the people who tend to text/receive disruptive phone calls during shows are always the patrons sitting in the premium seats? I actually rarely have any issues with texters when I'm up in the rear mezzanine/balcony. You'd think the people who pay top dollar to see a performance would take their experience more seriously.
"
It's more likely that a cheaper ticket holder has more respect for the show
KathyNYC2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/2/10
#47The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 4:07pm
CarlosAlberto said: "@KathyNYC2: I wasn't BLAMING the ushers. They're only following directives from management. I believe that management needs to sit down and look at the problem and try to find a better solution because the way it's going down now it is not working. So if that's what YOU got out of what I wrote I apologize. That was not my intention, let's be clear on that point.
"
I appreciate your comments that you are not blaming the ushers personally but I hope you understand that when you write as you did...."You are entitled to your opinion but with all due respect the truth of the matter is that they are not enforcing the rules and are not doing enough", it indicated it was the fault of the ushers who are not enforcing the rules that are in existence..
But we all write things with lack of clarity at times (and I personally have written comments that were confusing at best)...so I am happy to read that's not what you actually meant.
Also Hellob wrote.." It's more likely that a cheaper ticket holder has more respect for the show." That coule be true but the worst case I have ever seen was someone who actually was a guest of the show and didn't pay for her ticket (she was accompanying a large group) who told an usher in front of others (myself included) that she didn't have to follow any theater rules since didn't actually buy a ticket and she was not included in the rules. If someone gave me a free ticket, I would be doing whatever was asked...
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
#48The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 4:09pm
"This has been addressed in many threads. TURN OFF YOUR FU$KING PHONES. I started carrying a low power laser pointer. Boy , does that piss the phone user off."
I love this.
Back Row
Leading Actor Joined: 4/14/12
#49The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 4:13pm
Just about all my theater going is in the Boston area, where phones are not that big a problem for whatever reason. However, I make it a point to make a big production of turning off my phone before the show. I stand up, turn off my phone, and then say to anyone in the immediate vicinity, "Does anyone need any help turning off their phone? I'd be happy to help you in any way I can." (while smiling). Usually people laugh a little because they don't need to be reminded, but there are those who appreciate the reminder and pull out their phones, and once or twice I have actually helped some elderly patrons turn off their phones, and then turn them on again when the show is over.
#50The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 4:43pm
I was at Fun Home one night in standing room, and this guy sitting in the last row of seats, so sitting right in front of me standing, when the usher came around telling everyone to turn off their phones he refused to do so. She told him specifically a second time, and then a third, and then he actually turned to look at her and said something like "I was going to turn it off, but since you kept telling me to turn it off now I'm not going to turn it off." THAT is the kind of bull****, acting like a four year old manchild attitude that ushers have to put up with from patrons. I do not envy their jobs at all. (And the house staff should have been allowed to kick his ass out of the theatre. But, alas, they did not.)
I love the usher in the mezz at the Richard Rodgers Theatre who gives her no cell phones speech so loudly that I can hear her (and the applause she gets) while sitting in the orch.
If you're sitting close enough to be able to do this, I have found that, when sitting near someone who won't stop texting, that if I lean over and start reading what they're writing then they suddenly stop and put their phones away. My mom would probably say something about "two wrongs don't make a right" here, but hey if my viewing is being interrupted then I'm gonna read what's so important.
mc1227
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/29/07
#51The importance of shutting off your cell phone in a theater
Posted: 4/29/16 at 6:48pm
I agree that the behavior of audiences is atrocious and needs to be addressed. One suggestion that I have is to have the cell phone announcement repeated at the end of intermission as many people who do turn their phones off for act 1 turn them on during the break and may forget to turn them off again. Just a thought and it certainly will not solve all the rudeness but at least for those who are not intentionally rude, it may cut down the instances of phones going off during the second act.
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