When I started going to the theatre...

[Dollypop]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 10:14pm

This post is not intended to offend anyone. It is merely a reflection of how things have changed since the 1960s.

It may be hard for people to imagine but we didn't care where we sat. We didn't have online ticket-purchasing or charts to guide us in our ticket selection. When we wanted to see a show we sent a check or money order with a stamped self-addressed envelope to the box office of the theater. A week or so later we received our tickets and we were happy to get them.

 There was a certain amount of waiting at the stage door for the cast to exit but it was nothing compared to what we have today. I recall waiting for Beatrice Lillie to leave the theater and getting Tammy Grimes autograph from that same show but there were no barricades setup and no police presence.

Drinks would never brought back to the seats after intermission. Eating during the show was frowned upon. And ushers knew what they were doing. It's not like today's Usher's who will tell you to 4 rows down, turn right and your seat is the fifth one in. They walked us down to our row and pointed to our seats --usually with their flashlights.

There was no merchandise available that didn't happen until around the seventies or so prior to that you got your playbill.  If you wanted , you bought the souvenir program which cost about a dollar and was perhaps ten or fifteen pages of black and white photos.

We dressed appropriately for the theater I always wore a tie and a blazer and my good dress shoes. I remember my mother wearing white gloves. Ladies often wore hats and that became an annoyance when I was sitting behind 

I'm sure there are other mature theatregoers here who have their own memories to share. I look forward to reading their comments.

 

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 10:38pm

Brings back many memories. . We had David Merrick in his prime in addition to great musical composers.If you wanted to call a theater box office directly you picked up the phone and dialed the number

 

You could also visit a few box offices and pick up tickets for 2 or 3 shows for the price of one regular show now. The tickets were pre printed and in little cubicles on the wall.We had professional ticket brokers who could get you tickets for a hit show without waiting days on line. You had something called overtures. You also had critics reviewing shows in their seat and rushing back to their office to file them.

Updated On: 5/7/16 at 10:38 PM

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 10:54pm

I am waiting for the 18th century reply where someone comments about how when they went to the theatre they could request a singer sing the song they wanted, and pick up a whore at the same time.

[jo]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 10:56pm

Thanks for the memories!

 

No Stubhub or other outlets which are encouraged to develop an underground secondary market for tickets

 

Sunday best attire was the rule for going to the theatre. It was an event whether you sat on the mezzanine or down in the orchestra.  Nobody would lug around backpacks and people do not come from what they would doing during the day without refreshing themselves for that important evening or even matinee performance.   To this day, I would still dress up for the theatre as a sign of respect for the performers, although I am not saying that informality these days is a sign of disrespect.

 

 You would eat ( maybe a light snack) before you go to the theatre as nobody would eat even a piece of candy.  No such thing as a couple eating burgers with all the condiments in their seats next to you during intermission.  People were polite about letting others pass to find their seats in the middle, as if we were glad to share with each other the evening ahead.  Some people would even stand up, go to the aisles, and let the others pass.  We would still see that courtesy nod these days but not as often as we did then.

 

Occasionally we would do SRO - either because a show would be closing and we did not have a chance to see it earlier. I remember doing it for the wrong reason - LOL.   Word got around that Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton would be attending a particular performance.  My theatre buddy and I got SRO tickets ...but they did not turn up!  Good for us, because that was the first time that we had seen and fully appreciate the performance of  two major stars of the theatre  in " I Do, I Do"  - Mary Martin and Robert Preston!

 

Re the Playbill - maybe I am wrong, but I recall reading more stories about theatre experiences.  That was where I read about an indignant theatregoer who wanted to buy tickets for a show but the box office would not let him. He asked, annoyed : " Isn't this the theatre where the well-reviewed play called ANGRY RAISINS is playing?"  Note : He actually meant the same play with a  more elegant title by John Steinbeck.

 

All I could remember at the moment! 

 

 

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:01pm

Latecomers were not as rampant as they are today. Shows started exactly at the time listed on the ticket.

[binau]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:21pm

Instead of worrying about things like fancy dress, I respect the performers by (usually) buying full price tickets and helping them keep their jobs.

[Dave13]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:31pm

People dressed up to get on planes.  Now they wear pajamas.  It's a reflection on society as a whole.  For better or worse, it is what it is. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:41pm

women who went to the theatre with the husbands were considered their chattal.

people of color were not welcome.

gays had to stay in the closet for fear they would never work again.

Yeah, those were the days. 

Oh but everyone looked fancy. 

No thanks. Nostalgia can be pretty lame. 

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:46pm

Musicals had good music; plays engaged one's interest; there were comedies where one could experience joy and delight; audiences dressed and behaved properly; critics were competent; you could get orangeade in little wax containers at intermission; we had the Morosco, Helen Hayes, Playhouse, 54th St., Hudson, Bijou, and Ziegfeld Theatres; Howard Johnson's on 46th and Broadway had wonderful ice cream sodas and ice cream cake rolls.

One wasn't subjected to puerile, foul-mouthed stupidity, lilting exclamations about stinking up the bathroom, or unending prattle about having one's "shot."

Those were the days, all right.

 

 

[Dollypop]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:46pm

When standing ovations were given they were well deserved.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:47pm

I started attending b'way shows in the 70s.  I don't remember what I (or anyone else) wore.  I don't remember if there were snacks.  I used to buy a souvenir program....and I drooled over them all the time.  

 

The only other thing I remember?  The show and how it made me feel.  You know, the important part.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:49pm

Howard Johnson's also had terrific fried clams and a red-haired hostess who remembered you from the last time you were there.

[¿Macavity?]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:53pm

I believe that going to the theatre, whether it be a matinee or an evening performance, is something very special, and I believe that it merits proper attire. I was not around in the '60s, but my grandmother was, and she has told me of how things were back then. So when I go to the theatre I keep myself at the very same standard that my grandmother told me it once was (i.e. Dressing nice, not eating in the theatre, paying full price for tickets [I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with getting rush/discount tickets, I understand that it makes theatre more excessable to more people and gives the performers a fuller house, just that I like to try and be the kind of person that keeps the theatre industry in good health]). As does my grandmother, and my mother, and my nephews who've taken an interest in theatre as well at their young ages, 8 & 10, I'm very proud of them. I'd love it if this kind of etiquette was brought back into theatre, but I will say, I'm glad that the hats aren't such a problem anymore!

[Demitri2]

Posted: 5/7/16 at 11:54pm

Ah, what memories. Here's some of mine. It was my duty as a kid to write and post the letter requesting theatre tickets. My mother would supply the check. Since I was in no hurry I would ask for the next available seats in center orchestra within the first fifteen rows. One of the few times the check was returned was for a Saturday matinee request for "Do I Hear A Waltz?" (I did settle for rear orchestra side though for FUNNY GIRL). It truly was easy getting what are now considered "premium seats" if time wasn't a factor and you had the patience to wait.

 

The only time I didn't get to see a show we held tickets for was "Fade Out - Fade In" due to Burnett's absence. One of the most uncomfortable evenings in the theatre was watching Barbara Harris losing her voice in THE APPLE TREE (years later it happened again with Julie Andrews in VICTOR/VICTORIA). In the mid seventies, I asked for a ticket for PACIFIC OVERTURES at the box office during previews and was asked, "How about opening night?"

 

Funny Dollypop, I too waited for Beatrice Lillie at the stage door after HIGH SPIRITS but only got Tammy Grimes autograph (it was on that great picture of her from the souvenir book wearing a leather jacket with her hands in her hair). After BAJOUR my sister and I waited at the stage door and this nice stage manager invited us backstage only to have Hershel Bernardi yell at him, "Get these kids out of here!" (must have been a bad day for him).

 

The only thing to eat or drink were these hard candy lemon drops that you had to suck on so you didn't make any noise and this horrible orange drink in a cardboard container you drank with a straw (IIRC you had to finish it in the lobby during intermission). If you dared crinkle a paper wrapper while seated people would give you the stink eye. And yes, everyone dressed up for the theatre especially for evening performances. It was not uncommon to see women wearing mink stoles and pearls. I had a sharkskin suit and an iridescent suit I loved wearing. And if a show wasn't doing well there were "twofer" coupons where you got two seats for the price of one.

 

Oh, and women were not allowed to use the men's room. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 12:42am

It's always amusing to listen to our nostalgic friends rail against the way we dress today considering that what they wore 50 years ago would have caused the nostalgia set of 100 years ago to run a ship into an iceberg. The theatre is not static, music is not static, language is not static, fashion is not static. The only thing that never changes is the pointless pearl clutching of the nostalgia set. 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 12:56am

"Oh, and women were not allowed to use the men's room."

 

That made me burst out laughing. 

[hork]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 1:14am

If you want to dress up, dress up, if you don't, don't, what difference does it make? Sometimes it seems inappropriate and pretentious to dress up. Like, if you're dressing up to go see Rent, or Hair, or American Idiot, it's like ... what are you doing?

But if it's any consolation, they still dress up in London. For everything. 

[ChiTheaterFan]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 1:52am

Jordan Catalano said: ""Oh, and women were not allowed to use the men's room."

 

That made me burst out laughing. 

 

"

It made me laugh too. Mostly because frankly, you guys don't get to complain about the bathroom situation. Guys when was the last time you rushed out to get to the restroom as soon as possible at intermission and still didn't make it back in time for the start of the second act? I'm guessing never.  I routinely have 15-20 min restroom lines. I can't tell you how many times I've been horrendously uncomfortable for the second act because I just realized it wasn't going to happen. 

 

First of all, I've never been to a theater where women used the men's room. Second of all, even if women do use the men's room, I would assume it's to get back into the theater in time for the second act so as not to not disturb the rest of the audience, which is otherwise often impossible. (Because unfortunately, the people at the end of the bathroom lines are also usually in the middle of rows because it takes longer to get there.) Sorry it inconveniences men that women now make up about half the theater-going population in light of the fact that we're, you know, half the actual population.  Yet many of the theaters still have smaller ladies' rooms than men's rooms.

OK rant over. I just get really annoyed when men complain about waiting for a bathroom. You guys really don't know how annoying it is. 

 

I do miss when everyone dressed up though...  That wasn't that long ago.   I'm only 35 and I remember going to Macy's in high school to buy a cocktail dress to go see Rent when I extended to NY on a school trip when I was supposed to fly back from DC. (Although for Rent, I WAS a little overdressed.... But I was 17 and got to go to Broadway approximately never so I was happy to be overdressed. Maybe what I'm nostalgic for is how special it was.)

Updated On: 5/8/16 at 01:52 AM

[EvaLyn]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 2:10am

Really cool reading this!  I'm a huge history nerd and I find all this stuff really fascinating.  I'm also wondering if anyone keeps all their ticket stubs and playbills from decades ago?  Occasionally when I search eBay for Broadway souvenirs I come across old playbills and tickets and they are so neat to look at. 

I'm only 27 and I also saw Rent when I was 17 and in high school!  The only thing I could really add to this discussion was that I went to school in the city and I used to go see shows with friends straight after school without going home, and bring my textbooks and schoolbags.  Fun times.  

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 6:02am

Chi - who here complained?

 

I agree with Hogan....everything is more casual.  My parents iwouldn't allow me to wear pants to school for the longest time, then their rule was no jeans, even though everyone else already did. Now, as a teacher, I'm allowed to wear jeans.

It goes the other way too.  In the 70s, it was a big deal if a girl wore a dress to school, and I don't think I ever saw a boy in a tie there. In my school now, girls are often in dresses, and a number of boys will sport ties, some on a regular basis, some because their coach demands it on game days.

My lights and sound crew ALWAYS dress up for closing night, and often discuss a theme for the other nights.  One night on our NY trip,  all  50 kids changed their clothes at the rest stop for dress up night.

Updated On: 5/8/16 at 06:02 AM

[Dollypop]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 7:20am

How could I forget that amplification in shows was different.? The microphones were around the foot of the stage and picked up footsteps and the wheels of the scenery that was being moved. There was no amplification for the orchestra's.Body miss were introduced around the time of "Applause". I remember seeing that show at a matinee and heard. Bacall's stomach grumble. Whatever she'd had for lunch didn't agree with her.

[John Adams]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 8:27am

...and speaking of how times have changed... dramamama611, I've taken the liberty of doing things the "old-fashioned" way, 'cause your spellcheck needs a spanking! (Really, computer? a Gilmore??)

dramamama611 said: "I agree with Hogan....everything is more casual.  My [parents] wouldn't allow me to wear pants to school for the longest time, then their rule was no jeans, even though everyone else already did. Now, as a teacher, I'm allowed to wear jeans.

It goes the other way too.  In the 70s, it was a big deal if a [girl wore] a dress to school, and I don't think I ever saw a boy in a tie there. In my school, girls are often in dresses, and a number of boys will sport ties, some on a regular basis, some because their coach demands it on game days.

My lights and sound crew ALWAYS dress up for closing night, and often discuss a [theme] for the other nights.  One night on our NY trip, they all change[d] their clothes at the rest stop for dress up night."

But, I remember the good ol' days, too. Remember when a room onstage was constructed of painted flats (as opposed to an LCD screen)? Lights could be aimed, but only once. Once they were positioned, and the bolts tightened, that's the only place the light could go. The mics on the floor that Dollypop referred to were later upgraded to what we called "mouse mics", so named because they sat flat on the floor and were covered by a black/grey foam oval, with the cord coming out like a tail at the end that faced the lip of the stage.

As a singer, I also remember what an art it was to "dress your cables" - keeping the mic cords of the "hand-helds" as orderly as possible on the stage floor, while singing/dancing.

[jo]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 9:46am

No cellphones to interrupt the performance.

 

 

[ArtMan]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 10:04am

Great points, PThespian.  I have had those bossy women try and tell me I couldn't use the men's room.  They underestimated who they were dealing with.  If I really have to go (and that's usually the case) I tell them tough and walk right on in.  Doesn't bother me a bit.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/8/16 at 10:06am

John Adams said: "...and speaking of how times have changed... dramamama611, I've taken the liberty of doing things the "old-fashioned" way, 'cause your spellcheck needs a spanking! (Really, computer? a Gilmore??)

"

LOL....I caught the errors before I saw your post.  Damn auto-correct.  I really must stop writing on my phone.  (But I'm glad you could figure it out!)