[theaterfan14]

I have always wondered what stories FOH staff have to tell. Whilst they are at work do usher/ettes have any funny stories to tell about audience or cast members during the performance or do box office staff have any weird questions asked to them by the public. So do tell im sure im not the only one wanting to know your stories.


i only set this thread up for interesting stories not to deter anyone from future theater going.

[MrsDoyle]

The only thing you learn from working FOH is how thick the Great British Public are!

People who ring up and have no idea what show they want to see, or when it's on.

People who ring up to book, ask all the questions then decide thay have to ask a friend if they want to come anyway.

The woman who rang up three times to book opera seats but couldn't decide where to sit - I offered her two seats in the balcony but was told that her husband had "issues" and needed to feel he could get out quickly, offered her front row stalls saying that there was loads of legroom and he could easily leave through side door, was told he suffered with tinnitus and that would be too near the orchestra! I was tempted to tell her to leave him at home and come on her own. She still didn't book but half an hour later turned up in person so I showed her all the options (literally took her in) where she told me that she had had the front row of the balcony at the Royal Ballet but she couldn't see the dancer's legs as she was short and as she had been a dancer that was what she wanted to see! She left without tickets, came back ten minutes later literally at closing time and finally bought two!
Then there was the mother of the Principal boy in panto this year who arrived without tickets and insisted she had them booked (she'd booked them for her mother for an earlier show) and screamed at the Manager that she would remove her daughter (who was about 19 so that wasn't going to happen) unless she got tickets.

Then there were the couple of women who turned up on the wrong night for the wrong film and somehow got let in. They came out at the interval and said they had been expecting The Duchess which they had booked for and yet had sat through the first half of a completely different film without apparently noticing. They wanted replacement tickets for The Duchess and when I pointed out they could have them but if they wanted to watch the rest of the film that was on they'd have to pay for that evening's show they said they weren't enjoing it anyway and went home!!!

Still we have some lovely regulars that make up for all the nutters! (Just)

[holler]

People who ring up to book, ask all the questions then decide thay have to ask a friend if they want to come anyway.

I'm sorry, I do this!! Well, not genuinely... I often ring up on a fact finding mission, and then I discover I can get better/cheaper seats online, or I'm just not sure... and I don't know how to get out the sale! So I just mumble 'errr.... I'll have to check with my friend, I'll ring you back!' . Embarrassing.

[Michael H]

Mrs Doyle, I think your patience and customer service should be applauded. I would love to be taken round a theatre to find exactly the seats for me.

I can imagine you get lots of people complaining about the cost of programmes, food, drink and ice creams.

[MrsDoyle]

Mrs Doyle, I think your patience and customer service should be applauded. I would love to be taken round a theatre to find exactly the seats for me.

I can imagine you get lots of people complaining about the cost of programmes, food, drink and ice creams.

Thanks Michael! Well no matter what we think of them we do our best through gritted teeth! I work in a small town arts centre/cinema so we have amateur shows and professional stuff as well as movies twice a month. We charge £1.30 for a tub of high class local ice cream (sold in Harrods) and still people complain when it went up 10p! I try and point out if they went to a West End theatre or even the Yvonne Arnaud they'd be paying twice that! (We do want to get the price up to £1.50 though so that the maths is easier for our loyal band of volunteer helpers!)

[bananafrit]

.....or even the Yvonne Arnaud they'd be paying twice that!

haha! harsh!

[Gavin]

When I worked at Poppins I used to get a lot of people complaining about the lack of Penguins.


At Billy one night, a miracle must have occurred, during the incoming, I found a pair of crutches leaning against one of the walls in the stalls next to a row of seats. I asked around and waited a bit to see if they were anyone's, after no one claimed them I took them to our lost property. After the outgoing no one had claimed them. Made me giggle.

Another common question at Billy was 'Is Elton John on tonight'. We also had a lot of people trying to get in with Wicked tickets. Somehow they managed to walk past the massive theatre with the massive green Wicked sign and into a theatre with a big glowing Billy Elliot sign and people on the doors with Billy t-shirts.

[MrsDoyle]

At Billy one night, a miracle must have occurred, during the incoming, I found a pair of crutches leaning against one of the walls in the stalls next to a row of seats. I asked around and waited a bit to see if they were anyone's, after no one claimed them I took them to our lost property. After the outgoing no one had claimed them. Made me giggle.

Yep we get a lot of walking sticks too! And umbrellas (even when it's raining!). Currently we have a child's scooter that has been there two weeks! I mean the kid must miss his scooter, surely, and the Mum might just work out where he last had it??

[tsxmitw]

Another common question at Billy was 'Is Elton John on tonight'. We also had a lot of people trying to get in with Wicked tickets. Somehow they managed to walk past the massive theatre with the massive green Wicked sign and into a theatre with a big glowing Billy Elliot sign and people on the doors with Billy t-shirts.

This made me laugh! How can people be so dense??

[Gavin]

This made me laugh! How can people be so dense??

That's not even the worst of it.