1. If you work front of house at a theatre, your shifts are dictated by the time of the show, which means you work different hours to most people.
2. This is especially annoying if you live with people who DO work normal hours.
3. Not to mention most front of house theatre staff work weekends, which sucks big time :/
4. Front of house uniforms are never very comfortable or stylish.
@KamrynMcCabe16 nope I'm just at the theatre in my uniform to visit
5. Most ushers have to wear a name badge, meaning people think it's okay to say your name over and over again.
6. Some theaters require their staff to wear a little radio piece, it's always a scramble trying to find the least gross/broken one before anyone else.
7. The bane of any usher's life is getting people to NOT take photos.
8. You tell them off, walk away, and literally 2 seconds later they’re snapping again.
9. Then there's those people who film the whole thing, when you ask them to delete the footage at the end of the show, they act like you've just slapped them in the face.
10. If you're working on a musical, you get patrons who are so excited, they get up and dance mid-show.
11. Drunk patrons aren't fun either. When you're talking to them it's pretty much like you're talking to a toddler.
12. Then there’s the never-ending drama of latecomers.
13. They don't understand that they can't just waltz in and take their seat.
14. If the show has a latecomer's call you can take them in then, BUT it's super awkward when you bring them to their seats only to see someone else has decided to sit there.
15. There are also countless dummies who INSIST on just nipping to the loo at the three minute call, WHHHYYYY.
16. It's also really pointless when people have a go at you for how expensive the programmes/ice creams/drinks are.
At least the ice cream is gluten free @ Milton Keynes Theatre! #MatthewBourne #SleepingBeauty
Who do you think I am? I don't decide these things!
17. Or they tell you the balcony is far too high up.
In the balcony section at the theatre. Very high up!!
Right okay, I'll just change the entire theatre for you, BRB.
18. Then there are those who balance their drink/coats/children right on the railing.
19. Just like the photos, you tell them off and BOOM three seconds later they're doing it again.
20. It's also super annoying when the star actor is off sick and people unleash their bitter disappointment on you.
21. Holding up programmes for ages requires some pretty intense upper body strength.
22. Same goes for carrying these wretched ice cream trays.
23. Anyone who’s fallen carrying a tray of ice creams knows how painful it is.
24. And if you're the person filling the trays up when they're sold out, you have to somehow try and get through all the people crowding the corridors.
25. Ripping tickets is a true skill all front of house staff must master.
26. But then some very unhelpful people just hand you the tickets in one big stack, unaligned and all muddled up.
27. Ushers know they'll have to pick up rubbish at the end of the shift but WHY do people insist on treating the theatre's floor like a landfill.
28. Because you often work in the evenings during dinner time, you pretty much live off of meal deals.
29. By the time your shift is done it's usually too late to go meet your non-work friends, which means all your friends become fellow theatre peeps.
30. Then again, you're going to need each other to pass the time during uneventful shifts.
31. And watching the same show over and over again isn't fun, no matter how amazing the show is.
So hang in there ushers, we know it's hard work and it can make you go a little crazy, but we feel your pain!
