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Post by Deleted on Aug 13, 2016 18:28:11 GMT
WTF is the problem with theatre staff
And shouting at people taking pictures of the set or curtain or front cloth before the show even starts
You can do it if you are subtle anyway
There are NO actors on stage
What difference does it make
They think we are going to sell the images to the daily mail
Like they give a sh*t
An image of an empty stage
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Post by theglenbucklaird on Aug 13, 2016 18:40:18 GMT
Wasn't expecting that reading the thread title and op? In shock 'ere
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Post by Deleted on Aug 13, 2016 19:07:26 GMT
They seemed quite happy for everyone to take snaps (not during the show obviously) at Harry Plopper
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Post by fiyero on Aug 13, 2016 19:08:41 GMT
They used to shout at people who did that at Wicked, now they share their photos on the official Facebook page!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2016 8:24:15 GMT
Everytime I visit the theatre, I always take a photo of the curtain that is there when you enter the auditorium. I like it especially when it has the show's name on it too. So far never been told about it and ushers have seen me do it (touch wood)
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Post by andrew on Aug 14, 2016 8:46:07 GMT
To play devils advocate, there's (at least) two issues at play
1) the sets, like everything else, are copyrighted. The designer has produced a piece of art that is theirs to release or not release for publication outside the theatre. If there's a scrim or curtain designed for the show then that too is copyrighted, so if that's on show then you can be barred from photographing it. Whilst of course you're not hoping to make any money from it, they can't know that is the case from everyone, and designers also want to shield their work from being copied ad nauseam by local companies putting on the play years down the line who aren't paying them any money for the design.
2) it creates a policy straight away that says there's no photography allowed in this venue. If someone sees a patron being yelled at for photographing the preset stage then they're not going to whip their phone out mid performance.
I still have and do take photos of stages, but thats part of their reasoning.
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Post by stuartmcd on Aug 14, 2016 10:20:37 GMT
It's surprising how different some theatres are when it comes to this issue. Some shows seem to encourage it like Matilda where they tend to retweet people's pictures. At Harry Potter last night and people were going right up to the stage and having pictures taken and not one person was told off about it.
However there were a number of people around me at the Old Vic on Friday who were attempting to take pictures of the stage and were seen and told to delete the pictures.
The worst I've seen was at The Play That Goes Wrong where a mother and daughter were just trying to take a selfie in their seats and had an usher swoop down on them. I think that ended up with managers getting involved.
I can understand why they want to discourage the taking of photos but in the age of social media I think it serves as great advertisement for the show.
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Post by Phantom of London on Aug 14, 2016 11:04:21 GMT
Producers pay millions of pounds to get their show to look out of this world and part of this is having professional photos done so producers do not want photos of poor quality appearing on the web taken by audience members, that will reflect on their product being inferior. They want to mange the publicity of their show and always showcase their product in the best way possible.
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Post by martin1965 on Aug 14, 2016 11:17:46 GMT
Have always thought it bad form to take photos of anything once inside. Have told people off before including my own son!!
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Post by zak97 on Aug 14, 2016 11:20:10 GMT
It's interesting to hear that they aren't as picky at Harry Potter now. When I went in June the ushers in the balcony were very forceful and aggressive with a no photos policy, actually waiting to see the photos deleated. Maybe it's just a case that in a theatre the size of the palace at full capacity it just can't be policed anymore.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Aug 14, 2016 11:44:16 GMT
I'm with Parsley on this one. If you take the logic of it being someone's work to the next level then we wouldn't be allowed to photograph anything, because everything is owned by someone. And if people are posting the images on social media then that's free and valuable publicity for the show. Totally not ok for performances to be filmed but an empty stage or a curtain? C'mon.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 14, 2016 12:43:26 GMT
I never thought I would say this, but i agree with Parsley on this one too. I always take a photo of the stage before the shoe begins as a memory but then I turn my phone off. It is a memory, I see no problem with it personally, though I can totally understand the opposing view.  |
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Post by longinthetooth on Aug 14, 2016 13:38:37 GMT
At Titanic there is (or was, as it closed last night) an actor on stage as the audience take their seats. Twice now I have seen the ushers come up to audience members and tell them to delete any photos they have taken, as they are infringing the copyright.
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Post by Phantom of London on Aug 14, 2016 14:47:53 GMT
An usher cannot make you delete photos.
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Post by andrew on Aug 14, 2016 21:01:42 GMT
It's probably in the Ts and Cs of your ticket purchase that they can boot you out for any reason though. Not that I think they would.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 8:02:11 GMT
It is technically to do with the copywright on the set (if even visble, it's not always!) but it's also at the discretion of the theatre/house manager/ushers really. As an usher I always turned a blind eye to pre-show photography and would feign innocence if a manager asked me 'what there's a 1000 people in here I missed it' because mostly people are just taking a selfie/curtain photo. If the set in all it's glory is on display I do appreciate the copywright issues/not wanting someone's crappy photo shared...but equally I'm not sure it's that much of an issue for those involved. Short version: nobody's career is going to end if someone takes a quick selfie in front of your set.
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Post by Snciole on Aug 15, 2016 8:41:43 GMT
Also there is a website that pays you a £1 in theatre tokens for a stage/view from seat photo so as I am frugal I like to earn my monies watching a play but I am always super subtle!
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Post by schuttep on Aug 15, 2016 10:02:15 GMT
An usher cannot make you delete photos. No, but they can arrange for you to be evicted. Personally I think allowing the taking of any photos at all sets a poor example. But what do you do with a photo of an empty set, let alone a curtain?! |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 10:31:52 GMT
An usher cannot make you delete photos. No, but they can arrange for you to be evicted. Personally I think allowing the taking of any photos at all sets a poor example. But what do you do with a photo of an empty set, let alone a curtain?! It's just nice to have I think. It shows the view from your seat and if the show has the shows name on it (e.g The Bodyguard) it's just part of making memories I think |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 10:33:10 GMT
However, if the show just has a normal red velvet curtain (like the previous Hairspray Tour) then I probably wouldn't take a photo
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Post by Phantom of London on Aug 15, 2016 10:33:56 GMT
An usher cannot make you delete photos. No, but they can arrange for you to be evicted. Personally I think allowing the taking of any photos at all sets a poor example. But what do you do with a photo of an empty set, let alone a curtain?! They cannot evict you either. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 10:42:33 GMT
Let me know when you're going to the theatre next, Phantom, I'll book the same show. I don't even care what it is, I'm just extremely keen to see you argue your legal rights with a theatre manager. I mean, terms and conditions (which you agree to abide by when purchasing a ticket even if you're telling a porky about having actually read them) usually have a clause whereby the management can request a ticket holder to leave the theatre as long as they have reasonable grounds ("I don't like the cut of your jib" presumably not applying but "you're being disruptive by taking photos of copyrighted material and now having a big old argument with the house manager" sounding much more like it), but sure, the theatre can't kick you out. Whatever you say.
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Post by stevej678 on Aug 15, 2016 10:54:53 GMT
I always buy a programme on a first visit to a show and would always keep that as a memento/reminder of the trip. I might also buy a cast recording. I'm not really one for hoarding ticket stubs though and taking photos of an empty set or curtain before a show begins seems a bit pointless. I suppose I can understand to a degree if it's a particularly interesting design, such as Groundhog Day, but 90% of the time it's pretty unremarkable.
That said, I can't really understand the need to clamp down on it either, especially when theatres are so inconsistent, although personally I think it's nice if theatres remain a place of escape from social media etc for a couple of hours. There really needs to be a consistent approach adopted though. Take Once, for example. At the start of its run, taking photos of the set or while on stage would have the ushers leaping into action to administer a swift telling off, by the end of its run the taking of selfies and other photos was being actively encouraged with flyers encouraging people to "Tweet from their seat"!
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Post by Deleted on Aug 15, 2016 11:00:09 GMT
They cannot evict you either. They must be able to surely?? Frog marching someone to the door and throwing them out with a flourish has got to be one of the perks of the job of being a Theatre Manager hasn't it? I'd do it at least once a week just to keep things interesting if it were my job. |
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Post by Michael on Aug 15, 2016 11:34:54 GMT
They cannot evict you either. They must be able to surely?? Frog marching someone to the door and throwing them out with a flourish has got to be one of the perks of the job of being a Theatre Manager hasn't it? I'd do it at least once a week just to keep things interesting if it were my job. I'd be surprised if ushers can't exercise property rights. And if they really can't, they can surely fetch a manager who will then "ask" you to leave. |
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