Yes, unfortunately the state of the theater has become a disaster and it does not look like there is a rescue team on the way to clean up and revert back to a civilized manner. What happened to the days you could actually sit in the dark, sometimes with over a thousand people and enjoy seeing and hearing exactly what was happening on stage, without an inkling of it becoming a miserable experience.

After experiencing a rise in aggressive behavior from guests, theatres in London’s West End are using body cameras to deter audience members from being abusive toward staff.

There are plenty of great operas out there that aren’t part of the “Big Ten.” Some of the ones included on this list are more well-known than others; some of which are very rarely performed. If you know them, great! If you don’t, here are some exciting stories to delve into. Enjoy!

Upon entering the Helen Hayes Theatre to see “What the Constitution Means to Me”, I was met with a wall of white cis male faces symbolically relegating anyone falling outside of these parameters as an inherent outlier. Fortunately, this was not my experience walking into the 92Y to hear Heidi Schreck and Harvard professor Laurence Tribe discuss Schreck’s play as well as our nation’s complicated relationship with the titular document.

With performers on a press tour, it often feels like answers are rehearsed or over-thought, yet Kevin McDonald's were both exuberant and winding, his words spilling out in an over-caffeinated cascade of ideas and jokes. It turns out, McDonald has a lot to say, which is why it's perfect time for his new one-man show "Kevin McDonald ALIVE on 42nd Street" to premiere Off-Broadway.

Every June when I was younger, the same commercial for a summer learning program would appear on my TV. It featured a little boy who, over the course of his summer vacation, forgot almost everything he’d learned the previous year.

It's hard enough being a fat girl. It's hard enough being hidden, not desired, not preferred, not hired, mocked, stereotyped- but when you think you're being loved and you're actually being programmed and devalued? That's a whole other level of cruelty that I may never completely unpack.

This is where my #metoo story begins.

As a white woman in theatre, I understand that I am automatically given some privileges when it comes to opportunity, and the way I am treated in lecture halls/school performances etc. For some, however, this is a struggle that engulfs their entire educational career when wanting pursue a life in the theatre.

During the 2017-18 theatre season, Broadway attendance was higher than the cumulative attendance for ALL of New York’s main sports teams (Mets, Yankees, Rangers, Islanders, Knicks, Liberty, Giants, Jets, Devils and Nets).

This goes to show that musical theatre is still as popular as ever, with over a third (62%) of Broadway audiences attending at least two shows every season.

The MeToo movement is one that has garnered attention and driven significant change in the past year. Great articles and exposés have led to change in leadership at some companies, stricter “no tolerance policies” and open forums to discuss issues related to harassment. However, in many amateur theatre companies, whether it’s a community theatre or an educational setting, the MeToo movement remains relatively motionless: a rallying cry heard and ignored. 

Many people get tattoos as an expression of something important to them, to cover up parts of their bodies they love less, or to have art on them. But as a performer there is always an anxiety when considering ink. “Will this tattoo make me less likely to be cast?” is a question I’ve pondered many times while considering tattoo placements.

With Broadway audiences becoming more diverse, theaters have made adjustments to their facilities to make them more inclusive and accommodating, especially when it comes to restrooms. However, there have been recently reported issues where front of house staff have been discriminating various people based on their gender identity or appearance with which restrooms audience members were going to use.