Front-of-House Workers Are Vital to the Function of a Theatre

Paid front-of-house positions are few and far between, but they do exist in the field of theatre. In New York City, Broadway houses are unionized, so they have smaller staffs with more consistent hours. Front-of-house teams in Off-Broadway houses often consist of a much larger paid staff who do not receive full-time hours and benefits. Smaller theatres throughout the United States may have one or two paid employees backed by a roster of volunteers. The workers who perform these paid roles are official employees of the theatre company that they work for, yet their working conditions are not always favorable.

For five years, I worked front of house at an Off-Broadway theatre–five years that were equally thankless and rewarding, in the ways that service jobs tend to be. I understand that all front-of-house workers are highly skilled and exist at the center of everything that happens at a theatre. Front of house makes or breaks the experience for the audience. Yet these front-of-house staff members often do not receive the same treatment as administrative staff. In my own experience, we received the brunt of mistreatment from patrons and were not formally included in staff-wide meetings and social events–leaving us isolated from the rest of the team. This experience is not unusual, but it is also not universal.

I hope to illuminate the ways in which the perception of front-of-house workers by both the public and their colleagues can produce an environment of mistreatment towards this line of work. At the same time, I hope to illustrate what it looks like to create a workplace that fulfills the needs of its front-of-house employees.

Front-of-House Skills and Their Impact at Shakespeare in the Park

Being the front-facing staff of the theatre, front of house often sets the tone of a theatregoing experience. When I worked at Shakespeare in the Park, an annual New York City cultural event, the front-of-house staff was responsible for generating the positive and welcoming experience that the event is known for. Not only are front-of-house staff responsible for getting tickets to the right patrons and guiding them to their seats, but they are also tasked with handling patron needs on the ground. These tasks can include disability accommodations, facilitation in medical emergencies, and enforcing safety protocols which include the ever-changing landscape of the COVID pandemic. Front of house is also asked to coordinate with other departments such as stage management or development to accommodate their needs for the show and other special events. This work demands the ability to be flexible and open to learning whatever is necessary to provide incredible service within an industry that is constantly evolving. 

Shakespeare in the Park tickets are distributed on the same day as the show and are always free. Distribution of the tickets takes place at several locations throughout the city, including the physical lottery downtown at the Public Theater. During the downtown lottery, patrons put raffle tickets into a spinner, and at noon a front-of-house member draws winners to receive vouchers for tickets. For the front-of-house team, the ticket entry process is an hour of speaking to patrons and answering questions in person before the drawing, and we used that time to drum up excitement for Shakespeare in the Park. We had a blast hyping everyone up and encouraging a congratulatory atmosphere when someone won. These moments of joy created by front-of house-staff are a testament to the staff’s effort to better the experience for everyone around them.

Journalists and patrons praised the audience experience during the historic turnout to the Shakespeare in the Park premiere of the musical Hercules. We conducted the lottery differently due to the extremely high turnout, and this process incorporated even more front-of-house workers. The event was so popular that journalist Madison Malone Kircher wrote about it for Vulture in her piece “Losing the Hercules Lottery with 800 of My Closest Friends.” Never before had I seen front of house recognized in a major publication, let alone specifically highlighted for our work during the run of this show. Kircher also painted a picture of the huge crowd of patrons decked out in costumes and their exuberance and anticipation for the lottery experience. Kircher writes that “It’s a tense but joyful hour…The Public Theater does a great job organizing the chaos. Staffers dash the hundred yards or so between the meadow and the theatre to bring more tickets as they become available...When the staffers arrive with more tickets, we all cheer.”

What Kircher captures so well here is the front-of-house staffers’ ability to create an experience for audiences that extends beyond the show itself. The Hercules lottery was an example of how we as staffers were able to bring new life to a decades-long annual event that people have come to know and love. That is the valuable work that every front-of-house staff member brings to their job.

The first time I ushered a performance, I politely asked a couple to step into the lobby with their drinks, and they were so upset that they wrote a customer complaint to my manager.

Patrons’ Negative Treatment of Front of House

Along with the many benefits that come with working directly with the public come the downsides and mistreatment. Patrons can be cruel and abusive towards front-of-house staff, an experience that has become so commonplace that it is expected as part of the job. I have had patrons scream in my face and threaten my job because I asked them to follow our policies. The first time I ushered a performance, I politely asked a couple to step into the lobby with their drinks, and they were so upset that they wrote a customer complaint to my manager.

Patrons will go out of their way to make front-of-house employees uncomfortable–some going as far as making inappropriate sexual comments towards female staffers. All the while they tell us that because they are a donor or supporter, they are allowed to treat us however they see fit. Still, we have the strength and dedication to our jobs to show up and consistently ensure that everyone has a great experience at the theater.

Other instances of such treatment are documented in Billy McEntee’s “She Loves Theatre, but Does Theatre Love Her Back?” for American Theatre, as well as in its comments section. Writer Billy McEntee writes at length about Nicki Cochrane, a regular theatre patron whose treatment of front-of-house staff is so consistently vile that she has become synonymous with such behavior in the New York theatre industry. McEntee writes that Cochrane has been banned from several arts establishments and includes a statement from Building for the Arts about their ban, saying that it took place “after multiple incidents of general disruption of the audience experience and specific abusive behavior directed towards the building’s staff.” Yet the article also notes that there are people in the industry who continue to embrace and encourage Cochrane’s unacceptable behavior despite her abuse of staff.

It is common for upper management, who depend on patron support, to excuse staff abuse at the hands of difficult patrons. This happened to my colleagues and me constantly, and it surely happened to workers mentioned in McEntee’s article. The comment section of the article is full of anecdotes detailing workers’ horrific experience with Cochrane, yet there are still institutions that entertain her at the expense of their own staff. This is a consequential move for any theatre. When a company allows continued staff abuse at the hands of a patron, they are proving that they do not value the working conditions of their staff. And if staff do not feel respected by their company, they will not be able to create the enthusiastic artistic environment that is needed for an audience to enjoy a trip to the theatre. In order for staff to provide the best service possible, they need to feel safe and supported at their workplace.

Creating a Sustainable and Equitable Workplace for Front of House

Front-of-house employees are invaluable members of a theatre staff. But if they continue to be treated with disrespect and abuse, these staff members will (and do) leave the industry for good. To maintain a committed front of house, this type of work needs to be recognized by administration. And although patron behavior cannot be controlled, a supportive administration will hopefully, in turn, encourage more respectful patrons.

The first step in recognizing the vitality of front-of-house positions will require theatre companies to implement policies that reflect specific staff needs. This means refusing to accommodate patrons who harass and abuse staff. Companies should also offer opportunities for growth within the company in the form of promotions and raises for front-of-house staff members and salaries that are fair and competitive with those of administrative staff. Finally, companies must fully integrate their front-of-house members into the staff at large by including them in staff-wide discussions and asking for their feedback on company-wide initiatives. Front of house should have the same opportunities as any other administrative position, and that means increasing their participation in decisions that impact everyone on staff.

To better understand what a fully integrated front-of-house staff looks like, I spoke with staff members from the Brick in New York City, Long Wharf Theatre in Connecticut, and Children’s Theatre Company in Minnesota. The experiences of these staff members indicated to me that integration looks different depending on the size and nature of a particular company. That being said, after speaking with Gwendolyn Glessner about their process of unionizing the Children’s Theatre Company front of house, I firmly believe that this is the ideal future for all front-of-house teams.

Unionizing under IATSE was a natural fit, and Children’s Theatre Company workers were able to easily and effectively demonstrate how the union functions for other theatre workers–a process that led to a natural transition.

In February 2024, it was announced that Children’s Theatre Company’s front of house would be voluntarily recognized as a union under the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE). This is one of a handful of front-of-house unions to exist in the country, and the movement was led by performance supervisor Gwendolyn Glessner. Gwendolyn was kind enough to speak to me about the process and primarily spoke about the importance of communication within a team of employees. This meant openly discussing pay, scheduling, and personal feelings about how things were going within the theatre. They stated that these discussions were paramount in helping other front-of-house employees understand what it meant to be part of a union and what that process would look like. These conversations built trust among staff members and encouraged everyone to discover the common issues that they faced. Gwendolyn advocated for a low-pressure unionization process where they were open to finding the answers to any questions employees had, which built a mutually beneficial community within the team.

What struck me most when hearing about this process was the ability of Children’s Theatre Company to unionize as part-time staff members. This really challenged my own perceptions of what was possible for the future of front of house. I was under the impression that this was only possible for full-time employees, a reality that would limit which front-of-house teams could unionize. Children’s Theatre Company unionized under IATSE because the union primarily represents stagehands and other theatre workers who may work an irregular or gig-based schedule. Unionizing under IATSE was a natural fit, and Children’s Theatre Company workers were able to easily and effectively demonstrate how the union functions for other theatre workers–a process that led to a natural transition.

Gwendolyn spoke to a more balanced power dynamic throughout the theatre’s staff–something that was a major benefit of unionizing. Having a legal form of regulation now allows for front-of-house employees to advocate for fair pay, hours, and working conditions without the fear of retaliation. Upon hearing about the success of Children’s Theatre Company, I felt confident in companies’ ability to follow suit. Within a large company like Children’s Theatre Company, unionizing is a step forward in working towards the rights of the department while marching towards the larger goal of building community amongst an entire theatre.

Service work is work, the same as any job in an office or on the stage.

I also spoke with box office manager Cameron Stuart from the Brick and patron services manager Carolyn Stockage from Long Wharf Theatre. Their front-of-house staffs, which are not unionized, are composed of either one or a few employees supplemented by volunteers or staff members who work once or twice a month. Both theatres have been able to sustain an equitable balance of power among staff due to their smaller size  also their staffs’ commitment to working as collaboratively as possible. Carolyn in particular spoke highly of co-workers who have stepped up to cover front-of-house duties when needed and their ability to make her feel supported by her team. Cameron also spoke to a similar experience of working in a space where front of house has a close relationship with both the artists and admin. These structures continue to be very successful for the Brick and Long Wharf Theatre, leading to employees who genuinely enjoy their jobs and who wish to stay in their positions. Having a consistent staff is a great sign of success as it demonstrates that the theatre has been able to fulfill the needs of their employees.

A challenging job in many ways, working front of house is something I am proud of, and it is a career that has brought me the most important people in my life. In many ways it led to my current career as a librarian because I wanted to continue to work customer service. Service work is work, the same as any job in an office or on the stage. Movements to legitimize creating art as a career have paid off in the creation of unions and groups that advocate for equitable pay and treatment. A similar movement needs to happen for theatrical service work. To pave a path forward, theatre companies need to fulfill the needs of their service workers by way of a living wage, opportunity for professional growth and development, and the discouragement of mistreatment by patrons. It is paramount that front-of-house workers are given respect and dignity as legitimate professionals, or the theatre will lose a vital life force.