Theater Sight Lines

[LaffingBear]

A few months ago, I wrote that I'd gone to my first live performance in over a decade, only to sit behind a tall man. Im 6'0.. but still, spent the majority of Book Of Mormon bobbing and weaving in my SF Orpheum 6th row orchestra seat to see the stage. Others here commented on many theaters having poor sight lines.

 

Last night, I saw On Your Feet at the recently renovated Golden Gate Theater in SF. Running late, I barely made it... and then just before curtain, a relatively tall guy sat in front of me. Not that tall, maybe 6'2, but still his head blocked a significant portion of the stage from my 11th row center seat. So much that it distracted me and I wasn't enjoying the show. I literally didn't see several actions that occurred downstage center.

 

Moved at intermission to 9th row seats I'd noticed as unoccupied. Wouldn't imagine it to be such a profound difference, but having full view with peripheral vision totally changed my experience, the feeling of involvement, etc. Thoroughly enjoyed second half.

 

I've been scoring amazing seats for SF shows - so far, all center orchestra rows 5-11. After years of non-attendance, I've been to four shows in recent months, and plan to see more.

 

But wondering... maybe orchestra seats aren't necessarily best. I like being close, choose closer seats in movie theaters too. Helps me feel involved in the performance. But maybe go for mezzanine or balcony seats, to avoid poor sightlines?

 

What are preferences of other theater goers? Disregarding ticket-cost, what are preferred seating choices?

[leeper]

It kind of depends on the theater. Some have stepped orchestra seating which is better than slanted floors for seeing over the folks in the row in front of you. My preference is to try and snag an aisle seat which usually affords a clear view.. The mezzanine is usually stepped so that is almost always a good choice if want to avoid the "bobbing and weaving".

[BroadwayDave]

I’m still relatively new to this, and have only seen 28 shows - 24 Broadway National Tours and 4 on Broadway, and in 9 different theaters.

 

My first preference is always front row balcony, or in the case of some theaters, the mezzanine, or whatever the first elevated level is called that’s over the orchestra section. Only three times have I sat in the orchestra section: once was front row; another time was three rows back; and the worst was farthest on the side, house right. I was lucky and all three occasions worked out well enough.

 

Even when I’ve had seats that weren’t front row balcony, I’ll try to get an aisle seat that affords the best direct view of the stage. Because some aisles have more seats than the ones in front of them, like the Connor Palace in Cleveland, this worked brilliantly and the view was completely unobstructed.

 

And for my upcoming season tickets in Pittsburgh I have an end row seat just off center, however they are five rows back in the first tier section of the balcony.

 

Now, for some shows, sitting as close to the stage as possible is much more important. As in the case of “The Band’s Visit”, everyone recommended getting a seat so close that it allowed you to see the smallest nuances and tiniest expressions in the faces of the actors. That’s were I sat front row orchestra. The disadvantage was that the height of the stage at the Barrymore Theater chopped off the cast at the ankles, and in some cases mid-shin, depending on where there were standing, if you were seated in the front row. And when I saw “My Fair Lady” at the Lincoln Center, the balcony section was curved deeply to the point it put you just far enough away from the stage that small binoculars would have really helped. Even when sitting in the balcony front row.

 

Keep in mind too that sight lines from seats in the far house left, or house right, even in the balconies, will obstruct or block your view if the action takes place deeper in the stage or on the sides. This was the case for “The Lion King” at the Hippodrome in Baltimore, where platformed sound structures on either side of the stage blocked a couple of scenes that happened on the far side middle section of the stage. And for “Hamilton” several scenes occur on the far sides and deep in the stage. Because of the way the set is designed, if you have a seat on the far sides you will miss some of the action.

 

And some theaters have support columns, like the Academy of Music in Philadelphia. There are seats marked on the seating chart as obstructed, even if they are in the center sections of the balcony and mezzanines.

 

One thing I’ve found very helpful is to compare seating charts to actual photographs online of the theater. Even a website like A View From My Seat is very helpful in visualizing what each theater offers. This helps a lot in determining if the extra seats in the row on a websites seating chart actually extend out far enough, or even exist.

Edited October 8, 2018 by BroadwayDave

[+ WilliamM]

If it is a major performer you may never see again (Hugh Jackman, Ethel Merman) I recommend sitting as close to the stage as possible.

[OneFinger]

I have season tickets to the Eccles Theater in Salt Lake City. Our tickets are on the 6th row and on the inside aisle. Not a big fan of sitting in the balcony or mezzanine.