Thursday, March 15, 2012
Making your butt feel better in your seat.
Ken Davenport - Opinions from a Broadway Producer.: Theatergoing can be uncomfortable. Let's face it. With legroom that seems designed for the people of Lilliput, and a number of bathrooms that couldn't even accommodate the Duggars never mind 1500 people, we're not exactly the most user-friendly experience in town. But the folks at Jujamcyn are doing everything they can to change that.
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4 comments:
Alright, when I first came across this article/video, I thought it was funny. But after having watched it, I realized that when I go see a show, often times, I shift positions multiple times during a performance and sometimes I have been extremely uncomfortable. I think that when you're in the business of creating an environment in which people are watching a theatrical piece, often times we are too concentrated on what is going on on the stage and not enough on the seating. While I can not say I have ever sat in a a NuBack chair, I feel that their reasoning behind the contruction of thier chairs is sound and would actually like to see more research into the physical experience that an audience member has within a given space.
I agree that when I first read the title I laughed but after watching the movie it seemed like a smart decision for them to install these new seats. I two realized that I shift positions a lot when I am watching a show. Sometimes when I actually take note of how much I am moving I wonder if I am being disruptive to the people around me or if I am a bad audience member. I would be curious to discover comparatively how much I would move in a NuBack chair understand the design of the chairs I just wonder how effective they are because I find that even when I am sitting is chairs designed to make sit up stair I still somehow manage to slouch. It is true that a main goal of a theatrical business is to have the audience enjoy themselves and it seems that these new seats will help them do just that.
Being super short, I probably experience less discomfort in audience seats than the average sized person, so upon first thought changing seats didn't seem to be too big of a deal to me. I like to use how much I notice any discomfort during the show to judge how engrossed I am in the action on stage. Sometimes it's nice to realize during curtain call that my legs have been asleep for probably a half an hour. That said, this article is totally right. Discomfort brings audience members right out of the play, so it actually is really important that seats be comfortable. I'm very interested in their research.
I hate uncomfortable seats. It is the WORST part of the WORST plays or musicals I have ever seen. I feel like this video addresses the issue as it should be. I find myself shifting and adjusting usually as soon as the house goes to half in order to find a comfortable position to sit in for the duration of the play. The longer i can sit still - the more sucked into the world of the play i am. The more i fidget - the less intrigued i am. Changing the seats are a brilliant and useful idea. i dont know about you but i definitely hate certain movie theatres because of the seats, whether the arm rest moves up and down, and the head rests. Comfortable seating to a theatre is clean restrooms to a gas station. It just makes it so much better
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