Re: Disrespectful Audiences

[Saul Davis Zlatkovski]

Yes, when I was in school, they spent a tremendous amount of time and energy in the first few grades teaching us to be quiet, and re-teaching us in junior high. If the schoolteachers are lax, then everyone will suffer. I spent many hours in second grade standing in the corner for talking in class, or writing on the blackboard hundreds of times, “I will not talk in class.” It simply has to be taught and drummed in over and over again. Unfortunately, electronic/digital devices simply empower people to be rude and create a sense of entitlement. It’s a colossal battle. Ushers are not always allowed to police the interior or expected to. It is a house management issue, but there are not always ushers and house managers. However, I cannot forget the ushers at the Broadway Theaters and New York State theater. They were either, alumni of the roller derby, mafia matrons, or just the meanest, nastiest older women they could find, but they sure were effective!