The (Wo)man in black

Enter any theatre and nine times out of ten you will be greeted by smiling people in black attire, ready to give you tickets, programmes, ice cream and directions to the nearest bar or toilet. But what is it really like being on a Front of House team?

For my course, we are required to do a session as FOH at one of the on-campus theatre venues; however, wishing to expand my experience, I volunteered to take on more shifts to get a real sense of the demands of such a role. It's definitely not just about friendly faces and knowing the directions to the appropriate aisles. It can be an incredibly stressful place to work, dealing with patrons and VIPs, ensuring performers and directors are satisfied, and that the audience know nothing of the problems that may arise.

Box office systems are fantastic creations – databases are created for regular patrons, marketing questions improve future campaigns, and card machines make life easy for those who don't carry change. Yet for the person behind the desk it is not quite so easy; even when a show is apparently fully-booked, things go awry. Various tickets can remain uncollected just minutes before the performance, so the process of releasing and reselling seats begins. Simple enough in theory, but when faced with a queue of college students and less-than-impressed dance tutors, it can be somewhat daunting - worse still, when the box office system refuses to comply with your fairly simple requests. Nevertheless, it is still exhilarating to see so many eager people willing to hang around in the desperate hope for a spare chair in the auditorium.

It all boils down to a calm exterior, an accepting nod of the head and a quiet word to the duty manager when people sneak crisps into the auditorium. All will be well, and the audience are none-the-wiser to the threatening storm that was narrowly escaped.

So next time you're in the theatre, spare a thought for the people in black. We are generally a happy bunch, proud to be a part of the theatre team and glad of the reward of a free show. But, like any job, it can have its moments and times of incredible pressure. Give us a smile, a 'thank you', and we'll keep doing what we're doing, even if it's just for the free seats.