’d like to speak to the manager!!!

For anyone just tuning in, you might not know that Adam and I see a lot of theater. It’s one of the things that we bonded over when we first met.

We both have theater backgrounds, me a lighting designer, him an actor. We both have degrees in the theater, and it’s been a life-long passion for both of us, even though neither of us is involved with actively producing shows today.

As a result of us seeing theater, we visit a LOT of different facilities.
Everything from local productions, to touring houses, regional theaters, and of course Broadway.

As a result of these visits, I’d like to ask that we stop forcing people to sit in theater seats that were designed for humans in 1914.

I’m chubby, so side to side, I’m big. I’m not surprised when a chair is tight.

However.

From top to bottom I’m only 6’0”. This is above average, I know, but it’s not outrageous.

Thing is,I don’t fit in most theater seats in older theaters.

My knees are either buried in the seat in front of me.

Or

I have to sit in some weird angled situation to get my legs out of the way.

At one show last week, a woman apologized because her knees were in my head, saying that she was tall at 5’11”.

Truth is I’ve started noticing this more over the past three years, because unfortunately, even after surgery, I can’t tuck myself into a ball to force myself into the chair.

Right before surgery, there were times where the pain was so bad, from how I had to sit, that I couldn’t enjoy the show.

The first time I saw, Some Like It Hot, I could barely have told you the plot. It was to this day, the most painful seating situation ever.

Adam and I have notes saved on each theater we visit, about how the seats were and did we fit.

I know it will be expensive to fix this problem, but we as humans are getting taller not shorter.

I also know this is a luxury problem, and I’m privileged to see theater in the first place.

I truly don’t expect to have this fixed. It’s mostly me sharing my experience in NYC.

I will say, that when I was in Argentina a year ago, we visited the Opera House, and the original chairs were still in use. They must have been built for super fancy dresses, because they were the roomies chairs I’d ever seen in a historic theater.

Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.