On Theatre and the Internet

Lately, we've noticed a trend. Although patrons by and large enjoy the convenience of purchasing tickets online, questions about online ticket sales account for nearly eighty percent of the messages which come to our office. It seems that somewhere in the transition from the old EventMeister days of paper tickets to today's new-fangled internetery, information on how the new system works has been lost. As more and more theatres switch to the "Buy Online" method of ticket sales, we thought a little Guide to Online Ticket Purchases might come in handy.

The number one question we receive is "where are my tickets?" The answer is simple: they are in your hand. Or, at least, they should be. When you order tickets online, your receipt is your ticket. Sometimes those receipts have bar codes, sometimes they don't, but look carefully when you complete your purchase online -- most tickets sold this way remind you to "Print this Page."

Instead of waiting days or weeks for paper tickets to arrive in the mail, adding postage and handling fees to the total ticket price, your tickets arrive instantly on your computer, with no chance of being lost (or stolen) in the mail.

The next question, then, is usually "what do I do if I don't have access to a printer?" At some theatres, that may be a problem. If the receipt has a bar code, there's a good chance that the theatre needs to scan that code before you are seated -- it's the modern-day equivalent to the torn paper-ticket stub.  However, if there is no bar code, you should be fine. For good measure, if you know you can't print your ticket, jot down your confirmation number. With your name and that number, we can generally confirm your purchase at the door -- but be aware that you may spend a little longer in line at the door while we look.

So now you've bought your seat and you have printed your ticket or written down your confirmation number. The third question is "what happens if I am late?"

In most theatres, there is a strict "no late seating" policy. In larger theatres where seats are far removed from distracting the actors, you may be allowed to enter the theatre at a scene break (when you're less likely to disturb the other patrons), but in most cases you will be asked to wait until intermission to be seated.  You'll only see half of the show, but it's too late to do anything about that now.  In nearly every theatre, all sales are final.

Does that mean you can never exchange your ticket? Of course not!  Although some larger theatres have hard-to-miss "no refund, no exchange" policies (written everywhere in large, bold letters before, during, and after your purchase), most smaller theatres are happy to accommodate your changing needs if you let them know in advance. Some require a certain amount of notice to change your ticket (say at least 24-hours before the show) but they are almost always willing to help.  Up to a point. There is a magic moment when it becomes too late.  Even if that precise moment isn't listed clearly in the theatre's exchange policy, there's one you should expect in any theatre: it's when the curtain rises without you.

The reason is simple: you've left an empty seat in the audience. When you bought a ticket for that night, yours became a seat the theatre could not sell to anyone else, whether you arrived to sit in it or not.  If you let the theatre know in advance that you're not coming, you allow them to sell the seat to another customer -- and you'll almost always get the exchange you want.

Occasionally the practices mentioned above work together to create an unusual situation. Let's say you've purchased a ticket, but you arrive late. You're not asked to wait until intermission to enter the theatre, instead you're told that your seat has been sold to someone else. Now you're standing with a ticket in your hand -- and you've arrived to use it -- but you're being turned away.  You're wondering "Why wasn't my ticket honored?"

This one gets tricky. Remember that the "magic moment" when your ticket is no longer eligible for refund or exchange may be when the curtain is rising without you.  In that moment, it becomes safe for the theatre to assume you will not be arriving at all and that they may sell your empty seat to anyone waiting at the door for it. The bad news is that if you actually DO show up late to use your ticket and the theatre is sold-out, it's frustrating and inconvenient not to be seated. The good news is that if the theatre was able to sell your seat, you probably won't be held to the "all sales are final" standard. You may be asked to come back on another night to see the show, but you'll see the WHOLE show, not just what you'd have seen after being seated at intermission; and if you can't come back another night, it's very likely that, because the theatre was able to sell your seat, you can get a refund.

The internet is a fast, efficient way to buy tickets. Remember these few key points and you'll always have a pleasant theatre experience!

-- Kelly Lapczynski

Review Excerpt

Anyone coming to Virginia Woolf “live” after only having seen it in the film version — especially if, like me, you’ve only seen the film on TV, cable or home video — will be startled at how it comes over with an audience. What’s especially surprising is how funny it is; though the laugh lines have the sting of a scorpion’s tail, they’re there and they provoke a kind of I-can’t-believe-I’m-finding-this-amusing-but-I-am reaction and an accompanying nervous laughter. Also, Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton played Martha and George with a kind of stylized, almost operatic intensity that Bedington and Morris don’t try to match — which, paradoxically, makes the characters far more believable as real people in Compass’s [sic] production.

-- MARK GABRISH CONLAN
Zenger’s Newsmagazine • All rights reserved

Read the full review HERE.

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf

Oct 1- Oct 24, 2009
Meal Deal

Buy tickets at the door

or


Thur Fri Sat 7:30pm
Sunday 2pm

www.compasstheatre.com
or call (619) 688-9210

SHOPPING & F**KING
by Mark Ravenhill
Compass Theatre & Triad Productions Present
August 15 - Sept 12

Introducing HOT DOG Thursday Nights!
Free Hot Dog and a Coke with each Ticket Purchase.
www.compasstheatre.com
or call (619) 688-9210

Killer Joe

Mar 1-Apr 5
Killer Joe by Tracy Letts

American Buffalo

Runs through February 15

Podcast with Joel Dorr, Editor in Chief of Dramabiz Magazine

A Tuna Christmas

Starring Fred Harlow and Don Loper
Opens December 7

Britannicus by Jean Racine Opens Soon

Translated by Howard Rubenstein
Pictured Jenna Selby and Rich Carillo
Photography by Paul Savage

(619) 688-9210
Oct 23 - Nov 23
Low Cost Previews 10/16-10/26
Thur Fri Sat 8pm - Sunday 2pm

Jean Racine's 17th century French masterpiece Britannicus, in a stunning adaptation by playwright Howard Rubenstein, tells of intrigue and treachery in the highest places. Nero, the young emperor of Rome, has come to the throne through his powerful mother's machinations and at the expense of the heir apparent, the young, kind, and handsome Britannicus. Surprisingly, Nero reigns wisely and benevolently ... until that fateful day when he is faced with a critical decision - one choice leading to everlasting fame, the other to never-ending infamy.

Troilus and Cressida

"Critic's Choice"


Union Tribune


Compass Theatre


September 9, 2008





"...It showcases some delectable acting" ... "And there's nothing like seeing Shakespeare in an intimate 49-seat house. “Troilus and Cressida” was Compass' first stab at Shakespeare, and let's hope it's the first of many."
-- Janice Steinberg, Union-Tribune

"...the feat of making this complex drama—the climactic battle scene between Greeks and Trojans included—with endless scene changes happen on such a tiny, low-tech stage is alone worth the price of admission. Most of the actors remain onstage throughout the play, often seated at the far edges awaiting their cue or changing a portion of their costume to indicate their next character."... "Like the many Greek plays in fine modern translations given during recent seasons at 6th@Penn (Compass Theatre’s predecessor), “Troilus and Cressida” helps fill in the gaps of our community’s and our own individual perceptions of theater history." -- Kenneth Herman, SanDiego.com

We hope you read the reviews in the Union-Tribune and on SanDiego.com. They are raves and we are very grateful for the hard work of cast and crew.

A dark, sexy, satirical drama of ambition versus reality that baffled scholars for centuries. Now it makes far too much sense!

EDITED BY WELTON JONES & GEORGE WEINBERG-HARTER
DIRECTED BY WELTON JONES
THU, FRI & SAT at 8PM • SUN at 2PM TICKETS $20-$23

Everybody in Shakespeare’s England knew Homer’s Greek epic The Iliad, with its mythic heroes hacking away at each other over the beautiful Helen. They also knew the sub-plot added by Chaucer, about Trojan Prince Troilus and the girl Cressida who became his lover with the help of her Uncle Pandarus, whose name became synonymous with “pimp.” In his Troilus and Cressida, Shakespeare turned the tale into a sardonic burlesque: Helen is a jaded sophisticate; Achilles is a lazy sneak with a boyfriend; Ajax is a buffoon; Agamemnon, a windbag; Ulysses, a trickster; Meneleus, a cuckold.

Probably, the play was too dark, sinister and sexy for its time. The first known London production was in 1912. Yet scholars argue endlessly about this “problem play,” struggling to make Cressida a tart so that Troilus could be a hero. Only an era that nurtures Samuel Beckett and David Mamet, Paris Hilton and Truman Capote could finally embrace this steamy play, now seen as a masterful mix of sex, politics and ambition in a wild stew of styles from farce to tragedy.

ORDER TICKETS FROM OUR WEBSITE

TROILUS AND CRESSIDA by Wm Shakespeare Buy Tickets Online > >

In Memoriam

Priscilla Allen
1938 - 2008

Priscilla Allen passed away this weekend of lymphoma, a cancer diagnosed more than 10 years ago. She died at home, surrounded by family and beloved animals.

Though perhaps best remembered as the exploding head in the movie Total Recall by those who did not know her well, the mother of three and Grande Dame of the San Diego Theatre will be sorely missed by those who did.

Priscilla Allen moved to San Diego from Buffalo, New York, at the age of two when her father took employment at CONVAIR to help with the war effort. Her mother, the entertainment chair for various clubs, was the catalyst which motivated the class clown of La Jolla High to act in the school's variety shows, along with "more motivated" classmates like Raquel Welsh.

Though like Welsh, Allen could have pursued a career in Hollywood (she had landed work on the series Happy Days) she decided that her family came first and opted instead for secure employment in an environment more conducive to raising her three daughters; a decision she never regretted.

When Allen's husband Dennis, a San Diego policeman, was killed on duty in 1977, Allen secured a teaching credential to support her young family. For many years afterward, she taught Theatre Arts and Public Speaking in city schools -- San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts, Point Loma High School, and Mesa College.

Allen also worked to support the local acting community. She went to the very first meeting of the San Diego Alliance Co-Op, which would later become the Actors Alliance, with the idea to have an organization which would empower the actor and help him to find work. Concerned for the viability of San Diego theatre as companies continued to lose venues and artists, Allen believed the AASD was "one of the best things going" to nurture local actors.

Some of Priscilla's fondest memories were with Starlight Theatre, where her entire family has performed. In her 20s, Allen would don extensive makeup and an elaborate costume to appear in the Shakespearean Festival's pre-show as Queen Elizabeth, appearing side-saddle on a horse to announce the evening's production.

Allen tried to do something new, to challenge herself, every day; she believed "commitment" was the most important word in an actor's vocabulary; and her incredible "sense of the possibilities" always kept her from being limited by her size or age. She was never type-cast, boxed-in, or labeled; she was free to work the gamut from the gut-wrenching to the gut-busting.

An advocate for animal welfare and an avid antiques admirer (if not collector), Priscilla Allen will be missed.


Source: Theatrical bios and, in particular, a 2006 interview with C.Q.Kish.

* Corrections to cause and location of death were made August 25. Thanks to Jennifer, Hillary Allen, and Meredith Christiansen who added that Priscilla's "San Diego acting and teaching career was artistically fulfilling beyond any commercial success."

4:12

Latest Podcast: Early August

In this podcast: Asian American Repertory Company Artistic Director Peter James Cirino discusses The Joy Luck Club and Compass Theatre's new Managing Artistic Director Josh Hyatt discusses the upcoming QPlays Series, opening with Hairdresser on Fire .

New Managing Artistic Director

Compass Theatre welcomes JOSH HYATT as its new Managing Artistic Director.

Josh is, in his own words, "new-ish" to the San Diego theatre community, relocating here from Miami within the last few years. Josh joins Compass Theatre "hoping to develop and implement programs to further enhance and provide additional organizational and financial structure so the theatre can maintain and hopefully exceed its already high standards."

In Miami, Josh served as the General Theatre Manager and Artistic Director of Main Street Playhouse, where he oversaw the operations and productions from script analysis and season development to donor relations and grant coordination. He also worked to assist smaller local theatres produce shows and find sponsors and donors as a producer for the Theatre League of South Florida. Additionally, Josh was an active board member responsible for developing the seasons of Pembroke Pines Theatre of Performing Arts and Broward on Broadway.

In San Diego, Josh has directed at Diversionary Theatre (Searching for Mr. Right) and Compass Theatre (Hairdresser on Fire opens the QPlays series on September 7).

Josh replaces Matt Thompson.

Welcome Josh!

Paradise: $10 Preview Wednesday, July 30

Playwright Glyn O'Malley was called "the most talked to and talked about playwright in 2003" by Cincinnati Magazine. He and his work have been written about extensively by publications such as American Theatre, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and the Washington Weekly Standard.

O'Malley, who died in 2006, was a member of The Dramatist Guild of America, and The Freedom-to-Write Committee, PEN American. He was nominated for PEN American's 2004 'Newman's Own First Amendment Award' for Paradise, and honored for this at a Master's Tea by Yale University.

Set in Dehashie Refugee Camp for Palestinians, and in various locales in Jerusalem at the height of the last Intifada, PARADISE is the story of how two 17 year old girls - a Palestinian, and an Israeli - who might in another place and time have been fast friends instead meet in a fatal intersection.


The Compass Theatre production is directed by San Diego TheatreScene's Teen Perspective columnist, Alice Cash, in association with Broadway Kids of San Diego.

"This is the kind of play which will force some honest and uncomfortable discussion. It is politically seductive just by the nature of its subject and makes one uneasy about the future in that part of the world. However, Paradise will make you think!" - Ron Levitt, Theatre Critic, Entertainment News and Views

A $10 preview is scheduled for Wednesday, July 30th. Performances continue throughout the weekend, at regular price, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights at 8:00 and Sunday at 2:00.

Purchase tickets here, or at compasstheatre.com.


Sources: Wikipedia, Doolee: The Playwright's Database

QPlays Promoted at San Diego Pride Festival

Director Josh Hyatt mans the booth at San Diego Pride on Saturday, June 19, to promote QPLAYS, Compass Theatre's new series of gay-themed plays premiering this fall.

Josh is directing the first piece in the series, Hairdresser on Fire, which opens September 7th and stars Robert Bitsko, Neil McDonald, Gigi Palomera, Blake Perret, Bill Shore, and Krissy Tobey.

For more information, dates, and prices check us out at compasstheatre.com

TheatreScene Podcast on Your iPod

The San Diego TheatreScene Follow Spot podcast is now available through iTunes for direct downloading to your iPod!

It's FREE -- and ready to go wherever you do.

Subscribe here.

July 8, 2008 FollowSpot podcast

This week's guests, July 18:

• Compass Theatre Actor/Director Scott Striegel
• Theatre Inc. actor Robin Christ

Last week's guests, July 8:

• BRAVISSIMO Entertainment critic Rob Appel
• ACT San Diego President Christoper De Armond
• Chronos Theatre Artistic Director Celeste Innocenti
• Compass Theatre Artistic Director Matt Thompson

Frank'n'Funder

Compass Theatre and San Diego TheatreScene present

Compass Theatre BBQ!
August 2nd from 10am - 7pm

Join the staff of Compass Theatre for burgers, dogs, and fun as we announce our first full-length season.

Mission Bay
next to the Visitors' Center off Mission Bay Drive.

Donations welcome.

See you there!

Resilience of the Spirit Festival 2008

Program A: Readings

Program A-1: ended

Program A-2
Readings: July 6 - 9 at 7 pm

Nailed to the Bed by George Soete * Directed by George Soete

Program A-3
Readings July 13 - 16 at 7 pm

The River Pure for Healing by Piu Wilson * Directed by Diana Sparta

When a humanitarian letter-writing campaign is used for selfish purposes, it brings one man to his breaking point.

Program A-4
Readings July 20-23 at 7pm

Timon of Athens by William Shakespeare * Directed by Chris Williams

Timon is a king and generous aristocrat in Athens with one major fault: he is a spendthrift. Everyone loves him because of his generosity as a host. This rarely produced gem is Shakespeare's inner perspective on the human condition of greed.

Program A-5
Readings July 27 - 30 at 7 pm

The Sweet Rose of Tokyo by Matt Thompson * Directed by Matt Thompson

In February 1942, all American citizens of Japanese descent living in the western U.S. were ordered to leave their homes with only the valuables they could carry. Explore the perspective of one family imprisoned behind the barbed wire in California.

Program B: Performances
Thursdays and Saturdays at 8pm

The Twenty Year Package by William Campbell * Directed by Christopher Burger

Starring: Tom Hall, Scott Striegel, and Amanda Cooley Davis















His Last Fight by Jaqueline Goldfinger * Directed by Chelsea Whitmore

Starring: Don Pugh, Olivia Espinosa, and Fernando Huerto














The Body Washer by Rosemary Toohey * Directed by Sunny Smith

Starring: Nicole Solas, Diana Sparta, and Asia Jackson













Untitled by Dallas McLaughlin * Directed by Dallas McLaughlin

Starring Brad Davis and Dallas McLaughlin

Program C: Performances
Fridays at 8pm and Sundays at 2 pm

The Triangle Tragedy by Matt Thompson * Directed by Matt Thompson






The Triangle Waistcoat Factory Fire of 1911 through the eyes of four young women.

Starring: Annie Prichard, Sunny Smith, Nicole Solas, and Michelle Willis







Superhero by Mark Levin * Directed by Scott Striegel

A 10-minute exploration into the absurdness of the human condition.

Starring Kate Hewitt and Duane Leake












The Invasion by Evan Blake * Directed by Gilbert Songalia

Two human beings. Two ideas. Two nations. Two perspectives on war in Iraq.


Starring Geo Alva and Wil Smith III








Run Jenny by Michael Thomas Tower * Directed by Michael Thomas Tower



An 1850's abolitionist wife on trial for the murder of her slave-owner husband.

Starring: Dan Feraldo, Haig Koshkarian, Leslie Gold, Nicole Bradley, James Steinberg, Michael Thomas Tower, and Paul Rossi

Program D: Performances
July 31 - August 2 at 8pm and August 3 at 2pm.

Paradise by Glyn O'Malley * Directed by Alice Cash (in collaboration with Broadway Kids of San Diego)

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict seen through the eyes of youth.

Compass Theatre

Photos by Michael McKeon - retrobang.com