Happiness is: You Are a Good Man Charlie Brown

We travelled to Stratford yesterday to see "You Are A Good Man Charlie Brown at the Avon Theatre.  The production itself was wonderful.  There were several school groups in the audience and it was great to observe kids so completely engaged in a show.  We started smiling with the opening scene and didn't stop.  Both sons were surprised as the show seemed to fly by without being aware of the passage of time.  This would definately be a great show for the whole family.

Unfortunately the behaviour of an usher left its mark on the day.  Despite the fact that my walker was tucked into the corner and in no one's way she insisted that it be removed from the theatre because it was a safety hazzard in the event of a fire.  I asked how I was supposed to get out if she took my walker away and was informed that she would try to get it back to me.  I pointed out that the Ontarians with Disabilities Act customer service policies prohibit the removal of assistive devices.  The usher told me that she would be getting the front of house manager "to speak to me."  She then walked away without giving us any programs.  Just before the show began we observed her speaking to the house manager.  No one made the effort to speak to us again but she glaered daggers at us for the rest of the afternoon.

 

Our sons were also bothered by the fact that she was very rude and abrupt with the students coming to the performance.  While I understand that it was busy I didn't observe any inappropriate behaviour from the students that warranted such treatment.  If I were a student coming to the theatre for the first time I would not want to come back after being treated like that.  Students should always be encouraged and supported to enjoy the theatre.

 

Another gentleman joined us in the accessible seating area.  The usher pulled an unused chair around for him to prop his  feet on for the duration of the show.  While I don't begrudge anyone accomodations that are needed I do not believe that it was appropriate to have see and smell bare feet on the chair inches away from me for the duration of the show.

 

We have attended performances at Stratford many times over the last 8 years and greatly enjoyed the shows.  When the issue of an usher removing my son's walker came up last year at the Festival Theatre is was handled without a problem.  I had hoped that by this year all ushers would be trained on the customer service segment of the Ontarian with Disabilities Act as required.  I hope that this problem will be addressed before we return again.