Invited Dress

[Lifesmellsweird]

Posted: 7/8/19 at 2:41pm

For those who have attended an invited dress rehearsal, are they usually performed to a packed house, or somewhat empty? Who is invited to them? Ive never been to one, but was given the opportunity to attend one in the future so Im curious about what to expect. Thanks!

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 7/8/19 at 2:44pm

The answer is that it all depends. Sometimes it's just a small handful of friends and production staff, sometimes it's a theatre full of those people along with a number of other industry professionals. If there's a paragraph long list of producers associated with the show then you can count on it being a much bigger crowd.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 7/8/19 at 3:35pm

The seats are usually general-admission in the mezz/balcony for anyone but the production team & investors. The first ~10 rows of orch seats will probably be blocked off for the production photographer and Sara Krulwich from the NYT to shoot the show. The number of attendees is totally case-by-case, depending on the director/producer's wishes.

It's also an opportunity for the ad agency, street team, potential marketing partners, group sales agents, personnel, and others to attend the show –– especially if previews are likely to sell out. There may also be friends of people involved, comped groups of civilians, other actors, etc.

The director will usually do a quick curtain-speech reminding everyone it's a dress rehearsal, and there might even be stops. The run can tend to be a little messy, with actors having jitters with an audience in for the first time (and usually some friends/fam in the house).