New concert experience
Backstage Pass at Harbourfront Theatre invites audience into the world of theatre
On the night of ‘The Small Glories’ concert, audience members in Row B, Row E, the north section and the south section of the auditorium were not directed to their usual seats. Instead, they were taken around the lobby, in the back hallway and through the stage door. Unfamiliar as it may sound, it was a Backstage Pass, and the seats were on the stage.
“Backstage Pass is a special event format we do here at the theatre,” said Kieran Keller, Harbourfront Theatres executive director.
“It’s when the entire event happens backstage and onstage; in essence, it’s when the whole audience sits cabaretstyle on the stage mere feet from the performers. It’s upclose. It’s intimate. It’s letting the audience see a different side of theatre.”
Many people didn’t know what a ‘Backstage Pass’ show looked like before they came Saturday, said Keller.
“It was really cool to see them blown away by the night. People had a blast playing dress-up in our dressing room that was full of wigs, costumes and props. They loved looking at our past artists’ wall, and they had a lot of fun with the actual performance.”
Attendee Julie Smith described the evening as “a unique opportunity not only to see what the ‘backstage’ looks like but to have an intimate setting with the artists that was unlike anything I’ve been to before.”
The purpose of the initiative is to let people gain a news perspective of theatre and also to let them experience an artist they may not have known otherwise.