Theatre Etiquette and Reservation Process For Productions at FMU

We want everyone who attends a live theatre performance to thoroughly enjoy that performance.  Below are a few items that if followed, will greatly enhance the experience for all concerned.

Please remember that this is not a movie or a sporting event.  The people on the stage can hear and see you.  Your reactions fuel them.  Your negative actions can also affect them.  Although you may never see this reaction, because being performers, they are skilled at hiding them, you are affecting them.  The performers and all those people behind the scenes have worked very hard to create an evening of entertainment for you.  Please show them the respect they deserve.

Also remember that the people sitting near you did not come to hear your conversation with your buddy, either in the theatre or on the phone.  They did not come to hear you rattle paper or your kid fuss.  They came to enjoy the performance. 

No cell phones: Francis Marion University Theatre Cell Phone policy: Anyone using a cell phone for any reason, either to participate in a call or to text a message, after entering the theatre will be removed and not allowed to return for that evening’s performance; including prior to the beginning of the performance and during intermission.

Turn cell phones off. Don't let them ring or buzz during a performance.  If you must take an emergency call, leave the auditorium and only begin using your phone once you are in the lobby.

Even a watch that chimes or beeps the hour is a distraction.

Coming and Going:  Please do not enter or leave the auditorium during a performance unless it is an emergency.  Arrive before the performance begins. The time posted is the time the show actually starts... there are no commercials or previews!  Anyone arriving once the show has begun will not be allowed to enter until intermission.

Noises:  You may not notice it, but candy or cough drop wrappers, whether unwrapped quickly or slowly, make a lot of noise!  Please don't unwrap them during the performance.  If you suspect you will need one, have a supply on hand already unwrapped.

Noises, part two:  Everyone loves babies and small children, but if they fuss or fidget or cry, we want them to be somewhere else.

Fidgeting:  Please sit still.  Ramming elbows into your neighbor or kicking the seat in front of you is highly annoying.

Sight Lines:  Be aware that hats and large hairdos impede sightlines.

Pictures/Videos: the use of cameras (video or photo) is strictly forbidden and is in violation of copyright laws.

Food and Drink: Food and drink are strictly prohibited in the theatre. Anyone eating or drinking will be removed and not allowed to return for that evening’s performance.

Children: Unless an event is designated for younger audiences, children under the age of 5 years will not be admitted to events at FMU.  As a courtesy to other patrons and the performers, children talking or moving around in a manner that is distracting may be asked to move or leave the theatre.   An adult must accompany children under the age of 12.  All bodies in the theatre must have a ticket.

Reservations

Making a reservation at the FMU Performing Arts Center Black Box Theatre:

There are 100 free tickets for students for each Black Box production. Students must get free tickets directly from the Box Office – no tickets will be reserved over the phone. The FMU Performing Arts Center Box Office is open Monday through Friday from 12-5pm. The Box Office is also open 90 minutes before any Presenting Series event, Florence Symphony Orchestra concert, or Department of Fine Arts performance.

Tickets are General Admission – you and your friend can get tickets at different times and still sit together as long as you choose the same performance date.

After the first 100 free student tickets are gone, tickets will be $5 each. These tickets can be purchased over the phone with a credit card (by calling 661-4444 during Box Office hours) or purchased at the Box Office during Box Office hours – no tickets will be reserved over the phone (we won’t hold them for you until you come to pay)

No tickets will be available for purchase online

MAKING A RESERVATION at the FMU University Theatre:

To make a reservation to attend a performance you need to call the University Theatre Box office between 1 and 5 p.m. beginning on the Monday of the week BEFORE the show opens. The Box office phone number is 661-1365. Prior to calling, decide which night you wish to attend and how many tickets you would like to reserve. Reserved tickets can be picked up in the lobby of the theatre (which is also the art gallery), between 1 and 5 p.m. beginning on the Monday that the show opens. During the week of the show, if you make your reservation on one of those days, your tickets will not be available until the next afternoon.

All students must pick their tickets up by 5 p.m. on the date of the performance they are attending. Any FMU student reserved tickets not picked up by 5 p.m. on the date of the performance they are attending will be canceled and those seats will then be available to anyone wishing a seat on that evening. The box office opens each evening at 6:30 p.m. and the performance begins at 7:30 p.m.