Joan Baez at Bijou Monday night
I hope you like this picture of Joan Baez performing at the Bijou Theatre Monday night because it is the only one I was allowed to take.
I had the flash turned off and was shooting from my seat when a guy wearing a blue Bijou Theatre shirt tapped me on the shoulder and told me I wasn’t allowed to take pictures. Of course I complied and put away my camera.
But I was curious as to why the ticket didn’t say anything about no photos, there were no signs to that effect and there had been no announcement from the stage – at least not in the 15 minutes before the show started.
But what really got me steamed was when, near the end of the show, folks started standing in the aisles shooting flash pictures with no interference by the security guy!
After the show, I approached said security guy and asked him why he made me stop taking photos but allowed others – even those using flash – to do it. “You’re the only one I could reach,” he said. Well, no wonder! I was sitting calmly in my seat while the others were rushing the stage! Which is the bigger security risk, I ask you?
What’s the deal, I wondered.
Fiona McAnally, senior director of operations at AC Entertainment, which manages the Bijou, said the photo policy for each show is determined by the contract of each artist who performs. Some allow photos, some don’t allow any, and some allow them only during the first three songs. The Theatre simply enforces the contract, she said. (I’m still unclear on what Baez’ policy was. Someone visiting with her backstage after the show said she mentioned that she wished a security guard had not stopped folks from taking pictures, although I never saw him do that with anyone but me. And a professional photographer was seated on the front row for part of the show, although I never saw him shooting.)
I think you can tell by skimming through my past blog posts how much I love and support the downtown music venues, including the Bijou Theatre. But I don’t think it is too much to ask for them to have a clear photo policy for each show, make it obvious to Theatre patrons, and enforce it uniformly.
Your thoughts?
P.S. Other than the photo unpleasantness, we loved the Baez show. She is 68 and seemed to be having throat problems, judging from the flask from which she was sipping and the lozenges she occasionally popped in her mouth. But I had said in advance that if she sang, “Diamonds and Rust,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” and some Bob Dylan songs, I’d be happy. She did all that and more and seemed to be in a great mood, bantering with the audience and making self-deprecating jokes about her 50-year career.
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Since A.C. Entertainment manages the theatre, you did the correct thing by contacting Fiona McAnally at their offices. My suggestion would be to put something in writing to the Board of Directors of the Bijou indicating that management should be a little more careful about making these announcements before the show. Larsen Jay is President of the Bijou Board and he would be very helpful in coming up with a solution for this problem in the future.
Couldn’t agree with you more, Cynthia! And, having also been in attendance, from where we were sitting there were lots of aging lefties taking pictures throughout the concert — most with cell phones, so annoying! — so an announced policy would be helpful. A little consistency goes a long way. Back to the music — Joan Baez and her band were terrific! Loved it when she sang “Joe Hill” and that wonderful ballad about Woody Guthrie. Every song performed from her early days still has great relevance today and, unfortunately, that’s not necessarily a good thing. Sigh.
From my seat on the stage I can understand why some performers don’t want pics while they’re working. If it’s important enough to be in their contract, I don’t understand why things wouldn’t be spelled out to the audience, though. KSO puts it in print and makes an announcement. I also don’t understand the “only pics during the first three songs” bit. What is so different about the 4th, 5th, or 17th song?
I would be very irritated by the security guard, too.
While I have been annoyed by a device held directly in my line of sight at a concert (he must have been taking video), I, too, have snapped a cell phone pic to share with others. I agree, Cynthia, that the rules should be clear. I’m happy to follow the rules when I understand them. However, in this day in age when nearly everyone has a cell phone and nearly every cell phone has a camera, I think it’s pretty safe to bet that some concert-goers are going to want to sneak a shot from their phone. And, isn’t that good for the artist and the venue if people want to send a mass picture message to their phone contacts saying, “Having a terrific time at the Joan Baez show at the Bijou – you should have come!” Maybe those people will catch the next show. After all, it’s good exposure for a pleased audience member to share a picture message or post a photo online, perhaps on her blog (:
Announcing each show’s policy regarding photos (and anything else) ought to be simple to do. Perhaps calling attention to the confusion will do the trick?
You are very correct that things should be upfront and detailed for each venue. The guard was really in the wrong on this one. Don’t understand the start up approval though. Breaking concentration at the first songs I would assume would challenge a concert on its way. Either way, performers pretty much know their public will try to photograph them. It is not a play for pete’s sake. Staff all should be on “the same page.”
For the record, you snapped a pretty OK shot for a quickie. And now with digital, it isn’t nearly as bad as the dude at the Tonight Show who threatened to expose my film. The stored my camera, and I sat blushing for quite some time. My connections were never informed of my naughty “enthusiasm” and I did develop my Doc Sev pic. Though, never got a chance to be a fool in front of the man.
Joan Baez T-shirt anyone? I think it would look great. Your photo on one.
Not that it matters, but Joan seems to have cut her hair. When I saw her at FIT graduation two years ago, her hair was white and below her waist. She stole the room and didn’t sing a note.
A little background on the 3-song policy from a former theater manager:
Usually if photos are permitted during the first three songs only, this refers to photos/video to be used for press/publication, and only approved photographers/media have the right to shoot during that time. Obviously the artist doesn’t want to turn down the publicity opp, but also doesn’t want cameras clicking/flashing during the entire show. So, they get it over with in the beginning.
The “3-song” policy is not something generally shared with the audience, since they’re not part of the approved list. So, to Joe Ticketholder, the policy most likely was communicated as “no photos” at those shows.
I’ve seen policies range from allowing still photos, video, and even audio recording, to immediate confiscation of film/memory cards and ejection. If there’s doubt on the policy, it’s best to ask first!
Wow, thanks for all the great comments, everybody. Becky, don’t you think the burden should be on theater management to let the audience know what the policy is rather than on each audience member to have to ask?
Yes, that would make the best sense. Posted on the front doors is a good place, and if the artist is particularly strict/sensitive about it, announced from the stage before the show.
Many might assume if no policy is posted/announced, then there must be no restrictions. But in my personal concert-going life, if I am not told, I’ll ask before taking a photo.
I’ll weigh in here.
Joan Baez’ contract did explicitly state that there should be no photos allowed at the show…although, when it came down to it, they didn’t really seem to care.
I agree that there should be signage that clearly states a “No Photo” policy in those instances. Usually, there is a sign. I’ll have to discuss with our management team and see why this fell through the cracks.
Since the policy varys from show to show and things can change from one moment to the next with some artists, it is impractical to include a photo policy on the ticket.
A couple of side notes, however:
The advent of cell phone cameras and other mini-cameras have made photo policies extremely difficult to enforce, signage or not.
Sometimes a security guard has to made a value judgment: is it more important to enforce the stated policy or does one cause a major disruption in trying to enforce the policy. It can be a hard call.
Personally, I find all of the clicking of cameras during a show to be very rude, distracting and annoying. But that’s just me.
Thanks for the heads up though. I do want to make sure that we are being as clear as possible about these policies.
Thanks for the comments, Ashley. And thanks for bringing Joan Baez.
We appreciate the feedback as well. It helps us to do a better job. Creating a great experience for both the artists and the fans at the Bijou, the Tennessee, and elsewhere is our mission. It always bothers me when I hear that things have fallen short of that goal for someone.
We will certainly give this matter our attention and take the steps to insure that necessary signage and announcements are not overlooked at any of our events.
We always welcome comments, ,suggestions, ideas, criticisms, and general advice on how we can improve things. The best way is directly to me ([email protected]) or to Tom Bugg, who is the general manager of both the Bijou and the Tennessee. If desired, I know that our Board chairman at the Bijou, Larsen Jay at Double Jay Creative, is also happy to hear from lovers of the Bijou.
Thanks again, and have a great weekend!
On behalf of the Bijou Theatre Board of Directors…
Thank you for all your comments and discussion. I have reviewed the online / emailed information in relation to the original post. I have also spoken with our management company AC Entertainment.
The Bijou Theatre works very hard to honor contractual requests set forth by the artist and their management, whether it be for no photos, meet-n-greets with audience members, or green M & Ms.
Before each show, the manager on duty (in this case Jeanine Brown) holds a security meeting and instructs the security team of any items such as these. This did occur before the Baez concert and patrons were informed in the lobby via security on the way into the theatre.
Security did perform this “informational task” numerous times that night, but as one would expect with a large crowd, it’s possible it wasn’t heard by everyone, or not told to every single patron.
Past that, certainly there should have also been a sign at the top of the stairs outlining the artist’s requests. In the future, this will happen in addition to security announcements at the time of a ticketed entry.
I will extend the same offer to everyone that I sent directly to Cynthia in a separate email. In the future, if there is anything that happens related to the Bijou that concerns you, we would appreciate it if we could be contacted first to see if the issue can be resolved. I would guess that most items could be resolved in a very short amount of time with little fanfare or unnecessary drama. I know the norm of today is to vet things out on the web, but as you well know, a simple issue has the possibility of spiraling out of control — and once it hits the web, it’s permanent. The Bijou is making great strides right now and needs all the good publicity it can get. I would hate for this online conversation to dissuade any future patrons to think twice before coming to the Bijou.
We are available and willing at any time to discuss any issue.
Larsen Jay
(Bijou Board of Directors)
865-246-1334 office
865-384-2656 cell
[email protected]
Ashley Capps
(Bijou Management)
865-523-2665 office
865-607-9405 cell
[email protected]
Thank you all for remaining supportive patrons of the fabulous Bijou Theatre. I hope your future experiences in are enjoyable and you continue to celebrate the history of the Bijou — while helping focus on progressing it’s place amongst the finest venues to experience the performing arts.
Larsen Jay
President, Bijou Board of Directors
That sounds good, Larsen. Thanks for info.
I think the board does a great job of getting good entertainment, and they are a HUGE plus for the community. In that context this is a relatively minor omission. But why is it so difficult for them to just say, “Sorry, we screwed up!” and apologize??
Basically they accuse you of not being in the right place at the right moment to be informed verbally, so tough, no apology, just a grudging, Hillary Clintonesque concession that maybe some “mistakes were made,” but then maybe not. Blaming use of cellphone cameras is a lousy excuse that avoids the issue – it doesn’t absolve them of the need to state the policy where everyone can see and hear it. The suggestion to TRY and contact the managers (during the show, of all the screwball ideas!!) to TRY and see if their omissions can be resolved strikes me as particularly unhelpful.
I’m sorry. I really thought that I had done that, Robert, but I’ll be more explicit.
I’m sorry. We screwed up. There should definitely be (and usually is) a sign and/or an announcement prior to the show stating NO PHOTOS and other policies.
We strive to create the best possible experience whenever anyone attends an event at the Bijou Theatre and sincerely appreciate any feedback that will help us in working to achieve that goal.
Thanks.
Anarchy rocks a Baez concert!
What happened to the good ol’ days of free love and free music… back when musicians were just happy to share the gift they have been given… a time before self importance became a contractual agreement… before lawyers and branded bottled water…
Peace on Earth will never be attained or defined by a team of lawyers, egotistical artist or green M&M’s.
Photos are really not for us, the living… The only people they matter to are not even born yet… snap away.
No photo policies are the bane of the concert security guard. Sometimes we have to enforce house rules; sometimes the tour’s policy. So many camera phones, so many small digital cameras and so many annoying flashes in a darkened theater. It’s been my experience that whenever a No Photo Policy was in place it was clearly stated with signage on the doors and my staff telling to guests upon entrance and announced before the show. Then once in my staff consistently enforces the policy. Do some people seemingly get away with taking pictures? Undoubtedly. Speaking for concert security guards everywhere put your cell phones away and stop annoying people with your flashes and enjoy the show! OMG you pay an arm and a leg and you have your cell phone out and your texting and taking pictures and receiving phone calls. You are rude and annoying. It not only bothers us but it bothers the performers, too. How would you like someone to come to where you work and take flash photos of you.
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