I've been sitting back and thinking about the way people react to reviews - be it reviews of shows we're in or shows we've seen.

People tend to have one of a couple of reactions when it comes to reviews - we either agree vehemently with what has been said or we completely disagree. This can be whether we are a part of the cast/crew etc or just a casual attendee to the performance. I know that I am certainly guilty of it from time to time.

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As one who works front-of-house at a number of theatres in Perth (and a performer), it has always interested me what it is that makes people want and not want to attend certain types of theatre.

I'm currently working at shows for the Perth International Arts Festival at UWA and have noticed how empty our venues can be for certain shows. Take, for instance, "Aftermath" [currently on at the Octagon Theatre]. My shift on that show last night (an usher shift) was canceled due to low booking numbers. Now, the Octagon is a relatively large venue that seats between 650 and 750 people, but to cancel ushers, the bookings have to be lower than 400 people. For an international show to draw that few people is pretty astonishing.

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