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Daily Operations

Role: House Managers, Box Office Staff

This page provides a day-of-show checklist for house management operations. Follow these steps to ensure a smooth performance from doors open through curtain.

Navigation: Admin > House Management

Day-of-Show Checklist

Use this checklist as a guide for each performance day. The timing of each task may vary depending on your venue's specific procedures.

Morning / Early Afternoon

  • [ ] Review house counts for today's performances. Navigate to the House Management dashboard to see current inventory levels. See House Counts for details.
  • [ ] Check for special seating requests. Run the House Management Report for today's performance date to identify accessibility needs, VIP guests, and donor indicators. See House Management Report.
  • [ ] Print tickets for will-call and pre-sold orders. Use the batch printing system to queue print jobs for all unfulfilled orders through today's date. See Printing Tickets.
  • [ ] Review held orders. Check for orders in Hold status that may need follow-up or cancellation before the performance.

Pre-Show (1-2 Hours Before Curtain)

  • [ ] Fulfill orders. Transition processed orders to Fulfilled status as patrons arrive and pick up tickets. Use batch fulfillment for efficiency. See Fulfilling Orders.
  • [ ] Prepare will-call list. Ensure all will-call orders are printed and organized alphabetically.
  • [ ] Brief front-of-house staff. Share information from the House Management Report about special guests, accessibility accommodations, and expected attendance.
  • [ ] Verify house count. Confirm the final house count matches expectations and prepare for any last-minute ticket sales.

Doors Open Through Curtain

  • [ ] Process walk-up sales. Handle any last-minute ticket purchases at the box office.
  • [ ] Manage will-call arrivals. Fulfill individual orders as patrons arrive and collect their tickets.
  • [ ] Handle late arrivals. Follow your venue's late seating policy and update order statuses as needed.
  • [ ] Monitor house count. Keep track of remaining seats for any at-the-door sales.

Post-Show

  • [ ] Unclaim if necessary. If any fulfilled orders need to be reverted (e.g., no-shows that need to be tracked), use the unclaim function. See Fulfilling Orders.
  • [ ] Review final house count. Check the final numbers for the performance for records and reporting.

Key Dashboard Views

The House Management dashboard provides an at-a-glance view of upcoming performances:

Dashboard Element What It Shows
Upcoming performances List of performances in the near future with house count summaries
Sold count Number of tickets on paid orders
Held count Number of tickets on hold (reserved but unpaid)
Remaining seats Available inventory for each performance
Percentage booked How full each performance is as a percentage of capacity

Tip

Bookmark the House Management dashboard for quick access during busy show days. The dashboard updates in near real-time as orders are placed and fulfilled.

Communicating with Attendees

If you need to send a last-minute message to all ticket holders for a performance (venue change, weather advisory, parking update), use the Email Attendees feature. See Email Attendees.

Warning

Broadcast emails are sent immediately and cannot be recalled. Double-check your message content and recipient count before sending.

Handling Common Day-of-Show Situations

Situation Recommended Action
Patron says they bought tickets but no record found Search by email, phone, and name variations; check for placeholder records
Patron wants to exchange tickets at the door Process exchange through the order system if time allows; otherwise note for post-show follow-up
Performance approaching sold-out status Monitor remaining seats on dashboard; coordinate with box office on walk-up policy
Large group arriving without advance notice Check house count for available capacity before seating
Accessibility accommodation needed Review House Management Report for pre-noted requests; coordinate with front-of-house staff
Weather or emergency requiring communication Use Email Attendees to notify all ticket holders for the affected performance