"At Arby's we pledge that every person who walks in our door walks out feeling better."  -- Sign inside the door of a local Arby's restaurant

I began paying attention to what that restaurant did that made people feel good.  I was greeted when I came in.  Everyone smiled.  There was no pressure.  The person at the counter said, "I'll be glad to assist you when you are ready."  An employee was assigned to the seating area to keep things clean, to check with customers that everything was alright, and to bring them anything they needed.

A new independent restaurant opened nearby.  I noticed that they had a menu posted outside the door so I stopped to see what kind of food they offered.  When I started to read the menu, the door popped open.  A women beckoned me inside and said, "Please, come in we have pictures."  While I was looking at the pictures of entrée items over the counter in the empty restaurant, the woman walked over to a table, picked up a menu, and said, "Here sit down.  You can read the menu here."  I knew she was desperate for a customer, but her pressure made me feel trapped.  All I wanted to do was flee. 

I thought the two restaurants were good metaphors for entertainers.  I have seen strolling entertainers invade the personal space of others clearly making them uncomfortable.  I have seen theatrical entertainers drag audience members on stage who obviously did not want to be there.  I could tell that their volunteer just wanted to escape as soon as possible.  For example, I saw a magician tie two scarves together and ask a male volunteer to tuck the knotted ends into the front of his waist band.  The magician said something to him, and the man started to edge away.  The magician turned to the audience and said, "He's going to hate me in a moment."  The magician continued to perform an effect called Twentieth Century Shorts.  I wondered why he performed the effect if he knew the volunteer wasn't going to like it.

For a period of about ten years I worked as a street performer whenever I did not have a paid booking.  I found that the hardest part was getting the first person to stop, and the best way to do that was to do something that made people feel good.  If I saw a child in a stroller, I might wave to them and use my hat to play peek-a-boo with them.  Depending upon how they responded, I would begin an improvised interaction with them.  If I saw a family with a little older child approaching I might start juggling, and then drop a prop when they were near me.  Often the child would pick it up and hand it to me.  That gave me a chance to perform a comedy handshake with them.  If that went well, I would do a close up magic effect just for the child.  I didn't care if other people could see the effect.  I wanted the parents to see their child's enjoyment.  Knowing that their child was having a good time made them feel good and they would smile.  Then people would stop to see what they were smiling at.  My next effect would still be an interaction with the child, but I would turn so everyone could see the props.  By the end of that routine enough people had stopped to see what was making everyone feel good that I could begin a show.

Now I often make a napkin rose to give to a mother or grandmother to break the ice while strolling.  They stop to accept it which makes the rest of the family stop as well.  The rose makes them feel good so they are interested in seeing what else I will do.  Because I make roses out of regular napkins instead of the specially printed ones, I can use them in other ways.  If I notice somebody with an ice cream cone starting to run, I hand them a napkin.  They almost always thank me, and then watch me do some routines while finishing their treat.  Other people then gather around to watch as well.

Napkin Rose Directions

What would happen if you adopted Arby's pledge to your performances?  It doesn't matter what venue you perform in, your performance space is your theater.  If you perform on a stage in a physical building people open an actual door to enter your theater.  If you do atmosphere or street performing, people open the door to your theater when they stop to observe you.  If you do strolling entertainment or caring clowning you have a portable theater.  People open the door by giving you permission to enter their personal space to set up your theater.  In each case, are they glad that they opened the door?  Do you respect their right not to open the door?  How can you make sure that everyone who enters your theater leaves feeling better?  If you ask somebody to be a volunteer you are opening the door to your stage?  Do you let them decide whether or not they want to go through that door?    What can you do to make sure they feel better when they exit your stage?  In each interaction with an audience member, how can you make them feel better?