First Timers Guide
You have come to be entertained, moved, transported, or perhaps, to satisfy a loved one’s plea. Anyway, you’re there, so you might as well enjoy it. Some do this by watching the orchestra or the conductor. Some do this with their eyes shut. Experiment. Enjoy.
We love to hear the lobby “buzz” before and after the concert. So, please limit your conversations to before or after the music. Oh, and anything that makes unwanted noise should be left at home or turned off. This includes: cell phones, pagers, wrist watches, crinkly candy wrappers, baby monitors, children under the age of six, most pets, and some distant relatives. Speaking of children…Please consider leaving young children in the care of a competent relative or babysitter for our subscription concerts. Our concerts are generally two hours long, with a 15 minute intermission. Children age six and older are welcome at our regular subscription programming.
Most people applaud a performer to express their awe and their appreciation for the performance. So, whenever so moved, please applaud. However, it may benefit your relationship to the loved one next to you to know that most symphony-goers feel bound to an unwritten contract to applaud only at the end of the entire musical work. For example, in a four movement work, people actually wait until the end of the fourth movement to applaud. But, they generally make up for lost applause by applauding a really long time. How long? Long enough for the conductor to bow, shake hands with some musicians, walk off the stage, pause, come back on the stage, invite the orchestra to stand, bow, shake hands with some musicians, and walk off again. So, when not wanting to totally embarrass your evening’s companion, wait until others applaud, then follow their lead.
The Irving Arts Center has seats in a variety of places, and all of them are very comfortable. However, if you want to be among the leaders of the audience and sit in Carpenter Hall, you will need to arrive before the music begins. Once the music starts, the ushers will not allow you to enter until an appropriate break in the music, which in some cases may not be until intermission. Orchestras all over the world do things like this to ensure the enjoyment of the vast, vast, VAST majority of concert-goers who arrive and take their seat on time. I know you’ll understand.
Please call our office 972.252.4800 to ask your concert etiquette questions. Our voicemail works 24/7, so you may call anytime! However, if you want to speak to a person rather than a machine, call during regular business hours: Monday – Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM.
Invite a friend or another couple to go with you to the next concert; You’ll enjoy it all the better.
TOP 10 CONCERT MYTHS DEBUNKED
You can attend an LCSO concert for about the same amount of money as it takes to grab a burger and see a movie. Subscribe today! And single tickets start at just $16.50.
Subscribers have priority seating at the Irving Arts Center. Your seats will be assigned ahead of any single ticket buyers, and you’ll have the opportunity to keep those seats or request priority reseating next season. Subscribers can also order advance tickets to special events ensuring the best available seats at those performances.
An LCSO subscription offers you 100% flexibility. Can’t make a concert? Enjoy no-hassle, unlimited ticket exchange, or donate your tickets back to the LCSO for tax credit. Exchanges and donations can be made up to 24 hours prior to the performance. Subscribers also get free replacements for lost tickets. Still can’t commit? Try Flex-Tickets.
Clap whenever you feel moved. There are 93 superb musicians playing their hearts out for you, and your applause means everything to them. When in doubt, wait for others around you to clap and chime in!
It’s true you may see some people in their finery occasionally. But you’ll also see blue jeans and suits and everything in between. As a general rule, “business casual” is always a safe bet. We invite you to dress comfortably, because, after all, we’re all here for the music.
Do you have to be a gourmet chef to enjoy a fine meal? You don’t need to know the music on the program to have a meaningful experience. Our Maestro Robert C. Austin will provide you with all of the need to know facts and interesting trivia about the music, composers and guest artist before each piece.
The Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra is a nonprofit organization that targets all segments of the population, including children through our youth concerts, education programs, and the Lone Star Youth Orchestra. All of our concerts appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds, from lifelong fans to young music students to casual listeners.
Yes, but not always. LCSO concerts sometimes sell out, with a portion of all seats going to subscribers. The vast majority of these happy season ticket holders renew their seats year after year, making it difficult to get good seats at the last minute. When you become an LCSO subscriber, you’ll walk past the sold-out signs to your “own” seats. And best of all, you have something to look forward to! Subscribing is definitely the way to go.
The 93+ contracted musicians of the Las Colinas Symphony Orchestra are all accomplished professionals. Most live and work in our community, teaching music and playing with other ensembles. Many of our musicians also play with the Dallas Opera, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra and the Dallas Wind Symphony.
Come early or stay late and make an evening of it and have dinner with friends. The LCSO is a great excuse to have an uplifting experience with a friend or a romantic evening with that special someone.
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