Yet another horrible experience at Gammage. It's a shame it's the only venue for a major broadway production in town as it really diminishes some wonderful performances (this review is for the the facility only). Yes, it's a historic structure...but good architecture doesn't equal good acoustics. The acoustics are often so garbled that it's impossible to understand the actors. (I feel like I'm listening to the Charlie Brown teacher perform.) The only redeeming factor on this front is they offer listening devices that use microphones from the stage. These are free and make the voices crystal clear. I started going back once I learned of this option.
The venue itself is horribly run. Parking is a nightmare as they have little to no staff directing traffic. Once you arrive, parking often takes 30 minutes or more. And this isn't in any way due to lack of parking, but rather the lack of the appropriate support staff for the venue. To make matters worse, the venue doesn't take this into consideration and won't delay a show for 5-10 minutes. This often leaves hundreds of people (15-25 people per entry) missing the first 10-15 minutes as they won't let you enter once the show starts.
Then there's the bathroom issue. There simply aren't enough to support the audience. Granted, I'm a guy and I can usually get to the bathroom during an intermission...barely. But if you're a woman, forget it, you're going to miss the beginning of the second act if you don't run from your seat as soon as you see curtain movement.
All in all, a horrible facility...literally, the worst once that I've ever patronized in the U.S. or overseas. But will I keep going back? Unfortunately, the answer is yes as it's what an Arizonian is forced to deal with should he or she want to enjoy theater.