Why can't people make it to a show at appointed time? Rant!

I'm with you. So annoying. We went to a musical where a large group of people came swanning in to sit in the third row during the big show-stopper number so we missed the whole thing. They should have had to wait to be seated like Phantom of the Opera did when it opened. If you missed the curtain, you missed the chandelier.

Why should their selfishness translate into a reduction of the value of what you paid for? That kind of rudeness is piggish.

This. Sounds like an opportunity for you to give some feedback to the theater about your experience. We attend a performance in Charlotte once or twice a year and they are very forthcoming about the policy. If you are late, you have to wait until intermission. I don't think I've ever seen them seat anyone after it starts. They start a little late sometimes. This last time it was sold out and everyone, us included, were rushing to get parked and into the theater on time. I didn't mind a 10 minute late start so everyone had an equal chance. In our case, it was the chance to go to the bathroom after our 90 minute drive. But once the performance starts, no one should come in late.

I am always early. So is my dad. His girlfriend is as well.

My sister is ADHD and has time blindness. That can be managed with lots of schedules and alarms and such, but she doesn't do enough to fix it.

She was late to my mom's funeral. Seriously. I don't hate her for it- when she got there she really helped me with some last minute changes in the program. I haven't forgotten it, though.

Being late for shows is aggravating. I hate having to stand up and let someone squeeze by. It is really rude.

Yes, for comedians, there should be a short intermission for latecomers. It makes sense for that type of performance.

We are a get there early kind of family. We raised get there early kids. They married women who were more lax and I think the get there early personalities are winning out. At least when we all have plans.

Stop being so passive.  *People* don't read websites and probably feel that what they are doing isn't *too bad*, but it IS.

LOCK the doors with the hours of class posted clearly.  Lather Rinse Repeat. Use an ACTION that can be felt by these ignorant people.

It takes approx 21 days to make or break a new habit.

I’m such an on time person that this is one thing that really annoys me. My friend and I have season tickets to our local Broadway productions. Every single show there are a slew of late comers interrupting. Usually the staff shut the doors and make late comers wait until after the opening number, but it’s still disruptive.

About a year ago we went to see Rent on a Saturday. Our normal show day is Wednesday, so I thought there wouldn’t be as many late comers because no one would be rushing from work and the traffic is much better on a Saturday. Boy was I wrong! The theater actually didn’t even lower the house lights during the opening song and just let late comers come in throughout the whole first song. It was insane.

They literally send an email before each show urging people to plan for traffic and construction and telling them to arrive 90 minutes early.

For the "never been before" folks, I wonder if they're not taking it seriously because they perceive it as "just for fun," since nobody there is going to become a professional ballerina. I say they're still interrupting something that people are paying for, so it's STILL serious.
For the women 60+, I agree with the lock-the-door approach. I know (being over 60) that it takes me longer to get it together and out the door than it used to...so I plan for that in order not to inconvenience others.
I just can't understand the sense of entitlement these days.

I disagree with you 100%.  NEVER - Ha! - I highly doubt that it is NEVER Gen X or millennials. My experience is completely different in that it usually is GenX and Millennials and NOT Boomers.  I won't say it's never a boomer, however it certainly isn't always. Not to mention the Millennials and Gen X who check their phones multiple times during a performance, it's so annoying.  

Signed,
An on time Boomer who can go 3 hours without checking her phone! 

They can!

I know sometimes, unexpected things happen, but that should just be a couple of people, maybe! Someone could leave in plenty of time and have a flat tire along the way, or perhaps a major accident ties them up or the subway breaks down...but that is rare.

So I stuck a nerve with people.

What I stated in my post was my experience. Disagree with me if you will, that’s fine, but I’m not wrong. I’m also not generalizing, I’m giving my experiences.

The man across the aisle from me when I saw A Christmas Carol who left his sound turned on on his phone, received SEVERAL audible alerts, and laid his phone face up still lit up on the railing was every bit of 80s.

The woman at the venue that held about thirty people who answered THREE phone calls in the middle of the performance, went outside to talk (she did not wait until going outside before answering the calls, she answered from her seat) leaving the door propped open so she could get back in also allowing light to pour in, was probably five years older than me, so Gen X. It was a one man show and after the third time it happened the performer made a comment about it.

The people in the theater where I saw The Fall Guy a few weeks ago who kept lifting their phones up in front of their faces to check something were mid to late 40s, so Gen X. The gentleman to my right who checked his phone midway through that movie, 80s. The people in the third row who turned their phone flashlight on, mid 40s.

These are just my quick recollections of a few times I experienced. About three years ago I started really paying attention to who couldn’t stay off their phones during performances. My personal experiences are the vast majority have been Boomers or older Gen X. My apologies for hyperbole by saying it was never younger generations. It’s the vast majority, which I also said in my post.

So apologies to those that I offended. My experiences have been different than yours, which is okay.

I never said ALL Boomers or ALL older Gen X. I said that the people I encounter that have been rude in the theater have been, with few exception, Boomers and older Gen X. I never said I expect all of those generations to act that way. And yes, I said never but in my very next sentence I said vast majority. Again, I was being hyperbolic.

I also never said or implied that other people will experience the same thing. I was speaking on my personal experience, just like the OP was.