What is an accessible celebrity, and when does it become a problem? I invented this term a few years ago, while thinking about the idea of how social media changes the relationship between a fan and a celebrity. I define it as a person with a level of success and popularity beyond the average human, but who is overly close and available to their fans. The kind of person who answers fan mail and Instagram comments. These types of people are specifically prevalent in the world of theater. 

The world of Broadway and the theater is relatively small. Sure, there are tourists who see a show once and never return, but there are also very devoted people. The type of person who will wait for hours in the cold to buy a cheaper ticket, who will plan for a flea market where you can buy the exciting goods of water-damaged notebooks and used casts from a show that closed years ago. Theater fans are very dedicated to the theater. 

This is where accessible celebrities come in. We can use Eva Noblezada as an example of how this develops. For almost a year, she was starring in The Great Gatsby, playing Daisy. She is well known for her performances in Hadestown and Miss Saigon. If you are not familiar with it, there is a location at every theater called a stage door, where theatergoers can stand with the chance of meeting anyone from the show they just watched and getting their Playbill signed. By no means is it guaranteed, or expected that anyone will come out and sign Playbills. Eva is known for frequently doing this, often referred to as stagedooring. 

From personal experience, I can attest that meeting someone like Eva is dazzling. You just spent two and a half hours watching her pour her heart onto the stage. Minutes later you are huddling in the cold around others who collectively experienced this with you, and suddenly she is right there in front of you making quick conversation and signing her name in silver Sharpie. It is thrilling and a special collective experience shared with the people around you. 

Another example is Emma Pittman. She is currently playing Cherry Valance in The Outsiders. She also stagedoors but goes beyond this in her own way. Emma is very well known for reading fan mail. She also vlogs her experience working in theater, living in New York, and the rest of her life. What is so fascinating about this is how real she becomes. She becomes more than a name and a picture in a Playbill. She becomes a link between fans and the show they love. This is what makes her an accessible celebrity. Sure, maybe the average person on the street has never heard her name before. But to that select group of people who watch the vlogs, write her mail, and see the show, she is just as famous as any musician or movie star. Again, I can attest that seeing your favorite Broadway performer, like Emma, wear a bracelet you made them, or respond to a letter you wrote, is exciting. It feels like the biggest thing in the world. 

This type of excitement creates a brand and a following. It also helps the show. Maybe The Outsiders would have been a hit regardless, but getting to see the backstage, seeing how it all works, and feeling like you get to know the actors, makes most people want to see it even more. It also appeals to the younger theater patrons, who are the show’s target audience. It builds a brand. For many people, just seeing one of your favorite performers in a show is enough to get a ticket. For example, I absolutely adore the performances Joy Woods and Jordan Tyson put on in The Notebook. When it closed, and they moved on to star in the latest revival of Gypsy, it automatically gained much more of my interest than it had before. If Emma were to leave The Outsiders and join another musical, an entire group of people would go see that show that they might not have otherwise.

There is another example of this with another performer Erika Henningson. She was in Mean Girls several years ago as Cady Heron and is joining the musical Just In Time later this spring. She has said on her own social media that fan interactions are very important to her, and has recently started a blog sort of page. She posts stories about her life, has an advice column, and gives acting tips.

However, while the motives of both people are very similar, the outcomes and audience are very different. While Emma’s vlog appeals to fans of The Outsiders, Erika’s blog appeals more to fans of her. Both are successful in connecting the performer and the fan but in different ways. Emma’s vlog focuses more on the show she is in and the idea of being “Cherry”. Erika’s blog is different. You might not receive behind the scenes information on how and why wigs are used in theater and anecdotes about each day’s performance, but you receive heartfelt stories and advice. 

Now, here is where it can get complicated. Accessible celebrities can lead to a false perception of who you are compared to the actor or show. People can become parasocial: thinking they know someone who they don’t. This becomes prevalent at the stage door with repeated visitors. Just because you met an actor at a stage door two months ago, does not mean you know them. Just because you watch their vlogs and Instagram lives, you still don’t know them. Also, just because you are a dedicated fan, you are not more entitled to their time or signature. This can lead to a sense of entitlement. If we go back to the Great Gatsby, there was an incident. At the stage door a few weeks ago, a “fan” became very angry that their preferred actor did not come out to sign Playbills. Again, the stage door is completely optional for the performer and is not written out in their contract. Nor is it a paid experience. It is just the door they leave their work from, and they have the option of meeting fans. This grown adult started yelling at the security guard, claiming he waited two hours and paid for a signature. He did all this while several other performers were spending their free time to sign autographs for the other people waiting. Incidents like this happen at many shows. People have gone to find alternate exits to see people who don’t normally stagedoor, leading to possibly unsafe situations.

Accessible celebrities are exciting, but you can lose yourself in that excitement. It can be dazzling to see the person whose career you have followed three feet in front of you. However, it is the people who engage in these types of interactions who are responsible for recognizing when it has gone too far and working to keep it safe. There is a curse assigned to being accessible to the point where you become expected.