NYCB Usher here...hopefully I can answer some of the questions about late seating satisfactorily for those concerned. The late seating policy as it reads on all the signs posted by the doors of the theater is that it is "at the discretion of management," which means it is actually different every program. The late seating policy of each day is decided on between the stage managers, the artistic staff (including the choreographer, if present), and the house managers. In general, the seating at the top of the performance continues as long as the curtain is down which means we continue through the overtures always. Once the curtain is raised, late seating stops. As some of your have noticed, yes, sometimes an usher brings a party in while the curtain is still down, and while the patrons slowly make their way to their seat, the curtain comes up. We don't do that on purpose, we wish everyone walked as fast as we do. It is an imperfect system.
In certain longer ballets (i.e. Nutcracker, Midsummer, Copland Dance Episodes) a second late seating period is agreed on by backstage, artistic, and house managers. This is the case for ballets or acts that are longer than 30 minutes. The late seating cue always comes during a black out or a change of scenery to minimize disruption. Often the black out is short, and once again, people walk slow and don't make it to their seats before the lights come up.
Regarding the Viewing Room--the VR is not available for late seating everyday. Sometimes the box office sells those seats, meaning we are no place to put late comers. On other days, the VR is not sold and we have it as an option for late comers. This changes on a daily basis.
A fourth issue exists which is this: There are a lot of belligerent patrons who will push past us and barge their way in to the theater at an unacceptable time despite our protestations. Just because a person is coming in, doesn't mean the ushers "allowed" it. When people have made up their minds to ignore the rules, there is ultimately nothing we can do to stop them. And it happens almost daily. Trust me, we are tired of it.
All that to say, everything at the ballet is coordinated and deliberate to make the ballet-going experience as enjoyable as possible for all involved. However, human error, slow walkers, and rude people sometimes trump our best efforts. Please know the staff at the ballet is aware of these short comings in the system and are always working to improve the experience.
