I saw Kathy Griffin at The Moore Theater on Friday night.  It was a good show, but every time I go to The Moore, I wonder why the place is left in such decline inside.  I have no idea what the bar area or bathrooms look like (I always just get to my seat in time for the show to start), but the theater itself has big, thick patches of peeling paint on the walls and ceiling.  There was a large plywood patch in the floor of the balcony that we had to walk over that gave me faint concern.  The seating is tight, but that's no different than other venues, unfortunately.  
For this show, we were too late purchasing to get good seats so we were all the way in the back of the balcony (only 5 rows left behind us).  At this altitude the stage is, of course, a bit of a blur, but I also discovered that it's very hard to hear way back there!  I’m sure it would be better if seeing the type of show where the audience sits and listens as opposed to a comedy show where the audience is laughing and responding to the artist.  It may also have something to do with the low, oddly curved (and peeling!) ceiling up there, as well.
Something I always do appreciate when seeing a show at The Moore Theater is that, because it has no parking of its own, there's no traffic jam after the show.  The crowd exits the theater and disperses to various parking lots in the area, allowing the trek out of the city to be really no more difficult than it otherwise would be.  I always have the feeling of being punished after seeing a show in a big venue; stuck in horrific traffic just to get out of the massive parking area, and then the nightmare often continues all the way to the freeway entrance.  Nobody should have to be tempted to leave a show early just to be able to avoid the struggle of departure.
                        
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