There is mounting interest in the attitude of producers when a star fails to perform. With West End tickets regularly priced at over £50, and adverts featuring actors in star roles, audience members are voicing anger when told at the last minute that an understudy will appear.

• Look out for more producers publishing dates when it is known that a star will not perform (holidays, other engagements etc) – but this does not help if the star is unexpectedly ill or injured.
• Check terms and conditions printed on tickets, publicity material and websites. Care must be taken to check whether a claim for compensation by a consumer that the absence of the star would succeed – restrictions on a producer’s liability may only be binding if incorporated into the contract with the audience member; reasonably clear and fair. Take legal advice on the effects of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations 1999.
• It is highly probable that cancellation of a show for no reason other than it would make a loss would give rise to compensation for audience members – so the cost of an understudy might be commercially a good risk.
  
• Will the current trend for advertising the star rather than the show be reversed? Probably not, but the advert should not be misleading (Codes of Practice exist).
• Can theatres learn anything from the music industry? – OK, its hard to employ understudies for rock gods, but cancellations and ticket refunds are expected if the headline act fails to perform.
• How should an audience member complain? – in a timely fashion – probably more difficult to mount a claim if the consumer does not complain until the end of the show unless the stand-in turned out to be hopeless.
• Always consider cancellation or ticket refunds – the price may be worth the preserved goodwill
• Beware a claim of consequential losses – the family that travels from afar who also wants to claim travel and hotel accommodation – a judge will review terms and conditions and the foreseeability of the claim. Therefore any offer of ticket refund or exchange should be on a full and final basis.