Royal Oak Music Theatre

Address:	318 W 4th St, Royal Oak, MI 48067, USA
Phone:	+1 248-399-2980
Site:	royaloakmusictheatre.com
Rating:	3.9

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 5

Sara Schroeder

I attended the June 14, 2014 Kids in the Hall show at this theater, and unfortunately the venues shortcomings significantly interfered with my enjoyment of the performance. The seating provided on the floor sections consisted of tightly packed plastic folding chairs (of the most budget and uncomfortable variety). Patrons of medium to slender builds were shifting uncomfortably, and those of fuller figure were barely able to fit in their seats. Since the floor had no slope and the rows were so densely arranged, the people sitting in the rows immediately in front of me blocked my view of most of the stage. I was constantly moving my head around trying to even see one or two of the people performing at any given time. My seat was in the middle right floor section, and on the right end there were metal railings that prevented anyone from properly exiting the aisle without jumping down several feet through a gap in the bars. This was a problem throughout the show as people continued to awkwardly squeeze down their rows to the right thinking they would be able to get out to the restrooms, bar, etc. and then were surprised to find no proper exit at the end. On top of the terrible seating, the audio was completely unacceptable. The overall quality was very poor (shrill highs, too much bass, no mids) and way too loud, resulting in outright painful moments when I had to cover my ears. I would never have imagined Id need earplugs for a performance like this, but definitely regretted not having any. Presumably this was partially due to outdated or improperly maintained audio equipment, but whoever was running sound must have completely shot their hearing over the years as well. This was my first experience at this theater, and will also be my last. The price I paid for the ticket would have gotten me a far superior entertainment value at a number of other venues.

Angelina Jacobsen

HORRIBLY PAINFUL SOUND!!! My ears hurt for 3 days after going to a concert here --and I was about as far away from any speaker as you could be. I could not sleep the first night because the ringing in my ears was so intense. This has never happened to me before. Ive always thought it was weird when people would say the sound was good... Ive never paid attention to that sort of thing before but WOW!!! I the sound here IS terrible as other reviewers say! It literally sounded like you were listening to the music from some beat-up old speaker that was about to die. Too bad--it could be a neat venue if they put some money into better equipment. BEWARE AGGRESSIVE COP CALLING STAFF! I also felt that the security staff seemed a little dramatic when dealing with people. I didnt personally have an issue--but it seemed like they needed some training on how to diffuse situations rather than escalate them. It seemed their answer to everything was call the cops. BOO on that! You do NOT want to deal with Royal Oak Police!! They will throw the book at you even if you are a boy scout with a spotless record!!! Dont let the types of bands they book fool you into thinking this place is cool--or that they know how to/want to deal with people who party! Ive heard that the police hate this venue because of the trouble it brings. My friend works in the nightclub across the street and has tons of stories about watching the police haul people off to jail. Apparently, if they think you are intoxicated they will throw you out the front door and then call the cops who will come arrest you for public drunkenness! Honestly, youre better off making the drive to another venue to see a band! If you want to brave the crappy sound be responsible at this venue! Watch how much you drink! Dont get crazy this is not the place for it!

Anthony Bercheny

This place used to be my favorite venue, I even went to some of my first shows here. I loved it because the shows were intimate and it was a rather small venue compared to most. After last night I doubt I will ever go back. My friends and I went to the Cherub show, we got there early went thru security and grabbed drinks. My friend wanted to run to the car to grab her phone which she forgot and they persisted to tell us there was no re-entry. Which I find interesting. Mind you this was at 8:30pm and the doors open at 8:00pm. There may have been 40 or 50 people there at max. The cherry on top was the fact that people were smoking all around us on the floor, I am a show goer no harm no foul, and a security guard yanks my friends and I away from the floor to escort us out the front door. No warning, no taking anything away, just straight up threw us out. Sorry we were smoking but who doesnt at a show? I paid good money to go to a concert with my friends and we barely got to listen to more than 5 songs and were kicked out. When i told the security officer that this was a joke and that i was unhappy they went ahead and radioed to the royal oak police department which I find comical. Not sure what type of operation they are running, but seems harsh. This experience makes me never want to go back. Had to post this so that people know exactly what happened to me and can read a real review. Thanks for reading.

Alyssa Wesley

If an artist I like comes into town and is performing at Royal Oak Music Theatre, I may think twice about going to see them. I work in customer service so, I am very experienced in handling different personalities and situations. The security staff were very unpleasant to deal with. In particular a younger woman who was checking purses was extremely rude. She accused me of having too many mixed pills in a clear bottle that contained peptobismol and excedrine which clearly are marked on the pills. Not knowing this was a rule at the location I politely explained this to the woman and I agreed to throw them away. The way she handled the situation was unprofessional and unnecessary. She made several sarcastic remarks and later on she even came up to my small party and yelled at us for standing against a wall since there was no room for us anywhere else to stand. When I say her behavior was unnecessary, I am referring to her overall terrible attitude. Should someone take their job seriously? Yes, but that shouldnt involve being nasty to people when they are respectful towards you. This ruined the overall experience at the venue for myself and my party. I would recommend hiring thorough but friendly security staff in the future.

Nate Wrobel

I cannot express enough how their security members ruined my time there once again. I do not appreciate being yelled at as a full grown adult as soon as i walk into a venue simply by asking where the coat check is. Also there is no excuse for the cigarette doorman to separate me and my girlfriend while wanting to go outside. When i told him that we were together he simply said its not his problem then he pushed my girlfriend back by her breasts. When i asked for his name he refused to give it. Once me and my girlfriend were outside TOGETHER, her 10$ drink was taken from her after she had already been outside. We wouldve left it inside or finished it if we known she would lose it. There is no excuse for staff to be so disrespectful and harassing to paying customers. This place has extremely expensive drinks for a venue of metro Detroit. The 16+ ages? More like 18 and below. Kids on too much drugs were everywhere falling into me. RUN A BETTER DAYCARE or raise the age limit if you want my money ever again. Oh, and the sound isnt any better then the other venues metro detroit offers. Always sounds muddy every time im there.