Billy Porter Meet and Greet Experience

Entertainment Company – Insiders Experiences

Venue ~ Warner Theatre

Location ~ Washington, DC

The Good ~ He signed my notebook, and I got a VIP lanyard from the experience. The photographer/check-in host displayed a great personality, he was very communicative and pleasant through the process. I got to meet 2 ladies and a lovely couple that was fun to chat with, I asked the lady how her experience was she said it was good but it could be because she was a part of an alumni group with Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama (the school Billy went too), plus she stated that she had never been to a celebrity meet and greet.

Price ~ Too Much!! For the experience, in my opinion it was lacking, especially compared to my Bobby Brown Meet and Greet experience.

The VIP Attendance/Setting ~ To me the attendance was quite large, I believe it was 60 or more people I didn’t count so this number isn’t a fact. The setting was outdoor and indoor waiting, lightly uncomfortable. Once indoor, we walked up 2 short flights of steps to a bar area above the main theatre floor and lined up in a hallway against the walls going into the theatre (they told us we couldn’t go into the theatre – perhaps because the band was setting up not sure – so participants wrapped around the bin and stood on the opposite side of the wall). A better setup would have been if they would have seated the participants in the theatre until Billy was ready to start the meet and greet. Not sure if I could have brought the VIP Meet and Greet Ticket without having to buy a concert ticket because I bought it from Ticketmaster and I didn’t see an option to just buy the Meet and Greet ticket plus I wanted the experience of both as I felt that it would be a fabulous experience.  

Photo Op ~ For me it felt rushed and wasn’t worth the money spent especially after standing so long (not to mention walking up 2 short flights of steps) to get to meet him. I was so happy to see him, I started dancing toward him when it was my turn with my notebook in hand for him to sign, he asked my name (as he’d done for others before me) and shook my hand. He saw the book, turned to his photographer, tapped the book on the table a few times and said “I don’t know where she got this book, it’s not sanctioned! it’s not sanctioned!”) then he signed it, after that he went through it and said “oh its just a notebook.”(I don’t know if that meant it was ok that it was not sanctioned or not), I did tell him that I had gotten it from Amazon and he need to tell them that it’s not sanctioned (I said all this while smiling trying to keep my moment with him a happy one.) Anyway, we took the photo with the notebook (I had rather taken it without the notebook), he said “OK, thank you”, and told me to make sure I danced at the concert. I guess #theebillyporter was upset because I brought the notebook with his photos on it. I started to just print a photo out for him to sign but I wanted something a bit more tangible and had a short time to retrieve something with his photos on it (with his reaction to the book who knows what he would have thought of a printed photo. Perhaps this is why I felt rushed and disappointed. I do understand artists frustration of people releasing things in their likeness; however, I wish this would have been handled a bit better.   

Food/Drink ~ Nothing

Gifts ~ VIP Lanyard

The Bad ~ My meet and greet experience was not a good experience with Billy Porter (#theebillyporter #billyporter). They had us standing outside for an hour and when we finally got into the building, we had to stand for another 45 minutes to get our photo op (not good for people with health issues). Also, there were no giftbags given to the VIP participants. I’ve been to other meet and greets where the artists gave giftbags, refreshments, more time, made the participants feel “VIP” and was very personable. I can’t say the same here, I was disappointed.

The Hoodrat ~ The long-standing period plus stair climbing (which the ticket prepared participants for stair climbing as it stated that there were no elevators available) with no regard or accommodations such as refreshments, seats, etc. for VIP participants. No opportunity to have anyone take a photo with your phone. I asked the lady that was leading the photo-op line if she would be able to take my photo with my phone while the photographer takes the official photo… She said no because it’s a way for Billy to keep everything in his control. I understand somewhat, it’s just a good look for people to have a good photo that they can immediately take away from the experience seeing that it takes at least 7 days for them to upload the photos to the link they provided. For Me (again this is MY experience), nothing about it felt “VIP”, it felt more like a money grab.