Ilana Keller

@ilanakeller

As we are seeing more and more, big names mean big crowds at stage doors.

While it's far from a requirement for anyone appearing on a Broadway stage to stop and sign autographs or take photos with fans after the show, many do, of course.

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The anticipation of getting to meet your idol or thanking a new face for a wonderful performance is a big lure for fans. The corresponding crowds usually are manageable, and theater security tends to do a fine job of creating a safe and organized environment.

Things can get a little tricky when a show features a cast whose stars have rapidly risen (I'm talking about you, "Hamilton") or when a friend from Hollywood pops in to take a turn on stage.

Or say, a Spice Girl.

I enjoyed "Chicago" with a few friends on Saturday night. The performance, one of Mel B's last before she bowed out on Sunday, was sold out.

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Suffice it to say the stage door was quite crowded. Barriers presumably could not be set out as the audience was exiting, so you ended up with a lot of people packed into a small space, either getting caught up in the crowd or jockeying for a spot that didn't yet exist. When the barriers were moved into place, there was a fair amount of jostling and pushing as the crowd moved back and into place.

Not anyone's fault, but it was unnerving at best, and for a friend of mine, overwhelming. Unfortunately, by that time, we were positioned in a spot that we couldn't leave even if we wanted to. My group all huddled close, trying as best we could to block out the crowds and comfort her.

Cue Mel B.

After walking out to a well-deserved ovation, she proceeded to make her way around, signing autographs and quickly posing for selfies.

Until she saw my friend.

Immediately, she saw how shaken she was. She stopped. "Are you OK," she asked. "Why are you shaking?"

As my friend explained, she drew her in for a big hug. "It's understandable," she said. "Come, let's take a picture."

After they did, she called to the crowd around us, asking them to clear a path. They did.

As we turned to leave, she touched my shoulder. "You're a good friend," she said. (I was feeling like a pretty lousy friend at that point.)

It took maybe 90 seconds of her time, but to my friend, it meant the world.

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The astronomical popularity of shows and their stars have been heavily influenced by social media and the like, and fan demand has had impacts on interactions like stage-dooring, some for the better and some not-so-much (that's another topic for another time).

Broadway is figuring it out. To mitigate, it's given rise to some great things, like behind-the-scenes vlogs and Ham4Ham shows.

For now, situations like the one we had Saturday night are common, but the compassionate reactions that grow out of them are too, and speak to the heart of "theater people."

She may have worldwide fame as "Scary Spice," legions of fans from "America's Got Talent" and other television shows on three separate continents and business acumen and writing skills to spare, but on Saturday, Mel B was a concerned, empathetic person who made a human connection and a difference.

If that's not the definition of a theater person, I don't know what is.

Thank you, Mel B.

Ilana Keller: 732-643-4260; ikeller@gannettnj.com