The strike earlier this month by Broadway musicians also alienated some ticket buyers.

They are the Broadway musicians, and their view from the orchestra pit gives them an interesting perspective.

Broadway musicians earn an average of $1,000 to $1,500 a week.

With that type of flexibility, most Broadway musicians also work in symphony orchestras, teach music or have their own bands.

Plus, Broadway musicians know that a show doesn't run forever, so you always have to be doing other things.

The base wage for Broadway musicians is $70,000 a year; with benefits included, their overall compensation comes to more than $90,000.

Two years ago, Broadway musicians darkened most theaters for four days with their own strike.

As negotiations go, the bargaining between the Broadway musicians' union and theatrical producers should have been simple.

Neither could they stave off the Broadway musicians' strike that followed last spring.

Seven months after the Broadway musicians' strike, another battle is brewing between organized labor and theatrical producers.