This story is nothing short of a wild ride. A Girl Scout mom was denied entry to the “Christmas Spectacular” show with the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall after facial recognition technology identified her in the lobby.
Kelly Conlon, who is also a lawyer, says the “mortifying” experience of being kicked out of the venue occurred because of the law firm where she’s employed.
Conlon said she and her daughter arrived in New York City the weekend after Thanksgiving along with other members of a Girl Scout troop and their mothers to watch the Rockettes in the “Christmas Spectacular” show. Not long after walking into the theater, Conlon says she was flagged by security and told to leave because of her place of employment. Security guards approached her immediately.
Conlon recalled security guards approaching her at the theater almost immediately.
“It was pretty simultaneous, I think, to me, going through the metal detector, that I heard over an intercom or loudspeaker,” she told the affiliate. “I heard them say ‘woman with long dark hair and a gray scarf.’”
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Radio City Music Hall apparently displays signs warning attendees that the venue uses “a variety of security measures, including facial recognition which uses Biometric Identifier Information” in order to “ensure safety.”
“They knew my name before I told them,” Conlon said. “They knew the firm I was associated with before I told them. And they told me I was not allowed to be there.”
Conlon works for a New Jersey-based law firm called Davis, Saperstein and Solomon. For years, her firm has been involved in personal injury litigation against a restaurant venue MSG Entertainment owns. MSG also operates Radio City Music Hall and produces the annual holiday musical with the Rockettes.
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“I don’t practice in New York. I’m not an attorney that works on any cases against MSG,” said Conlon.
But MSG doubled down on their stance in response:
“MSG instituted a straightforward policy that precludes attorneys pursuing active litigation against the Company from attending events at our venues until that litigation has been resolved. While we understand this policy is disappointing to some, we cannot ignore the fact that litigation creates an inherently adverse environment. All impacted attorneys were notified of the policy, including Davis, Saperstein and Salomon, which was notified twice,” a spokesperson for MSG Entertainment said in a statement to NBC.
In regard to her unfortunate experience, Conlon said, “I was just a mom taking my daughter to see a Christmas show. I did wait outside. It was embarrassing, it was mortifying.”