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Post by richey on Dec 16, 2021 13:14:33 GMT
In relation to the increasing drunkenness at shows, I've been to two concerts in two weeks at the Manchester Arena, both of which had enormous queues for the bars which blocked any flow of the crowds and prevented any social distancing, and a constant stream of people going to the bars through the show, thereby interrupting my view. When I wrote and complained I got a cut and paste reply basically saying like it or lump it. That's the last time I'll be going there... It’s a horrible venue anyway. Sucks the joy out of any live performance. And how someone hasn’t been killed or badly injured from falling down those ridiculous steps that go all the way down to the floor level with no handrails defies belief. Agreed. I rarely go there unless it's a performer I really want to see. I prefer the slightly more intimate Apollo. I've seen several people fall at the Arena, usually the inebriated ones. One went toppling over about 6 rows of seats and one fell down the stairs last Friday.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2021 13:59:52 GMT
Whatever happened to the Prompter’s Corner? Would be easy to get a privacy screen for a laptop or tablet which would remove all the light issues for surrounding punters. Or they could learn their lines? I've seen Directors sat in the audience taking notes but it was often on a notepad. They certainly have liked to view the shows within audiences on several occasions that I've noticed them. Often at interval or end, someone might have said "good show to them". I haven't been to a press night in years so what are those like for note taking/laptops these days?
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1,093 posts
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Post by samuelwhiskers on Dec 16, 2021 19:57:44 GMT
I was sitting directly behind Goold at Spring Awakening press this week and he was furiously typing notes into his phone the entire time.
Would have thought copious note taking was more common during previews; it’s normally, well, press who scribble away during press nights.
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Post by The Matthew on Dec 16, 2021 20:16:40 GMT
At least they're not using typewriters.
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Post by nisev on Dec 17, 2021 15:49:33 GMT
My friend was at The Book of Mormon last night and there was a group of drunk people in the stalls. FOH staff had to get involved and apparently there was a shout and a physical fight broke out. They had to stop the show while the security wranged people out kicking and screaming!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2021 16:29:20 GMT
At least they're not using typewriters. Journalists used to learn shorthand like Secretaries I wonder if they still do. They will often have recording devices but I doubt they would be allowed to use them or even have a phone switched on in a court press gallery for example?
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5,585 posts
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Post by lynette on Dec 17, 2021 17:25:53 GMT
My friend was at The Book of Mormon last night and there was a group of drunk people in the stalls. FOH staff had to get involved and apparently there was a shout and a physical fight broke out. They had to stop the show while the security wranged people out kicking and screaming! And the theatre owners wonder why we are keeping away……
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Post by marob on Jan 15, 2022 0:05:46 GMT
Just read about another show stop due to a fight, this time at Jersey Boys.
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18,800 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jan 15, 2022 6:15:32 GMT
My friend was at The Book of Mormon last night and there was a group of drunk people in the stalls. FOH staff had to get involved and apparently there was a shout and a physical fight broke out. They had to stop the show while the security wranged people out kicking and screaming! Sounds more entertaining than the show.
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Post by theatrescribe on Jan 15, 2022 16:23:55 GMT
Oh what a fight...
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Post by daisy24601 on Jan 17, 2022 22:57:21 GMT
Someone on my right translating the show to her companion throughout. Loudly. Drunk group on my left, with much singing along. FFS.
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Post by pearl on Jan 18, 2022 16:26:05 GMT
Someone on my right translating the show to her companion throughout. Loudly. Drunk group on my left, with much singing along. FFS.
I had someone narrating the show voice-over style to their companion when I paid a not cheap amount of money for a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Dame Angela Lansbury on stage in Blithe Spirit back in 2014 in London. It was an older chap as well which was surprising because normally it's youngsters in theatres who get moaned about the most.
I still seethe with rage at the memory.
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Post by sph on Jan 18, 2022 22:31:28 GMT
Someone on my right translating the show to her companion throughout. Loudly. Drunk group on my left, with much singing along. FFS.
I had someone narrating the show voice-over style to their companion when I paid a not cheap amount of money for a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Dame Angela Lansbury on stage in Blithe Spirit back in 2014 in London. It was an older chap as well which was surprising because normally it's youngsters in theatres who get moaned about the most.
I still seethe with rage at the memory.
Is it really? It tends to be groups of women drinking prosecco that fill me with dread. They should all be seated separate from each other...
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Post by pearl on Jan 19, 2022 9:17:44 GMT
I had someone narrating the show voice-over style to their companion when I paid a not cheap amount of money for a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Dame Angela Lansbury on stage in Blithe Spirit back in 2014 in London. It was an older chap as well which was surprising because normally it's youngsters in theatres who get moaned about the most.
I still seethe with rage at the memory.
Is it really? It tends to be groups of women drinking prosecco that fill me with dread. They should all be seated separate from each other...
Mainly I mean tradionally it has been older people grumbling about boisterious youngsters, but I agree with you that in more recent times the group you described seem to be the biggest problem in theatre audiences today.
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Post by matilda1 on Jan 19, 2022 10:44:32 GMT
Almost always groups of women drinking too much Prosecco who cause a lot of disruption. Followed as a close second by gangs of young men who are usually in to watch a comedian and who take the heckling to an unreasonable level.
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Post by pearl on Jan 19, 2022 17:36:27 GMT
The worst audience members I personally saw was indeed a group of drunk women, when I was in theatre trying to watch Darren Day in Grease in London in the 1990s.
One was behaving so badly an usher actually came and personally removed her. Once she left her friends calmed down. At one point the group were so bad the cast members were looking up to the balacony where they were.
I am grateful not to have witnessed any actual violence or screaming matches as some have, that was bad enough!
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Post by hannechalk on Jan 20, 2022 14:32:32 GMT
Someone on my right translating the show to her companion throughout. Loudly. I once got really annoyed by that. So at interval I turned round to give a death stare, only to be met with a group wearing tshirts for a charity for visually impaired people. They were narrating the visual only bits for their clients. As a bonus I met the bestest boi though, who was also attending as part of the group.
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Post by theatrekiwi on Jan 27, 2022 23:17:05 GMT
Awful audience behaviour at Bat Out Of Hell in Wimbledon tonight.
Two tracks into Act 2, a group of three came back into the theatre late. I'd place a bet on them rushing to the pub and forgetting to come back in time. They talked loudly through a section of dialogue until shushed. Then one started using her phone. After the person behind asked them to stop using it, it escalated into a loud argument of "you don't know why I'm using my phone...". Ushers and security intervened and after more disruption they were removed, very strategically during a loud number!
Chatter throughout, and lots of singing in the audience which picked up more during Act 2. I've never had a show with quite as much. At one point someone yelled across the circle "Shut up! This is a theatre!". Quite the circus.
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Post by dontdreamit on Jan 28, 2022 0:42:55 GMT
Awful audience behaviour at Bat Out Of Hell in Wimbledon tonight. Two tracks into Act 2, a group of three came back into the theatre late. I'd place a bet on them rushing to the pub and forgetting to come back in time. They talked loudly through a section of dialogue until shushed. Then one started using her phone. After the person behind asked them to stop using it, it escalated into a loud argument of "you don't know why I'm using my phone...". Ushers and security intervened and after more disruption they were removed, very strategically during a loud number! Chatter throughout, and lots of singing in the audience which picked up more during Act 2. I've never had a show with quite as much. At one point someone yelled across the circle "Shut up! This is a theatre!". Quite the circus. I was in to tonight as well too and there was lots of singing where we were... ironically this was supposed to be a singalong perforce when we first booked, back before Covid.
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Post by theatrekiwi on Jan 28, 2022 8:36:10 GMT
I was in to tonight as well too and there was lots of singing where we were... ironically this was supposed to be a singalong perforce when we first booked, back before Covid. That explains some of it! Interesting they would change it from that after bookings were opened.
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Post by dontdreamit on Jan 28, 2022 10:58:34 GMT
I was in to tonight as well too and there was lots of singing where we were... ironically this was supposed to be a singalong perforce when we first booked, back before Covid. That explains some of it! Interesting they would change it from that after bookings were opened. They changed the singalong to a normal performance because of Covid. It’s a shame as I did 4 of the singalongs when it was at the Dominion, and they were amazing!
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577 posts
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Post by christya on Jan 29, 2022 18:28:12 GMT
Stood behind two of the nastiest girls I’ve had the misfortune to come across in the ladies’ queue at Heathers today. Badmouthing the cast, loudly, going on about how they’d make better Heathers (from the bit one of them sang - nope) and just generally managing to be so utterly obnoxious that I pity whoever was seat near them. No self awareness at all, for gods sake save picking people apart for when you get home!.
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Post by inthenose on Jan 29, 2022 19:10:35 GMT
I remember sitting through a dire performance of Les Mis once, girls next to me clearly loving the show ask me at the interval if I'm enjoying it. Now, I'm hating it, but don't want to ruin her/their night out. I just smile and say "it's my favourite show". No need to be negative or lie.
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Post by poster J on Jan 29, 2022 23:57:30 GMT
If the performances hadn't been so exceptional, Cabaret would have been completely ruined by the obnoxious idiot next to me this evening.
He seemed to have had several beverages before the show (and more during it) and then proceeded to sing along, talk through and over-react to everything at top volume (he must hold the record for the number of utterances of "Oh My God" at full volume in a 3 hour period).
"Shhh" and then later "Shut up" had no effect, nor did my response to him when he started to talk to me in the interval about how exceptional he thought the show was - I agreed but said it was sadly being ruined for me by the fact I could hear him constantly talking and singing over the performers (he was reacting so loudly I'm sure he could have been heard on stage).
More of the same in Act 2 until I snapped and told him again to shut up during the title number. At the end of it he started berating me for shushing him and said he'd been waiting for this for 2 years (odd given it was only announced last May) and he wanted to enjoy it. I said so did I, that was the point, and charmingly got told to cheer up and get a life, and to move to the other end of the row if I didn't want to hear him (not sure how I'd do that mid-show in a sold out house...!). Never mind that everyone else around me was respectfully watching the performers in silence, transfixed by the show instead of singing along.
And of course the same rude idiot was screaming louder than anyone at the end of every song, and laughing louder than everyone else throughout. And he had one of the special masks that only covers your mouth not your nose.
His behaviour to me during the show was frankly a bit intimidating. One of the worst I've ever experienced. I wish there was a way to ban people like that from the theatre, it would be a far more pleasant place to be.
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Post by inthenose on Jan 30, 2022 2:51:47 GMT
Re: the above, it sounds like a horrible experience, but I am glad you were still able to enjoy the show. I do object though to the use of the term "tw*t" as it is a vulgar slang term for the vagina, akin to the C word. I asked my partner about it and she said she was deeply offended. Would you mind editing that part?
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Post by poster J on Jan 30, 2022 9:08:04 GMT
Re: the above, it sounds like a horrible experience, but I am glad you were still able to enjoy the show. I do object though to the use of the term "tw*t" as it is a vulgar slang term for the vagina, akin to the C word. I asked my partner about it and she said she was deeply offended. Would you mind editing that part? Sorry, no offence was intended as I've never known it to mean what you say. It's a common slang term for idiot where I come from, used by all genders. I'm a woman and it doesn't offend me in the slightest as I've never known it to be used it the context you suggest (I've only ever known the C word to be used in that context, and I do hate that). However, now I'm aware of that I've changed it as requested, apologies and thanks for flagging.
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Post by inthenose on Jan 30, 2022 9:32:20 GMT
Re: the above, it sounds like a horrible experience, but I am glad you were still able to enjoy the show. I do object though to the use of the term "tw*t" as it is a vulgar slang term for the vagina, akin to the C word. I asked my partner about it and she said she was deeply offended. Would you mind editing that part? Sorry, no offence was intended as I've never known it to mean what you say. It's a common slang term for idiot where I come from, used by all genders. I'm a woman and it doesn't offend me in the slightest as I've never known it to be used it the context you suggest (I've only ever known the C word to be used in that context, and I do hate that). However, now I'm aware of that I've changed it as requested, apologies and thanks for flagging. No problemo, and no hard feelings I hope.
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Jan 30, 2022 9:36:26 GMT
Sorry, no offence was intended as I've never known it to mean what you say. It's a common slang term for idiot where I come from, used by all genders. I'm a woman and it doesn't offend me in the slightest as I've never known it to be used it the context you suggest (I've only ever known the C word to be used in that context, and I do hate that). However, now I'm aware of that I've changed it as requested, apologies and thanks for flagging. No problemo, and no hard feelings I hope. None at all!
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307 posts
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Post by stuart on Feb 3, 2022 10:21:06 GMT
Surely this is an early contender for “worst behaviour of the year”?
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Post by thistimetomorrow on Feb 8, 2022 23:40:12 GMT
WHY do theatres sell big buckets of popcorn??? The couple next to me at were munching loudly all through Act 1 tonight and every time they'd reach in to get some more popcorn they'd shuffle the container around. At the interval I could see the ladies on the other side of the couple also complaining about it.
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