1,093 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Feb 25, 2022 13:35:29 GMT
Gosh this story keeps getting better and better.
It’s hilarious how the witness says “I paid £54 to listen to the performers not a drunken father and daughter” when she snuck out to the lobby to eavesdrop on the drama and had to be told to go back to her seat by staff.
|
|
|
Post by aingidh on Feb 25, 2022 20:21:20 GMT
Edinburgh Playhouse is my local and it is always the worst for audience etiquette. They constantly have G4S security guards there as well as the ATG staff, just because of how huge the venue is, and the clientele.
The Bat performance I attended there had ushers and guards monitoring constantly.
|
|
2,140 posts
|
Post by richey on Feb 27, 2022 9:13:41 GMT
|
|
|
Post by hannechalk on Feb 27, 2022 11:13:56 GMT
This article grabbed my attention a few weeks ago. When the article was posted on Facebook, the couple were ripped apart by people who had also been there: - at no point was it announced over the tannoy it was a security incident. - they in fact had to ask a woman and her elderly father with dementia to leave, as her father became extremely vocal and agitated, and he was shouting at the performers. - people in the audience though just thought he was being drunk and disorderly. - 'hundreds' did not leave the theatre. People sat in the same section as the couple said maybe a dozen left the area, and only a few did not return once things had settled. - the whole incident lasted less than 10 minutes. - the couple left, despite being asked to remain seated, because they didn't know if the theatre had safety procedures in place. It's one thing to leave a place when you feel unsafe, it's another to then run to the paper because you weren't fully compensated for a show you had seen more than half of. www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/scared-man-left-empire-after-23007882
|
|
416 posts
|
Post by schuttep on Feb 27, 2022 12:27:06 GMT
I saw "Steve" at the newly opened Seven Dials Playhouse yesterday afternoon.
The Opening set is the theatrical restaurant Joe Alans and to set up the atmosphere, there's a bar on stage that the audience can use. The show opens with a barman explaining the theatre rules and jokily points at a member of the audience to say (words to the effect of) "..and that includes texting madam. It not only distracts the actors but also audience members. Better still, just switch your phone off." At the time he said this we weren't sure if he was a barman or an actor in the show...
A great humorous way to remind audiences what's permissible and to try to counteract bad behaviour.
|
|
|
Post by sph on Feb 27, 2022 15:23:13 GMT
I think jukebox musicals are treated like concerts by a lot of theatregoers (or, well, NON-theatregoers would be more accurate). Up and down to the bar, shouting, singing, talking to each other.
Saying that, I've been at many classic musicals with an older audience who act like they're at a singalong in the local church hall...
|
|
211 posts
|
Post by Jane Parfitt on Feb 27, 2022 21:36:56 GMT
|
|
416 posts
|
Post by schuttep on Feb 28, 2022 12:41:24 GMT
I saw "Steve" at the newly opened Seven Dials Playhouse yesterday afternoon. The Opening set is the theatrical restaurant Joe Allen's and to set up the atmosphere, there's a bar on stage that the audience can use. The show opens with a barman explaining the theatre rules and jokily points at a member of the audience to say (words to the effect of) "..and that includes texting madam. It not only distracts the actors but also audience members. Better still, just switch your phone off." At the time he said this we weren't sure if he was a barman or an actor in the show... A great humorous way to remind audiences what's permissible and to try to counteract bad behaviour. Apologies, this was meant to be an edit.
|
|
2,140 posts
|
Post by richey on Mar 2, 2022 13:48:24 GMT
|
|
|
Post by sph on Mar 2, 2022 16:06:13 GMT
Oh dear... Doreen says she "loves to sing", but people like Doreen don't seem to realise that the people around her didn't pay to hear her sing. There are plenty of other places you can go for a singalong if you are so inclined. Jukebox musicals in particular should have an announcement (they could make it funny if they were creative about it) telling them not to sing. At all.
When I saw Anything Goes the older couple next to me immediately started singing along to the overture. It didn't stop there either.
|
|
577 posts
|
Post by christya on Mar 3, 2022 12:27:59 GMT
That's the thing, the Doreens of this world always insist they 'love to sing', but honestly - nobody cares what you love, Doreen. Just shut up. I love to sing too, but guess what? If I'm not onstage, and it's not a singalong, no noise should be emanating from my mouth!
|
|
4,799 posts
|
Post by The Matthew on Mar 3, 2022 13:50:47 GMT
"You love to sing? What a coincidence! I love to punch idiots."
|
|
1,638 posts
|
Post by fiyero on Mar 3, 2022 22:10:47 GMT
I’m at the tour of Les Mis on Tuesday. I know all the words. I do find it tricky singing both parts of the confrontation but I’ll give it a go. I’m sure those in the rear circle would rather hear this pension administrator sing rather than dean chisnell etc…
(I assume this how they actually think!)
|
|
143 posts
|
Post by PhantomNcl on Mar 4, 2022 12:15:15 GMT
I’m at the tour of Les Mis on Tuesday. I know all the words. I do find it tricky singing both parts of the confrontation but I’ll give it a go. I’m sure those in the rear circle would rather hear this pension administrator sing rather than dean chisnell etc… (I assume this how they actually think!) I had a really good chuckle at this :-) Imagine the fun you'll have in One Day More too - all those parts to have a crack at! Don't forget to take a bag of wrapped sweets (Werthers for preference) and pass them along the row very loudly in the quiet moments, and to exclaim loudly "Is that Susan Boyle??" during I Dreamed a Dream ;-)
|
|
848 posts
|
Post by longinthetooth on Mar 4, 2022 15:01:39 GMT
I’m at the tour of Les Mis on Tuesday. I know all the words. I do find it tricky singing both parts of the confrontation but I’ll give it a go. I’m sure those in the rear circle would rather hear this pension administrator sing rather than dean chisnell etc… (I assume this how they actually think!) I had a really good chuckle at this :-) Imagine the fun you'll have in One Day More too - all those parts to have a crack at! Don't forget to take a bag of wrapped sweets (Werthers for preference) and pass them along the row very loudly in the quiet moments, and to exclaim loudly "Is that Susan Boyle??" during I Dreamed a Dream ;-) Also, don't forget to get up and go to the loo during Bring Him Home - after all, it is a quiet bit, with not much happening.
|
|
1,638 posts
|
Post by fiyero on Mar 4, 2022 15:41:46 GMT
I had a really good chuckle at this :-) Imagine the fun you'll have in One Day More too - all those parts to have a crack at! Don't forget to take a bag of wrapped sweets (Werthers for preference) and pass them along the row very loudly in the quiet moments, and to exclaim loudly "Is that Susan Boyle??" during I Dreamed a Dream ;-) Also, don't forget to get up and go to the loo during Bring Him Home - after all, it is a quiet bit, with not much happening. Oooh, thats a nice length of song. I should be able to leave at the start and get back at the end. Scrub that, I have an aisle seat so that's no fun!
|
|
380 posts
|
Post by stevemar on Mar 5, 2022 22:07:25 GMT
|
|
|
Post by sfsusan on Mar 6, 2022 0:31:13 GMT
I disagree with a quote in that Guardian article by an 'audience behaviour' academic: “Some of the rules that we’ve instigated in the arts around silent reverent reception come from a particular place and time: 19th-century, anti-working class, colonial campaigns to civilise the world through culture.”
It shouldn't be considered outdated, snobbish or colonialist to expect people at a performance to behave in a way that doesn't negatively impact others around them, and is consistent with the behavior expected by the 'community' of that production.
I suppose those rules may have come about during a time that people thought certain groups were incapable of behaving 'properly'. I don't think it means the rules themselves are outmoded. My going to the theater isn't a campaign to civilize the world... it's an attempt to have an enjoyable experience without someone near me outsinging the performers or patting my hair.
|
|
|
Post by sph on Mar 6, 2022 3:24:09 GMT
One of my biggest pet peeves of audience behaviour actually? People bringing children to the theatre who are far too young for it.
Your toddler is not going to sit through Les Mis. Sorry.
Musicals are not theme part attractions. Don't bring the whole family plus a picnic.
|
|
334 posts
|
Post by adrianics on Mar 6, 2022 9:26:47 GMT
"Dr Kirsty Sedgman from Bristol University specialises in audience behaviour, and explains that defining “good” theatre etiquette is tricky: “It’s a really emotive subject, especially after the pandemic, because everyone wants to be together, but they have very different ideas about what that should mean,” she says. “We’re seeing a tension between people who want to have a fun night out, drink a lot and be rowdy, and those who crave that sense of quiet togetherness that [the theatre director] Peter Brook calls the ‘good kind of silence’.”
I don't think the tension between proportionate, reasonable people and selfish, unreasonable people is all that new, to be honest.
I work at a university and love the academic community, but the quotes in that article are cringeworthy. They're actually trying to draw a parallel between being snobby about an audience member's evening wear and objecting to drunken heckling??
|
|
|
Post by marob on Mar 6, 2022 10:37:59 GMT
I see the Jersey Boys cast criticising audience behaviour on their social media. Again. Apparently someone kicked off when FOH tried to stop them recording the show then had to be taken out by security.
I made the mistake of seeing it on a Saturday night last summer and it was like being at a singalong. It was really annoying, but good natured. Seems to have gotten worse.
I’d say it was time to switch to soft drinks only in the bar, but I know that’ll never happen.
|
|
|
Post by marob on Mar 6, 2022 11:04:10 GMT
One of my biggest pet peeves of audience behaviour actually? People bringing children to the theatre who are far too young for it. Your toddler is not going to sit through Les Mis. Sorry. Musicals are not theme part attractions. Don't bring the whole family plus a picnic. Had that the other day on the front row of a comedy play. A woman with two kids, one a toddler, the other younger. You have to wonder what people are thinking. They were pretty quiet though actually. Except the elder one lifted the “grass” up that was draped over the end of the stage at one point. And clang, clang, clang went the toy when he dropped it through the little gap in front of the stage. It sounds like there’s a lot more space under there than I would have expected. I’d be surprised if they got that back in one piece.
|
|
|
Post by sph on Mar 6, 2022 13:17:43 GMT
One of my biggest pet peeves of audience behaviour actually? People bringing children to the theatre who are far too young for it. Your toddler is not going to sit through Les Mis. Sorry. Musicals are not theme part attractions. Don't bring the whole family plus a picnic. Had that the other day on the front row of a comedy play. A woman with two kids, one a toddler, the other younger. You have to wonder what people are thinking. They were pretty quiet though actually. Except the elder one lifted the “grass” up that was draped over the end of the stage at one point. And clang, clang, clang went the toy when he dropped it through the little gap in front of the stage. It sounds like there’s a lot more space under there than I would have expected. I’d be surprised if they got that back in one piece. Many venues technically ban "babes in arms", but I wonder how many of the managers on duty actually go through with that ban when it happens.
|
|
|
Post by jojo on Mar 6, 2022 19:35:25 GMT
Oh dear... Doreen says she "loves to sing", but people like Doreen don't seem to realise that the people around her didn't pay to hear her sing. There are plenty of other places you can go for a singalong if you are so inclined. Jukebox musicals in particular should have an announcement (they could make it funny if they were creative about it) telling them not to sing. At all. When I saw Anything Goes the older couple next to me immediately started singing along to the overture. It didn't stop there either. I agree a well timed and worded announcement would work wonders. If appropriate, save the singing for a curtain call singalong. But there are still some who presumably don't realise they are singing along out loud, or loud enough for the people near them to hear. I was next to an older man humming his way through the Les Mis tour a few years ago, which wasn't so bad for the men's parts, but really quite ridiculous as he strained for the women's parts. I am guessing he was a bit deaf rather than deliberately rude, but still.
|
|
848 posts
|
Post by longinthetooth on Mar 6, 2022 20:29:33 GMT
The question of small children is a tricky one. We've all had the seat kicking, whining child behind us. I am still traumatised from a visit to Shrek, when a mum, grandmother and toddler of no more than 18 months settled down behind me. I use the term 'settled' loosely. The child ranged from grizzle to full on cry throughout, and was passed from Mum to Grandma and back again in a vain attempt to quieten him. Thankfully they left in the interval.
On the other side of the coin, I remember the sinking feeling I had when what appeared to be a couple of hippies turned up at Phantom with a little girl of between 4 and 5, and sat down a few seats away from me. Well, when the chandelier rose, the look on the little girl's face was priceless, sheer wonder. She was transfixed throughout the whole show - it was so lovely to see.
I was mildly interested to see a single man with two small children plus booster cushions in the front row at Cinderella the other day. I did wonder how he explained away a couple of things, but I didn't notice any untoward misbehaviour from the kids.
|
|
|
Post by inthenose on Mar 6, 2022 20:47:52 GMT
Some of my worst experiences have been with screeching gay couples who know people in the show, or superfans at shows like Wicked who make the experience all about them. Unbelievably obnoxious. With younger children (5+ in appropriate shows for them) I try and show as much patience and tolerance as I can, the more young people interested in the arts the better.who would bring a child under 10 or so to Les Mis though? Money to burn and sense lacking.
|
|
|
Post by jojo on Mar 6, 2022 20:57:11 GMT
The people who have seen the show before and like to announce what's about to happen to their companion are also a pain.
|
|
|
Post by sph on Mar 6, 2022 20:59:17 GMT
There's a difference between a toddler or baby and a 5/6 year old though. At 5 or 6 a child can at least understand a bit of what is going on. An 18 month old baby shouldn't be taken to a theatre unless it was a children's show specifically developed for that age group.
I think parents taking their kids to something like Shrek is, to them, just like their kids watching the movie at home. Obviously this is not the case.
Start them off with panto around the age of 5, and then build up from there.
|
|
6,285 posts
|
Post by Jon on Mar 6, 2022 21:03:48 GMT
I've said this many times but any parents new or old need to realise that having children means priorities change and you cannot bring them to things you like which are age inappropriate.
|
|
|
Post by fiyerorocher on Mar 7, 2022 11:03:04 GMT
Had that the other day on the front row of a comedy play. A woman with two kids, one a toddler, the other younger. You have to wonder what people are thinking. They were pretty quiet though actually. Except the elder one lifted the “grass” up that was draped over the end of the stage at one point. And clang, clang, clang went the toy when he dropped it through the little gap in front of the stage. It sounds like there’s a lot more space under there than I would have expected. I’d be surprised if they got that back in one piece. Many venues technically ban "babes in arms", but I wonder how many of the managers on duty actually go through with that ban when it happens. I've seen someone banned from taking a baby into an auditorium because of safety reasons. Bat Out Of Hell is too loud for a newborn! Husband spent the whole night in the bar with the child while his wife watched the show.
|
|