When Theatres Goes Wrong (unintentionally)

There have been numerous, but a favourite of mine that sticks in the mind is from seeing Matilda in what I think was Alex Gaumond's first week as Miss Trunchbull.

During "The Smell of Rebellion" where the song pauses for him to take off the TRUNCH hoodie and throw it offstage left, it instead landed hanging on the alphabet tile proscenium so in true Trunchbull-style he graciously walked over to throw it off and back to the centre to continue the song.

Considering how long the show has been running for and the numerous productions there have been, it may be a relatively common mishap but he played it off really well gaining extra laughs without ruining the moment.

The Play That Goes Wrong, during the section where causing a show stop for around 20 minutes. Trevor came out and did an 80's quiz with the audience and a quick round of who had what pets 😂. When the show restarted, the actor had been replaced due to an injury and a few things had to be changed for the remainder of the show.

I've enjoyed so many bloopers at shows over the years that it's hard to remember them all! Operation Mincemeat used to reliably have a steady stream of them, but all very much in the tone of the show so I'm sure first time viewers rarely noticed. I do remember a Les Mis performance where the barricades didn't move aside properly into the sewers and Thenardier had to nudge the 'corpse' at his feet to let him know he could open his eyes and get up, before informing the audience 'don't worry, he's not actually dead'.

The last time I saw Wicked a couple of years ago, where Lucie Jones was playing Elphaba. It was a matinee and something happened with the Wizard's mechanical mask which seized up, stopping the show.

It literally left the actor playing The Wizard, the character of Chistery and Lucie Jones walking around the stage bewildered.

Ouch! That’s gives a new dimension to “Seeing Is Believing” 😂

When I went to see Legally Blonde the Musical at the Arts Centre in Aberystwyth (starring Rebecca Stenhouse, who would understudy for Lucie Jones later on in another LB production), something went wrong in the scene where Paulette calls Elle. We couldn't see her, but Paulette was supposed to appear in a box of seats with a spotlight shone on her, but we heard her say something like "Is it on" when it was her cue to speak. Rebecca Stenhouse remained 100% calm and professional. She stayed in character and shrugged it off as "Oh, I guess Paulette's not available right now" and carried on with the scene as if nothing had happened. I'm sure she must have panicked a little bit but it didn't show!

Oh my word, another Blood Brothers blooper on behalf on my friend. More of a problem with an audience member though I suppose...!

Back when this was still on the West End in the 90's. Obviously by the end of the show the tissues are out and ready, but at the very end of the show when Mrs Johnstone moves upstage to grab onto a chair for support, she tripped and fell so hard and landed with such a horrid thud that my friend's mum (who'd seen it before) burst out into a full belly laugh. She suddenly just couldn't stop laughing, and was giggling all the way through the end song.

It was a very quiet car ride home.

When I worked on the German production this was a standard 'go to' if the chair failed - Meg would either use the bridal veil, or (if Christine hadn't chucked it too far away) the wedding bouquet.  If neither were readily available she'd go and stroke the monkey on the music box.

There must have been something else going on during the performance you saw though, as it's not the Phantom's mask that gets left behind on the chair, it's just a prop one which doesn't have the wire attached (otherwise it wouldn't lay flat on the chair).    

Another Blood Brothers entry:

One time after Kid's Game, as Mickey has thrown the 'bomb' and Sammy comes tumbling out, whoever was in charge of the smoke-machine went a bit too hard. As Linda goes 'Sammy?', Sean Jones as Mickey went 'Where is he?'. They could barely see each other on stage, and the audience was both laughing and coughing as the smoke drifted into the auditorium.

Kid's Game again, different show - a very audible accidental ripping fart came through the mic. The poor performer was beetroot red for a while after, as it was clear who it had come from.

Bright New Day - one of the wheels of the pram completely came off.

More of an audience mishap - towards the end one woman thought real police had entered the auditorium.

Another time at the same time in the show the policemen skidaddled to front of house to come in through a sidedoor - only to find the doors locked and they couldn't get in. No staff about either. That was a nervous few minutes.

I can't remember the exact circumstances, but Sean Jones once fell off the back of the stage.

More for bad behaviour - some audience members had been chatting throughout act II, and gotten so loud during the emotional pills-scene that Sean Jones and Gemma Brodrick briefly paused and glared.

Not the same but I want to mention when unintentionally right.

In the David Tennant Love's Labour's Lost he had to toss away a straw hat at the beginning when Berowne submit's himself to the King of Navarre's strict rules. The night I saw it he tossed it behind him and it neatly landed on the branch of the tree that was the set. The audience clapped at his moment of time lord magic and he gave a shrug in return to laughter. I'm sure that performance was recorded and I went the archives to watch the recording years later and it happened then.

Seeing the first The Producers tour at the Mayflower Theatre, when Corey English as Max threw Leo Bloom's (Joe Pasquale) coat away in their first scene shouting 'Then account for yourself' the coat flew across the stage and landed neatly on the coat hook by the his apartment door. Received applause from the audience to which Corey broke the forth wall and said 'just for the Mayflower'

Things that went wrong...

I still remember the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton's Christmas show of the Wind in the Willows many moons ago. Ratty and Mole are left alone by badger at his home with some food he has left on these tiered platters. Suddenly one of them collapses and platters and food went everywhere, leaving everyone guffawing and Mole and Ratty couldn't stop corpsing. Even Ratty took a moment to point out the food on the other tiered platter still standing to more laughter.

I remember ushering the show, sitting in the theatre foyer one evening with an old chap who'd come to pick his wife up after the show.

Mickey used to make his entrance from the back of the auditorium, which meant quite a lengthy run from stage left through a pass door, up a staircase, down another staircase, and a scoot across the main foyer, so he'd be coming at quite a speed.

He shot across the foyer, gun in hand and slammed his way through the door into the stalls.  We were quite used to it happening, so just carried on chatting while the gentleman's eyes got wider and wider, especially when the two policemen sauntered down the stairs too, also with guns, and followed Mickey into the auditorium.  We had to explain that it was all part of the show, and that there wasn't some kind of siege going on