I didn't read this thread's original purpose as telling posters that they shouldn't critique a performance. I read it as "why do posters feel they have the right to BASH actors?"
Example of the Bash versus Critique difference:
Bashing: "Bobbie and Ciento haven't had an original concept in years"
Critiquing: "I saw Footloose and thought the staging was unoriginal and the direction was lacking focus"
See the difference? I do, but many others on this board feel bashing IS critiquing, even when a performance has yet to be seen. It's discouraging to see so many theater fans bash the actors, directors and choreographers with generalized statements such as "uggh....Applegate couldn't act her way out of a box" or " Bobbie is a boob". That's not critiquing, and that's what the original poster is trying to point out.
I am all for critiquing performances that have been SEEN. The bashing however, is unprofessional and unwarranted.
"My dreams, watching me said, one to the other...this life has let us down."