Bad Audience Behavior- Page 4

[karen24]

Posted: 5/27/07 at 6:00pm

Quite a long time ago, I was at a production of "A Doll's House" and it was at the final, emotional scene where (spoiler!) Nora has just walked out her husband, and he's alone in their house yelling out "Nora! Nora!" I think it was just after she'd walked out and before you hear the famous slamming of the door. Anyway, right after he yelled "Nora!" for the first time, some guy in the audience yelled out "WHAT?" really, really loundly. It was awful, as the whole theater had been so completely quiet. Our theory was that either a) he was a complete jerk or b) he had fallen asleep and his wife had decided that he should wake up for the big dramatic moment, so she nudged him, startled him and made him cry out.

On the other hand...we saw "Curtains" last month, and during intermission we got to chatting in the lobby with a nice woman. She was very upset because, she said, her husband/boyfriend had been laughing during the show, and the person next to them told him to be quiet or they would call an usher. She said several times that he was just laughing, maybe a bit loudly, but he was enjoying the show and was laughing during funny parts, not at inappropriate times. It really seemed to have almost ruined the experience for her. I felt badly for her.

[Anakela]

Posted: 5/27/07 at 9:55pm

Saw CORAM BOY matinee today, and about 10 minutes into Act I the guy sitting next to me started snoring! And the snoring would not stop, so I hit his leg with my leg and woke him up. (And then once he was awake he started crinkling the wrapper of whatever was in his hand- but his wife shushed him on that one.) When the snoring started again in Act II, again I hit his leg with my leg to wake him up and make him stop. I'm sorry, but especially at the last performance of a show, if you wanna sleep either learn to do it so that you're not snoring in my ear, or stay in your hotel room.

But I love the thought that there's some guy out there who'll be telling this from his pov someday, about the rude girl who kept encroaching on his limited leg room, or however his version will go. :)

[mrslovett7]

Posted: 5/27/07 at 10:30pm

At Mama Mia (which I was dragged to against my will) this woman came in 10 minutes late with like 30 shopping bags and didn't give me chance to stand up and let her by so she just steps all over me and her big bags hit me in the face. She plops down next to me and I'm like, "ok good, so *that's* over"....WRONG. Throughout the ENTIRE show at every song she sings along and rocks back and forth in her chair thus causing the whole row to move. I was so shocked, I could not believe this was happening. Not only did I NOT want to be there, but this was making it even worse. Then after intermission if you've seen Mama Mia, then you know the entracte is really loud and startling so, this group of girls in my row start screaming, like SCREAMING. Then they start laughing and proceed to re-enact how scared they got when the entracte came on: "oh my god, it was so loud, I was just like AHHH!!!" We know, my dear. We know.

This has to be the worst though. I went with two of my friends to see La Traviata at the NYC Opera, and I mean yes, you should be behaved at any theatre, but I mean this is THE OPERA, don't f*ck around. So this French couple is sitting behind us and the woman proceeds to translate the entire first act into French for her boyfriend...loudly. We all kept turning around and glaring at them. The first act was only about 30 minutes so then after that they move into empty seats in front of us and continue to talk. Then they whip out a pair of binoculars- we were in the 4th ring so yea we were high up, but you could see everything, but when you're that high up and people lean forward it blocks the view of the people behind you. Then the worst thing happens. The woman starts rumaging through her bag, I can hear coins jingling and wrappers and she finally pulls out her cell phone, opens it to a glaring blinding light and then calls her voicemail!! UMMMM HELLO?! and it's on loud enough that we can hear it. So my friend leans forward ans taps her, the woman doesn't turn around so my friend pokes her really hard like 3 times rapidfire. The woman turns around and my friend says, "can you please turn that off" the woman goes, "it's not on" HAHA um it's blaring and ringing. my friend goes, "you're calling your voicemail!" and the woman goes, "no I'm not." I didn't know whether to laugh or slap her phone out of her hand. Anyway she puts her phone away for 30 seconds, then takes it out AGAIN and opens it. so my other friend goes, "jesus christ, people can't go without their phones for 2 hours!" So at that point they get up and leave near the end of the 2nd act and my whole row applauded them out, and let me tell you, the rows at the NYC Opera are looooong so they walked the length of this row to applause. great moment and the 3rd act was splendid.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 5/27/07 at 10:33pm

I heard a cell phone go off for the first time during (SF) Jersey Boys last week.

It was during the "handshake" scene.

[changinandhow]

Posted: 5/27/07 at 10:40pm

When I saw Fiddler 2 years ago, a man with his family in the row in front of me kept making loud, obnoxious comments that everyone around him could hear. Then at one point--I don't remember what was happening onstage--he yelled a comment AT the actors onstage. I was embarrassed for his family.

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 10/19/08 at 5:28pm

Bump...

I just got back from seeing Hairspray- the tour. While it wasn't the greatest (was much better on Broadway the two times I saw it), the group of people behind couldn't have been worse! The only thing that could have happened was their phone could have rung!

There was a family in the row behind me. I think it was grandparents, 4 kids and the parents. One of the kids could not have been more than four years old. She was running back and forth the entire row (which was basically empty besides the family). The one child sitting directly behind me and was throwing almonds, several of them hitting me. I looked back and politely told him to stop. The parents looked at me with a disgusted face and said "what did you just tell my child?" I didn't respond. Then the grandmother started playing with her bead bracelet and dropped it on the floor and asked if I could find it. I told her I was not about to look for it during the show, she would have to wait until it was over. She was not happy and starting searching for at least 10 minutes. The father had put his feet on my chair and kept kicking my head.
The chair to my right was empty and one of the kids was leaning over on it and banging on it. And, toward the end, the grandfather was playing with the youngest child and and was tickling her which then made her laugh and kick the chairs.


I really wanted to say to them:
"You ruined my experience by the behavior of your family and I really do not appreciate it. Please pay me the 36$ I payed for this ticket."

I didn't.

[Kevn520]

Posted: 10/19/08 at 5:51pm

I absolutely hate when people check their cell phones near me. Even if it's not in my direct line of sight, I notice it in my peripheral vision. Nothing pulls me out of a moment or scene quicker than inconsiderate audience members.

[gypsy4]

Posted: 10/19/08 at 6:10pm

I met some of the weirdest people when I went to the phantom of the opera national tour. Well I went to see it with my cousin and we had great seats but then about 10 minutes before curtain this realy weird couple came and the usher had asked them if they needed help finding there seats? and they said yes we have seats 10 and 11 he then pointed to us we had seats 12 and 13 and we told them they were right by us but instead of saying excuse me they just expected us to get up. and the lady who was waring a big and smelled like cigar smoke told us "well don't get mad at me if i have to go to the bathroom" well then the show started and during the whole time they were talking and they had brought in bottles of diet pepsi and they were drinking that. and then intermission came and we got up for them. I was hoping they would leave. act 2 started and the man came in without the lady and he said I guess she hasn't found her way back yet. he walked bak out 5-10 minutes passed he came back in with a flash light looking for his seat he walked about 4 rows passed us and then he walked out we never saw him again.


Updated On: 10/19/08 at 06:10 PM

[LotteTBS138]

Posted: 10/19/08 at 6:33pm

I second Kevn520's comment about cell phones... the other night, at Boeing-Boeing, this teen thought he was way to important and was texting the whole time until the usher told him to stop. So he got up, most likely made a phone call, came back to his seat and started texting below him. Since I was in the balcony, I could see the light and everyone else around me. If people are that important, then why bother going? This is the same in the movies!

BUT, the worse experience I had was Bocelli at the Hollywood Bowl and these drunken dimwits, who obviously never been to a theatre or poses any etiquette, got wasted and started karaoke-ing!

[Kingtito132]

Posted: 10/20/08 at 1:30am

As a performer and theatre lover poor behavior saddens me. And as a 23 year old theatre major who witnesses people of his age and career goals behaving this way saddens me even more. Seeing my age group know nothing about common theatre etiquette makes me think times are changing.

As a course requirement theatre majors are required for a grade to see University shows they are not involved in. They, like people mentioned before, engage in this same behavior, with no regard to what they have been taught. Texting, phone calls, PDA, eating, drinking (both alcoholic and non), lounging on the edge of the stage when in reach... all run rampant.

I don't know how to deal with such problems and feel that there is no fix to these. I know I am a respectful person and try my best to deal and inform these people of there unacceptable and rude behavior hoping that they will become just a little more educated. I can just hope that one day they will learn the proper ways to act.