Broadway Audiences
Broadway Audiences
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
#1Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 10:08pm
Are Broadway audiences more supportive/enthusiastic than in other cities? In Atlanta, generally, everyone might as well be comatose while watching the shows. Polite applause only. I've witnessed some exceptions, but not many.
I want to give all my support to the cast members who work so hard up there. I laugh, cry, cheer and applaud enthusiastically. I also love musicals so much that I want to tap my feet and move a bit in my seat to up-beat numbers. Is this frowned upon? I realize that it's a fine line and depends on the show to some extent. But, what are the rules of etiquette when it comes to this in New York?
Updated On: 7/23/09 at 10:08 PM
#2re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 10:14pmI get the feeling that as long your enthusiasm isn't over the top then go ahead... of course i do not live in New York.
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#2re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 10:22pm
It can vary greatly from show to show, even performance to performance. I frankly feel as if NY audiences are OVERLY enthusiastic....that somehow GIVING a standing ovation quantifies thier ticket price.
Don't worry about others, love for the sake of loving.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
#3re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 10:22pm
I love seeing audience members enjoying a show. I think showing enthusiasm is fine as long as it doesn't distract anyone else. I find myself tapping my feet sometimes too. I once caught myself mouthing the words to a song. No one should sing along out loud though. Clapping and cheering at the end of each song is fine, as long as it doesn't happen during the song all the time (at last shows I've heard this though, which is sometimes ok then I guess). Of course you can laugh or cry, as long as it isn't obnoxiously loud or anything that is distracting to the actors and people around you.
And of course, no texting, eating, talking, etc. Those are my biggest pet peeves. We've had past threads of audience theater etiquette, you could search for those if you'd like.
Updated On: 7/23/09 at 10:22 PM
fgreene1938
Leading Actor Joined: 10/25/06
#4re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 10:24pmEver since Broadway became primarily a tourist trap/attraction audiences have become increasingly demonstrative, like the reaction has to be commensurate with the price tag. In the Golden Age of Broadway (the '40s, '50s and '60s) standing ovations were rare and audiences did not react with hysteria at what took place on the stage. American culture now dictates: everything's a monumental event and every celebrity must be genuflected to, regardles of accomplishment. That's show-biz.
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
#5re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 11:15pm
fgreene1938 - Well, that figures! I hate the thought that people would give a standing-o out of obligation instead of genuine enthusiasm.
legally_popular - Texting during a performance?! Oh, that's awful! Can't they turn the damn things off for 2 hours?
#6re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/23/09 at 11:17pm
I laugh, cry, cheer and applaud enthusiastically. I also love musicals so much that I want to tap my feet and move a bit in my seat to up-beat numbers. Is this frowned upon?
If you're sitting next to me it is. SIT STILL, FOR GOD'S SAKES.
"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt
heo1128
Broadway Star Joined: 7/9/08
#7re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 12:10amCompared to what I've seen in Chicago, B'way audiences seem to be A LOT more responsive.
#8re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 12:24amSeveral Brits who have appeared on Broadway have commented on how much more demonstrative NY audiences are as compared to London audiences.
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#9re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 2:39am^Except for Kerry Ellis who complained that Broadway audiences were practically sleeping (I forget her exact words). I guess she just made them sleep, lol.
Mel089
Understudy Joined: 3/1/09
#10re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 2:43amwicked bway doesn't get the same kind of audience reception as the other sitdowns, not as fangirl ridden
.x.EdEnEsPiNosA.x.
Chorus Member Joined: 8/1/08
#12re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 7:42am
When "The Drowsy Chaperone" came to London there was a line added which was:
"This album was actually made during the london run of the show, which is funny because you don't hear much laughter on the recording".
I must say though, I don't get how standing ovations are any more common in New York than in London, and I think for that it is down to the show. I saw 10 musicals on broadway last year and only 1 or 2 got ovations (Gypsy was one of them).
#13re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 8:08am^It seems like at every show, people give a standing ovation. I think I've seen it every performance I've been too, at least from the orchestra section. Some shows/performers deserve it of course, but the standing O sort of loses its merit when it's done every single time.
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
#15re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 12:27pm
lizzieCurry "If you're sitting next to me it is. SIT STILL, FOR GOD'S SAKES."
Ummm-hmmm. That's what I thought. I guess I'll take my cues from those around me.
#16re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 12:46pm
If I could change the subject from ovations to something else for a minute-
What is the thing with people taking pictures of each other, of the curtain, etc. as soon as they enter the theatre? It isn't allowed! It's annoying! Stop it! I don't know how many people did it the other night when I revisited West Side Story. Thankfully, the ushers did stop a few.
#17re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 12:47pmI know, I never got the "I'm in my seat!" photo phenomenon. Even if it were allowed, I wouldn't take one. You wouldn't get much due to the flash overpowering everything in the foreground, and if you used no flash, you're SOL.
"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt
#18re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 2:04pm
I don't know how many people did it the other night when I revisited West Side Story. Thankfully, the ushers did stop a few.
They finally started to try? When I was there a while ago they didn't even bother in most of the mezz and balcony. Beyond annoying.
ghostlight2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/5/04
#19re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 2:12pm
I don't get the "Hey look, I'm in a theater!" photography. I don't get the "Hey, look, it's me in front of the Grand Canyon" or Eiffel tower or whatever, either, but if it means something to them, so what? It doesn't bother me as long as they put it away for the duration of the show.
I'm with Lizzie. Discreet toe-tapping, okay. Otherwise stay still. You can be enthusiastic and applaud without drawing attention to yourself and being obnoxious. Also? Please don't shout in my ear.
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
bwayfan7000
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/28/09
#21re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 3:11pmShowing your enthusiasm is fine, but PLEASE don't sing along. At The Little Mermaid, this girl behind me (who was about my age, 17) sang loudly the well-known songs from the movie. I have never had to shoot someone so many dirty looks in my life!
"Art, in itself, is an attempt to bring order out of chaos."-Stephen Sondheim
#22re: Broadway Audiences
Posted: 7/24/09 at 3:19pm
I'm with Lizzie. Discreet toe-tapping, okay. Otherwise stay still. You can be enthusiastic and applaud without drawing attention to yourself and being obnoxious. Also? Please don't shout in my ear.
Yep, I'm all for enjoying yourself and showing it, as long as said showing it doesn't get in my line of vision. Or hearing.
My sister was a pretty hardcore ballet/jazz dancer from the age of 2 to about 22. So my childhood was filled with going to dance shows. Oh, the times I had to tell my dad to stop bopping along to the music...
"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt
lovinlovett
Stand-by Joined: 7/18/05
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