#1
Posted: 1/21/06 at 3:46pm
Patti's really a wild and crazy kinda gal and her audience antics are right on the money, unfortunately too often.
Actors CAN see and sometimes hear everything in the first few rows; nose pickers, picnicers, snorkers, sneezers, farters, chatters, sleepers, smilers, etc. Have we no class!
It's a great place to see most shows. I thought I'd share a few personal front row follies. This took place at the Plymouth Thea. during the run of Jekyll & Hyde. Front row at the Plymouth is 6" from the lip of the stage (orchestra pit is upper stage left) so you are really "part of the action" onstage.
This can be a bad thing if you are a spitting actor and a front row patron. One patron, quite familiar with Rob Evan's flowing juices, used her souviner program as a shield during "The Confrontation" scene to avoid any projectile liquids. Rob nearly lost it as he looked down at her.
Another Plymouth show involved an actor's final performance, (details shall remain nameless). He dared us to "tomatoe him" for his final curtain call. As we proceeded to line up plastic tomatoes on the edge of the stage, he went stark white and used another leading man as a decoy to avoid being a target. The audience wasn't sure what was going on as he held his hands close to his face in a praying position during his final bows.
Also, beware of actors who see you sitting in the front rows and have the urge to "connect" with you either visually or physcially. This can be fatal during an innapropiate time if you get a case of the giggles...onstage or in the seats.
Lastly, never bring a container of tuna salad within the first few rows of an overheated theater. It wasn't me, but trust me, it travels.
Actors CAN see and sometimes hear everything in the first few rows; nose pickers, picnicers, snorkers, sneezers, farters, chatters, sleepers, smilers, etc. Have we no class!
It's a great place to see most shows. I thought I'd share a few personal front row follies. This took place at the Plymouth Thea. during the run of Jekyll & Hyde. Front row at the Plymouth is 6" from the lip of the stage (orchestra pit is upper stage left) so you are really "part of the action" onstage.
This can be a bad thing if you are a spitting actor and a front row patron. One patron, quite familiar with Rob Evan's flowing juices, used her souviner program as a shield during "The Confrontation" scene to avoid any projectile liquids. Rob nearly lost it as he looked down at her.
Another Plymouth show involved an actor's final performance, (details shall remain nameless). He dared us to "tomatoe him" for his final curtain call. As we proceeded to line up plastic tomatoes on the edge of the stage, he went stark white and used another leading man as a decoy to avoid being a target. The audience wasn't sure what was going on as he held his hands close to his face in a praying position during his final bows.
Also, beware of actors who see you sitting in the front rows and have the urge to "connect" with you either visually or physcially. This can be fatal during an innapropiate time if you get a case of the giggles...onstage or in the seats.
Lastly, never bring a container of tuna salad within the first few rows of an overheated theater. It wasn't me, but trust me, it travels.
www.pbentertainmentinc.com
BWW regional writer "Philadelphia/South Jersey"
