Hilarious Comments Overheard By Tourists and Audience Members- Page 15

Posted: 7/1/06 at 2:53pm

We performed the first act of Rumors for my high school. The next day during lunch a girl recognized me and asked me when the show was. I told her when we'd be performing. She asked me, "Are you going to do the second act?" and I said, "Yeah, we're doing the whole show-- first act included." and she says, "Why would you do that? We've already seen the first act."

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 6:02pm

Now obviously the woman misread the marquee. I can understand misreading a marquee, but to not recognize the name of the American classic novel or, in their case, the movie, "The Color Purple", or to think that Oprah Winfrey would produce a show called "The Colored People"? Oh dear. That was quite a moment.

You actually have no idea call my office to tickets to The Colored Purple. I always try to correct them, but it hardly ever sticks...after the Tonys, I swear I heard it at least once a day!

Another exchange:
Me. There is a performance on that Thursday at eight o'clock.
CUSTOMER. At night?
ME. Excuse me?
CUSTOMER. Eight at night?
ME. Well, yes. Eight PM.
CUSTOMER. When's the next show?
ME. Eight PM Friday, the following evening.
CUSTOMER. So there's not a later show?
ME. No, the show is about two and a half hours.
CUSTOMER. So there's only one that night?
ME. Yeah...

[Dollypop]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 6:04pm

At THE DROWSY CHAPERONE on Thursday night:

"Do you think we'll be able to get tickets for LESTAT on short notice?"

[WhenURScrap]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 6:09pm

I think they waited too long for the short notice...

Though my Aunt did see the Fiddler marquee still up when we were there last spring break. She wanted to see it. I of course knew it had already closed.

Also, I was seeing Dames at Sea at a regional theatre here in Ohio and my friend and I just randomly overheard the lady behind us talknig about some show and then asked the other ... "What are you a Christmas tree?" I guess you had to be there.

[Elphaba.Fabala.Fae]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 6:16pm

Haha, this thread is great...

My sister saw The Wild Party in 2000, and she she said there were these two middle aged women who were so excited they were getting to see Mandy Patinkin...

Woman 1: Mandy Patinkin is in this!
Woman 2: Really?!I've heard she's FABULOUS.


aye aye aye...You'd think people would at least look inside the playbill at the headshots!
Updated On: 7/1/06 at 06:16 PM

[LittleRed00]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 6:22pm

This is the most hysterical thread EVER.

At Drowsy last Saturday night:

Woman 1 Behind Me: Who is this Sutton Foster girl, I've never heard of her?
Woman 2 Behind Me: Oh, I think she was on some sitcom a while back.
Woman 1: Really?
Woman 2: Yes, I'm almost positive. I don't really remember what show, though...
Woman 1: Oh, well it says here she was in "Grease"! She must be good!

Oy...I guess the Tony Award/nominations don't validate her talent at all...and wouldn't a sitcom be mentioned in her bio???

[mrslovett7]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 8:57pm

At the Sweeney matinee today. I wanted to punch this person in the face!

As I'm walking to the bathroom during intermission I hear this guy say, "They definately aren't all playing those instruments, they have an orchestra somewhere"

................::head::desk:: I honestly thought it was a joke..sadly it wasn't. I immediately thought of this thread!!!!

Then as I was walking out I hear this other guy say, "Well, that was pretentious"

oh dear god...

[SDav10495]

Posted: 7/1/06 at 9:30pm

Boy to his parents while looking at the auction set before Phantom:
"Oh, I know this--I read the book. This is going to be the scene when he's first born and the chandelier lights his face on fire."

Dialogue with my friend a few months before Les Mis left town:
Me: "You just saw Les Mis?"
Him: "Yeah."
Me: "I'm actually seeing it for the first time in a few days."
Him: "Oh, then definitely make sure you see the one at the Imperial Theatre. That's the one I saw and it was great."
What's most depressing is that this is a person who has lived in New York all his life and has seen many Broadway shows...

[hermionejuliet]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 12:54am

I went to see the Les Mis tour last night (best touring production I've seen in quite some time). This comment is courtesy of my mother, the woman who many years ago started my theatre obsession.

Me: Wow, that was a great production.
Mom: Yeah, that guy who played Jean Paul was wonderful.
Me: You mean Jean Valjean?

I'm sorry, but Jean Paul just sounds like some sexy modern French guy! Not to mention, we've seen the show before... and the movie!

[ljay889]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 12:58am

Jewish family behind me at Hello, Dolly (Papermill)

Dad: what's coming next here?
Daugther: Godspell
Dad: ohh. we'll be skipping that one...
Updated On: 7/2/06 at 12:58 AM

[Stphen1187]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 1:35am

Some of these stories have me peeing my pants...just to followup on how confusing all of the French names in 'Les Mis' can be, the first time I saw 'Les Mis' was when the tour played in West Point, NY in late October of 2003. I had recently been notified that my high school would be producing the student edition in the spring, and because I had missed it on Broadway, I jumped at the chance to finally see the show. I brought along a family friend who isn't especially unintelligent, but might have benefited from reading the synopsis printed in the playbill. During "A Little Fall of Rain," she turned to my mom and asked (with all sincerity), "that's Colette, right?" Not only did she have the characters mixed up, but she must have totally missed the bit in the beginning of "The Thenardier Waltz of Treachery" when Thenardier refers to Young Cosette as "Colette" as is corrected by Mme. Thenardier.
I wound up playing Javert in that production, and the week after the show opened/closed, my sociology commented on how my character "so doggedly hunted for Jean Paul." I didn't have the heart to correct her, so I just smiled and accepted her compliment.

[ILoveMyDictionary]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 10:03am

At Hairspray last night

Women 1: What's Avenue Q about?
Women 2: It's cute. It's a musiacl with puppets, but the puppeteers are on stage too.
Women 1: Oh that sounds nice. I should take Emily. Her last day of kindergardent is tomorrow.
Women 2: She would love it.

[Phantomerik15]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 10:06am

^LOL-they must have had quite a surprise!^

Anyway, I once heard someone ask "What is The Light in the Pizza about?"

Updated On: 7/2/06 at 10:06 AM

[best12bars]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 10:13am

This is my favorite thread on BWW ever.

[Dre2387]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 10:58am

mine too. I really wish I had something to say but I haven't heard or seen anything at all in NYC. sad.

[Kent]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 11:18am

"Legendary aprocryphal story of the Rialto: two postmenopausal women from Lawn-Guyland standing outside the Winter Garden Theatre:

Matinee Lady A: 'Have you seen CATS?'

Matinee Lady B: 'No...'

Matinee Lady A: 'Well, I'll tell you what happens. There's a bunch of cats, and one of them is real sick and tired. So the other cats put on a show to cheer her up. Then they put her on a tire and shoot her through the roof."

---From "Broadway Musicals, The 101 Greatest Shows of All Time, by Ken Bloom & Frank Vlastnik

They add:

"Broadway's first show for the tired Japanese businessman. CATS baffled experienced Broadwayites but struck a chord with prepubescent girls, school trips from places that didn't have their own thee-ay-ter, and a few other people---we're not sure who, but it certainly ran. And ran. And ran..."

[Anakela]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 12:10pm

Overheard in the elevator at work:

"Oh so I forgot to ask, what show are you going to see tonight?"
"Something something Spelling Bee- I don't remember the name."
"Oh wow, that was fast."
"What?"
"That movie, Akeelah and the Bee, they've already made a play out of it?"


Man I hate being trapped in small confined places when overhearing these things- it's so hard to not laugh at people in front of them. :)


eta:Women 1: What's Avenue Q about?
Women 2: It's cute. It's a musiacl with puppets, but the puppeteers are on stage too.
Women 1: Oh that sounds nice. I should take Emily. Her last day of kindergardent is tomorrow.
Women 2: She would love it.

It's ok, cause Kate Monster is a kindergarten teaching assistant, right? :) Updated On: 7/2/06 at 12:10 PM

[Wicked_fan]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 1:54pm

This thread... though hilarious... makes me sad inside, it also makes me doubt humanity.

This isn't broadway related, but kind of theater related. While at American College Theater Festival this year, I was walking behind this girl who passed a table with a banner that said "Registration":

Girl: Whenever I see the word registration, I think of perspiration and I'm just like...I don't want any of that...

[canirollerskate]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 2:34pm

One woman in pleated gray pants with tennis shoes and fanny pack still attached. Lobby of Vivian Beaumont upon exit of The Light in the Piazza.

Woman 1: You know, I just wished they woulda tried to make it funny. Or funnier. She was very good, but it just wasn't funny enough.

Woman 2: I know. But it's hard to be really funny, you know, because the girl was retarded. But did you see the costumes? They were gorgeous.

Same evening, performance of Light in the Piazza, about to start Act 2. Father and Son who are seated a row behind me.

Father: Interesting story.
Son: Yeah. This set if awesome.
Father: You know, I just don't think the score is very good.
Son: It isn't very catchy.

(Me...Adam Guettel adoree, trying not to die laughing. Well, to each their own. At least they were discussing it, and saw it, and that's lovely.)

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 2:41pm

The score to THE LIGHT IN PIAZZA may be brilliant, but it's NOT catchy.

[morosco]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 2:43pm

Idiotic conversation I heard while walking out with the crowd after FOSSE...

WIFE: Can you imagine doing that show? Boy I'll bet they're tired!
HUSBAND: Tired?!!? Honey, they only work 2 hours a day!!

[thevolleyballer]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 3:11pm

HAH! Morosco, that's really funny, but actually, it's so true. They do only work a few hours a day, so he's not wrong there, but still... he's so wrong. Hah.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 3:15pm

When I saw the "Hairspray" tour in Miami back in March, I was front row center and a very nice elderly couple was sitting next to me. They fell asleep during "Good Morning Baltimore" and woke up sometime later, around "I Can Hear The Bells." During intermission:

Elderly Woman: Well that is just... very.... interesting. Are you enjoying it?
Me: Very much so.
Elderly Woman: Oh yes.. that woman playing the mother of that fat girl is a HOOT!
Me: Ma'am.... the mother is played by a man.
Elderly Man: (obviously having hearing issues) A WHAT?!
Me: A man sir..
Elderly Woman: *laughs* Young man, I think I can tell the difference between a woman and a man... it says right here in the Playbill that it's played by... JP something or other. I am sure that stands for Joanna Paula or something quite lady like.
Me: *laughing* Whatever you say..
Elderly Woman: Now wait just a minute... let's ask someone. *talking to the conductor* Sir! Sir!
Conductor: Yes?
Elderly Woman: Was the actor playing the fat girls mother a man or a woman?
Conductor: The character of Edna is played by a man, ma'am.
Elderly Woman: Well I'll be damned... I KNEW it was a man! Those perky breasts were just too good to be true!

[canirollerskate]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 3:15pm

Of course, I'd openly agree that the Light in the Piazza score is not catchy- I think that's the very reason a lot of us here adore it. I guess I just found humor in the fact that someone had used the word "catchy" at Piazza at all. Then I thought, geez, what's this kid going to think of "Aiutami"!?!?!?

[TomMonster]

Posted: 7/2/06 at 3:19pm

An elderly couple at Light in the Piazza:

"Ugh, this music is terrible. There are no catchy melodies. Bring back Sondheim!"