Longest moment of silence in a musical you have ever had...

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:06pm

I'd say the interval between "The Music Still Plays On" and "Don't Give In" in A NEW BRAIN, clocking in at about 45 seconds! As he slowly moves away from the piano, and drops down to sleep thinking he will die as the light slowly fades to black. Nothing but silence... but then "Don't Give In" suddenly starts playing from the chirpy celeste which BREAKS THE SILENCE!

Anyone got any others? Can you beat mine?

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:07pm

I never timed it, but the scene right after "Ladies Who Lunch" in COMPANY.

[Katurian2]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:15pm

When Jonathan sits down and stares at the piano before beginning "Why" in "Tick, tick...BOOM!"

Beautiful and moving.

[jordangirl]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:15pm

Towards the end of the closing performance of Next to Normal there was a huge silence right after Diana says "Your brother died..." to Natalie. Alice broke and sobbed a couple of times, and then worked to compose herself to finish the scene. It was amazing and powerful. (And you could have heard a pin drop in the theatre.)

There was always a pretty long silence in the final scene with Dan and Natalie too. It was hard to time because Brian's performance changed subtly from one show to another.

Updated On: 3/29/08 at 10:15 PM

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:18pm

At the end of the revival of Cabaret, people gasped, and then were was a long period of silence, in complete darkness, where you could have heard a pin drop. Then, ever so slowly, the applause began, and started to build. I will never forget the first time I saw it. Chilling. By far one of the best evening's I've ever spend in a theater.

[antiandrewx]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:41pm

In GREY GARDENS right after "Another Winter in a Summer Town" when Little Edie is contemplating going back to Grey Gardens. It was a brilliant, brilliant moment, and the night I saw it, the silence was very long.
Updated On: 3/29/08 at 10:41 PM

[logan0215]

Posted: 3/29/08 at 10:45pm

The goodbye kiss after "Let's Walk" between Margarent Johnson and Signor Nacarelli is led up to and followed by a very long silence in The Light in the Piazza.

[puppetman2]

Posted: 3/30/08 at 12:18am

The ending of the original WEST SIDE STORY as they carried Tony's body out with Maria following with the vail over her head. It is the only time I ever heard the chain in the bottom of the curtain as it hit the floor. There was a long period of silence before the applause began.

[Josh Freilich]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 12:40am

The goodbye kiss after "Let's Walk" between Margarent Johnson and Signor Nacarelli is led up to and followed by a very long silence in The Light in the Piazza.

...that was BROKEN when I went to see it. A cell went off. Whoever it was had it just let it go. Everyone in the audience was shooting daggers at that person. I covered my ears to see what would happen if they broke character, which they didn't, amazingly.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 12:53am

I second the Grey Gardens moment. :)

[Theatreboy49]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 12:57am

i agree after company its a long pause and for some reason i always find it very chilling.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 1:05am

It may have not been the longest but the most moving was in the Def West Revival of BIG RIVER.
After a chorus or two of I AM WAITNG FOR THE LIGHT TO SHINE
the band and the singers stopped and the entire cast signed the next verse and when I saw it, I thought the entire audience held it's breath.
And there was an emotional sigh when they started singing again.
Brilliant on so many levels.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 9:09am

That revival of BIG RIVER was GLORIOUS and it is an utter shame that it was essentially ignored at the Tonys.

No Best Director nomination - it should have won (Joe Mantello won for ASSASSINS).

No Featured Actor nomination for Tyrone Giordano, who should have won (Michael Cerveris won for ASSASSINS).

It also should have won Best Revival (ASSASSINS won).

The Administration Committee attempted to make up for it later on by awarding a Tony Award for Excellence in Theatre to the entire cast of the production, which was deserved, but it should have won the aforementioned three awards.

Anyone who missed that production certainly missed out on something never seen on Broadway that was executed to stunning effect.

Updated On: 4/26/08 at 09:09 AM

[Trekkie2]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 9:49am

I'd say Avenue Q, right after "You can be as loud as the hell you want (When you're making love)". There was a long moment of silence for all puppets who have ever died during sex. Very moving.

[tazber]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 10:51am

I second the finale of the Cabaret revival. No one seemed to know whether it was even appropriate to applaud.

[DG]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 10:58am

Another vote for the "Waiting for the Light to Shine" moment in the BIG RIVER revival - truly stunning.

[KirbyCat]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 5:56pm

Last night of Tarzan... at Jane and her Father's farewells near the end of the show. Right after they are done talking- a cell phone rings... It was so loud because the ENTIRE theater was quiet. You could tell that Jenn Gambatese could hear it. After the phone rings, you hear a faint **sorry** and then more silence...

Terrible show, but I still feel bad for the actors that were onstage.

[TomMonster]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 6:06pm

A CATERED AFFAIR has a wonderfully long silence...Faith on the fire escape waiting for the dawn.

(Of course, that's the moment the lady sitting next to me decides to chat with her husband...)

[scott68]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 6:06pm

Another vote for the end of Grey Gardens. It wasn't the longest, but it packed such an emotional wallop. On my way out of the theatre, the woman walking down the steps in front of me (I was in the mezzanine, obviously) was quietly sobbing into a tissue the entire way out, and I understood entirely.

[timesquare01]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 8:52pm

idk if this counts.

but my high school did West Side. and after the bit where they taunt Anita, after Doc breaks it up, right before the line "Bernardo was right about you.." there was this truly chilling moment where the girl who played Anita (who was phenomenal) stood up, fixed her dress, wrapped her shawl back around her head, and slowly walked down the line of Jets , staring each one of them in the eye.


a good 45 seconds. probably more.
first time i saw it in rehearsal, i heald my breath. it was amazing.

[kathy selden]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 9:05pm

My son was in the Pit last spring for his high school production of Fiddler on the roof (not allowed to play the fiddle part on stage.. argh!!) - but right after Tevye sings "Little Bird" - my son played the most beautiful, haunting piece on his violin and then not a pin drop. Just amazing. I still get chills.
Thanks for letting me share about high school productions, I'm sure where most of our Great White Way stars and swings got their starts.

[BNN]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 9:31pm

I second Ladies Who Lunch from the revival, the audience was stunned. As well as the scene with Kathy in the park, people were speechless.

[TheEnchantedHunter]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:38pm

When a conductor forgot to come in with the music while the actors waited onstage.



Lola Delaney
In A Midwestern City
Updated On: 4/29/08 at 11:38 PM

[SahDu]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 3:10am

Regarding Ladies Who Lunch, I was at the performance where some jerk let their cell phone go off immediately following. Absolutely brutal. Barbara Walsh stayed with it and it worked but still...brutal.
Updated On: 2/15/14 at 03:10 AM

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 3:28am

When I saw A CATERED AFFAIR (Monday, the 21st) there was THE MOST BEAUTIFUL SILENCE bestowed upon the theater after Tom's solo "I Stayed" (which was absolutely stunning, btw). He walks out, y'know, and Faith is just ... sitting there, looking out and over into the distance. Reflecting. That sole moment - Door slams. SILENCE. I wanted to applaud, but something told me ... "Wait for it, let this sink-in for everyone." It was the most beautiful moment - THAT and Faith's fire escape moment. Truly, truly profoundly moving, prolonged silences.