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Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

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#2

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

At my High School we do professional shows. We spend a lot of money and we have a lot of talent. But recently we did Once on this Island, so the director wanted a lot of dancers in the show. So he had dance majors audition and the majority of the cast were ethnic dancers. So during the show, when you werent on stage, you had to stand at the mic and sing. well a lot of the dancers would go back into the dressing rooms and blast rap music and dance. it was SO annoying. never again do i want to work with that many FRESHMAN dance majors.
#3

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

When I was in 7th grade and didn't get into the school musical (which pretty much sucked, and no, I'm not saying that just because I'm bitter re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?), the girl who got the lead kept GOING OUT, INTO THE AUDIENCE TO TALK TO HER FRIENDS, who were standing in the back because there weren't enough seats.

She was right next to me and she had the most obnoxious laugh ever.

So, it was just middle school, but COME ON PEOPLE.
I get lost, unless, of course, I'm getting found.
#4

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I'm afraid I'm guilty of being unprofessional...When I was in Wonderland, I was only in three scenes. The girl playing Alice had really bad cramps (TMI, I know), and she was at the point where she was doubled over practically crying. So I left in the middle of the show and got her some Midol.

When I was in the 8th grade musical, two of the boys from the chorus got in a huge fight backstage at one of the performances over a chair. One was sitting in it, the other told him to move, the one in the chair punched the other in the face, and it went from there. It was ridiculous, but pretty entertaining all the same.

Edit: Thought of another!

When I was in Annie Get Your Gun at my high school, the day of the in-school performance, Frank came in stoned out of his mind. That was actually his best performance.

Updated On: 12/4/05 at 11:53 AM

#5

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

haha Justagirl2 don't worry i've done worse i was in a production of Aida and I played Zoser...Zoser has his two big scenes in Act One and doesn't go on again until "Like Father" Every night I would get out of costume and go down to Walgreens and pick up candy and soda and stuff for the cast and occasionally go shop the random stores as well. I never missed anything but yeah that was really unproffessional of me
RIP Natasha Richardson. ~You were a light on this earth ~
#7

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I haven't actually witnessed this, but it's sort of a story.

Our good friend Michael has been crew captain for a professional theatre for many many years. He has the ability to hire crew people as well, and hired a close friend of his to be a stage hand for the theatre's recent production of AIDA.

He said that she bad-mouthed the show and the cast/crew backstage a lot, and also got in a fight backstage that was heard over the speakers during a performance. She was fired immediately after this fiasco.
What the puck?!
#8

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

In a production of "The Crucible" I was in, there were people that left in the middle of the show. To go to Starbucks. It was crazy.
"This table, he is over one hundred years old. If I could, I would take an old gramophone needle and run it along the surface of the wood. To hear the music of the voices. All that was said." - Doug Wright, I Am My Own Wife
#9

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I was a co-makeup manager for a two-week run of Rumors by Neil Simon. During intermission, it was time for touch ups so I went to the makeup station to find two sound crewbies having an airbrush fight. I flipped. As the details may be slightly incriminating, I will leave you all with the simple conclusion that withing Philomath Theatre that will never.... ever.... happen again. ^_^
#11

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

we were doing 42nd street, and had built a train to open up on stage during Shuffle off to Buffalo, since people where in the train for a while (they had to be) we had stashed food and cards and bunch of other stuff up there... it was really bad especially when people would try to open candy bar wrapers and "forgot" about the mics they had on....

oh and ~FloweryFriend~ our director came in and yelled at us too, but it was a different show, not 42nd street
#12

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

Freshman year we did "You're a good man Charlie Brown" and we had to perform it in on theatre room stage because our local performing arts center is like impossible to get dates for. And our stage didn't have curtains so we had to set up back drop panels that were hinged together (some what like an accordian). Well of course one of the guys was messing around and running back stage (in a space that is only 2 1/2 feet wide) and our panels almost came toppling down during a musical interlude. It made the most awful racket I've ever heard. It was kinda funny though looking back :)
*Do you think you can make me sing. . . I sing for myself, you can get me there but do you really think you can make me sing?*-Judy Garland
#13

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

lol ff- 'stop sucking'- thats awesome

my high school was very prof. with shows we did, the worst i saw was during grease when a fight broke out about a pink lady between 2 thunderbirds. A fist went through a window that year. The pink lady threantened to (no lie) kill herself on stage. My poor director.

Talk about high school drama.
"talent is wanting something hard enough to work for it" - my drama teacher :)
#14

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I was in a production at my high school of an adaptation of the whole War of the Worlds radio broadcast thing (it wasn't one of our big shows, just a one-act during the winter, but it was actually a lot of fun). The second night we were all back stage waiting to start, and RIGHT before we go on, the guy who was playing Orson Wells turns to me and goes "GOD I'm stoned". The entire time I was on stage all I could think was "If he screws up, I'll kill him".

Also, when we did Chicago, at our final dress rehearsal one of the backup dancers said she had to leave early. Why? Because her boyfriend was coming over. At my high school, you do NOT miss any part dress rehearsals unless you're deathly ill. The director tells everyone the first week of rehearsals that they are not allowed to make any plans for dress rehearsal days because we will go as late as we need to go to polish stuff up. So, yeah, boyfriend? Not so much the good excuse. When she told the director she said "Do you ever want to be in a show at this school again?" She said she did. "Well then, you're not leaving, are you?" SMACKDOWN. Hah.
#15

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I can't remember a specific instance. But I know that when I was in the ensemble of a few shows and hardly in any numbers I've left to go somewhere. I'm not saying it was right...but I did it.
"You won't fight without layers of armor Suit on up and come brace my sword You look back when the pieces are missing Hollowed out hope that no time can restore."
#16

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

Oh shoot! I meant to respond to the post that talked about the "most unprofessional thing YOUVE done in a show"...you know the breakin the fourth wall one! opppss! sorry and I don't know how to delete a post...well can you delete a post? hmm..
"You won't fight without layers of armor Suit on up and come brace my sword You look back when the pieces are missing Hollowed out hope that no time can restore."
#17

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I once saw a Famous Broadway Star, a familiar name on these boards, intoxicated out of their minds. Their big solo number in Act Two was nowhere near on pitch. Nowhere near at all. Embarrassing.
"If my life weren't funny, it would just be true. And that would be unacceptable." --Carrie Fisher
#18

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

Community theater. We were doing Cinderella and there was this giant golden coach thing backstage and it was used as a popular make-out spot. Cinderella and Prince Charming were "getting it on", missed their cue and came onstage all mussed with smeared makeup, disheveled hair, the works. Then, to top it off,t hey kept breaking character and giving each other secret little giggles. Ugh.
#19

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

Um, during my last dance recital we ordered pizza backstage. In our defense, it was after the selections from Swan Lake, so we didn't get any grease on our white tutus...

I usually do the Nutcracker with the local professional ballet company (which is the premier company in the state), and the advanced girls are only in the first act, so we always go out to the audience to watch the second act (which is the only good part anyway). One night, the guy dancing the Cavalier/Prince (whatever you call it) was off, and he just kept screwing things up during his variation in the Grand Pas. At the end, he did his final pirouettes and fell out of the landing, and instead of just straightening up and bowing, he visibly rolled his eyes and like, stomped offstage. It bothered me so much. Just because they do this multiple times every year doesn't mean this isn't the first time going to the ballet for a lot of people in the audience.
"Sawyer, you're going out a youngster, but you've got to come back a star!"
#22

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

Haha- high school- our school put on 42nd Street and one of our "barfiles" for "I know Now" was stoned every rehearsal and show. But, it fit with his character.
"Are you sorry for civilization? I am sorry for it too." ~Coast of Utopia: Shipwreck
#23

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

I worked costumes for a community theatre production of Hunchback, and one of the actors who played a guard got into a fight with the actress who played Esmerelda. When it was the scene where he arrested her, rather than say his actual lines he started screaming obsenities about the "gypsy b*tch" and grabbed her much rougher than was necisary. She was honestly scared he was going to hurt her onstage and the audience would think it was supposed to happen. He was kicked out of the show. :x Talk about unprofessional.
#24

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

During Once on this Island, we were walking offstage after Once Small Girl and this girl reached in her shirt and took out her cellphone and started texting backstage....during the show...but the audience im sure could totally see her take it out of her shirt from the angle she was at...freshman....tisk tisk.
#25

re: Most Unprofessional Thing You've Ever Witnessed During a Performance?

In H2$, at our first performance (last week), Smitty and I (Miss Jones) decided to go buy a snack from the snack machine during our 5-scene break. I was really worried, but we succeeded. Also, I had a huge bag of pretzels backstage that the cast ate when we weren't on. I know, pretty unprofessional, nut still fun.

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