Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Painfully loud laughing at the theater
#1Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:33pm
I know I'm a bit anal, but I hope I'm not alone here. This has happened to me only a few times in the theater, but it happened twice in one day last week, so I was inspired to bring it up here. This thread is probably nothing more than empathetic commiserating, but I'll post anyway.
Have you ever encountered an audience member who laughed so loudly or so shrilly, it actually detracted from your enjoyment of the performance? I'm talking about someone whose laugh is so loud, you think "either this person is the most oblivious person in the world, obnoxiously wants the whole world to know how much he is enjoying it, or is purposefully trying to blow out my ear drums."
At last year's performance of Pirates of Penzance at City Centre, the woman behind me laughed so boisterously, I would involuntarily wince every time she screamed in laughter. It got to the point that, because I knew the jokes from having been in the show, I anticipated them and hoped they would land flat or be delivered poorly so that my eardrums wouldn't hurt again.
At 9 to 5 last week, I was behind a similar laugher. He was from Tennessee and a loud talker during the intermission (they were criticizing Megan's accent from being from the wrong part of Texas, which I found amusing--Texan linguistic experts), but nothing to justify the ear-piercing yelps he produced.
Each time, I tried to look back at them to give them a hint that they were being disruptive, but it never worked. And I can't think of a way to ask "excuse me, can you stop laughing so loudly?" without sounding insane, rude, or both.
Now, I love enjoying the community experience at a comedy, and laughing with your fellow audience members is a great part. But when another causes you physical pain, it makes it quite difficult!
#2re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:35pmI agree. It can be very painful, especially when the laughs seem quite insincere.
2010
Feb. 28 - Looped, Feb. 28 - Next to Normal, March 4 - Hair, March 11 - A Little Night Music, March 24 - Time Stands Still, April 6 - La Cage Aux Folles, April 10 - Anyone Can Whistle (City Center), April 10 - Looped, May 9 - Enron, May 15 - A Little Night Music, May 15 - A Behanding In Spokane, May 30 - A Behanding In Spokane, May 30 - A Little Night Music, June 20 - A Little Night Music, June 23 - Red, June 23 - Sondheim on Sondheim, July 13 - A Little Night Music, July 18 - The Grand Manner (Lincoln Center)
eatlasagna
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/6/04
#2re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:38pmthe best/worst part of this is when the audience starts to laugh at the person who is laughing in the audience!! this has happened to me at several shows before... quite hiarious and sometimes it actually shuts the person up!!!
#3re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:38pmI have a friend who has a very loud laugh and it can be very distracting. We saw a show together and happened to be sitting front row center at a theatre with no pit. So we were RIGHT THERE. I was so embarrassed because they had to have heard it and it had to be distracting to THEM.
"All our dreams can come true -- if we have the courage to pursue them." -- Walt Disney
We must have different Gods. My God said "do to others what you would have them do to you". Your God seems to have said "My Way or the Highway".
PiraguaGuy2
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/10/08
#4re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:43pmI don't know if anyone remembers WithoutaTrace's saga of Stripes and Purple...
Formerly SirNotAppearing - Joined 3/08
#5re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:44pm
I'm a loud laugher. I find that when I go to shows, some random weird guy and I are always the only ones laughing at the jokes. I guess I'm easily amused, but I start having to suppress my laughs, because NO ONE ELSE is laughing. When I saw A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum on Sunday, I was literally almost choking because there was no one else laughing except for a giggle or two here and there.
In my pants, she has burst like the music of angels, the light of the sun! --Marius Pantsmercy
#6re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:47pm
"I don't know if anyone remembers WithoutaTrace's saga of Stripes and Purple"
I'm waiting for the film to come out.
"All our dreams can come true -- if we have the courage to pursue them." -- Walt Disney
We must have different Gods. My God said "do to others what you would have them do to you". Your God seems to have said "My Way or the Highway".
morosco
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/10/04
#7re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:48pmI've experienced a variation on this. I sat near a woman who would laugh like normal then after all the laughter died down she would let out a sigh and say "....oh me".
#8re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:52pm^ Laughing a great deal is usually either an indicator of being extremely simple or extremely smart. For you, it is almost definitely the latter. The loudness is just an unfortunate side effect.
2010
Feb. 28 - Looped, Feb. 28 - Next to Normal, March 4 - Hair, March 11 - A Little Night Music, March 24 - Time Stands Still, April 6 - La Cage Aux Folles, April 10 - Anyone Can Whistle (City Center), April 10 - Looped, May 9 - Enron, May 15 - A Little Night Music, May 15 - A Behanding In Spokane, May 30 - A Behanding In Spokane, May 30 - A Little Night Music, June 20 - A Little Night Music, June 23 - Red, June 23 - Sondheim on Sondheim, July 13 - A Little Night Music, July 18 - The Grand Manner (Lincoln Center)
#9re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:53pmthe second time I saw Gypsy at City Center, there was a man in the rear gallery that my friends and I dubbed "Five second delay Bert Lahr." I think that says it all.
When I see the phrase "the ____ estate", I imagine a vast mansion in the country full of monocled men and high-collared women receiving letters about productions across the country and doing spit-takes at whatever they contain.
-Kad
#10re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:56pm
I have a friend who has a very loud laugh and it can be very distracting. We saw a show together and happened to be sitting front row center at a theatre with no pit. So we were RIGHT THERE. I was so embarrassed because they had to have heard it and it had to be distracting to THEM.
This happened to me with a friend at Jersey Boys (and it was her first time seeing the show -- my 6th or 7th). I had to figure out how to nicely tell her at intermission. Luckily, she took it well. But I was secretly hoping through most of Act 1 that someone else would set her straight.
"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt
#11re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:58pm
the second time I saw Gypsy at City Center, there was a man in the rear gallery that my friends and I dubbed "Five second delay Bert Lahr." I think that says it all.
Ha, that is brilliant. I feel sorry for you, though!
Oh gosh, Purple and Stripes. I keep thinking of PG2's little song about Purple and Stripes to the tune of "The Ballad of Sweeney Todd."
In my pants, she has burst like the music of angels, the light of the sun! --Marius Pantsmercy
#12re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 3:59pm
I don't know if I've ever actually had this happen...but I feel like I could have done it......woops.
The worst is when you understand a reference that the majority of the audience doesn't, so although you laugh normal level you end up being obnoxiously loud compared to everyone else....this totally happened to me in [title of show]. During one of the Into the Woods references most of the audience just smiled to themselves and chuckled while I like...audibly cackled. Whoops.
Oh..and I have a friend who's MOM has a ridiculously loud laugh. She always comes to see me in shows and I always have to hum silently while the other cast members discuss that crazy lady in the audience.
#13re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:01pmLizzy, my experience was in Florida and my friend and I were the youngest people in the audience. I was secretly hoping one of the Floridians would hit her with their cane
"All our dreams can come true -- if we have the courage to pursue them." -- Walt Disney
We must have different Gods. My God said "do to others what you would have them do to you". Your God seems to have said "My Way or the Highway".
TalkinLoud
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/3/09
#14re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:06pm
It always seems like there's one person in the audience who has the most obnoxious and loud laugh ever, and they almost always have a laugh that seems really fake. Sort of a "look and me, I get the subtle humor" forced laugh.
I ALWAYS want to punch this person. You're not impressing anybody!
WiCkEDrOcKS
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/13/04
#15re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:12pmI experienced a woman with the LOUDEST, most obnoxious laugh EVER as a fellow audience member when I saw THE TOXIC AVENGER. So annoying.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#16re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:16pmI have a pretty high tolerance level when it comes to laughing, but there was this one time in particular when it was completely disrupting. This guy was in the audience at [title of show] and he was constantly doing this horribly loud and shrieky "look at me laugh." It took me out of the moment many times and you could tell that the other audience members were getting peeved at the guy.
#17re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:17pmI remember somone posting about a performance of Gypsy where a guy moved to the front row for Act 2 and was laughing really loudly at very inappropriate parts. And the cast clearly was annoyed by him. I think Laura Benanti even gave him a "shh" signal during the strip. And she and Patti didn't even want to look at him during curtain call.
#18re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 4:21pmI can't think of any time I've noticed anyone with a too loud laugh, and now I'm scared it's because it's me!
If people have split views about your work, I think it's flattering. I'd rather have them feel something about it than dismiss it.
Stephen Sondheim
bestoffates.com
Stephen Sondheim
bestoffates.com
DefyGravity777
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/28/08
#19re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 5:51pm
I have sat next to a few fellow posters on here that have ridicously loud laughs that hurt my ears and distracted me from the performances.
At Wicked last Sunday the girl in back of me was very loud also. I was in the rear mezz(In the seats that are separated from the other seats by the pole) and she was leaning forward in her seat and was right over top of my head.
Don't believe everything that you hear! Only the peeps involved know the truth!
Spider Woman
Understudy Joined: 7/4/08
#20re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 7:21pm
I am a loud laugher.I know it. There are way worse things. When something really strikes me as funny, I sorta scream, then laugh. It just comes out. I don't do it on purpose. I didn't wake up one morning and say, "Damn, I am gonna be a loud laugher just so I can annoy the piss out of someone".
I will be sewing the scarlet L on all of my clothing so that I can be identified. You have been warned :)
eatlasagna
Broadway Legend Joined: 10/6/04
#21re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 7:26pmi know this is off topic... but what i hate more than annoying laughers are those people that feel like they have to be the LAST person to clap in the entire theater!!! aaargggh...
#22re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 7:35pm
I was in front row Balcony to see Blithe Spirit. There was a guy who laughed next to me so loud I wanted to throw him off the balcony.
For some reason a random select group of people always piss me off but for no reason at all. So I think of them as trash and get through the performance. But I'll save that for another day
Herbie: "Honey, Don't you know there's a depression?"
Rose: "Of Course I know, I Watch Fox News"
-(modified)Gypsy
Broadway Schedule
December 5th- Hamilton, On Your Feet
December 19th- Noises Off, Edith Piaf Concert at Town Hall
Rose: "Of Course I know, I Watch Fox News"
-(modified)Gypsy
Broadway Schedule
December 5th- Hamilton, On Your Feet
December 19th- Noises Off, Edith Piaf Concert at Town Hall
#23re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 8:17pm
I am a loud laugher.I know it. There are way worse things. When something really strikes me as funny, I sorta scream, then laugh. It just comes out. I don't do it on purpose.
Unless you have some kind of medical problem with your voice/etc area, I don't see why you couldn't put some kind of effort into keeping yourself quieter. This isn't something that's difficult to help. (I actually can be an extremely loud laugher when it comes to TV, but I learned to keep it down around large crowds of people.)
But hey, at least you know...
"This thread reads like a series of White House memos." — Mister Matt
Updated On: 5/7/09 at 08:17 PM
#24re: Painfully loud laughing at the theater
Posted: 5/7/09 at 8:25pmOh man! I'm one of those people, and at the theater, I just try not to laugh by putting my face in my hands and just smiling a lot. I was never sure if it was THAT big of a deal, but I guess I was doing something right!
Men don't even belt.
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