Slave Play coming to Broadway in September? — Page 5

And here is Rihanna discussing funding for education with the Presidents of France and Senegal. Hope she wasn't a few minutes late. Wouldn't want her tardiness to cause an international incident.

She is an exceptional woman.

iluvtheatertrash said: "No one is harassing anyone. I responded to a tweet and we engaged in discussion over it. Do you know what the definition of harassment is? Nice try, though.

And actually, I never expected it to end well. I am perfectly fine dying on this hill as he is ridiculous.

Know what IS arrogant? Sitting through a play on your phone after the play was held for you because your famous and couldn’t show up on time.

Whatever.

Another one for the ignore feature.

Thank you, EllieRose"

Have fun dying on that hill alone.

And none of you are fit to shine Rihanna's shoes. What she's done that's NOT music related has been nothing short of remarkable. And her music of course has touched so many peoples' lives. But maybe not people on BWW because ... well, ugly reasons that have nothing to do with her talent.

Do people not realize that Rhianna could have, quite possibly, made a minor mistake? Jesus, so harsh to defend any wrong doing of "my queen". Your queen can make mistakes as well. Just because she has discussed funding education with a President does not mean that she is a perfect human who is incapable of mistakes.

poisonivy2 said: "And none of you are fit to shine Rihanna's shoes. What she's done that's NOT music related has been nothing short of remarkable. And her music of course has touched so many peoples' lives. But maybe not people on BWW because ... well, ugly reasons that have nothing to do with her talent."

JFC, this board. Implying a person is racist because they think it's rude for someone to be on their phone during a performance is not only a reach, it's gross.

Updated On: 9/16/19 at 02:06 PM

Her humanitarian work has nothing to do with her behavior at the theatre. But nice try.

And, by the way, I don't WANT to be "fit to shine her shoes". But thanks! :) Have a great day!

And it's very obvious I'm not on that hill alone, PoisonIvy. Reading this threae proves that. Have you actually read it, or do you only read the things that suit your fandom agenda?

What did you all think when Madonna did it at Hamilton and Lin dragged her for it? Did you support Lin, or defend Madonna? The entire thing is absurd. I'm out. If you want to defend her behavior in the theatre, I hope you'll stay home from the theatre from now on because I certainly would hate to wind up sitting next to your rude and inconsiderate selves.

Let me start by saying that I find phone use in theatre really distracting, and it makes me angry when I see it happening.

But that's because I've been conditioned to see that as someone breaking the societal standard we have set in place: to sit quietly and still in a dark theatre and watch the stage attentively. And that standard was set by a more elitist - traditionally white - culture in the arts. That isn't to say that it's necessarily a bad thing, but we have to acknowledge that it's not every culture's approach to theatre-going. And how do we reconcile those differences without alienating Black audiences, and audiences of other cultures that don't subscribe to the traditional, elitist norms of how to treat theatre as "sacred"?

To me, the answer is fairly simple (though not perfect). We need to create space for other kinds of theatre experiences, and establish those expectations through communication. And this is already starting to happen. For example, in the past few Doninique Morisseau plays I've seen, she has written a note for a program insert that gives audiences "permission" to respond vocally to play. Another example: at the beginning of Summer, Diva Donna tells the audience that if they want to sing or dance along, they should. In certain specific theatrical experiences like Privacy at the Public, or Ivo Van Hove's Roman Tragedies, they have encouraged phone use as part of the show experience. And when these things are communicated to the audience, these audience behavior can no longer be "distracting" from the show experience, because the artists have deliberately allowed them to become PART of the show experience. Some else above even pointed out that back in Elizabethan times, rowdy, responsive audiences were the norm, and many of Shakespeare's plays have been written specifically with the expectation that the audience would be responding.

And if we make theatre more accessible, and break down class and cultural divisions in the arts, we can see improvements on both ends. Audience members who aren't used to the expectation of sitting silently can adjust more easily to that environment if that's what the playwright wants for their work. And audience members who can't focus on a show if people are using their phones or responding vocally can learn to relax and accept that as part of the communal experience of seeing theatre.

And I realize that phone use is different from being a vocal audience member. But I think it's all connected. Part of the reason phone use is so distracting is because our theatres are dark, but again, that norm is part of our socially-constructed perception of "elite theatre-going."

Yes, but there is a difference between advocating how audiences should try to engage with the material, and how a pop superstar whose music is part of the show should engage. One does not end up selling out arena tours because of their desire to stay within society's guard rails and follow its rules, so when the desire becomes how we should deal with Rihanna using a cell phone during a show (and seemingly to text the writer of the show, who then also replies back to her), it seems so isolated a situation to not need attention. Similarly, what shows has Madonna attended since Hamilton Off-Broadway? I can't recall any. If the female slave were not twerking to her song, would she have even been there?

Just seems like policing outliers to reinforce the rules for the rest of the audience has no audience. Rihanna isn't even aware this is a thing, and people who use/don't use cell phones in the theater aren't using this as a moment to police their own behavior.

Plus, it is a small fraction of celebrities where this is even a thing. I sat two rows in front of Tom Hanks at a show, and aside from hearing his laugh since I knew he was behind me, he was just chill and watching the show.

iluvtheatertrash said: "But I don’t understand how looking at your phone is engaging with the material. If you’re looking at your phone, you aren’t watching the play. And each time I point this out, the point is ignored.

I want to reiterate: I am NOT talking about vocal responses to what is happening. I am NOT talking about call and response. I am specifically talking about, and only about, cell phone use."



See the final paragraph of my post above. It's all part of the same broader goal of adjusting our perceptions of what a theatre experience should be, and how audiences are "supposed" to engage.

Food for thought:

A) Why does someone not engaging with the play have to ruin your experience? The answer is partly because the theatre is dark, so screens attract attention, but that doesn't always have to be the case. And the other part of the answer is that we are conditioned to see that as disrespectful, so we see at so. And then we get caught up in our own indignation and can't focus on the show (I am absolutely guilty of this, and it's only recently that I've realized that if I consciously decide not to let myself get angry about phone use, I find it a lot less distracting)

B) Who says one can't use their phone and still engage? I would argue that Rihanna texting the playwright during the play is itself a way of engaging. And there are other ways using your phone could be engaging too: looking up an unfamiliar word, or historical background on the play. Telling your friend the show is running long and that you're going to be late, so you can watch the play in ease without being distracted by the worry that your friend will be mad, etc. I'm not saying that necessarily excuses the behavior if it's distracting. But I'm just trying to make the point that what we consider "engaging with the play" might not a set-in-stone definition. Also, some people can actually listen more attentively if they have something to do with their hands, or something else to focus on visually. Sometimes when I'm in the theatre, I find myself so focused on trying to sit still, and actively putting energy into paying attention, that I put more focus on that than I do the actual play. And when I watch movies at home, I like to play games on my phone because I'm not as restless, and I can actually absorb things more. It's just differences in how people process information.

JBroadway said: "Let me start by saying that I find phone use in theatre really distracting, and it makes me angry when I see it happening.

But that's because I've been conditioned to see that assomeonebreaking the societal standard we have set in place: to sit quietly and still in a dark theatre and watch the stage attentively.And that standard was set by a more elitist - traditionally white - culture in the arts . . .

And I realize that phone use is different from being a vocal audience member. But I think it's all connected. Part of the reason phone use is so distracting is because our theatres are dark, but again, that norm is part of our socially-constructed perception of "elite theatre-going.""

While your post is reasonable and you make some fair points, I don't know that you can reduce the reaction to people using phones in the theatre to being merely "socially constructed perceptions" of a largely "elite", "white" theatre culture. It's true that the theatre culture is largely elite and white. But it doesn't follow that the ethical standards established by a particular culture are simply socially constructed features of that culture. It's true, for example, that within elite white theatre culture it is impermissible to urinate on the person sitting next to you, or to cover her eyes, scream into her ear, and so on. But the impermissibility of these behaviors has nothing to do with the fact that theatre has mostly been attended by white elites. Rather, such behaviors are impermissible because they manifest a very basic lack of respect for other people. So, there is a question of whether the use of cell phones in the theatre falls into this latter moral category or whether it is a revisable social norm. I'm not sure myself at this point, though I think that the bright light of a phone in my face does sometimes distract from my theatre experience in a way that at least makes my negative reaction one that is based in part on a moral objection to objectively disrespectful behavior. Of course, one could argue that even our concept of respect for other humans is socially constructed. But I'm not prepared to go that far, given how much it would potentially license.

JBroadway said: "UncleCharlie said: "So now, not wanting to be distracted by a glaring bright light next to me in a darkened theater is an elitist white sensability? Strangely, the last half dozen instances of someone breaching this elitist white norm at shows I attended werecommited by... elitist whites. How about we expect a certain level of consideration and common courtesy from everyone and not give free passes to people because of some ridiculous notion that common courtesy is not part of certain groups' cultural norms and we're being elitist and culturally insensitive if we demand it."

Common courtesy is subjective from culture to culture. And it's just about being white (you'll notice I never spoke in absolutes about that above) - a lot of Broadway audience members are white tourists who have also not been exposed to the norms of theatre-going."

Right but are you suggesting that we are all being too harsh on the tourists (of any race) who sit and text on their phone in the middle of Hadestown or loudly sing along to Hamilton? The idea that this is some cultural norm we are imposing on people strikes me as conflating manners/courtesy with some sort of cultural practice. And AGAIN- its not as if Slave Play encourages this. There *are* forums that might encourage participation (and private cell phone usage i guess?) but this wasnt one of them until Rihanna did it.

Updated On: 9/16/19 at 03:40 PM