The most random applause points of shows

Ever seen a show where there are sometimes spots that don't really call for applause but get it anyway? I have seen a few.

In Wicked, when Elphaba says, "Well, there's no place like home" that got applause both times that I saw it because of the audience's recognition of the line from the 1939 movie.

One time in Avenue Q, even though Rod requested no applause after coming out of the closet, he got it anyway. That was the second time I saw it. The first time I saw it, there really wasn't any applause.

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When someone makes a GWB remark, that is usually good for applause

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"That's why I absolutely hate it when I watch videos of Defying Gravity and people laugh when Glinda puts the cape on Elphaba."

Then stop watching the videos. They didn't applaud during that part when I saw it Tuesday.

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Updated On: 2/25/07 at 07:31 PM

There is ALWAYS people that laugh at then when I see it, and I've seen it 8 times. It gets old.

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double post.

Updated On: 2/26/07 at 01:14 AM

"There is ALWAYS people that laugh at then when I see it, and I've seen it 8 times. It gets old."

Just a thought...

Maybe the fact that you've seen it eight times is why it's getting so old.

I hate it when people claps/screams/whistles during "It's me" right when Elphaba flies on a cherry picker.

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Well... I cannot find an applause point when watching Caroline Or Change until somewhere like after Pot's Wife ~

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Ok, I may get shot for this, however the love of "Oz" in me requires it:

The laughter, as B3 did point out is awkward, at least it is for me, because it's almost the final blow, she has the broom, she has the hat, all she needed was the cape.

The applause during "It's Me!" is for two reasons, one because it's just an exciting moment that deserves it, and two because here she is, a girl going against the government, and we know she is going to loose, but for that moment there is hope that she won't. She's doing what she feels is right, and stepping away from what she could have, and I feel that's worthy of applause.


For me, the kicker is when they laguh after "As Long As You're Mine" when she says "For the first time, I feel....WICKED" it usually gets played for sexual humor, but I always viewed it much darker.

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In THE PRODUCERS, when they form the swastika, everyone applauds. I...don't get it.

That's so funny that you say that BreakingTheCircle, because that is so definitely true. Every time I've seen a kickline, it always, ALWAYS gets applause. Whether it's 7 4-year-olds in tap costumes or the Rockettes...I guess kicklines just strike a chord with some people? Some deep-seated hunger for synchronization?

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I don't think the Elphaba/Glinda/cape moment gets a laugh because people think it's funny. I think it's more of a knowing chuckle....a moment of recognition. We've seen where the green skin came from....and the pointy hat....and the broom....now we have the cape and the picture is complete.

I saw a clip on the Site That Shall Not Be Named of the London production, and (at least for this particular performance), the blocking was altered slightly so that Glinda put the cape on Elphaba while she was still crouched on the floor. Glinda steps back and Elphaba slowly stands to reveal the full effect of the hat, broom and cape. A very subtle difference in staging, but it made a huge impact. It became a spine-tingling moment rather than a mildly amusing one.

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Umm... forgive the 7th grade English lesson (those of you who passed middle school can skip ahead to the next post... but be honest), but so many of you seem confused. It's called dramatic irony. The audience knows something that the characters do not. Glinda is so daft and full of kind intentions when she puts on the cape that it makes the dramatic irony all the more powerful and the audience can revel in their exclusive knowledge even more. Irony of any kind is certainly amusing and exciting for us, and, in most cases, it's funny. This includes dramatic irony. We chuckle at this poor, optimistic girl, who doesn't realize what she is doing.

Even though some of you have seen the show a million times and have very serious thoughts about the characters, I'm sure you understand that the majority of the audience is just there for fun, most for their first time, and the show was written to provoke this kind of fun, positive reaction from them. There have been a thousand discussions about all the ways (plot, lyics, music, dialogue) in which Wicked fails to hold up after repeated viewings.

That's not to say that dramatic irony always gets or deserves laughs. Even though most of you clearly take the show very seriously, Wicked is still a light and buttery popcorn flick of a show about brightly colored characters in a fictional enchanted kingdom. It's lite entertainment, and the audience having that extra knowledge about the meaning of the cape is fun, and we chuckle about it. More serious shows don't get or want laughs for this kind of writing. Cabaret, for example, whose dramatic irony is mostly forshadowing the rise of Nazism and a bit of the Holocaust, is more likely to inspire goosebumps than giggles.

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