Going to the Theatre alone

I go to the theatre and the cinema alone.

In a way, any self-consciousness is because you're wondering if the people around you at the venue are thinking it's odd that you're alone. But so what if they do? They'll have forgotten almost before they reached the end of the thought.

Go and have a great time.

I do it regularly!

Yabu to say it's sad and lonely.

Lonely would be choosing not to do somethingb because you didn't have someone to go with.

I love theatre, comedy, musicals etc. I've spent a lot of my time this month at the Edinburgh Fringe, and the vast majority of it, I've spent on my own. I've had a bloody brilliant month!

It would have been a lot sadder to sit at home and wish I was there...

Who is pitying you and how do you respond?
I've never been pitied and just discuss the shows with my theatre friends or family next time I see them just like you do with any other event you experience. You don't take your friends on holiday with you but you still talk about it later.

It's like when people pity me for being single after moaning about their partner for 10 minutes. Why on earth would I want a partner when I have a child and house and can do exactly as I please?

I recommend the TIX app for buying tickets to London shows and the seat plan website to research the best seats.

I go to London once a month for work and always try to go to a musical or a play.

Nothing sad or lonely about it all.

And I don't mind paying more for a better seat when I'm only buying one ticket.

I love going to the theatre alone. I feel like I can fully immerse myself in the play and not be distracted by other people’s interpretations or opinions. It does mean I miss out on the “debrief” afterwards, so I like to go to plays that I know other people have seen or are planning to see, but the experience itself is always enjoyable!

Yes I went on my to the West End recently and I met up with friends after and discussed what I’d seen in the theatre. It’s not odd at all and yes I do talk to people near me! They talk to me too!

No, not sad and lonely. It's nice to go with someone but I think it's a shame when people restrict what they do because they won't go on their own.

I've got a friend who's a huge opera buff, and since a health scare, she's been all over Europe visiting the great opera houses and ticking off her list of singers she wants to see/hear, all on her own because she's fed up of missing out because no-one else wants to go. She's having a blast.

Who pities you, OP? There are Meetup groups in London who go together, but I prefer going alone.

I also go on solo trips away abroad and in the UK, and always have, despite being married. Nobody pities me as far as I know. Some people ask me " Aren't you bored?" I reply "Only boring people are bored."

Do this all the time. Not everyone wants to pay £££ to see celebrities in shows but I like to treat myself. Also as pp said, often easy to get one good seat. Never felt weird or looked at. Lots of other people on their own usually too. Go for it.

I do it all the time, I'd never go otherwise.

Oh yes, I get brilliant bargain seats when I book alone.Great way to save money.

Yes I also do this all the time when in London for work.

I go to the cinema alone too.

I used to feel weird about doing things alone but if DD had a long dance practice etc then I'd take advantage of it and instead of waiting in the car I'd go to cafes alone with a book, then I had six hours to kill once so went to the cinema and it moved on from there. Only you know you are alone or why you are there andit really doesn't matter to anyone else, you might not be alone you might just be sat separately from the rest of your group.

You can also get fantastic tickets, I got Row C stalls for £40 for Hamilton last time.

Absolutely fine. Can be a little dull at intermission, but I find a lot of that is taken up by queuing for the toilets :/

What does annoy me is when booking systems block off some seats and don't allow them to be booked individually. Sometimes there's nothing to indicate this, so you're clicking around, selecting a seat, getting rejected when you try to make the booking, trying again.

I do it all the time if my family aren’t interested in a production I’d like to see. It’s great!

It’s common for west end shows to have fanatics who attend hundreds of performances, mostly alone. Usually front row. So no not unusual.

These days, with people getting flakier and flakier, and the CoL bitingI often prefer going alone to rounding up or persuading friends. DH will sometimes come with me, sometimes not, depending on the show. He goes to comedy nights alone as I don't always like comedy.

Ooh, I'd somehow never thought of doing this while on a work trip. This is a game-changer.

Much sadder to stay at home and miss something you want to see or do because your friends have different tastes.

I go alone when I'm in London for work. I usually have a nice meal alone first, with a book, and I've never felt sad or lonely. It's lovely.

Of course it's not 'sad and lonely'. It's totally normal and fine. I go to the cinema and to the theatre alone all the time - I love it. DP doesn't always fancy seeing the same things as me and my friends are pretty scattered around the country these days, so if I didn't go alone to see things sometimes, I'd miss out on them.

Weirdly, in many ways it actually feels like a slightly decadent treat going on my own, more so than going with a friend.

Do it! You can often find a bargain single seat last minute :D