Rude people in the theatre

We went to see the Bodyguard in Manchester recently. It was just awful.The bits we heard of the show were good, but we couldn't hear whole sections of the performance due to the noise and disruption throughout. Sadly, it felt like stressful waste of money and I'll think twice about going again. One group sat in front of us talking and unwrapping sweets (one was holding up opal fruits, some of which appeared to be double wrapped, then she thoroughly scrunched up the wrappers and put them back in the bag, then dug around for the next sweet...), then some of the group got up and went to stand at the back of the room talking, people chatting next to the bar door waiting for it to open, sooooo many toilet visits, then people getting lost on the way back and having to ask other members of the audience for help, multiple phones going off, balcony floor and stairs creaked loudly every time someone took a step... it went on and on and on and on)

I attended a youth production of Les Mis today. A woman sitting behind me sang all the solos and talked to her toddler in her normal voice throughout. The toddler was only little and it was a long performance, but the mum had no excuse. She managed to shush the toddler only when she was busy singing!

https://x.com/CherokeeOwl/status/2030326199973511290?s=20

Ahh yes, I forgot about that, the latecomers. I don’t think they should be let in if they arrive after the performance has started. It’s so disruptive and disrespectful and theatre seats cost so much money,

regular theatre goer here. Behaviour is normally ok but on occasion I have experienced, a parent put a wriggling child on her lap who was almost lying over me and kicking as well for most of the performance, a man at the end of the row who kept checking his phone, a woman in front who kept her bobble hat on during the performance (making it hard to see) and then she kept putting her head on her partners shoulder (making it even harder to see as no gap to see through), audience members standing up and clapping before the end of the performance. Generally though behaviour has been fairly good.

I went to see The Rolling Stones in a small theatre in Manchester when they first started.

I was up in the balcony and as they began singing, the girl in the row in front jumped over the balcony and crashed down into the stalls. At which point everyone in the stalls ran for the stage.

@LaurieFairyCake I love watching the orchestra.

Last month I was at the ballet. There are particular seats I love in the front row. You can see every one of the musicians in the orchestra pit, it’s next to the conductor but they’re not blocking your view, you’ve greater leg space than the rows behind, and obviously the best view of the stage.

Just seconds before the performance started this really horrid woman behind me said her daughter couldn’t see over me. For about a second I didn’t quite know what to say as I’m 4 foot 10.

So I literally said that 😂 ‘what do you expect me to do, I’m 4 foot 10, I reckon I’m the shortest person in here apart from her’. (Kid was about 10 and maybe only an inch shorter than me).

Anyway the performance then immediately started (not a kids ballet, not in half term or anything, literally hardly any children there, I think I only saw a couple in a huge venue)

At the interval DH went to get ice cream and heard her on the phone complaining to someone that she hadn’t been able to buy front row seats and she couldn’t persuade the woman in front of her to move.

He came back laughing and told me. When she returned she deliberately kicked the back of my seat hard and I turned round and gave her the biggest maniacal grin I could manage 😂 (I would have told her to fuck off but her kid came back) Frankly she looked quite unnerved at me grinning at her.

We saw a fantastic performance of THe Sound of Music at Christmas. Two ladies near us sang all the songs badly and loudly. I wanted to hear the actresses voices!
My other theatre gripe is how rude people are when moving along the rows. We stood up to let people pass and very few say thanks or acknowledge in any way.

I always have to contend with the fact my children hate it if I say anything to anyone, so unfortunately had to bite my tongue a bit. I think I just said to her that I’d asked nicely and addressed myself to her not her child for a reason!

Maybe they should introduce sections of theatres, cinemas, aeroplanes etc where feet and legs do not go anywhere near the back of the chair in front, as it’s so irritating, but people seem to think they’ve got a right to do it. Including adults!

I went to a show once where there was a group of women down at the front, a couple of rows ahead of us, who got up and danced and sang - basically screamed - throughout the first half. They were dancing jiglike dances wuth each other - it wasn't just swaying to the music. We, and several others, complained and got moved and the theatre positioned a member of staff right next to them to make sure they behaved. But they kept it up all during the second half and still the theatre did nothing. It was an intimidating group tbh and I felt that the theatre didn't want to upset this group more than the rest of us.

Good. But I think it’s extraordinary that they have to tell people not to do something that most would recognise as basic courtesy.

I went to a show and they asked the audience not to sing

Makes sense

You are extremely self-absorbed and rude if you think your experience is more important than the rest of the audience’s, who have paid to watch and listen to professionals perform. Go to a sing along performance if that is what you want to do. Or do karaoke. No one in a normal show wants to hear your undoubtedly terrible rendition.

I think I would have said her and her child were ruining my day by being so inconsiderate

have people no shame

It's everywhere.

I run a community theatre with a resident youth company.

Our youth shows are alcohol free but at one production I had an adult audience member actually harassing one of the 13 year old cast (interactive show) because he couldn't have a drink. He's now banned.

The rest of the time, the ringing phones, people talking, taking video and pictures, people late - it's all so normal we just roll our eyes now.

Trouble is, we're known for shows which use a lot of physical theatre and for shows with stage combat - 3 Musketeers, Peter Pan etc - and we're a small space. It means some of the 'rude' behaviour becomes actively dangerous. The swords might be 'stage' swords, but they're still steel; the actress might have rehearsed a hundred times and have 'escape' protocols, but she's still a fifteen year old stepping blind off a ten foot platform in the dark. If that glaring phone screen, that camera flash, your kid sat in the aisle, your kid crawling up on the stage (Yes, that happened - mum and grandma did nothing to stop it, twice in one show!!!!) it creates a real risk of harm.

We warn people before they buy the tickets, on the tickets, at the door, with signs and an announcement - still happens in every show. It's a rare performance we get nothing happening these days and it's starting to affect our show selection as I'm worried about performers getting hurt.

We're in the run up to our next Youth show now - 75 minutes closed performance staged in the round. The only things I am absolutely sure of are:

Someone will arrive late and kick off when we can't seat them.
Someone's phone will ring.
Someone will take flash photos mid show - even odds on me having to tackle someone videoing.
Despite the 'safety tape' around the seating, someone will put their giant bag/let their kid sit IN the performance space (and then create when they nearly get clobbered in the head)
At least one adult will get up and walk across the stage mid scene to go to the loo/answer their phone/whatever.

I've given up going to most professional theatre - it leaves me far too murderous.

This has to be joke post. No-one I know would go to theatre and think it’s appropriate to sing along unless it’s a sing a long showing.

These are all flabbergasting - imagine refusing to take your hair down if you were too self absorbed to have thought of it yourself!

I haven’t been to Wicked since the films. Went with DC1 in 2017, and then DC2 once he was old enough in 2022. Even by 2022 the audience had changed - just more young kids as opposed to the original more adult audience. Wasn’t a problem but just noted it.

Singing along is not part of the experience, as others have said, unless it’s a sing along performance. That’s why they have them, because you’re not otherwise allowed to.

Just because no one has thrown you out, doesn’t mean it’s ok.

"I do find it's better at shakespeare, maybe because no one goes who doesn't want to?!"
You would think so but friends who used to do an annual London trip including the Globe, said the last two times they went the experience was spoilt by "influencers" doing the "selfie @theglobe"shenanigans. All pouty faces and peace signs and talking breathlessly to their hordes of fans. Then they got bored when the actual play started and were texting and more selfies. Friends are English teachers and one is dead scary so she gave them death stare and a finger to lips shhhhhhh! Then they were told off by staff and fucked off.

No, it really isn't, you spoil it for everyone around you, and the performers don't like it either.

I agree with everything mentioned on this thread, but can I add loud jangly bracelets and massive hairstyles too??

I am a woman with a huge mop of curly hair. When I go to the theatre/cinema, I tie it back/down because otherwise people behind me won't see past it. I have had many a production ruined by a massive mop or updo, having to move my head from side to side to see, which probs has the knock-on effect of annoying the people behind.

I was at Frozen a few years ago, a woman a few seats along from me had a huge topknot on top of her head, during the interval, a Nan with her GC asked if she could take it down as her little GC (beautifully dressed up as Anna) couldn't see, this woman threw her a filthy look and said no. I swapped with Nan and her GC in the end.

Also, Wicked post the films is an utter shitshow, I took my DIL and had a teenager with a witches hat on a headband in front of me. Seriously.

I go to the theatre a lot and could wang on and on about people's bad behaviour. Please don't sing/talk/go on your phone or jangle your jewellery, it is RUDE.

Or recently, a bloke in front of me at a gig who started face-timing his mate during the performance. I had one eye on the band and one eye on a guy sitting on his sofa in a dressing gown eating chips.

One of our local venues is notorious for people chatting through band performances, it really puts me off going. The local theatre charmingly escorted out 2 very pissed middle aged women at a recent play, they were chatting in a slightly drunk way like they were in the pub. It was well handled.

I must admit to falling asleep in Stranger Things a couple of weeks ago and may have snored, it was so dull…..

Your experience which trumps everyone else’s I assume. Unless it’s billed as a sing a long then please don’t.

People behind us got thrown out of Priscilla queen of the desert last Saturday in Manchester for noise rather than phones . The usher was tremendous, came to see them in the interval to say they’d had loads of complaints if it carried on then the manager would stop the show and eject them. The interval continued and they were unable to keep quiet (combination of booze and being a bit thick I think) so they were removed.

one of them obviously thought it was me who’d complained and suggested to her friends that they would “get us” later , the us being three adults and three teenagers I turned round as I was incredulous and she took umbrage at the fact that I wasn’t being joyful enough during the performance and started having a go. My clapping was sub par apparently. I really had to steel myself to rise above it and not find the usher. But in any event they all got kicked out about five minutes later.