Police called to theatre after audience sang over cast

[SnottyLottie]

According to this news article, 2 people were evicted by security and there was a “mini riot” after the show was stopped 10 minutes before the end (and ultimately cancelled) because a handful of the audience were singing over the cast. Police were called (riot vans included).

https://news.sky.com/story/police-called-to-disturbance-at-manchester-palace-theatre-during-the-bodyguard-musical-after-audience-tried-to-sing-over-cast-12852504

What do we think? Over reaction or perfectly reasonable response? I’d be furious to have the show stopped and cancelled 10 minutes before the end because of a handful of disrespectful idiots!

With regards to the dressing up to the theatre. I went for my birthday last year, its a very rare treat because of how expensive tickets are, so we made a massive day of it.

Performance was in the evening, so we spent the whole day in London, seeing the sights, I am not going to get dressed up to do that, I am also not prepared to spend a small fortune in train fare to "just" go see a theatre show,

And sometimes (only sometimes - I have congratulated a teacher before now on the behaviour of their pupils) school parties at Shakespeare are a nightmare. It’s quite plain they’ve been forced to come (and IME it’s always the set GCSE play!) and are bored rigid. I remember a performance of Macbeth where the actor playing Macbeth stopped in the middle of the very moving “tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow” speech to tell school kids to stop talking. He resumed but it wasn’t the same after that - I couldn’t help but see ActorsName not Macbeth.

The singalong/karaoke musicals that do allow singing only confuse the issue.

I also watched a "tribute to the musicals" show on BBC1 a couple of weeks ago with my elderly mum. The show featured casts from some of the biggest west end shows like Hamilton or Wicked performing the best-known songs. In a big arena type venue. And the camera regularly did a close-up on audience members singing and dancing.

So if you're not the sort of person who regularly goes to the theatre, and then sees this sort of TV show, you might be excused for thinking that getting up and yelling "Deeeeeefyyyyying graviteeeeeeee" is exactly the sort of behaviour expected.

So yes. Stronger announcements. And unless it says "singalong" in the title, don't.

I agree with you, behaviours in the UK are appalling. There seems to be so little expectation.

I recently went the the ballet in Hungary. Everyone beautifully dressed and behaved, including the children. Everyone considered this a real treat, a delight to be there.
Theatre super quiet. Audience so engrossed that at a set change, the stunning scenery resulted in a collective audience gasp.
The intensity of the performance made me cry.

Amazing experience.

The cast or producer put articles out in news after Glasgow sell out shows. The 'star' was ex pussy cat doll member and not amazing singer but the actress playing her sister wss incredible and got much louder cheers. I'd wager it's about that and the American lack of understanding of why most people go to a musical with Whitney songs in.

The s theatre should make it clear whether or not singing is allowed. Years ago it was clear as it pantomimes audiences were invited to join in certain songs, Everybody knew what was acceptable. As usual a few idiots spoil it for everyone.

Indeed. In the last theatre I booked at, many of the (pricey) seats toward the front included a complementary package with cheese and wine in a VIP room before the performance. Obviously they don't force you to drink the alcohol, but you couldn't book the seat without the package. The theatres make good money out of their alcohol sales and VIP packages, they are encouraging a culture of drinking before and during performances.

It's the same in the cinema. I went to the cinema last week for the first time in ages, and the audience consisted of people talking to one another and rustling bags of sweets/crisps/popcorn. I ended up leaving because I couldn't concentrate on the film (and felt like telling them all to shut the fuck up!)

Audience behaviour is really deteriorating.

Last weekend someone in the row behind was talking in the cinema. The couple sitting next to her asked her to shut up.

She then kicked off and talked loudly over 25 minutes of the film about how she as an oppressed minority and how dare anyone tell her to be quiet.

I genuinely feared that she was going to start hitting people.

I was trapped at the end of a row and the people next to me weren't moving so i stayed. I was gobsmacked at the end to discover that no-one had told the staff outside what was happening as they left so they couldn't intervene.

And the woman who chomped through a big bag of Kettle Chips during Of Mice and Men… can she go in the van too?

And she came in late!!

Yes I think it’s rather too late to salvage it now. The more theatres have opened their doors to people like this who don’t know how to behave, the more they’ve alienated their former audiences who do. I’ve stopped going to musicals now, or indeed any show involving music (including Rock Orchestra etc). I don’t think I’m alone. So if they crack down on it now, they’ll find they’ve lost their well behaved audiences and now the idiots, so there’ll be nobody left…

What's the betting that they were filming themselves for TikTok or similar?

The cast or producer put articles out in news after Glasgow sell out shows. The 'star' was ex pussy cat doll member and not amazing singer but the actress playing her sister wss incredible and got much louder cheers. I'd wager it's about that and the American lack of understanding of why most people go to a musical with Whitney songs in.

This makes no sense.

The bad behaviour which required police attendance was in Manchester. Not Glasgow.

The producers put out social media statements which were very wishy washy asking audience members to "show consideration" and reminding them that "the professionals on stage are the only ones entertaining". They were not as blunt as to say "The singing is on stage, not in row G of the stalls so shut the fuck up".

Manchester and Glasgow are not in America.

I go to the theatre a lot. Juke box musicals are the worst.

Crowd at the national tend to be quite well behaved as do the people at the small independent theatres e.g southwark playhouse, park theatre, almeida.

West end is variable.

Worst thing I've seen was 9-5 at the Savoy. Drunk duo staggering in and out, talking and disturbing loads of people throughout the performance and the staff kept letting them back in.

We spoke to the duty manager at the interval and her argument was that they had bought their tickets. So apparently that entitled them to fuck up hundred of other peoples enjoyment too.

We're going to see Annie in a couple of weeks. We've saved up 2 years worth of Christmas money from my Grandad to be able to afford it. If any cunts think it's a sing-a-long I'll be furious and won't think twice about complaining.
My brother is less polite than me. He'll probably swear at them.

Saw this on Twitter - this audiences are definitely getting worse.

https://www.healthline.com/health/thirdhand-smoke

Show him these articles about 3rd hand smoke. If after reading them he's still prepared to put his newborn at risk...

The audience caterwaulers were wrong

Whoops, sorry wrong thread!

I also told someone to be quiet at Wicked. It was practically a full house but after glaring at me, they got up and moved to other seats.

I've seen Wicked four times and at another performance, the person next to me kept checking their mobile phone. So, the phone lit up a dark auditorium. I reported them in the interval. They were asked not to use it and didn't during the 2nd part.

At Jersey Boys in London, I was in the 2nd row of the circle. Someone in front of me on the front row had draped their coat over the front of the circle. Before the performance, I very politely asked them if they could move it as from my seat it just blocked the front of the stage. He was like - WHAT? He was really uppity about it. How dare this person ask me to move my coat! In the end, he said he'd move it when the show was about to start. Even the person's wife/friend/partner joined in. I had to say 'I've just asked politely if he/you could move the coat. They really took it like I was having a go at them!

They usually do. It doesnt mean people take any notice of it.

On We Will Rock You, for instance, not only is there an announcement at the start, there are signs posted throughout the theatre, telling people not to sing until they are invited to (the finale number), but even then, they sing and sing and sing. I never experienced someone being ejected, but people definitely DID sing along, despite being told not to.

I remember the first time I went to a theatre, when I was about 15. Theatre-going in those days was a special treat, something that you dressed up for. It was not at all unusual for the men to turn up in evening suits and bow ties, for example, and nobody would have dreamed of wearing jeans to a theatre.

The theatres were very strict about not letting anyone into the auditorium once the performance had started. If you arrived late, you couldn't go in until the interval and that was that.

In recent years, everyone looks so scruffy, like they've just finished digging the garden and then popped into the theatre!
I think the theatre is no longer viewed as "hallowed ground" like it used to be, unfortunately. Some people tend to treat it as an extension of their Iiving rooms and just do their own thing like they would at home, such as singing along or talking all the way through a performance

Standards have fallen, sadly.

behaviours in the UK are appalling not just UK theatres though.
I have lost count of how many times I have had to ask the person next to me to desist from using their phone throughout a performance on Broadway. I always think that there may be a need for an emergency check that the babysitter is ok or similar, but these theatre goers are messaging continuously - and the glow from the screen is very distracting. Why pay a fortune for live performances if you are not even going to watch!

I don't really enjoy the theatre much but recently went to a musical. I was really surprised to hear the announcement to not sing along. I thought - do people need to be told that. Nobody did sing along until the end when we were encouraged to ( I still didn't want to cos I think I am quite reserved) but gosh was the audience enthusiastic and the cast seemed to enjoy it too.

I don't really get why they wanted to sing along. I am guessing they were drunk.

I know someone who is a theatre actor and gosh so they work hard. It must be so frustrating for them when this happens.

Theatres need to clamp down on this. Seems weirdly widespread.

Some strongly worded signage should do the trick for most, I would hope. Something like an unambiguous message saying that the show is not a singalong, and anybody disrupting the show for anybody else will be thrown out without a refund.