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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Not sure if I was unreasonable to get annoyed at the theatre

51 replies

Chocywockydodahhhhhh · 08/02/2018 13:14

Went to the theatre last night to see a musical, been looking forward to it for ages. Say in the middle of the row in the stalls about half way down.

Musical starts and about five minutes later the lady in front gets up to I presume go to the toilet, so everyone to her left gets up to let her out and then let her back in two minutes later- ok thinking at this point why didn’t you go before but no big deal.
The women gets up seven more times in the first half. So the rows behind kept having their view blocked when everyone had to keep getting up. By the third time there were lots of tuts and murmurs that got louder every time she then got up.
Just before the second half starts a member of the theatre staff came to have a word with her, DH heard her say there was no problem and she was happy we’re she was sat.
Second half starts and five minutes in she gets up again, a bloke actually says FFS in a loud voice and her man she was with turned to glare at him. The theatre staff were actually looking out for this as one came and and gestered to the husband to get up and follow. He did with some grumbling and I am guessing they were moved to some seats at the end of the row as we saw them at the end.

No sure what the think really, it was getting really annoying but I am thinking she maybe had some bladder or IBS going on.

OP posts:

Original poster

Chocywockydodahhhhhh · 08/02/2018 13:15

Also I don’t know if the man was her husband, I have realised I just put that in my OP

OP posts:

pasturesgreen · 08/02/2018 13:17

Seems eminently reasonable to move them to end of row seats Not sure what you expected theatre staff to do?

sexnotgender · 08/02/2018 13:18

The theatre dealt with it eventually, not their fault really.
I can understand how annoying it would be though.

Wellfuckmeinbothears · 08/02/2018 13:19

God, how annoying! I took my dh to see the book of Mormon a couple of weeks ago as his birthday present and if someone had been bobbing up and down the whole way through I'd have been really annoyed. I don't think you're unreasonable at all to be annoyed. If she did have ibs or tummy troubles the decent thing to do would be to stand at the back inbetween bouts of needing the loo.

Incidentally, when we saw BOM, dh wanted to go to TGI fridays for a meal before where I had potato skins then chicken fajitas and the whole way through the first half my stomach was churning and cramping but no way would I have been getting up and down through the whole thing! Had I HAD to go I would have lingered at the back of the theatre until interval. The lady who ruined your experience was BVU!

Original poster

Chocywockydodahhhhhh · 08/02/2018 13:20

I didn’t really know what I wanted them to do, it was a strange situation one that had to obviously be dealt with delicacy. I am guessing I am asked was it reasonable to be annoyed when it could be a health condition and was it reasonable for the people who started to get vocal

OP posts:

ShutYoFace · 08/02/2018 13:20

Seems eminently reasonable to move them to end of row seats confused Not sure what you expected theatre staff to do?

To do it before the eight time, I would have thought?

Wellfuckmeinbothears · 08/02/2018 13:22

The staff should have suggested moving them to the end of the row after the second or third time she disrupted the whole row. Not the eigth!

Original poster

Chocywockydodahhhhhh · 08/02/2018 13:22

The only think I would have done differently is maybe asked them to move at the interval. But maybe they wanted to see if it was actually happening themselves.

OP posts:

5foot5 · 08/02/2018 13:23

YANBU

If this lady did have some medical issue that required her to go to the toilet so frequently then that is obviously very unfortunate for her and must be a real nuisance, but surely she should have had the sense to request aisle seats when she booked.

TeenTimesTwo · 08/02/2018 13:24

I think it was quite reasonable to get annoyed.
Theatre tickets cost ££ and you should have to keep being disturbed.

If this was a 'known' condition they should have booked aisle seats. If this was unexpected then after the second time they should have sat in any spare seats or watched from the back or something.

Original poster

Chocywockydodahhhhhh · 08/02/2018 13:24

It was an interesting night,
On the way out we heard someone complaining that they could not see the stage as the women in front had her hair in a beehive

OP posts:

SilentEm564 · 08/02/2018 13:25

Sorry I'm sure if you're annoyed at the lady or the theatre. I'd have been more annoyed at the woman personally.
I have bladder issues and that's why when I book theatre / cinema seats, I always insist on taking the end ones (or maybe one in from the end) or else I don't book it.
So if this lady had the same sort of issue, YANBU to expect her to have consideration for others.

Cheby · 08/02/2018 13:29

The staff should have kicked her out, not just moved them. What the fuck were they doing?

Cheby · 08/02/2018 13:31

^^by ‘they’ I mean the couple causing all the disruption.

ElphabaTheGreen · 08/02/2018 13:44

Yes, she should have booked end-of-aisle seats if she had a known medical problem - that was rude of her. Also rude of her to come at all if she had something more acute like a UTI and booked centre-aisle tickets before she knew this would happen - I know tickets are expensive, but if you also know you're likely to ruin the night for the other people who have paid for expensive tickets also, you stay home near your own loo and mourn the loss of money quietly (and pay the extra few quid for cancellation insurance for next time).

Ushers should also have intervened after the third trip though, I think. Placed her in a different seat for the remainder of the first half, then retrieved her husband at interval.

Don't even start me on people who wear their hair in beehives/piled-high styles to the theatre. Inconsiderate fuckers.

Notevilstepmother · 08/02/2018 13:50

Maybe it was something she ate, but then she shouldn’t have kept coming in and out.

GnotherGnu · 08/02/2018 13:56

Seems eminently reasonable to move them to end of row seats . Not sure what you expected theatre staff to do?

Why does she have to have expected anything, pasturesgreen? She said she was annoyed whilst at the theatre, she didn''t say she was annoyed at the theatre staff.

SweetMoon · 08/02/2018 13:57

How annoying! I'm surprised the row that had to keep getting up didn't just suggest all budging down 2 seats and letting them stay in the end 2 after the interval.

Ginkypig · 08/02/2018 13:57

Even if there was a medical reason yanbu to be annoyed inside.

You didn't say anything to make her feel bad so you didn't do anything wrong.

Cherrycokewinning · 08/02/2018 14:00

Maybe she was pissed

Notallthat · 08/02/2018 14:03

Went to the theatre last week and there were ladies knocking back bottles of wine during the performance and chatting, giggling and repeatedly getting up going to the toilet. I've been to the theatre many times and never witnessed such behaviour and the staff seemed reluctant to deal with them or throw them out (which I suppose causes a disturbance of its own).

DGRossetti · 08/02/2018 14:05

Yes, she should have booked end-of-aisle seats if she had a known medical problem - that was rude of her.

As someone who does the booking chez nous, that can be easier said than done ...

(Also any medical condition may not have been present or an issue when the initial booking was made).

Personally my bugbear is people arriving late. But that is UR.

Dontfuckingsaycheese · 08/02/2018 14:10

I had the runs once at our local theatre. Music rather than play but I still changed my seat so I could Bob up if needed without disturbing too many people and had a rather embarrassingly public discussion about my problem with half the audience
After two disappearances I did decide to leave but I hadn't paid 50 odd quid. It was a weird bug. Came and went. Didn't realise it was reaching its crescendo at about 2 the next morning

WhatWouldLeslieKnopeDo · 08/02/2018 14:12

How irritating. I didn't go to the cinema or theatre for years after my bowel cancer surgery, for just this reason. Now that my symptoms have improved I still always book a seat at the end of a row, just in case. I'd hate to ruin someone else's evening.

Weezol · 08/02/2018 14:20

YANBU.

I have Crohn's and have booked aisle or damn close for 20+ years. It's bad enough being up and down yourself without ruining things for 50 other people.

Now have an ileostomy which means I can actually sit through a three hour play or film without needing to move. Still book aisle though as I like being able to stretch my (short) legs out and have a bit of elbow room. Also pole position for interval ice cream.

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