Annoying audience members in the theatre

[beverleybass]

Does anybody else ALWAYS seem to have seats right by the worst people in the theatre. I must just be unlucky.

This year saw Come From Away and was directly behind 3 women who kept chatting all the way through, including during really emotional and key moments and solos. Someone tapped them on the shoulder and told them to shush in the end which improved things slightly.

I also saw Cinderella and more chatters as well phones coming out constantly with their shining lights.

What is the point spending all that money on tickets to look at your phone or chat to people??

Anyway saw Mamma Mia as a birthday treat today and it was honestly the worst of the lot. People on my row playing musical chairs, people arriving up to fifteen mins late (and still being let in) the man to the left of me kept singing along with the songs, the people in front chatting and constantly zipping/unzipping bags and rustling noisy bags of snacks.

How hard is it to sit still and be quiet

@Infinitemoon

If that’s for me, I’ll ask for a deletion. I’m not defending my embarrassing, entirely true and relevant to the title post. Not a frigging gain.

YANBU OP. One of my personal worsts was at Death of a Salesman some years ago, in London. During some of the final very powerful, very moving scenes, a couple in our row crunched their way loudly through snacks.
You couldn't hear a pin drop apart from that pair of inconsiderate idiots, ugh.

YANBU OP, I totally agree, but I think it is in the hands of the theatres to resolve. We saw Derren Brown a few years ago. We were warned at time of booking that no recording/photography/mobile phones were allowed, and again in an announcement before the start of the performance.We witnessed at least two people being asked to leave, who clearly thought the 'rules' did not apply to them.......I silently cheered as they were escorted out!!

I think people like this should be shot!

It is incredibly bad manners and shows how incredibly inconsiderate or oblivious people can be to those around them.

Last time I was in the theatre was about 4 years ago. Covid isn’t the only reason I haven’t been back. There were four giggly idiots seated nearby who played with phone, talked to each other and passed drinks and malteasers around. I asked them to be quiet but that lasted for all of 3 minutes.

DH complained in the intermission and we were moved to much better seats.

But the experience really put me off. I’ve been tempted to book since then but can’t justify spending that much on an outing that is so likely to end up annoying me.

I think people who would not go to the theatre much will still go to musicals (which is why they’ve eaten the west end) and, surrounded by other people who also only see occasional musicals, haven’t necessarily absorbed normal etiquette like don’t eat loud or smelly food, don’t talk or sing along, go to the loo before it starts, if you’re sitting right in the middle of an aisle-less row, get to your seat early enough so twenty people don’t have to get up to let you squeeze past and then out again for a drink AND the loo AND to get a booster seat for little Freddie etc etc. Because if people around you are doing this, you don’t necessarily think there’s anything wrong with copying.

But these are not arcane rules of pointless protocol, invented to allow the privileged to feel superior to the rest. They are just behaviour that means you've thought about the impact of what you do on other people.

I hate going to the theatre because of this (& I’m perfectly happy to tell people to be quiet, or get an usher, but I’m annoyed I have to)

It’s worst with musicals like Mamma Mia & Hairspray (I walked out of both at the interval. Talking, eating crisps, standing up “to see better”) Also any play with someone who is famous from film or television. You have loads of the audience who are only used to watching tv, chatting & eating throughout from the sofa. They’ve never been taught how to behave in a theatre, although it should be common sense and good manners

I know this sounds snobby, but I don’t care. I’ve found it’s generally ok at plays, featuring actors who if they’re in anyway famous, it’s just for their stage work. Last year, Leopoldstadt was a very good audience, as are most things off West End, like the Southwark Playhouse and whatever the Tricycle is called now

If I go to the cinema, it’s tends to be a posh one, and mid week afternoons only. My husband went alone to see The Batman at our local Odeon tonight, I just couldn’t face a weekend audience!

@beverleybass I thought my teen DD had written your post until you mentioned Mama Mia - she hasn't seen that. I don't understand it either, people just do not know how to behave in a theatre and it is absolutely infuriating.

At the ballet a couple of weeks ago they were still letting people in ten minutes before the interval. It was only half full and instead of directing them into the empty (pricier) seats in front until the interval, we were up and down as the whole row had to move every time. That and the woman with the hacking cough…great.

It is really annoying. The worst thing is when you go to the cinema or theatre with a friend you haven’t been with before and they do it! Try to talk to you all the way through or get their phone out ARGH

Was at a musical last week. At least 6 people seperately arrived very late and were all mid-row. Then the noisiest popcorn eater started up 3 rows behind us and ate through both acts with an open mouth while rustling the bags. 2 people videoed the show and had to be repeatedly told to stop by the Usher. I was fit to be tied!

Went to see Spamalot years ago and got stuck sat in front of a woman who clearly thought she was superior to the rest of the audience and kept moaning that people were laughing loudest at the jokes that were in Holy Grail (very much a tone of "urgh these aren't theatre people") So she made a point of laughing overly loud at any jokes that weren't in the film.

Mamma Mia is a tricky one as they encourage the standing up and singing. I went to a final dress rehearsal performance - though it was very professional, I wouldn’t really have known except I had the tickets from a theatre friend - and they wanted everyone up singing and dancing. Might’ve been a bit different as it wasn’t quite the usual ‘general public’ crowd, but it set the tone and I’m sure plenty of people went again,

I think it's ok to sing along to the songs in Mama Mia... But other than that, I agree with you OP. I think it's extremely rude to sit and talk through a play.

I find the best thing to do with talkers is to quite loudly say "excuse me, please stop talking, I can't hear the play". Loud enough that everyone around you can hear. Once should be enough.

I promise you won't be pissing off the people near by, because they will be just annoyed as you are at the rude people who keep talking. You will just be embarrassing the talkers.

Saw a ballet a couple of years ago which was heavily tied into the light show. Somebody in the row in front of us was typing away on their phone with full backlight on, completely ruining the effect. Paying no attention to the stage but ruining it for everyone around her.

A guy to the right of us leaned over the seats, grabbed her phone off her and lobbed it into the aisle. He was also behaving like a bit of a twat, but it did fix the problem.

Tis a lickle with people when you pay £ and yet manners seem to disappear

@ReceptionParty

Saw a ballet a couple of years ago which was heavily tied into the light show. Somebody in the row in front of us was typing away on their phone with full backlight on, completely ruining the effect. Paying no attention to the stage but ruining it for everyone around her.

A guy to the right of us leaned over the seats, grabbed her phone off her and lobbed it into the aisle. He was also behaving like a bit of a twat, but it did fix the problem.

I like him! 😂

@Erinyes

I used to think it was theatre snobbery to say that this is much worse at west end musicals than at somewhere like The National or the Donmar (or any theatre showing a straight play), but I think there’s an element of truth in it. I think people who would not go to the theatre much will still go to musicals (which is why they’ve eaten the west end) and, surrounded by other people who also only see occasional musicals, haven’t necessarily absorbed normal etiquette like don’t eat loud or smelly food, don’t talk or sing along, go to the loo before it starts, if you’re sitting right in the middle of an aisle-less row, get to your seat early enough so twenty people don’t have to get up to let you squeeze past and then out again for a drink AND the loo AND to get a booster seat for little Freddie etc etc. Because if people around you are doing this, you don’t necessarily think there’s anything wrong with copying.

I was in London a few weeks back and went to a play at the NT, a concert at the Royal Festival Hall, and to two musicals with my nine year old — no annoying behaviour at the NT or the RFH. Some at both musicals. I don’t think it’s because people at those venues are fundamentally more considerate, I just think they’re more likely to have been to more theatres and concerts where other people are modelling considerate audience behaviour.

Absolutely is this and thr tupe of show. The problem you have is something like Mama Mia exists as it is easy to watch, has catchy familiar songs and people attend to enjoy those things in an easy going environment. They aren't productions you need to focus on or have complex pros so the majority audience attend to be part of that. This behaviour is extremely unusual in more complex plays.

Noisy theatre twats boil my piss. Arseholes.

Twice, but reverse, and in the cinema, not the theatre. Perhaps I should add that I do go to the opera before I am accused of being crass...

Anyway, once with a friend who looked at her (digital watch with a light) a few times. Its a habit of hers and I barely notice.. But she really just glanced at it for seconds, and not often. The woman two seats away from us boomed out giving her a telling off. I nearly jumped out of my seat. Very, very loud and went on for quite a while. Far more off putting than anyone glancing at a watch. At the end I actually said to her I found her shouting at my friend really off putting and unwarranted, and that it ruined the film for us as we were nervous of setting her off again.

Also in the cinema, I ate maltesers and the woman next to me got really annoyed and gave me a row. I told her to suggest to management that they banned the sale of maltesers and eating in the cinema if she was that bothered, but until it was, I would continue to eat quietly. (I think she thought I was a child though as I'm quite young looking for my age).

I was behind the family with sinus issues at Come From Away. Snooooooort! Sniff…. Sniff…Sniffffffff…. Gargle, Gack, Gag…. I ended up going to the loo and grabbing a whole heap of toilet paper and handing it to all of them saying “USE IT!!!” Lots of thumbs up from people around them.

Oh my god I went to see Oliver and sat next to a woman who kept anticipating all the famous lines out loud!! It was so annoying. I also saw a performance of woman in black where for some reason a big group clapped every time a scene ended. It was fucking awful and killed the tension.

I think lots of people have no etiquette. Same in cinemas. People have actual phone conversations!! Utterly rude.

I agree, usually go to slightly off-west end theatre (National,, Bridge, Hampstead, Donmar, etc) , which are generally fine - made the mistake of going to see something more mainstream a few weeks ago, and the general standard of behaviour was appaling - I left at the interval. Worst offenders - bunch of school children, the people "supervising" them had decided to sit well away in a different part of the theatre.

Although went to a gig the other week, was getting irritated by the woman in front taking videos and photos (despite pre-announcements & security buzzing around all over warning people not to), as my eyes were boring into the back of her head, I suddenly realised it was my best friend. Bit embarassing.

Grass them up to the ushers. That always sorts the problem .

I blame theatres for not doing enough to stop antisocial behaviour.

They should stop allowing people to take alcohol into the auditorium and should have enough staff present to tell people using phones or being noisy to cease.