To take a one year old to a Shakespeare Play

[theotherfossilsister]

It's an afternoon outdoor performance of a Midsummer Night's Dream on bikes as part of the fringe. Mil was going to have him but he's currently screaming the second that I leave him (even to go to the loo) and she can't cope with that.

Thinking of going and sitting somewhere with easy escape so me or dh can leave if he kicks off. He's been to two kids shows and sat through one quietly. The other was interactive and they were meant to crawl about

It's one hour forty minutes. Am I mad? Could just let mil go with dh?

Does he actually keep on screaming for hours? If it is just while you leave and he can then be distracted

then ok to leave him.

At nursery they say he's distracted quickly but mil says she finds him very unsettled and can't do it

Don't take him. He probably won't settle and you will disturb the play for people who want to focus on the acting, not a crying baby.

Hang on, the actors are on bikes, or the audience are?

No, don't take him. I have a 1 year old and definitely wouldn't.

I'd be annoyed to be sitting near a toddler in a play that wasn't specifically a children's show.

It's midsummer nights dream...on bikes...outdoors...at the fringe. It's going to be chaos!

Take the baby and leave if you have to, it's hardly like taking him an actual theatre.

On reading the title my first thought was that in a theatre - no, but if it's outside then it would probably be OK. Especially if it's a picnic type set up rather than a seated venue. Shakespeare on bikes doesn't sounds like it will be a loud lively performance.

Outside, you probably won't have a silent environment anyway (traffic noise, birds, possibly people nearby who aren't watching the play). Hopefully there should be more scope to have space for DC to sit with a couple of quiet toys. You have said you will leave if DC 'kicks off'. Enjoy the play.

Shakespeare on bikes doesn't sounds like it will be a loud lively performance.

Shakespeare on bikes sounds like IT WILL be a loud lively performance.

I know the show you mean, it toured around here a few months ago.
Is it a free performance or have people paid for it? I wouldnt mind a toddler whingeing and then being whisked off out of earshot if it was free, I'd be very annoyed if I'd paid for it though. There are likely to be other children there but a one year old is so difficult to contain, inless you can get him yo sleep in his pushchair before hand.

If it's the Handlebards, they are fabulous! I would normally be dead against small children at the theatre, but for an outdoor fringe show it should be fine - just sit near the back so you can move away easily.

If you really, really want to go, then try it, but be prepared to leave straight away if he kicks off.

Handlebars. 😀

A comparatively raucous outdoor Fringe performance sounds fine for a baby to me. It’s not going to be theatre-quiet, anyway, and if it’s promenade, no one’s going to be disrupted by you leaving.

And you might be lucky — I took my toddler to a child-friendly abridged The Magic Flute about ten years ago, and he was mesmerised.

Yes! It's the Handlebards. Are they good?

The magic flute for babies sounds gorgeous

It's paid for, so need to think about other customers but also happy to leave the minute he starts kicking off

@OriginalBin the actors

I’d send DH with MIL.

Sympathy - age one is the absolute peak of separation anxiety, I used to have to do the washing up with DD on my back in a carrier as she got hysterical if I didn’t. It will get much easier soon!

I haven’t seen the act so I can’t comment on that specifically but it doesn’t sound like a 1 year old will get much out of it and if everyone else has paid to listen to it, I wouldn’t.

By the time you’ve removed (and I find people do a few minutes of that pram jiggling thing before they decide the ‘kicking off’ is really happening), it’s already disrupted things.

But at least it’s outdoors and not the actual theatre I suppose.