I stood at a concert

[MangosteenSoda]

Went to a concert and had a seat to the side of the stage. In my experience, everyone stands when the act comes on. This didn’t happen universally, but probably around a quarter of the crowd started by standing. I was a little in front of most of the other ‘standers’ and sort of leaned on my seat a bit to minimise myself I suppose, but wanted to enjoy the songs and not sit.

A few songs in, a lady behind me tapped my arm and asked me to sit because her boyfriend/husband (sitting next to her) couldn’t see. I just said, ‘I’m sorry, but this is a concert’ and carried on standing. I’m pretty small and there were massive screens and a stage. I don’t think I blocked it all out.

A few songs later, the ‘very popular and famous’ song was performed and everyone stood up including the woman and her boyfriend. After that, most of the crowd continued standing and a bunch of people were dancing like windmills and nobody bothered them. The angry man and his girlfriend stormed out at this point.

I don’t have a particular aibu, but I felt that I was only asked to sit because I looked like an easy target to ask. It annoyed me that the woman had to ask for the guy and that it was put to me that I should sit because this guy’s preference was all important. I also felt sad for the woman because she was wearing the band T Shirt (so I assumed she was the fan) and this guy seemed to ruin her night with his moans and complaints while she just seemed to want to dance and enjoy the concert like everyone else.

So, should there be areas at concerts where everyone has to stay seated? I don’t think all the seating areas should be this way because they outnumber the floor and it would make for pretty sedentary concerts but maybe a compromise somewhere?

I can’t stand for periods of time due to disability. It’s why I don’t go to concerts because I know others would be standing even in seated areas and i wouldn’t be able to see. So I just don’t go. I wouldn’t go and expect others to sit.

YABVU OP.

But you're clearly one of those people, so I wouldn't expect anything else.

I would have hoped you might be a bit more aware of the issues though if someone asked you to sit. I am in the same position as you and I wouldn’t be rude enough to just ignore them but I would try and explain why I have to stand for a moment and then sit as soon as it was comfortable so we both get a chance to enjoy the concern.

Those of us with a disability should really be able to empathise better with those that have never experienced it surely? I mean, it’s totally clear that there are many here that really don’t get it or care.

It's so selfish to expect others to curb their enjoyment for your benefit.

And this, my friends, is what is wrong with the world.

(As if you can't enjoy yourself and be unselfish and non-ableist at the same time.)

I had a seated concert with my mam for a present as she's disabled, someone stood in front of her the whole time and refused to sit down, some people are just rude as Hell and should book standing.

I think this thread shows a lot of what is very much wrong with the world. Everything is about what is very much wrong with the world. Everything is about everyone’s individual rights rather than collective responsibility. Again and again it’s all about “I have a right to [enjoy myself] rather than I have responsibility to ensure my neighbour is ok.

You see it all the time on trains. People watching Netflix or listening to music without headphones - and that inc parents handing their mobiles over to kids yo let the entire train listen to Peppa Pig.

I was definitely one of those twenty thousand people who were standing.

And I’d say I’m much more polite than a lot of the people on this thread. And to reiterate, my aibu was about having separate areas in arenas to suit all needs because currently, like it or not, rock concerts are predominantly standing events.

You see it all the time on trains. People watching Netflix or listening to music without headphones - and that inc parents handing their mobiles over to kids yo let the entire train listen to Peppa Pig.

I mean, I'm sure you would be ok if you had to listen to Peppa Pig.

Concerts are a place where you need to look around and act accordingly. If its a seated concert and people behind you are seated, don't stand up - if you want to stand up move to somewhere you aren't blocking someones view. Imagine paying good money to go to a seated concert and the person in front of you stands for the while thing!

I would be empathetic, of course, but what if I’d been sitting for so long and I needed to stand on and off? What if my timings didn’t work for you? I wouldn’t ever be rude especially not if someone asked nicely but I wouldn’t ask standing people to sit down while I am sitting. I just wouldn’t. It’s one of those things in life.

As someone who is disabled, life is very difficult but I don’t expect everyone around me to enjoy the concert differently because of my needs. It is what it is.

Perhaps the person in the front row of the section could give up their seat to the person who cannot stand so they’re not blocked by people in front of them?

If you moved into the aisle so that the person behind could see (through all the other standing people) then you'd almost definitely get told off by the stewards

I agree it's a read the room situation some of the time. If the entire place is sitting down then yes it's weird to be the only one standing up.
But it's not just a case of if the people behind you are sitting down. What if everyone else in your entire block including the 30 rows in front of you have stood up? Obviously you won't be able to get all of them to sit down, so your only choice is to suck it up or stand up.
If it's an arena or stadium gig for a major lively pop act that says on the tickets and website that people around you may stand, then regardless of what the people behind you are doing, if everyone else is standing, then you can stand.
(Also i don't think there's many gigs that allow you to wander about and stand in other places other than your allocated seat by the way. For example you can't just go and stand in the aisle or get onto the pitch/floor at the 02 or Wembley Stadium as obviously it's a safety issue)

As I've said before. Take that at the O2 in April was fully seated. Including the floor. Absolutely everyone on the floor was standing. I was probably about half way back. So maybe 30 rows in front of me. If the people behind me had told me to sit down that would have been ridiculous. The floor isn't sloped. Me sitting down would have done nothing for the people behind me if the other 30 rows in front were still standing. And take that are not a sit down and tap your foot type show. Plus if I'd have tried to stand anywhere other than by my allocated seat I'd have been told to go back to my seat or be removed by security.

However IF I had got to that show and absolutely everyone stayed sitting down I would also have stayed sitting down. I would have found it utterly bizarre though and would have likely asked security if there was a reason why! And then I probably wouldn't bother buying tickets for future tours if it looked like that was the way the shows were going to be in the future.

Well yes that would be a very kind thing to do.

Oh I can see how that would be nicely taken advantage of at something like a taylor swift concert. Mum "can't" stand so she and the 3 preteens she's with need to move to the front row. So mum can stay seated throughout and the teens can still stand and jump around enjoying themselves.

It's a theater, not a stadium, but we have to manage this at work when we have concerts.

It's a fully seated venue. There's no "standing area" for people to book tickets in. We don't expect people to stay seated for the whole time during a concert style show when it's a pop/rock/lively type show.

We have to try and manage audience expectations from all sides. Which can mean, where we have space, moving audience members - either moving the one or two enthusiastic dancers to less obstructive seats or moving the one or two seated to less obstructed seats.

We have to discourage dancing in the aisles, especially on the stairs of circle levels.

A lot of the time though, the band on stage are encouraging the audience to get up and dance, to join in, to have fun.

You can't just move or go to an aisle. I swear 90% of the people posting on this thread don't even leave their house as they don't seem to know how it works!

Obviously people are referring to stadium gigs because your average student union or small night club venue doesn't HAVE seated tickets therefore there's no argument!

Now you're being condescending towards "pop" concerts but I don't remember the 70,000ish audience in muse at Wembley or rammnstein in the principality all sitting down politely (or just "swaying a bit") either?

Come on give us example of all the gigs youve been to in venues large enough to have a majority of seated tickets where the audience just "swayed slightly" in their seats. Because they sound like great fun.

If your point made sense and there were only actually a small minority in every gig who wanted to stand and everyone else is standing resentfully as a consequence of being behind them then it's a bit of a coincidence that they all end up in the front rows of blocks of seating, isn't it? Otherwise they would just pop up individually and there would be multiple rows of people sitting before the first weirdo selfish stander???

If you’d paid £200 per ticket, you’d just give it up to someone who says they need to sit down? You’d be sitting further away from the act you paid for.
You are a very nice person!

I don’t think that matters - you’re itching for a fight here where I have none You explain your situation with me (I’m sorry I’ll need to stand for a bit, but I’ll try not to do it for too long so I don’t block your view) stand for as long as you need to be physically comfortable again and then sit down. The person behind needs to be as understanding of you as you are of them.

What does warning people do?
It's not like theres a choice to see bands in a place where others aren't selfish

It's not selfish if it's actually allowed. It's just the norm. It would be selfish to do it if it wasn't against the venue's rules and you just ignored the rules for your own benefit.

I guess if you don't want to risk someone standing up near or in front of you, you need to select front row of the balcony/circle/stall seats only. Or consider a box. That's the only option where you could guarantee no blocked view in many of these venues.

But, in most venues, it is permitted and people are warned on the websites that this will happen.
It isn't unreasonable of people,to,stand if they are allowed to.
It isn't selfish if people to stand when the rules say they are allowed.

Most tickets really don't specify that, it's just seated or standing and warnings about flashing lights.

Take a look at the FAQs for many if the bigger venues.
It absolutely does state this.
For most concerts, ime, standing is allowed in your seat space. It may even be encouraged by the artists themselves.

What did the small print or FAQs say about standing in seat positions?
If it's allowed, then it's allowed.

To guarantee an unblocked view you need to book front row of your block or a box in many concert venues.

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