To ask what poor theatre etiquette you’ve witnessed?

[AllaMova]

Admittedly, I had never experienced poor theatre etiquette until I saw Phantom of the Opera in the West End last week.

A woman next to me kept lunging forward and then flinging herself back in her seat throughout the performance, which was very distracting and made my seat shake each time. Then, she kept whispering to her companion.

A man kept kicking another man’s seat. I didn’t notice until the man in front turned around and told him off doing so. (Not that I blame him in the slightest!)

Another woman a few rows in front of me got her to text several times. An usher intervened, but she kept doing it.

Some people also arrived late and missed the start of the show and distracted everyone else in the process of finding their seats.

I can’t believe all of this happened during one single show. Until that point, I had been so lucky.

They all sound deranged.

Although I’d probably end up singing along karaoke style so I’m probably not in a position to comment.

I’d have to be bound and gagged. Also deranged.

People who arrive after the show has started should not be allowed in the auditorium until the interval.

I'm tall and when I sat down the people behind me made audible dismayed noises. Not much I can do about my height and 5'10" isn't that bad!

I’d have asked lungeing woman to stop fucking lungeing!

I went to a west end theatre a couple of years ago with a group of friends. We were all sitting at the end of a row with one spare seat on the very end. At the interval we all went off to the toilet/bar and when we got back a random man was sitting in the spare seat. He said he’d been sitting else where but fancied sitting on the end of a row for the second half.

Fair enough, however….he was sitting next to me and spent the whole of the second half manspreading across to me, putting his arm on the shared armrest and encroaching into my space. He was quite a large bloke. I had to keep asking him repeatedly to move away from me. He also kept trying to chat to me.

It was a really weird experience.

Lol I was just about to write about phantom of the opera, London. Next to us were a couple eating snacks out of an asda carrier bag, constant rustling and crunching! Had been a while for a theatre trip and everything else was as expected, drinks ordered for half time, classy dressing.

A woman was video calling in the the lion king ! The woman beside me gave a right telling off.

Someone was behind me singing at les mis I tutted and told her I paid them to sing .

Nothing will top my friend seeing a bloke wanking at ‘Six the musical’

yep, ‘discreetly’ under his jacket 😨😱😨

Jeezus ! This wins😳

At the same show back in October we had the misfortune to sit next to first of all a man who kept man spreading into DD’s seat and hogging the arm rest (she’s 17 and deserves a normal amount of space!) and then had the audacity to try to tell her off for daring to stand in the toilet queue at the interval. We asked to be moved but then found ourselves sitting next to a different man who kept guffawing really loudly all the way through the second half!

I was about to post about anyone and everyone who gets their phone out at any time, the light catching the eye of anyone in any rows behind.

But then I read about the wanking…

Oh Lordy

Seat back kicking from a child at a different show - eventually asked his Mum if she could stop him (addressed to her not him) and she told me I’d ruined his entire theatre trip!

While at Pirates of Penzance there was a woman behind us telling the children she was with all about the time she was in another production of the same performance.
The other year we we lucky to get corporate seats to see the Eagles, it was amazing they’re one of my all time favourites but there were people behind us that chatted all the way through the concert , it was as if they got the freebie tickets and just couldn’t be bothered with the band .
Think it’s my pet hate , talking through what you’ve paid to see .

Standing ovations at Every Fucking Show.

Dont get me wrong, it’s nice to appreciate the actors and directors but what have we got left for a really special performance?

Presumably something about the show just left him unable to control himself?!? 🤔

🤢

Tired and emotional audience member who decided to leave via the stage exit midway through the first act. Couldn't work the doors so we were all silently aghast whilst the poor actors carried on. We all erupted as soon as the interval came!

(Royal Exchange in Manchester is a theatre in the round with several entrances, some which are used by the cast only to go on/off stage.)

Dino that pooped a rock show- so inevitably lots of kids on booster seats. A very tall man moaned when a parent asked him to switch places on seat to the end of the aisle as he was blocking the view for the children behind him. His wife told him to shut up and the show was for the kids not for him 😂

It’s people keep going to the toilet that piss me off. Everyone has to stand up for them to get through, drives me mad

I’m so sorry your friend had to witness that. Did she make a complaint?

My theatre has several seats near the door to put latecomers in until the interval. They are only sold if every other ticket in the theatre has been bought, including the seats for wheelchair users which are only released to non-wheelchair users a day or two before each performance.

I only know this because I occasionally work there as a volunteer steward. I don’t know how many other theatres do it.

I thought that too, but they were allowed to enter after the chandelier had risen from the stage.

Not so much poor etiquette but it did make me
I took DD to see "The Little MatchGirl" , it is quite sad at the end. There were the usual might not be suitable for child under 7 parental discretion etc.

A girl behind us got upset ,loudly , her Mum saying over and over "oh she's only sleeping^
I wanted to ask her if she'd read the story - the whole point is she dies , cold and unloved and dreaming of her grandmother to take her away from this grim life .

I wish producers would watch from other seats
I saw Evita and was in the second row in the upper.circle. every time something happened at the front of the stage we could barely see and neither could the front row.as they continually leant over completely blocking our view. Seemed odd to use that part of the stage for a pivotal part of the show.

Oh my… I played the little match girl in my school production back when I was 8 or 9… I must have blocked this out, though I do remember crying (whilst in character so it was all good). Now you’ve mentioned the “sleeping” I remember the end involved me falling and lying down…

Peter And The Wolf animated film with live music by Manchester Camerata. Family rocked up with full Mcdonald's takeaway.