Bottles of water ENO ban

I get the outrage, but most large arenas and stadiums stop you taking a bottle in for health and safety reasons - you can (or could) take the actual bottle, but not the cap as the cap doesn’t crumple if you stand on it, which could cause more issues in a mass evacuation. Apparently.

I'm sure they had this policy in place when Bat Out of Hell was playing

Again anyone who has listened to Cabin Pressure would easily pull a Douglas on the ENO and smuggle in some vodka (or Talisker in that case)

The Live Nation type venues are just looking to make as much money as they can hence no water. But the ENO ! I can see some well bred Opera fans being very angry if they had to empty water away. I can understand the sealed bottle idea to stop people mixing alcohol but small mixer bottles can still be sneaked in.

I think it is America but a video showed someone was banned from taking a whole bottle of vodka on a flight so the woman stood there and necked the whole thing. Now... I have no plans to go to the place but I wouldn't throw away a perfectly good bottle of water and even though I would probably have to get up and pee after an hour but I would stand there and drink down the whole bottle if they didnt let me in with it. I certianly wouldn't thow it.

Yes, digging around I think the policy was introduced for Bat Out of Hell following some problems with drunk audiences during that production, but not for the following year of opera. Then they imposed it again for Chess and were accused of elitism, so introduced the current blanket ban.

Edinburgh Playhouse (ATG) make you do this and have the cheek of charging £2.50 for the cheapest nastiest water they could find at the cash and carry. I refused to empty my bottle of Highland Spring so they took it off me. I object to paying £2.50 for water so I just dehydrated.

Yes, "Hmm... shall we hire more ushers or piss off the entire audience?"

Or just one usher whose knowledge of opera is scant but is built like a brick sh*t house. 

I really do not believe that the decanting of hard liquor into water bottles is endemic amongst those who attend the ENO. And for the small-ish number who are doing it most of those will enjoy their tipple without bothering anyone. The minority within the minority who are hell bent on getting ratted and causing trouble are not going to be stopped by this move.  

But this isn’t just about people getting drunk at the opera is it. Or even about the challenges of removing unruly audiences members. It’s also the indignation of the ENO that people are managing to circumvent their ridiculous bar prices and drink their own very cheap booze on their sacred premises. 

 

This is from May this year: www.thestage.co.uk/news/2018/english-national-opera-imposes-humiliating-food-drink-ban-musical-theatre-audiences/



Then this came a few days later - www.thestage.co.uk/news/2018/eno-introduces-food-ban-performances-following-complaints-elitism/



which is a fantastic bit of Orwellian doublespeak.

I hate it when theatres try and ban food and drink.

I managed to sneak my water bottle in during chess. Went to collect my tickets and so didn’t get bag checked. I think the usher asked me if I was coming out after collecting my tickets. I lied.

I usually manage to sneak water in via my bag. It has different compartments and I’ve only ever been asked to open the main bit.

People need to start exercising their rights and stand up to blind-sighted policies like this.

If you get to the door with a bottle of your own water that you do not want to pour away, ask what the alternatives are. If you're not happy with an offer to refill it inside (their tapwater from a warm jug off the bar isn't a fair exchange imo) they say they'll refuse you entry. At this point ask to be escorted to the Box Office for a refund on your ticket. Do this before they refuse you access. Explain that you are not happy with their defamation of your character and assumption that your bottle is full of decanted alcohol and for that reason want a refund. As soon as they start having to refund tickets to people because of this egregious policy they'll soon backtrack and revise the rules.

For as long as people continue to pussy foot along and pander to the stalinist rules of the elite they'll continue to flex their muscles.

All it takes in an attempt to stop performance interruptions, is a overly confident new-starter keen to make an impression to suggest that all phones need to be submitted to management at the door to secure entry and they'll go 'well, punters are pouring their own drinks away to get in currently, lets give this a go'.

Though I dare say people are outraged enough to vocally respond about it, but not enough to inconvenience themselves by getting to the theatre and then revising their plans and missing out on a performance in protest.