Bad Behaviour at a Show

They touched your hair!?

Assault. 

It was my friend - she didn’t want to make an issue of it and only told me at the interval. I would have been all for raising it with FOH but she didn’t want to make a fuss. I think my loud comments when we got back to the seat settled matters and there was no more activity in the second half. But for heaven’s sake, this should not have to be said!

I’m firmly in the “sit down, shut up” camp. The fans screaming during certain moments is bad enough, don’t need anyone singing along on top of that. And if the lad is that young that he doesn’t know to be quiet then he’s too young for Heathers.

That's certainly my usual pov.  I find it quite depressing the extent to which a minority can't grasp that most of us have paid to see the people on stage perform - not to see/hear random audience members join in/comment/chatter etc.

That said, I've always been glad that I don't generally want to see musicals because the impression I have is that many of them are a lost cause.  The last one I remember was Made in Dagenham (couldn't resist the appeal of writer Richard Bean and lead Gemma Arterton) and I'm pretty sure the house staff were encouraging people to join in the chorus (admittedly this was only at the end but you can sort of understand how people get the idea that singalongs are encouraged).  I've also seen shows advertised as 'karaoke' musicals - which is effectively an invitation.

Another caveat is that I generally find adults are worse offenders than children.  Of course. my sample is biased because at the kind of plays I see the audience is overwhelmingly adults.  But I've often been pleasantly surprised at how well-behaved children are.  In fact the biggest problem is usually parents frequently tapping little Tarquin or Jocasta on the shoulder and telling them what to look out for - which I've always thought likely to spoil the child's enjoyment as well as that of the wider audience.  At some operas (eg Hansel and Gretel, The Cunning Little Vixen) there is almost bound to be a large contingent of children - but I've usually found the most flagrant and thoughtless misbehaviour comes from adults.

I regularly point out to people singing along at concerts that I didn’t actually pay to hear them sing.