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Post by distantcousin on Jan 3, 2024 9:06:43 GMT
I went to see Sunset Boulevard at the Savoy for what will be the last time before it closes tonight, and honestly it felt like a bus load of horrible people who shouldn't venture anywhere near a theatre got a group discount. I had a brilliant seat in the stalls, but shortly after I sat down an older couple sat behind me in the next row. From the minute the man sat down he was moaning about the seat, the theatre and being openly rude and abrasive to people who were very politely asking to get to their seat, as he was on the aisle. I was also on the aisle of the row in front, so when someone asked to get past me I of course stood up and walked to the side to let them past, when I heard a really loud EXCUSE ME in my ear. I looked behind and it was the man going berserk at me, claiming I had knocked over his drink that was next to his seat. I looked to the floor and noticed that his drink was very much still in tact and about 2 metres away from me, if anything closer to the people behind him. I genuinely didn't know what to say and didn't want to be rude, so asked 'Sorry, is there anything else at my feet?' and he again very rudely shouted 'YES I THINK YOU CAN SEE - WATCH IT!'. This whole exchange was so pointless and didn't need to happen in any way whatsoever, as nothing had been knocked over. To add hypocrisy to the mix, the man then extended his leg out towards my seat, resting it right next to me and eventually knocking over my bottle of water during ACT 1 - I definitely feel that it was an act of defiance. There was a technical problem that delayed the start of the show by around 10 minutes tonight, and honestly the amount of moaning that this man did when he was waiting drained my soul. He just kept huffing and puffing, complaining about the seat and saying how uncomfortable he was at having to be in it for 10 minutes more than he had to - Why bother coming to the show at all? Just before the show started he said 'If this doesn't start soon I'm leaving', and honestly I wish he had. To add to this lovely experience, a family of four sat in the row in front of me and chatted throughout the entire first act. The lady next to me took matters into her own hands and told them to be quiet, but they didn't take any notice and continued in a whispered tone - Again, why bother coming? I paid just under £100 for my ticket, so decided I wasn't having it and spoke to a FOH at the start of the interval who said they'd have a word and were very helpful. Just after this I walked over to the bar and witnessed another older man screaming the face off of the FOH at the bar, I was genuinely shocked at the amount of terrible behaviour I was seeing in one night! She called the manager over before serving me and the man continued to argue, saying if service has to be this slow then he has a right to shout at anyone he wants to. There were literally about 5 people in the queue including me, so again a totally pointless argument. I ended up having a mutual rant with the FOH at the bar about how terrible the audience was and felt slightly better, but she was physically shaken. When I got back to my seat though I found the older man behind me in the middle of complaining to a FOH about me, saying I was 'constantly' knocking over his things. He was also speaking to the FOH in such a rude and unnecessary way, and she just looked at me and then back to him and said 'Sir perhaps if you hold onto your things and then move them to your feet when the show starts and everyone is seated, then maybe this won't happen again' - I have no idea who this lady is, but she's my new hero! The man then just gave us both a look of distain and mumbled 'disgraceful' under his breath. To top all of this loveliness off, I waited until almost the end of the interval to go back to my seat as I had hoped that FOH will have chatted to the people in front before I got back, However, they came just as I sat back down and the family really didn't take it well. The dad stood up and turned to everyone behind him, saying 'Right, who's been complaining about me?' and was told to sit down. The wife then said 'I'm sorry but can I just say we were only chatting during the quiet bits where nothing good was happening', to which the FOH of course said they shouldn't be disrespectful enough to chat during any part, but they were so riled and entitled about it. The man then just kept constantly turning his head back and looking at the people behind him, as if someone was going to just jump up and shout 'IT WAS ME!'. They then continued to chat throughout act 2. The only redeeming funny moment was when Tom stripped towards the end of the show, and the mum turned to her seemingly teenage son and said 'Those are like the pants you wear' - He looked like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole! Overall I don't think I've ever seen so much equally bad behaviour in one night at the theatre. The show was brilliant, but I was happy to leave when it was over. I hate "people", I really do! Such ghastliness! What has happened to society?! The comment about Tom's pants me me giggle though. I'm so sorry your experience of this brilliant show was tarnished by this. |
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Post by shownut on Jan 3, 2024 10:14:11 GMT
What a nightmare but good that you didn't allow it to ruin your experience of the show.
It is quite apparent that, post-covid, audience entitlement/brattish behaviour is off the charts. I have noticed, particularly at musicals, that nearly half the audience (or more) can't fathom watching a show without a drink in their hand. This has elevated from just bringing in a glass of wine to now bringing in the whole bottle. I find that boorish and tasteless. Whatever happened to ordering your drinks so you can just enjoy them at the interval?
It would be easy to blame theatregoers but the blame lies with theatre owners who rely on heavy bar receipts. It is no wonder shows like DIRTY DANCING keep getting rebooked - it doesn't sell a ton of tickets but the bar receipts are huge.
Anyway, back to your experience - good that the FOH were receptive. I am pretty sure that none of them are being paid enough to deal with the crap they are served. I have a friend who manages FOH at a theatre and the amount of abuse (especially homophobic abuse) from audience members, especially latecomers who are held back, is far worse and more frequent in the past 2 years.
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Post by distantcousin on Jan 3, 2024 10:28:04 GMT
What a nightmare but good that you didn't allow it to ruin your experience of the show. It is quite apparent that, post-covid, audience entitlement/brattish behaviour is off the charts. I have noticed, particularly at musicals, that nearly half the audience (or more) can't fathom watching a show without a drink in their hand. This has elevated from just bringing in a glass of wine to now bringing in the whole bottle. I find that boorish and tasteless. Whatever happened to ordering your drinks so you can just enjoy them at the interval? It would be easy to blame theatregoers but the blame lies with theatre owners who rely on heavy bar receipts. It is no wonder shows like DIRTY DANCING keep getting rebooked - it doesn't sell a ton of tickets but the bar receipts are huge. Anyway, back to your experience - good that the FOH were receptive. I am pretty sure that none of them are being paid enough to deal with the crap they are served. I have a friend who manages FOH at a theatre and the amount of abuse (especially homophobic abuse) from audience members, especially latecomers who are held back, is far worse and more frequent in the past 2 years. My bugbear is eating during performances. This is completely normalised now. Crunching, noisy wrappers. People can't seem to stop stuffing their cakeholes anymore. I find it incredibly vulgar. |
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Post by jaybird89 on Jan 3, 2024 13:06:53 GMT
What a nightmare but good that you didn't allow it to ruin your experience of the show. It is quite apparent that, post-covid, audience entitlement/brattish behaviour is off the charts. I have noticed, particularly at musicals, that nearly half the audience (or more) can't fathom watching a show without a drink in their hand. This has elevated from just bringing in a glass of wine to now bringing in the whole bottle. I find that boorish and tasteless. Whatever happened to ordering your drinks so you can just enjoy them at the interval? It would be easy to blame theatregoers but the blame lies with theatre owners who rely on heavy bar receipts. It is no wonder shows like DIRTY DANCING keep getting rebooked - it doesn't sell a ton of tickets but the bar receipts are huge. Anyway, back to your experience - good that the FOH were receptive. I am pretty sure that none of them are being paid enough to deal with the crap they are served. I have a friend who manages FOH at a theatre and the amount of abuse (especially homophobic abuse) from audience members, especially latecomers who are held back, is far worse and more frequent in the past 2 years. My bugbear is eating during performances. This is completely normalised now. Crunching, noisy wrappers. People can't seem to stop stuffing their cakeholes anymore. I find it incredibly vulgar. Oh god yes it drives me insane especially when it's noisy food like a tin or packet of crisps also why are we selling cans of cocktails or anything fizzy the lady next to me at sunset we going through cans of cocktail like Nobody's business always cracking open the can or crunching the crisp at the worst possible moment! |
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Post by schuttep on Jan 3, 2024 13:36:34 GMT
Sooner or later theatres are going to have to pipe the sound through individual headphones (like the Donmar Macbeth) with a noise cancelling facility to cut off the sound of the audience!
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Post by Jon on Jan 3, 2024 13:38:14 GMT
I suspect any theatre that had no F&B offering or no bar would go out of business very quickly.
I'm not that bothered by people drinking or eating as long as it's done quietly. I suspect even in Shakespeare's time, they probably ate during a performance.
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Post by ceebee on Jan 3, 2024 13:42:06 GMT
I think today's theatre audiences simply reflect the society we live in. Sadly, there are a more significant number of food scoffing, alcohol quaffing, whining, dining, opining warthogs, who feel entitled because they've paid a sum of money for a show ticket. From the disgruntled emotionally unintelligent older man cited above, to the chatty family determined to enjoy "their" night out, with old Billy Big Balls playing a starring role as his own hybrid of Homer Simpson and Daddy Pig. I really feel sorry for those people who are perhaps gentler, quieter, more placid, calm, and who don't particulalry relish confrontation. My own approach is to intervene and tell people to behave themselves or leave (unless my kids are with me in which case I will look for a FOH person first).
I loathe the oafs who spoil it for the majority. However, it does need the majority to take a stand and unite to snuff out bad behviour. Too many people accommodate it or turn a blind eye to it. My own experiences of bad behaviour in theatres have almost always involved drunken behaviour, loud gobby prosecco fuelled hen party types, and the odd wannabe alpha male trying to make a stand for his overbearing wench.
I also find the majority of children are pretty well behaved in the shows I go to, and I've seen the look of horror on people's faces when me and my kids sit by them (particularly when they were younger) and then the smiles at the end when they realised that some children can easily do a couple of hours of theatre. My favourite experience was the look of disdain from an older lady sat behind my daughters at King Lear - the look said it all... "What are you doing in here, sat in that seat, in front of me???" There are still a small number of people who think kids should be seen and not heard and cannot bear to share their precious theatre space with the younger generation (who they assume get tickets for half price or concessions). 95% of the time, they are paying the regular seat price.
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Post by jr on Jan 4, 2024 14:13:07 GMT
I always say something. It might not work, specially is there is alcohol involved, but most times people keep quiet. I believe a lot of people don't realise they are bothering others.
An angry look some times is sufficient 😆
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Post by alece10 on Jan 4, 2024 16:56:56 GMT
I don't know if it's just a London thing but I generally find people have got worse and worse. Not only at the theatre but on buses, trains, shops and even in the street.
The attitude these days us "me, me,me" and they don't care about anyone else.
And you daren't say anything for fear of abuse or worse.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 4, 2024 18:58:57 GMT
Very good quote on one of the panel shows recently "In Britain its seems acceptable to go out and get drunk". There is a difference between enjoying a drink and just getting drunk. Alcohol tolerance is likely higher now than it used to be so clearly people are drinking too much.
Also on a football forum I belong too a lot of crowd trouble there is being put down to people who have recreational coke habits. I've only seen a few people doing this on their way out for the night or in the city centre. But I've heard from a number of people who work at pubs/gig venues that they see a lot more people under the influence of coke than they used to or their personality will suddenly change when the hit take affect.
The argumenative older theatre goer is unlikely to be sniffing up a white line pre to going to a show but I could see some theatre goers being recreational users so could this be a mimor factor to bad behaviour?
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Post by mrbarnaby on Jan 4, 2024 21:48:15 GMT
I don't know if it's just a London thing but I generally find people have got worse and worse. Not only at the theatre but on buses, trains, shops and even in the street. The attitude these days us "me, me,me" and they don't care about anyone else. And you daren't say anything for fear of abuse or worse. Totally agree. People leaving rubbish everywhere, feet on seats, not getting up for pregnant ladies or elderly people, not saying thankyou when you hold a door open for them, playing noise on their phones loudly on buses and trains. It’s depressing. |
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Post by toomasj on Jan 4, 2024 22:08:47 GMT
Definitely not just a London thing. I’ve experienced it everywhere
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Post by Mark on Jan 4, 2024 22:25:21 GMT
Quite a lot of phones going off at the matinee of Rock n Roll in Hampstead today. At least three ringing, many more pings and vibrates. Definitely seems to be a common thing when you have an older average audience…..
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Post by ThereWillBeSun on Jan 5, 2024 1:16:03 GMT
On BBC R2 there was a segment with Jeremy Vine about this.
Some tw*t comedian making out it's acceptable to open up your laptop as people have businesses....
David Benedict (critic I think?) pretty much said everything I agree with. No. And it's the lighting up of screens.
People are very entitled aren't they? They say theatre is elitist - no, I think it's just basic manners!
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Post by Jon on Jan 5, 2024 11:10:56 GMT
On BBC R2 there was a segment with Jeremy Vine about this. Some tw*t comedian making out it's acceptable to open up your laptop as people have businesses.... David Benedict (critic I think?) pretty much said everything I agree with. No. And it's the lighting up of screens. People are very entitled aren't they? They say theatre is elitist - no, I think it's just basic manners! A laptop in a cinema or theatre is the height of bad manners. |
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Post by talkingheads on Jan 5, 2024 11:15:58 GMT
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Post by greeny11 on Jan 5, 2024 15:46:28 GMT
I went to quite a lot of shows over the last week or so, and other than some extra heckling over and above where it's expected at Peter Pan Goes Wrong, I didn't really see any bad behaviour at all. Choir of Man had some cheering for places during the monologue where they talk about the performers, but that's it. Moulin Rouge and Mamma Mia, both shows where I'd expect it, had excellent audiences (both matinees to be fair). Both shows had very clear pre-show announcements about no singing to the end, and this was kept to.
I would say that some people are very messy with the popcorn/sweets/chocolate, some of which ended up on the floor, and that's an issue, but in terms of actual disruptive behaviour, I witnessed very little across 15 different shows.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 5, 2024 16:28:04 GMT
Yes we hear about people being entitled so I think those of us who wish to sit and enjoy a show in peace having often paid a considerible amount for their tickets should be able to do so.
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Post by lynette on Jan 13, 2024 23:10:02 GMT
I’m reporting myself. I refused to let a couple of latecomers into my row ( I was at the end ) about twenty mins into Dear England. The FOH asked me twice and I told her to wait for a break. Then I saw them go into the row from the other side and their seats were well onto the other end so they would have disturbed nearly the whole row. As it was they disturbed quite a few. When did standing in the side aisle til a ‘break’ in the action go out of fashion?
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Post by sph on Jan 14, 2024 4:21:19 GMT
I’m reporting myself. I refused to let a couple of latecomers into my row ( I was at the end ) about twenty mins into Dear England. The FOH asked me twice and I told her to wait for a break. Then I saw them go into the row from the other side and their seats were well onto the other end so they would have disturbed nearly the whole row. As it was they disturbed quite a few. When did standing in the side aisle til a ‘break’ in the action go out of fashion? There usually are designated latecomers entry points that happen at scene changes or loud moments or applause after a song. However these moments are brief and if there are many latecomers it isn't always possible for staff to get everyone sat down in that short 20 second window, so they might run into the next scene. Nothing has gone out of fashion, sometimes there just isn't enough time. |
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Post by fiyero on Jan 16, 2024 15:23:57 GMT
When did no late admissions at all go out of fashion?
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Post by Dave B on Jan 16, 2024 15:25:51 GMT
When did no late admissions at all go out of fashion? Around the same time as 'no readmissions' I'd guess  |
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Post by avfan on Jan 16, 2024 15:57:48 GMT
I went to see Sunset Boulevard at the Savoy for what will be the last time before it closes tonight, and honestly it felt like a bus load of horrible people who shouldn't venture anywhere near a theatre got a group discount. I had a brilliant seat in the stalls, but shortly after I sat down an older couple sat behind me in the next row. From the minute the man sat down he was moaning about the seat, the theatre and being openly rude and abrasive to people who were very politely asking to get to their seat, as he was on the aisle. I was also on the aisle of the row in front, so when someone asked to get past me I of course stood up and walked to the side to let them past, when I heard a really loud EXCUSE ME in my ear. I looked behind and it was the man going berserk at me, claiming I had knocked over his drink that was next to his seat. I looked to the floor and noticed that his drink was very much still in tact and about 2 metres away from me, if anything closer to the people behind him. I genuinely didn't know what to say and didn't want to be rude, so asked 'Sorry, is there anything else at my feet?' and he again very rudely shouted 'YES I THINK YOU CAN SEE - WATCH IT!'. This whole exchange was so pointless and didn't need to happen in any way whatsoever, as nothing had been knocked over. To add hypocrisy to the mix, the man then extended his leg out towards my seat, resting it right next to me and eventually knocking over my bottle of water during ACT 1 - I definitely feel that it was an act of defiance. There was a technical problem that delayed the start of the show by around 10 minutes tonight, and honestly the amount of moaning that this man did when he was waiting drained my soul. He just kept huffing and puffing, complaining about the seat and saying how uncomfortable he was at having to be in it for 10 minutes more than he had to - Why bother coming to the show at all? Just before the show started he said 'If this doesn't start soon I'm leaving', and honestly I wish he had. To add to this lovely experience, a family of four sat in the row in front of me and chatted throughout the entire first act. The lady next to me took matters into her own hands and told them to be quiet, but they didn't take any notice and continued in a whispered tone - Again, why bother coming? I paid just under £100 for my ticket, so decided I wasn't having it and spoke to a FOH at the start of the interval who said they'd have a word and were very helpful. Just after this I walked over to the bar and witnessed another older man screaming the face off of the FOH at the bar, I was genuinely shocked at the amount of terrible behaviour I was seeing in one night! She called the manager over before serving me and the man continued to argue, saying if service has to be this slow then he has a right to shout at anyone he wants to. There were literally about 5 people in the queue including me, so again a totally pointless argument. I ended up having a mutual rant with the FOH at the bar about how terrible the audience was and felt slightly better, but she was physically shaken. When I got back to my seat though I found the older man behind me in the middle of complaining to a FOH about me, saying I was 'constantly' knocking over his things. He was also speaking to the FOH in such a rude and unnecessary way, and she just looked at me and then back to him and said 'Sir perhaps if you hold onto your things and then move them to your feet when the show starts and everyone is seated, then maybe this won't happen again' - I have no idea who this lady is, but she's my new hero! The man then just gave us both a look of distain and mumbled 'disgraceful' under his breath. To top all of this loveliness off, I waited until almost the end of the interval to go back to my seat as I had hoped that FOH will have chatted to the people in front before I got back, However, they came just as I sat back down and the family really didn't take it well. The dad stood up and turned to everyone behind him, saying 'Right, who's been complaining about me?' and was told to sit down. The wife then said 'I'm sorry but can I just say we were only chatting during the quiet bits where nothing good was happening', to which the FOH of course said they shouldn't be disrespectful enough to chat during any part, but they were so riled and entitled about it. The man then just kept constantly turning his head back and looking at the people behind him, as if someone was going to just jump up and shout 'IT WAS ME!'. They then continued to chat throughout act 2. The only redeeming funny moment was when Tom stripped towards the end of the show, and the mum turned to her seemingly teenage son and said 'Those are like the pants you wear' - He looked like he wanted the floor to swallow him whole! Overall I don't think I've ever seen so much equally bad behaviour in one night at the theatre. The show was brilliant, but I was happy to leave when it was over. I was at this performance as well and I don't know if you saw it, but I was horrified at the man who got out of his chair, walked to the front and shouted at the MD during the delayed start, as in his words "There are thousands of people bloody waiting get on with it". To my horror some audience members started to applaud him. Luckily the people around us were pretty well behaved apart from that but sounds like you had a nightmare. My heart went out to that poor actor who brilliantly stayed in character on stage for the entire 15 minute delay. I really felt they should've taken her off and made an announcement that there was an issue but I still massively disagree with the idiot who shouted at the poor MD. |
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Post by sph on Jan 16, 2024 18:32:14 GMT
Shouting at the MD as if it's their fault is truly bizarre behaviour. That man should have been kicked out. People not only seem to have no idea how to behave at the theatre, but seem to have no clue how a live performance works.
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Post by sweets7 on Jan 16, 2024 22:04:12 GMT
There has been a change since Covid. Something has broken or snapped. I was at the LSO’s free concert in Trafalgar Square last summer. First since covid and it was truly insane in places. One guy just stood up. Someone asked him to sit down, gesturing to the people behind him. He punched him and people there made the attendants go and make him sit. Also people beside me smoking away. I know we are outside but there are literally thousands of people here you don’t want to inhale your fumes. I am a.ways really early to these things so I was lined up at the railings really early. These two are new since covid. You just turned up before. Anyway the people in cha rage were so aggressive and ruse to people. It was so different than ones before Covid. Made me consider going again and it’s usually a lovely afternoon out.
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