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Post by robinfr on Oct 18, 2016 16:31:37 GMT
Has anyone ever been in a situation where they were the only person in the theatre watching the play or there were very few people watching the play.
OR
Has anyone who has been part of a theatre production realised that there was no audience/barely an audience to perform to?
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19,782 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 18, 2016 16:55:49 GMT
 A W K W A R D!
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19,782 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 18, 2016 16:58:17 GMT
Even more awkward if the cast decided to play it to the only audience member. Eye contact, the lot.  |
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209 posts
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Post by Flim Flam on Oct 18, 2016 17:31:00 GMT
Ah yes. I saw a production in a small studio theatre a few years ago. Won't say where to spare the innocent.
The first Act started with about 14 in the audience. Interesting subject matter but a very mixed bunch amongst the actors and a very ropey production. Cast consisted of an older actor, a young couple and a one or two other youngsters, who danced about a bit at times and moved the (very limited) scenery. The older actor wasn't bad, the young female was okayish, until she began to sing at one point...but her boyfriend, well I started to look in the cast list to see who he was related to. Wooden doesn't begin to describe his acting style. Declamatory, yes that's it. Arm in the air and everything.
Decided to stay to see Act 2 as I was meeting a friend nearby afterwards (it was a matinee). But only about 5 people came back. Oh dear. It wasn't as if it was very dark in the room and we were only a few feet away from them, nowhere to hide. The older actor looked more and more disgusted as the show went on, with a sort of 'oh God, what has my career come to' expression at times. The worst moment was the bows at the end. 5 people clapping in a half-hearted manner really does not sound good...
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19,782 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 18, 2016 17:48:16 GMT
Toe-curlingly awkward.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 17:53:02 GMT
1988 - a pub theatre in North London (can't remember which one) - one man play called Through a Glass Onion written and performed by David Fox.
Only 6 of us there and gathered early on that we were the only paying audience as the others were friends of the actor/writer.
The smattering of applause at the end was awkward as we were so close we could see his rather dispirited expression.
Time Out apparently gave it an indifferent review, which may have caused the poor audience but I rather enjoyed it once I got over the slight embarrassment of the meagre audience.
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2,041 posts
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Post by 49thand8th on Oct 18, 2016 17:53:38 GMT
The one that sticks out for me was when I saw a Broadway show from the front of the mezzanine which a friend and I'd scored for $5 from a papering service. It was the smallest audience I'd ever seen at a Broadway show (although I couldn't see all of the orchestra seats). There were only about 20 people in the entire mezz. I commented to my friend that volume-wise, it was the quietest pre-show lobby I'd ever been in... and the restroom situation was a breeze.
It was also the day of the Tony nominations, and I think this show only got 2 or 3 when many had predicted a few more acting nominations. I felt bad for everyone in the room, although in a way the experience felt more intimate. They posted closing a week later, I think.
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1,351 posts
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Post by CG on the loose on Oct 18, 2016 19:22:59 GMT
Was one of an audience of six at the Landor (can't remember which production, but it didn't warrant such poor support!). No hiding in the Landor either.
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754 posts
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Post by Latecomer on Oct 18, 2016 19:36:22 GMT
The Oxford Playhouse is often pretty sparsely populated...they never seem to do offers and sometimes dramatically misjudge how popular things will be....I always feel bad for the actors as it is very obvious. They had to cancel a matinee of Glasgow Girls recently as there were so few people attending! The evening show was pretty empty too...despite it being fabulous! It's a real shame as it seems they would rather have an empty theatre than offer a good deal!
The Angry Brigade by James Graham was the same and with Harry Melling having quite a lot of audience interaction it was so sad....
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 19:38:10 GMT
Up n Under Playhouse Theatre in the 90s. Was about 13/14 and dragged my friend along. About 12 people in audience. It was so awkward I guffawed through the whole thing
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Post by partytentdown on Oct 18, 2016 19:41:51 GMT
I saw a performance of 'Desperately Seeking Susan' which definitely had <30 in the stalls.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 19:53:30 GMT
Four of us (including the usher at the back by the entrance) saw an excellent solo dance show with no music, soundtrack or speech. With unallocated seating, we sat apart, each in our preferred locations. We were all highly appreciative but there was obviously an underlying sadness that no one else had been interested to attend. I was already a fan of the dancer-choreographer and the other two viewers were both popular and critically recognised dancers and dance-theatremakers who would have been very well known by the performer.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 20:03:33 GMT
At Yee-Haw!! (yes, with two exclamation marks) at Bromley there were about twenty people in the audience, but we were well spaced out so any audience reaction to the show was swallowed up by the hundreds of empty seats. Bad news for any show, but for one where the cast were trying to get the audience to join in it was excruciatingly embarrassing for everyone.
It didn't help that this was the sort of show where the correct answer to "What's the running time?" is "In good shoes, two minutes should get you tolerably far away".
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171 posts
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Post by musicalfloozie on Oct 18, 2016 21:11:27 GMT
A year or so back we went to Buxton Opera House to see Miss Nightingale it was 2nd to last ever performance and there was only about 20-30 people in the stalls. It made me feel really uncomfortable and I almost felt I had to over egg my laughing and clapping. I deserved an olivier award for my performance as enjoying patron!!
I'm sure it must make it harder for performers playing to an almost empty house. I hope the last show ever was full of family and friends so it got a good send off.
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Post by Coated on Oct 18, 2016 22:36:35 GMT
Best Medea I ever saw was at Teatro Technis a few years ago, 4 actors on stage and 3 audience members, including me. I was surprised that they didn't cancel it and once they got going I completely forgot about anything other than the gripping drama unfolding on stage.
Clapping was a bit awkward though at the end, 3 people don't make a lot of noise and I felt the need to supplement my effort with a stupid sounding comment along the lines of 'thanks for performing' and then scooted out of the theatre as if hounded by furies.
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471 posts
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Post by mistressjojo on Oct 19, 2016 1:46:11 GMT
Southwark Playhouse a few years ago ( I won't name the show & embarrass the cast) - must have been all of 15 people. And all except me chose to sit as far away from the stage as possible.  |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 19, 2016 8:51:00 GMT
As an amateur practitioner myself, we once performed a pantomime to an audience of 3. Just this great big empty church hall, and 3 people in the second row (second!). It wasn't any more awkward than a rehearsal at the time, though they did ask for a refund afterwards, so it's a good job it was an amateur production really. Also I've really had my views skewed on audience sizes for amateur productions ever since, which makes me a terrible marketing person because I think 20 tickets sold is fantastic.
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1,103 posts
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Post by mallardo on Oct 19, 2016 9:17:12 GMT
Was one of an audience of six at the Landor (can't remember which production, but it didn't warrant such poor support!). No hiding in the Landor either.
Similar, I was one of ten people at the Landor for Andrew Lippa's two hander, John and Jen. Both actors, to their eternal credit, gave it their all, wonderful in truly challenging roles. Jen was Katie Brayben and it was with considerable pleasure that I watched her pick up her Olivier Award for Beautiful only a couple of years later. An actor's life!
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2,859 posts
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Post by couldileaveyou on Oct 19, 2016 9:31:29 GMT
I saw an amateur production with a cast of 14 and an audience of 9.
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1,582 posts
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Post by anita on Oct 19, 2016 9:44:42 GMT
I have posted previously about the cast of "Who do you do?" on the pier at Gt Yarmouth years ago sitting with us in the audience because there were so few of us. They performed all around us chatting to us. They were great.
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219 posts
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Post by PalelyLaura on Oct 19, 2016 9:48:16 GMT
A year or so back we went to Buxton Opera House to see Miss Nightingale it was 2nd to last ever performance and there was only about 20-30 people in the stalls. It made me feel really uncomfortable and I almost felt I had to over egg my laughing and clapping. I deserved an olivier award for my performance as enjoying patron!! I'm sure it must make it harder for performers playing to an almost empty house. I hope the last show ever was full of family and friends so it got a good send off. Oh, I saw Miss Nightingale! I saw it at the Leicester Square Theatre and I thought it was great, sad to hear it had such a small audience in Buxton. Luckily there were a few more people when I saw it in London. |
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341 posts
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Post by adrianics on Oct 19, 2016 11:44:53 GMT
Two amateur shows come to mind; in both cases I was the only person in my row, one of them was a more obscure show in a 150 seat theatre with about 20 seats sold and the other in a 600 seat theatre with about 100 seats sold.
No idea which was worse, but it was absolutely unbearable. In both cases I was supporting friends in the cast and in such situations I do my best to try and keep the laughter and applause going, but it's so difficult when there's no one around you...
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43 posts
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Post by stuartww on Oct 19, 2016 12:19:58 GMT
I went to a performance of Once on This Island at the Peacock Theatre a number of years ago...got a concession through my Uni travel office. I got there and they had kitted out the foyer and bar to be like a carribean village and market, and in the stalls the front 3 or 4 rows had covers on the seats to make them look like deckchairs and the floor made to look like a beach.
These front four rows were not even filled. I loved the show. It was a shame that it didnt sell.
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171 posts
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Post by musicalfloozie on Oct 19, 2016 12:47:41 GMT
A year or so back we went to Buxton Opera House to see Miss Nightingale it was 2nd to last ever performance and there was only about 20-30 people in the stalls. It made me feel really uncomfortable and I almost felt I had to over egg my laughing and clapping. I deserved an olivier award for my performance as enjoying patron!! I'm sure it must make it harder for performers playing to an almost empty house. I hope the last show ever was full of family and friends so it got a good send off. Oh, I saw Miss Nightingale! I saw it at the Leicester Square Theatre and I thought it was great, sad to hear it had such a small audience in Buxton. Luckily there were a few more people when I saw it in London. I'm thought it was good as well and definitely not the worst thing I've ever seen, luckily they didn't let it dampen their spirits and still put on a great show. |
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Post by Mr Snow on Oct 19, 2016 13:02:44 GMT
Best avoid the Edinburgh Festival if you are sensitive to this.
Most awkward moment is when in an audience of 6, someone tries to lift the spirits of all by laughing as loudly as possible in all the wrong places.
At least most shows only last an hour...
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