Anna C Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 I have to admit I have sometimes had to leave during curtain call, but it's either that or sleep rough in London having missed the last train home. This reminds me of the John Wilson "Broadway" Prom last year, when Anna-Jane Casey was singing "Tap your troubles away" at the end of the Prom. An elderly couple obviously had a train to catch so tried to creep out up the stairs during the song - just as about 30 tap dancers started tapping their way down the very same stairs! 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A frog Posted July 11, 2013 Share Posted July 11, 2013 Not sure where else to put this, but a rather funny story from the New Yorker: http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/shouts/2013/07/my-mother-explains-the-ballet-to-me.html 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted July 11, 2013 Author Share Posted July 11, 2013 Thanks for posting A Frog - it's hilarious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wulff Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 Here's another annoying item of audience behaviour which I don't think has been mentioned so far, and that is rattling of jewelry - a habit which as far as I can see is confined to the female sex. Fingering of heavy beaded necklaces and the clashing of multiple bracelets when arms are moved around can be quite noisy when the perpetrator is sitting next to or behind you. Usually the creators of this type of distraction are quite unaware of what they are doing and one has to be very tactful in drawing their attention to it. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dance*is*life Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 I hate sitting next to ultra large men who hang over the arms of their chair on both sides and make me have to sit with my arms held tightly by my sides in order not to touch him all the time. Occasionally I try wriggling in my seat and pushing against his arm, but it only removes the arm for a second and then slap its back again. Grrrrrrr............... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 Ditto! Only met this a couple of times (and on trains too) but infuriating! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willie Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 I hate sitting next to ultra large men who hang over the arms of their chair on both sides and make me have to sit with my arms held tightly by my sides in order not to touch him all the time. Occasionally I try wriggling in my seat and pushing against his arm, but it only removes the arm for a second and then slap its back again. Grrrrrrr............... It's just as true the other way around. A petite woman puts her arms on the arm rest and a big guy (me, for example ) sitting next to her is forced to cross his arms or place his hands on his lap as a courtesy to the woman. This is the reason I avoid theaters with narrow seats (e.g. David H. Koch Theater in New York) and pay for a box seat, if available. Literally, I will pay anything to avoid a battle over the arm rest. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wulff Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 The amphi at the ROH, where there are no armrests to the seats, poses similar problems. Sometimes I have found myself sitting between two large people - the sex is immaterial - who are so overwhelming that even taking a deep breath is difficult. Some large gents have a way of sitting with their legs apart so that they encroach my seat space. Other men have a way of cramming tin boxes and other items into their trouser pockets so that they stick into the side of my thigh. I would add that I don't measure up to these giants since I weigh only about 70k. An aisle seat is the only answer to these problems - and you get an armrest too. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 16, 2013 Share Posted July 16, 2013 Exactly my weight phew was wondering whether I was one of the largies! But your post made me laugh its funny really no matter how tolerant you think you are once in very close contact with ones fellow humans its amazing how irritated one can be! Or is this just an oldie trait of the "grumpy old...." kind (bus pass in bag) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wulff Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Exactly my weight phew was wondering whether I was one of the largies! Depends whether you are male or female. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Oh dear does that mean 70k is BIG for a female then Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Even if you are 5ft 8ins! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aruna S Posted July 21, 2013 Share Posted July 21, 2013 With regard to cough sweets, I have used Ricola herbal sweets for over thirty years (including getting people to bring me packets from Europe before they were available in the UK). They taste like humbugs and are in an almost noiseless paper wrapping so I always have a few ready before a performance starts I tried these sweets last week and was delighted to find that they quickly killed a coughing fit. The noiseless wrapping is a boon. Thank you for suggesting them, Irmgard. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 I have my first amphitheatre experience next week - as nothing winds me up more than the 'spread-leg syndrome' above, this was a useful warning - maybe I'll wear cargo pants and fill the pockets with angular objects 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alison Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 I'm sure your neighbours will be delighted - especially if they're slim and female Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ann Williams Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Speaking of the 'spread-leg syndrome' I was at the packed Triycle Cinema on Saturday seeing the live transmission of the NT's 'Macbeth' with Kenneth Branagh and was most unfortunately seated between two large gentlement afflicted with this very syndrome. The gentleman on my right was wearing shorts (or the short kind, not the half-way-down-the-leg variety) and had exceptionally hairy thighs; on a hot night, this was not a pleasant experience, but it's not one I would expect to encounter at a ballet or opera outing. Reassure me, somebody.... 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Alison - if I have a slim female neighbour I shall take the opportunity to remove all the objects on her side, by way of an icebreaker 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willie Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 ... seated between two large gentlement afflicted with [spread-leg] syndrome ... wearing shorts ... the short kind ... exceptionally hairy thighs ... on a hot night.... Lovely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coated Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Eek, I'd love the re-assure you Ann, but you have described my summer theatre dread with an uncanny accuracy. I had a similar experience and never quite recovered. Stay clothed, people! Any part of your body that might end up touching mine should be covered in fabric. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 23, 2013 Share Posted July 23, 2013 Probably not short shorts at the ROH but then you might get Quintus instead so beware! Reassured not I think!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 don't worry, I'm reverting to my 'Proud To Have Scabies' t-shirt as a personal space protector.. 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 at least we'd all know who you were then! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted July 29, 2013 Author Share Posted July 29, 2013 I just picked this article up via twitter: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/Puneet-Issars-wife-whacks-NRI-for-disrespecting-national-anthem/articleshow/21392142.cms What do you do if you are in a country other than your own and everyone around you stands? I've got to admit that there are very few national anthems I would recognise but do you take a cue from your fellow audience members? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aruna S Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 I think I would probably stand up if everyone else did, as a mark of respect. Actually I remember we were taught in school that on occasions when other national anthems were played - such as when there was a visit from our sister school in France - we were to stand up, while for our own anthem it wasn't just standing up but standing to attention. But I think that report is horrific. Assaulting someone because you think they're being disrespectful is hardly civilised behaviour and also, ironically, being disrespectful to the anthem yourself by causing that kind of disruption. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MAB Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 I had an experience a little like that many years ago at the Herod Atticus Theatre in Athens when a group of people came into the auditorium causing a fair number of the audience to leap to their feet. I asked the young man sitting next me what was going on and he told me the president of Greece had just arrived, as he had no regard for the man at all he remained seated and jokingly suggested I did the same. The next big entrance however brought all to their feet cheering: Rudolf Nureyev. He took his seat a couple of rows behind me and I turned my camera on him and got a fantastic shot. He looked very happy though overdressed for so hot an evening even if it was open air. The Bolshoi danced Giselle that night and afterwards I caught him being mobbed by the dancers as he was signing an autograph for Gediminas Taranda who was still wearing his Hilarion costume. It was the last time I was to see him alive as he died around eighteen months later, so a bitter sweet memory. At least that Athens audience got their priorities right. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anjuli_Bai Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 I had an experience a little like that many years ago at the Herod Atticus Theatre in Athens when a group of people came into the auditorium causing a fair number of the audience to leap to their feet. I asked the young man sitting next me what was going on and he told me the president of Greece had just arrived, as he had no regard for the man at all he remained seated and jokingly suggested I did the same. The next big entrance however brought all to their feet cheering: Rudolf Nureyev. He took his seat a couple of rows behind me and I turned my camera on him and got a fantastic shot. He looked very happy though overdressed for so hot an evening even if it was open air. The Bolshoi danced Giselle that night and afterwards I caught him being mobbed by the dancers as he was signing an autograph for Gediminas Taranda who was still wearing his Hilarion costume. It was the last time I was to see him alive as he died around eighteen months later, so a bitter sweet memory. At least that Athens audience got their priorities right. That's a wonderful story! When Nureyev first defected from the USSR, my cousin went to see a performance and the next day happened to end up standing just behind Nureyev in a hotel elevator. My cousin, who was a physician and spoke over ten languages, thought it would be courteous to quietly greet Nureyev in Russian. But the instant look of fear in Nureyev's face upon suddenly hearing Russian from someone he didn't know made my cousin realize that Nureyev was afraid of being snatched back to the USSR. It took a while for Nureyev to realize that my cousin was no threat - only an admiring fan. If I am in the audience when another country's anthem is played I would certainly stand up - just like if I'm in someone else's church. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capybara Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 If I remember correctly, Bolshoi and Kirov seasons in London used to start with both the USSR and UK national anthems being played. Although I was not at the ROH last night, I suspect that that tradition has died out - rather a pity if so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coated Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 Do not come between me and and a violin solo. Ever. Go to the cinema or preferably stay at home if you are unable to understand that talking is not acceptable during a performance. I might not curse you and your descendants for all eternity for a quick aside during a round of clapping, but anything else is just not on unless you require urgent medical assistance. 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pas de Quatre Posted July 31, 2013 Share Posted July 31, 2013 Many years ago Dance Theatre of Harlem premiered their version of Giselle in London, which was excellent. The evening started with the UK national anthem so everyone duly stood and in the silence afterwards started sitting down. The orchestra then struck up the USA national anthem just at the moment that everyone was about three-quarters of the way down and relaxing into their seat. The collective grunt as everyone struggled to stand up again was very audible! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quintus Posted August 3, 2013 Share Posted August 3, 2013 Today's Bayadere matinee was marred by the four women in from of me who returned from each interval stinking of cigarette smoke, sweat and perfume, leaving us trying vainly to fan away their foul miasma. To add to the jollity one of them was padding around barefooted. Grrr. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinMM Posted August 3, 2013 Share Posted August 3, 2013 Perhaps you had better take some air freshener with you next time and spray it in an ostentatious manner in the direction of such future offenders! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coated Posted August 3, 2013 Share Posted August 3, 2013 Not a big fan of heavy perfume wearers myself, and sometimes end up with my hand over my nose for most of the performance in an attempt to block out the cloying scent. Perhaps you could waft sprigs of lavender at them or spray them with lemon juice? Today's gripe goes to aisle hoggers. Just don't do it. If you're planning to stay seated until the stalls are devoid of other living beings after the performance, book in the middle of a row and by all means stay put. If you are able to walk, not very elderly and sitting at the aisle of a row that only has one exit, and people further down the row are standing, waiting for you to move or let them through, do consider moving. A very old man walking very slowly with a stick managed to get out of the end seats of his row in front of us, with no one rushing whilst the aisle hoggers still blocked our row, the only one in the entire auditorium still fully occupied at this point. The same charming people commented rather snippishly "Do you want to get out, AGAIN?" when I got up for the second intermission. Should have peed in her handbag, I guess. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shmendrick Posted August 5, 2013 Share Posted August 5, 2013 http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/05/theatre-audiences-gone-quiet-shakespeare Contrary to what we think apparently audiences are too quiet these days. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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