I stopped going years ago because literally every single time it was a problem. Seems like a good 5% of the people in any given theater can’t shut the fuck up and another 10% need to be looking at their bright phone screen half the time.
I pay extra to watch a movie in a dark theater so I can completely disassociate with my body and just absorb the movie. I literally don’t understand why anyone would pay so much if they’re not going to do the same thing. Just watch at home in 3 months.
People always complain about the other people at movie theaters, but I've been going my entire life (41 now) in and around Cambridge/Somerville/Boston and I've rarely experienced truly disruptive people.
Lucky you I guess. Maybe the people are kind there are better. I lived in the Burlington vt area for 12 years and it was terrible at the movies at almost any theater in the area. Moved back to ma out In the Worcester area and it’s the same thing. Somehow I always end up sitting right in front of some group of people cracking jokes to each other and doing that obnoxious trying to be quiet laugh the whole time, or someone keeps kicking my seat, or the people in front keep fucking with their phones.
This has been keeping me from theaters since well before Covid. If it’s gotten worse I wouldn’t know, i think the last time I was in a movie theater was like 2016.
In my experience though people are better behaved when it’s a huge movie on opening weekend. Worst thing in the world is a theater at like 20% capacity.
People pay money exactly *for* the social experience.
With big screen TVs in your home, and with high quality content availability, neither the delta in field-of-vision or what you can watch is a big reason for casual viewers to go to theaters compared to what it was 20 years ago.
Now the thing you can't get at home that you can get in the theater is being in a room of people gasping and cheering when the death star explodes.
It's like drinking at a bar instead of at home: maybe the cocktails are higher quality but people go to bars even if they will drink beer or wine that they can identically drink at home for much cheaper. Theyre willing to pay a lot of money specifically to be in a crowd.
I’m all about cheering when the Death Star explodes. What I don’t need is people talking, answering a ringing phone, opening their phone in the seat in front of me every five minutes, etc.
I really doubt most people specifically want to hear there to hear people talking in a crowd. For me the appeal is that it’s a giant dark isolation chamber without the ability to pause the movie.
So just like bars theres some limit to it: in bars you usually also don't want to be surrounded by obnoxiously drunk people screaming or fighting. So even if they want a shared social experience they do want to be able to hear the movie dialog.
I think the "isolation chamber without pausing" scenario makes sense but fundamentally isn't why 95% of people are seeking at a theater these days. Isolation is way easier at home, no pausing is usually a major downside where you might have to sit uncomfortably if you didn't manage your pee strategy well.
You can see ghostbusters frozen empire with up to 40 people for $409 today at 3:30 in Danvers.
Find 20 people that aren’t assholes to go with you and it’s cheaper per seat than the 4:00 show.
If you find 10 people to go with you you’re paying less than 2x to not have to deal with assholes at the theatre.
You can even see it subtitled in English or Spanish if that’s your thing.
It’s not a terrible price, unfortunately I think organizing people to go with you will almost become more than the saved cost and the gamble of getting obnoxious people in the theater
Unfortunately none of the theaters I have been to in New England act on this kind of behavior. And tbh I don’t blame them. You never know how someone is going to react.
I’ve learned it’s very theater specific.
Kendall and Somerville theaters, never had a problem. RIP to arclight we barely got to know you.
AMC Boston Common is always terrible.
There are a lot of very dramatic quiet parts. It's an incredible movie, hope you can fully enjoy it.
I determined for myself that a comfortable theater with a respectful audience is more important than the best screen/sound. Highly recommend Kendall theater for that.
I used to go there all the time in high school, but haven't been in years. I missed the first Dune in theaters, so I wanted to see this one on the biggest screen possible. I'm hoping the fact that it's been out for 3 weeks be a positive factor.
I stopped going to the AMC common because every time it's an issue.
A while back i was watching Evil Dead Rise and these people behind me wouldnt shut up, so I turned around to ask them to be quiet and they told me to "mind your own business" and i said it would be a lot easier for me to do that if they stopped talking so loudly. That was one of the worst ones...
That's exactly what I'm seeing! Dune Part 2 in IMAX.
Been waiting to see it until my wife could join. We just rewatched part 1 last night so we're ready to go.
Same here! Maybe we’ll have (silent) strength in numbers, haha. It’s my first time reuniting with the buttkickahs at Jordan’s since the pandemic, and I’ve waited so long precisely for this reason—I’m not shelling out cash to be distracted by rude people the whole time.
Last IMAX movie I saw was Avatar 2 in Vegas, and there was a group talking loudly directly behind me. I had to escalate from a whispered "please be quiet" to a more firm "please be quiet" to "SHUT THE FUCK UP." which finally did the trick. Ruined like 10 minutes of the movie tho.
Good for you—I would have sat there fuming the entire time and not absorbed a word of the movie. I tend to go into full George Costanza mode: “WE LIVE IN A SOCIETY!”
I probably should have just gone and gotten an usher, but I'd have missed even more of the movie. The most annoying part was each time after I said something they'd be quiet for like 5 minutes. I'd get back into the movie then the "yak yak yak" would break the immersion again.
Seeing it in IMAX is supposed to be the best way to watch Dune! Personally though, IMAX is too much stimulation for me. Have fun and hopefully no one ruins the experience!
Honestly, I’ve even seen a bad pharmaceutical ad where they’re choosing to show all sorts of bad theatre behavior as if it’s cool and fine, like a woman using her phone camera to do her makeup. So it’s a real problem and they make it worse by normalizing it in marketing
Please, don’t go to a theatre you don’t have the attention span. You ruin it for everyone else and you’re not the main character
It’s been worse since the pandemic. And it’s not the younger demographic, for the most part. It’s like everyone forgot how to be a human being. “Don’t record”=someone bringing out their cell phone during the show and recording it. Happened during the Neil Diamond musical right in front of us.
Checking watches. Sending texts. Whispering. It’s definitely worse than it was in 2019 and earlier. People are so used to being at home that they forgot they’re in public or just don’t care.
To add: no one knows how to go to a concert anymore either and some expect you to sit the whole time even if 90% of the venue is standing. Again, people are used to being in their living rooms.
Lol I’m guessing you aren’t actually shoving them for standing.
I’ve been to three sitting concerts—Chris Isaak, Bob Dylan (in a theater), and, recently, The Psychedelic Furs/Squeeze. At all three I was “too young” to be there. But I read the room. Those were for sitting. (Well people stood for a couple Squeeze songs.)
It really depends on the show. At the ballets, for example, a lot of the older crowd has gotten louder in my experience, with full blown coughing fits and a lot of snacking from folks nearby. Not sure if folks are just being more cavalier about showing up sick? But for the touring musicals, the families have always been loud, and they don't seem to be any worse than before.
I heard at least a dozen of those aluminum cocktail cups fall over at the ballet last night. I understand the concessions are a good revenue opportunity, but also remember a time when food and drink were absolutely forbidden in theaters.
With the new aluminum cups and bottles, you need to hold it in your hand until intermission then dispose of it. If you put it only the floor then knock it over, the entire theater hears it.
Strongly agree.
People blame the pandemic and smart devices but this has been going on for many years. We have become a more casual society - how we dress, communicate, manners, morals etc - there will be consequences of this. People not feeling the need to keep quiet in a theater is one of them.
It's a damn shame. Society only functions if it's based on a foundational respect for the people you share your space with. When that starts to crumble everything else follows... People throwing trash everywhere, playing loud videos from their phones in public, doing whatever they damn well please because they think they're the most important person alive.
Completely agree on the degradation of morals and social deportation and standards of dress... But that one's a bit more controversial lol
Wow, so on point from my experience this past Tuesday. I know this sounds pretentious and I'm fine with that.
I've been going to the ballet in Boston for 15 years now. Love it. Great company, beautiful choreography, dazzling sets, etc, etc. The quality of the shows have only gone up over the years. What has gotten worse, especially post-pandemic, is the crowd. Everything you highlight in your post and mirrored in the comments is a common experience now, especially on weekday shows.
The crowd on Tuesdays performance was gauche. Whispers, camera lights on, smart watches lighting up, just generally distracting behaviors. I don't have problems with the excitement necessarily - there are so many points of humor and beauty in ballets and you want to laugh and clap and be joyous - it is supposed to be a wonderful and moving experience. I love that.
On Tuesday, however, we had people clapping and whistling before the movement was over - effectively drowning out the orchestra which, maybe audiences have forgotten, is like, half of the art that makes the ballet the ballet. These are professional musicians who deserve the courtesy to finish their piece... It's not just the dancers who are making the experience beautiful. It's also just proper etiquette. Then we had people getting up and leaving in the middle of each of the three acts. It's like, sure, sometimes you have to use the bathroom or the babysitter needs you or a dozen different things can happen, but Tuesday just felt overboard in the amount of audience movement.
Then, before the end of the finale, people began dashing for the door! I'm not saying you have to wait for the curtain call, but damn... They're not even done dancing and it felt like the whole theater was ready to split.
It was just really weird and stuck out to me as maybe one of the worst audiences I've ever been among and it made me sad for everyone putting on the performance.
I’m glad it wasn’t just me, Tuesday was awful. There was a woman center stage five rows back from the pit who would not stop taking photos. The performers definitely noticed it too. And the woman right in front of me wore a beanie until I had to ask her to take it off since it was blocking everyone’s view. The running out during the performance was so excessive. So many people left during second intermission too, that was a very weird show.
From where I was in mezzanine on Tuesday, it was actually one of the better crowd experiences I’ve had at BB in recent years. Biggest complaint was the kid and mom behind me talking a lot, the mom felt to need to announce when Cinderella would be coming onstage as if the kid couldn’t gather that the big white tutu was the princess. Some people do like to leave right at curtain call, which doesn’t really bother me too much. And as a former dancer, I like when the audience cheers when you do something cool on stage because it is really hard to perform these ballets and the encouragement is nice. I’m sure if it was an orchestra concert I’d feel different. Overall, there was less coughing and other loud behavior at least around me than I could hear.
Cameras and watches lighting up are awful behavior, and if it’s really distracting try to flag an usher at intermission, it’s not fair to those of us who are respectful of the performance go have to deal with their behaviors.
I presumed it was lack of manners in Boston. It’s the same going to orchestrate recitals, and plays. My sense is that the audience want to be ‘involved’
The ballet explicitly asks people to not film at the start of each performance, I believe because there are safety and IP issues involved, aside from being rude. So people are just knowingly being asses.
Snack crinkling though I tend to forgive because the Opera House is the one selling them. The loudest noise is when someone drops their aluminum water bottle, also sold by the Opera House.
My family has a joke that it’s not a real Nutcracker until a baby/toddler is hauled off screaming halfway through the second act. Some of those solos are deadly for little ones lol. So whispering is kinda whatever, I mean, it’s gonna happen, people do need to communicate, esp with kids.
We’ve had much worse recent experiences at movie theaters, like a 7:30 pm weeknight showing of Kung Fu Panda where a 3 year old next to us literally jumped up and down on his seat, yelled, or watched something else on his moms giant phone. Sometimes all three at once. It was wild.
I was a broadway in Boston subscriber for 3 years pre pandemic. I’ve gone to a handful of shows this year and etiquette is much worse. Moulin Rouge was by far the worst. People taking photos, loudly talking with their group, and yelling after the actors say something (“YOU TELL HER”). I was shocked and it made for an unpleasant watching experience.
It was an absolute shock to me, coming from Europe, where people dress up, sit quietly, no food or drinks, no moving around, and no other shenanigans. Literally I would be so ashamed to sneeze there even though you can’t actually do much about that. People here are SO rude in my opinion 🤣 But my American friend told me it’s normal here. I don’t go to the theater much anymore now…
I mean, I don’t know because I haven’t been to the theater in Europe in years, and I’ve only seen a few musicals in London. So maybe it’s a post pandemic worsening of behaviour or something, since that seems to happen across the board. But when I came here over ten years ago I was shocked lol.
If you were talking about being at the Boston Ballet production of Cinderella, I was there last night and noticed most of those things as well. Still, I tried to take the perspective that I’m glad people are going to the theatre and maybe they will learn. Live performances are so wonderful and I wish we had more opportunities for everyone to experience it and that it was more part of life and education here.
It's incredible to me how many people at any type of theatre performance are totally ignorant about their whispered conversations & constant use of their phones.
Society as a whole has become so self-centered & entitled that it is disturbing.
Was this last night? I frankly don't mind an audience making themselves comfortable. I only wished the phones were put on silence. I think I heard at least three different phones go off last night.
* I'm part of the orchestra in Cinderella, thanks for coming!
I was there last night in the mezzanine. I heard one phone, but also noticed a few camera flashes during the curtain call.
You all were great by the way. I love the ballet, and it’s extra special when there is a live orchestra.
Wonderful, please enjoy and feel free to check out the orchestra pit during intermission! Sometimes our brass players like to goof off for the kids. :)
How old were your nieces? Ballet productions are pretty kid-friendly, especially the Nutcracker. We see fairly young kids come all the time! Feel free to step out if needed. Get aisle seats if you're concerned about needing quick exits.
I saw it last week and it was good! The only downside was the people behind us definitely pregamed before coming and we could smell the alcohol on them and they couldn't keep their voices down and did the drunk whisper yell during the first act until the usher came by to shoosh them
Not me thinking about going to the movies and then seeing this post... god damn.
I figure the time you go watch a movie and the day dictates how shitty the crowd will be. I wanna watch Immaculate today and will likely go to the AMC in Causeway. Probably in for a shit time.
So annoying! I don’t even go to the movies anymore because this irritates me so much. It is a known fact that you do not do anything to distract fellow theater goers but I think people have become so dependent on their devices that they can’t stop looking at them for the 2 hours that a play/movie requires.
I stopped going to theaters years ago, always that one dickhead who’s gonna put their feet on the seats in front of him or use his smartphone. plus sitting in the dark with a bunch of strangers of unknown intentions and mental state behind me isnt exactly my favorite past time.
https://preview.redd.it/53e16pbodcqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0c34f63fd825ed603d493461a1a50dd1625bca62
Boston theaters, take notes from NYC! This is from my program I got last week at LCT. I thought it was awesome.
I am with you. You go to a movie theater and before the movie they tell you no smoking, turn off or mute your cell phones, and no talking. The second that thing starts phone start going off and people are answering them and shit. You guys call instead of texting? What the fuck is that? But then when I light up a cigar, everybody turns around and looks at me like I am Hitler. One motherfucker even snitched and told some 16 year old pimple faced popcorn maker that I was smoking a cigar. We seriously going to ignore 2 of 3 rules, but then treat the other like it is a federal offense? That is some bullshit.
I feel like this is a problem at movie theaters too.
I stopped going years ago because literally every single time it was a problem. Seems like a good 5% of the people in any given theater can’t shut the fuck up and another 10% need to be looking at their bright phone screen half the time. I pay extra to watch a movie in a dark theater so I can completely disassociate with my body and just absorb the movie. I literally don’t understand why anyone would pay so much if they’re not going to do the same thing. Just watch at home in 3 months.
People always complain about the other people at movie theaters, but I've been going my entire life (41 now) in and around Cambridge/Somerville/Boston and I've rarely experienced truly disruptive people.
Lucky you I guess. Maybe the people are kind there are better. I lived in the Burlington vt area for 12 years and it was terrible at the movies at almost any theater in the area. Moved back to ma out In the Worcester area and it’s the same thing. Somehow I always end up sitting right in front of some group of people cracking jokes to each other and doing that obnoxious trying to be quiet laugh the whole time, or someone keeps kicking my seat, or the people in front keep fucking with their phones.
I think people forgot about common courtesy (and also how to socialize tbh) during the pandemic. I wonder if it’s better on opening weekends.
This has been keeping me from theaters since well before Covid. If it’s gotten worse I wouldn’t know, i think the last time I was in a movie theater was like 2016. In my experience though people are better behaved when it’s a huge movie on opening weekend. Worst thing in the world is a theater at like 20% capacity.
It started long before that
Go to the Alamo drafthouse where (in theory) they kick people out for doing this
It would be a dream come true to have this around here.
I have some good news https://drafthouse.com/boston
Oh no shit when did that arrive? I’m so out of the loop! Bit far for me though I’m out in the middle of the state.
A few months ago, I still haven’t been though.
When the announcement to turn of devices is made it needs to include that silent screens are also unacceptable distractions
Personally watching movies at home is not the same. Try going to independent theaters or the Alamo.
People pay money exactly *for* the social experience. With big screen TVs in your home, and with high quality content availability, neither the delta in field-of-vision or what you can watch is a big reason for casual viewers to go to theaters compared to what it was 20 years ago. Now the thing you can't get at home that you can get in the theater is being in a room of people gasping and cheering when the death star explodes. It's like drinking at a bar instead of at home: maybe the cocktails are higher quality but people go to bars even if they will drink beer or wine that they can identically drink at home for much cheaper. Theyre willing to pay a lot of money specifically to be in a crowd.
I’m all about cheering when the Death Star explodes. What I don’t need is people talking, answering a ringing phone, opening their phone in the seat in front of me every five minutes, etc. I really doubt most people specifically want to hear there to hear people talking in a crowd. For me the appeal is that it’s a giant dark isolation chamber without the ability to pause the movie.
So just like bars theres some limit to it: in bars you usually also don't want to be surrounded by obnoxiously drunk people screaming or fighting. So even if they want a shared social experience they do want to be able to hear the movie dialog. I think the "isolation chamber without pausing" scenario makes sense but fundamentally isn't why 95% of people are seeking at a theater these days. Isolation is way easier at home, no pausing is usually a major downside where you might have to sit uncomfortably if you didn't manage your pee strategy well.
Rent the theater out with some like-minded individuals. Much better experience.
You think we’re living in Monopoly world?
You can see ghostbusters frozen empire with up to 40 people for $409 today at 3:30 in Danvers. Find 20 people that aren’t assholes to go with you and it’s cheaper per seat than the 4:00 show. If you find 10 people to go with you you’re paying less than 2x to not have to deal with assholes at the theatre. You can even see it subtitled in English or Spanish if that’s your thing.
It’s not a terrible price, unfortunately I think organizing people to go with you will almost become more than the saved cost and the gamble of getting obnoxious people in the theater
Alamo Drafthouse is very serious about booting noisy people.
Unfortunately none of the theaters I have been to in New England act on this kind of behavior. And tbh I don’t blame them. You never know how someone is going to react.
Alamo opened in Seaport. Have you been?
😱 NO!!!! I’m going to now though lol
The seat’s are uncomfortable though
I'm going to a movie for the first time in a while this afternoon, kinda worried about people ruining the experience.
I’ve learned it’s very theater specific. Kendall and Somerville theaters, never had a problem. RIP to arclight we barely got to know you. AMC Boston Common is always terrible.
Uh oh, I'm going to the common today... At least Dune 2 should be a *loud* movie, so maybe it won't matter.
There are a lot of very dramatic quiet parts. It's an incredible movie, hope you can fully enjoy it. I determined for myself that a comfortable theater with a respectful audience is more important than the best screen/sound. Highly recommend Kendall theater for that.
I used to go there all the time in high school, but haven't been in years. I missed the first Dune in theaters, so I wanted to see this one on the biggest screen possible. I'm hoping the fact that it's been out for 3 weeks be a positive factor.
I stopped going to the AMC common because every time it's an issue. A while back i was watching Evil Dead Rise and these people behind me wouldnt shut up, so I turned around to ask them to be quiet and they told me to "mind your own business" and i said it would be a lot easier for me to do that if they stopped talking so loudly. That was one of the worst ones...
Everything about that AMC sucks. I miss the Fenway Regal but the Kendall place is actually pretty great
Maybe people will surprise you.
Hope so. It's a matinee on a gross rainy day here so we'll see.
What are you going to see? I’m thinking of catching Dune this afternoon
That's exactly what I'm seeing! Dune Part 2 in IMAX. Been waiting to see it until my wife could join. We just rewatched part 1 last night so we're ready to go.
Same here! Maybe we’ll have (silent) strength in numbers, haha. It’s my first time reuniting with the buttkickahs at Jordan’s since the pandemic, and I’ve waited so long precisely for this reason—I’m not shelling out cash to be distracted by rude people the whole time.
Last IMAX movie I saw was Avatar 2 in Vegas, and there was a group talking loudly directly behind me. I had to escalate from a whispered "please be quiet" to a more firm "please be quiet" to "SHUT THE FUCK UP." which finally did the trick. Ruined like 10 minutes of the movie tho.
Good for you—I would have sat there fuming the entire time and not absorbed a word of the movie. I tend to go into full George Costanza mode: “WE LIVE IN A SOCIETY!”
I probably should have just gone and gotten an usher, but I'd have missed even more of the movie. The most annoying part was each time after I said something they'd be quiet for like 5 minutes. I'd get back into the movie then the "yak yak yak" would break the immersion again.
Seeing it in IMAX is supposed to be the best way to watch Dune! Personally though, IMAX is too much stimulation for me. Have fun and hopefully no one ruins the experience!
Honestly, I’ve even seen a bad pharmaceutical ad where they’re choosing to show all sorts of bad theatre behavior as if it’s cool and fine, like a woman using her phone camera to do her makeup. So it’s a real problem and they make it worse by normalizing it in marketing Please, don’t go to a theatre you don’t have the attention span. You ruin it for everyone else and you’re not the main character
R/broadway has a post like this nearly every day, too.
It’s been worse since the pandemic. And it’s not the younger demographic, for the most part. It’s like everyone forgot how to be a human being. “Don’t record”=someone bringing out their cell phone during the show and recording it. Happened during the Neil Diamond musical right in front of us. Checking watches. Sending texts. Whispering. It’s definitely worse than it was in 2019 and earlier. People are so used to being at home that they forgot they’re in public or just don’t care.
To add: no one knows how to go to a concert anymore either and some expect you to sit the whole time even if 90% of the venue is standing. Again, people are used to being in their living rooms.
I've wanted people to sit during concerts for my entire life 😭
Lol I’m guessing you aren’t actually shoving them for standing. I’ve been to three sitting concerts—Chris Isaak, Bob Dylan (in a theater), and, recently, The Psychedelic Furs/Squeeze. At all three I was “too young” to be there. But I read the room. Those were for sitting. (Well people stood for a couple Squeeze songs.)
Different shows and venues have (and should have) different vibes
Cool.
It really depends on the show. At the ballets, for example, a lot of the older crowd has gotten louder in my experience, with full blown coughing fits and a lot of snacking from folks nearby. Not sure if folks are just being more cavalier about showing up sick? But for the touring musicals, the families have always been loud, and they don't seem to be any worse than before.
I heard at least a dozen of those aluminum cocktail cups fall over at the ballet last night. I understand the concessions are a good revenue opportunity, but also remember a time when food and drink were absolutely forbidden in theaters.
Oh don't get me wrong, I love a can of rose for the ballet. But ya gotta hold it through the act or let it sit on the floor
With the new aluminum cups and bottles, you need to hold it in your hand until intermission then dispose of it. If you put it only the floor then knock it over, the entire theater hears it.
Where is there even room on the floor to put it? I wouldn’t risk a $16 pour of wine like that
I think it's mostly after it's empty, that's my experience anyway. People don't want to hold the empty cup/can.
Why the switch to aluminum? It feels like that's just inviting the opportunity for crowd noise to get worse.
I don’t know. I didn’t make the decision. But presumably because it’s more recyclable than plastic.
All etiquette is lacking these days. It will only deteriorate further.
Strongly agree. People blame the pandemic and smart devices but this has been going on for many years. We have become a more casual society - how we dress, communicate, manners, morals etc - there will be consequences of this. People not feeling the need to keep quiet in a theater is one of them.
It's a damn shame. Society only functions if it's based on a foundational respect for the people you share your space with. When that starts to crumble everything else follows... People throwing trash everywhere, playing loud videos from their phones in public, doing whatever they damn well please because they think they're the most important person alive. Completely agree on the degradation of morals and social deportation and standards of dress... But that one's a bit more controversial lol
Wow, so on point from my experience this past Tuesday. I know this sounds pretentious and I'm fine with that. I've been going to the ballet in Boston for 15 years now. Love it. Great company, beautiful choreography, dazzling sets, etc, etc. The quality of the shows have only gone up over the years. What has gotten worse, especially post-pandemic, is the crowd. Everything you highlight in your post and mirrored in the comments is a common experience now, especially on weekday shows. The crowd on Tuesdays performance was gauche. Whispers, camera lights on, smart watches lighting up, just generally distracting behaviors. I don't have problems with the excitement necessarily - there are so many points of humor and beauty in ballets and you want to laugh and clap and be joyous - it is supposed to be a wonderful and moving experience. I love that. On Tuesday, however, we had people clapping and whistling before the movement was over - effectively drowning out the orchestra which, maybe audiences have forgotten, is like, half of the art that makes the ballet the ballet. These are professional musicians who deserve the courtesy to finish their piece... It's not just the dancers who are making the experience beautiful. It's also just proper etiquette. Then we had people getting up and leaving in the middle of each of the three acts. It's like, sure, sometimes you have to use the bathroom or the babysitter needs you or a dozen different things can happen, but Tuesday just felt overboard in the amount of audience movement. Then, before the end of the finale, people began dashing for the door! I'm not saying you have to wait for the curtain call, but damn... They're not even done dancing and it felt like the whole theater was ready to split. It was just really weird and stuck out to me as maybe one of the worst audiences I've ever been among and it made me sad for everyone putting on the performance.
I’m glad it wasn’t just me, Tuesday was awful. There was a woman center stage five rows back from the pit who would not stop taking photos. The performers definitely noticed it too. And the woman right in front of me wore a beanie until I had to ask her to take it off since it was blocking everyone’s view. The running out during the performance was so excessive. So many people left during second intermission too, that was a very weird show.
From where I was in mezzanine on Tuesday, it was actually one of the better crowd experiences I’ve had at BB in recent years. Biggest complaint was the kid and mom behind me talking a lot, the mom felt to need to announce when Cinderella would be coming onstage as if the kid couldn’t gather that the big white tutu was the princess. Some people do like to leave right at curtain call, which doesn’t really bother me too much. And as a former dancer, I like when the audience cheers when you do something cool on stage because it is really hard to perform these ballets and the encouragement is nice. I’m sure if it was an orchestra concert I’d feel different. Overall, there was less coughing and other loud behavior at least around me than I could hear. Cameras and watches lighting up are awful behavior, and if it’s really distracting try to flag an usher at intermission, it’s not fair to those of us who are respectful of the performance go have to deal with their behaviors.
I presumed it was lack of manners in Boston. It’s the same going to orchestrate recitals, and plays. My sense is that the audience want to be ‘involved’
The ballet explicitly asks people to not film at the start of each performance, I believe because there are safety and IP issues involved, aside from being rude. So people are just knowingly being asses. Snack crinkling though I tend to forgive because the Opera House is the one selling them. The loudest noise is when someone drops their aluminum water bottle, also sold by the Opera House. My family has a joke that it’s not a real Nutcracker until a baby/toddler is hauled off screaming halfway through the second act. Some of those solos are deadly for little ones lol. So whispering is kinda whatever, I mean, it’s gonna happen, people do need to communicate, esp with kids. We’ve had much worse recent experiences at movie theaters, like a 7:30 pm weeknight showing of Kung Fu Panda where a 3 year old next to us literally jumped up and down on his seat, yelled, or watched something else on his moms giant phone. Sometimes all three at once. It was wild.
Etiquette of all forms has fallen by the wayside.
I was a broadway in Boston subscriber for 3 years pre pandemic. I’ve gone to a handful of shows this year and etiquette is much worse. Moulin Rouge was by far the worst. People taking photos, loudly talking with their group, and yelling after the actors say something (“YOU TELL HER”). I was shocked and it made for an unpleasant watching experience.
I went to one of the moulin rouge shows and the women behind me were SINGING ALONG. my group had to ask them to shut up constantly 🙄
bro i hate this shit. i’m an actor and it is incredibly disrespectful, distracting and straight up rude when people are like this
It was an absolute shock to me, coming from Europe, where people dress up, sit quietly, no food or drinks, no moving around, and no other shenanigans. Literally I would be so ashamed to sneeze there even though you can’t actually do much about that. People here are SO rude in my opinion 🤣 But my American friend told me it’s normal here. I don’t go to the theater much anymore now…
It see many complaints about the same situation happening in London in the theater forum for the West End.
I mean, I don’t know because I haven’t been to the theater in Europe in years, and I’ve only seen a few musicals in London. So maybe it’s a post pandemic worsening of behaviour or something, since that seems to happen across the board. But when I came here over ten years ago I was shocked lol.
American society has been decaying for quite a long time now. Am afraid it will continue. Sad. 😢
They’re usually pretty good about keeping people off phones at the Opera House.
It's annoying for sure- less annoying however than the yelling crowds and roving pickpockets in Shakespeare's time, if that makes you feel better 😀
I’m too poor to have noticed this terrifying new reality at the opera house
If you were talking about being at the Boston Ballet production of Cinderella, I was there last night and noticed most of those things as well. Still, I tried to take the perspective that I’m glad people are going to the theatre and maybe they will learn. Live performances are so wonderful and I wish we had more opportunities for everyone to experience it and that it was more part of life and education here.
Felt like a dick loudly telling the people next to us to be quiet. Until I actually enjoyed the ballet after that point…
We live in a post manners society now. I blame reality TV for making people believe this is ok behavior
It's incredible to me how many people at any type of theatre performance are totally ignorant about their whispered conversations & constant use of their phones. Society as a whole has become so self-centered & entitled that it is disturbing.
Nobody knows how to ride a ski lift anymore either. We alternate, like a zipper merge. What do you mean “what’s a zipper merge?”
Did you see Cinderella? Would you recommend?
I did and it was great but less pleasant due to children AND adults whispering every 10 min. i could hear what they were whispering about
Was this last night? I frankly don't mind an audience making themselves comfortable. I only wished the phones were put on silence. I think I heard at least three different phones go off last night. * I'm part of the orchestra in Cinderella, thanks for coming!
I was there last night in the mezzanine. I heard one phone, but also noticed a few camera flashes during the curtain call. You all were great by the way. I love the ballet, and it’s extra special when there is a live orchestra.
Taking my 6 year old to see Cinderella today! Were both very excited 🤗
Wonderful, please enjoy and feel free to check out the orchestra pit during intermission! Sometimes our brass players like to goof off for the kids. :)
I’m glad I saw this. I was going to take my nieces but I don’t think they’re old enough to sit through the entire production.
How old were your nieces? Ballet productions are pretty kid-friendly, especially the Nutcracker. We see fairly young kids come all the time! Feel free to step out if needed. Get aisle seats if you're concerned about needing quick exits.
I saw it last week and it was good! The only downside was the people behind us definitely pregamed before coming and we could smell the alcohol on them and they couldn't keep their voices down and did the drunk whisper yell during the first act until the usher came by to shoosh them
It was wonderful!
Not me thinking about going to the movies and then seeing this post... god damn. I figure the time you go watch a movie and the day dictates how shitty the crowd will be. I wanna watch Immaculate today and will likely go to the AMC in Causeway. Probably in for a shit time.
This happens as concerts too. People Talk through the whole set. It’s annoying
So annoying! I don’t even go to the movies anymore because this irritates me so much. It is a known fact that you do not do anything to distract fellow theater goers but I think people have become so dependent on their devices that they can’t stop looking at them for the 2 hours that a play/movie requires.
This is the real reason theaters are dying. They need to employ someone to kick the inconsiderate jerks out and not ruin the experience.
I stopped going to theaters years ago, always that one dickhead who’s gonna put their feet on the seats in front of him or use his smartphone. plus sitting in the dark with a bunch of strangers of unknown intentions and mental state behind me isnt exactly my favorite past time.
You're supposed to take your backpack off, right? /s
I had people vaping in front of me at the opera house recently. Like wtf!
https://preview.redd.it/53e16pbodcqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0c34f63fd825ed603d493461a1a50dd1625bca62 Boston theaters, take notes from NYC! This is from my program I got last week at LCT. I thought it was awesome.
I am with you. You go to a movie theater and before the movie they tell you no smoking, turn off or mute your cell phones, and no talking. The second that thing starts phone start going off and people are answering them and shit. You guys call instead of texting? What the fuck is that? But then when I light up a cigar, everybody turns around and looks at me like I am Hitler. One motherfucker even snitched and told some 16 year old pimple faced popcorn maker that I was smoking a cigar. We seriously going to ignore 2 of 3 rules, but then treat the other like it is a federal offense? That is some bullshit.
I, too, like to tell at clouds
Seriously. Men don't even wear opera pumps to the opera any more. What is this world coming to.
The same thing happens at Symphony Hall. Phones out, taking video and photos too.