Steal the Show in our click on the photo to enlarge |
(Victorian) Rules for Attending the Theatre Home: greenlightwrite.com featuring |
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Steal the Show in our click on the photo to enlarge |
(Victorian) Rules for Attending the Theatre Home: greenlightwrite.com featuring |
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Gone With The Wind pages Gracious
Living / Victorian Life
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statue of founder of French tragic drama, Pierre Corneille, in Rouen, France You think you're a pretty good stage actor until your passionate love scene brings the audience to hysterical laughter. Would you carry on or run for the safety of the wings? When you sit in an audience, you become part of the show. Your reaction to whatever happens on stage gives feedback to the performers. Since the actors can see and hear you, please be kind. We like to think we've evolved since the sometimes stuffy Victorian era. But their rules for behavior in a theatre can guide us today - unless the performance is a wild and wooly rock concert. In that case, you know what to do.
painting by Eva Gonzalè, A Box at the Théâtre des Italiens, in the Musée d'Orsay
Eternal Rules Dress appropriately. Don't wear jeans and a T shirt to a Broadway-type show. "Sunday best" is always appropriate. Refrain from eating onions or garlic, which will taint your breath. Always carry a mint of some sort. Be certain to bathe immediately prior to attending the show. Be judicious in the application of cologne or perfume because you will be sitting in close proximity to a sweetheart, a loved one or stranger, all of whom deserve pleasant, but not overwhelming surroundings while they enjoy the entertainment. If you must pick up your ticket at the theatre prior to performance, give yourself 30 to 45 minutes before the show starts in case there is a long line. Have your method of payment ready so as not to stall the process. Should you be fortunate enough to receive a complimentary ticket but be unable to use it, give it away or send it back to the theatre so it can be presented to someone else. Keep your party together and allow the ushers to direct you to the proper seats. Be in your seat at least five minutes before the performance begins. Some theatres will not seat latecomers until the interval between acts or intermission. Be willing to change seats with others in your party as necessary so everyone can see over the person in front of them. Attend to the necessities prior to the performance and at intermission. Should you be unable to wait until intermission, leave the auditorium or room as quietly as possible. Recording a performance in any fashion without permission is always prohibited. Total silence, except for an unexpected sneeze or cough is required. Anyone experiencing a coughing or laughing jag should immediately remove themselves to the lobby so as not to cause the loss of a single word of the performance to their neighbors. Should talking become a necessity, it is to be done in the briefest of whispers. Be certain cell phones, pagers and the often forgotten chiming watches are all turned off. Do not make excessive noise with your program. Completely refrain from singing along with performers - unless you actually hear the words, "Everybody sing." If eating or drinking is permitted (dinner theatre), do not crunch, slurp or rattle the food, wrapper or silver excessively. Hint - Quickly unwrapping a cellophane candy wrapper is quieter than doing it slowly. The noise level is the same, but the duration is shorter. If the play is a bore and the songs sung off-key, refrain from booing. Be well rested when attending the theatre lest you fall asleep and, worse yet, snore. Enthusiastic applause is appreciated, but going overboard with silly antics detracts from the dignity of the performance. If you are so moved you want to jump from your seat and stand, wait until the end of the performance unless the entire audience gives a standing ovation during the show. Don't exit the auditorium while the curtain calls are on going in order to "beat the traffic." It is an affront to the actors. Victorian Rules that Still May Apply The gentleman always gives the preferred seat to the lady for best viewing. Should the performance be private, the ladies are to sit in the front of the room with the men sitting behind or standing, if need be. Men are to remove their hats when entering the building and hats worn by women should be smallish in nature so as not to obstruct the view of the stage by those behind them. Gentlemen always carry a handkerchief. Women always carry a hankie or tissues. Common courtesy dictates that smoking be only done outside or in designated areas so that the scent of it doesn't settle on the ladies or overwhelm their delicate perfume. Most good rules are common sense, but in this day of informality, it can be a joy to attend the theatre for a special occasion that requires you to dress and play the part of a dignified audience member. Happy theatre going!
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