British theatres have become filled with drunk and aggressive punters who vomit and assault staff, according to ushers.
They allege that since the covid-19 pandemic patrons are increasingly acting as though they are entitled to a good time.
According to The Times:
Joe Postlethwaite, 27, works as senior front-of-house staff in a West End theatre.
He said that security staff working at the theatre had been punched on several occasions, adding: “One of our managers has been punched before and one of our fire officers has been punched.
“We’ve had people refuse to leave and we’ve had police calls. We get people getting drunk and throwing up on several occasions. In terms of things becoming physical, I think it’s got worse since the pandemic.”
A survey of theatre workers recently found that as many as 45 per cent of them were considering quitting because of the increasingly stressful and often violent working environment.
According to the poll of more than 1,500 theatre workers by the Broadcasting, Entertainment, Communications and Theatre Union (Bectu), 90 per cent of staff had witnessed “bad audience behaviour”. Seven in ten thought the problem had become more acute since the Covid-19 pandemic.
The survey also highlighted that certain types of shows were more likely to have disruptive behaviour: 928 of those surveyed reported that there had been bad behaviour at so-called “jukebox” musicals.
This year a performance of Jersey Boys at the Edinburgh Playhouse was stopped after a fight broke out.
Another usher, 30, who works in Plymouth, said behaviour varied according to the show. “It is very show dependent,” she said. “We tend to be able to predict what the audiences are going to be like based on the actual content of the show — and it is generally musicals [that have bad behaviour]. You’ll find a lot of drunkenness and it is mainly women: they’re going out for a ladies night.”
She added: “Generally, the etiquette has changed. People aren’t really aware of theatre etiquette any more. I don’t know what they think they’re walking into but sometimes they think [it’s] just like a nightclub.”
She said that performances were close to being paused on a regular basis. “It’s gotten close to it being [so] disruptive that the show might have to stop for a minute,” she said.
“We had one instance where one lady was just way too drunk just before it all stopped for the interval and she was refusing to leave the auditorium. She was really drunk shouting at a group in front of her. She dropped the C-word and the whole auditorium gasped.”
She said that patrons now expected more from each visit. “They’re just excited to be going out and because prices are going up I think they expect more from their visit. So, if they’re told to ‘shush’ by someone — whether that’s staff or another patron — then they’ll kick off if they’re that way inclined or if they’ve had a drink.”
Colin Marr, theatre director at the Playhouse in Edinburgh, agreed and said that audiences felt more entitled after the pandemic. “The one thing I would say definitely is an increased sense of entitlement,” he said.
“When my staff speak to people and say, ‘You’re disturbing people: people can’t see [the stage] because of what you’re doing,’ people just say, ‘I don’t care. I’ve paid for my ticket and this is what I’m going to do — you can’t tell me what to do.’ ”
