Early leavers

[joem]

Judging by the many posts on this board which refer to leaving early, not something I've ever done or will do unless I'm taken ill, might it be an idea when a play is sold out for those who think they are going to walk out early to advise those who might not have got tickets in advance when they will be going and then pass on the tickets?

Costs could be shared.  The leavers honour would still be satisfied and those who couldn't get tickets be given the chance to see what they would otherwise have missed. Where there is more than one interval (a rare occurrence these days), or multiple opportunities to get in during the performance, there might even be a stream of people using the tickets if some of the arrivistes also opt for theatrexit.

It's a thought.

[Phantom of London]

Where is our Lovely Parsley? He/She is known to leave ASAP, even legend has it before the performance has started.

[Deleted]

Well most people leave at intervals and most people want to see a full show not just a second act. I don't think people know in advance if they're going to walk out so they wouldn't be able to inform others. And how many shows have people waiting outside for the chance of a ticket? In London I can only imagine Harry Potter being like that.

[Deleted]

How would people know in advance that they're going to leave early? They leave early if they're getting so little enjoyment that there's no point in carrying on, and if they know that in advance then why turn up in the first place? And who's going to want tickets handed over on the basis of "Would you like these tickets to see the end of a show that's so bad I can't sit through another minute of it"?

[alece10]

Watching Last Night of the Proms on TV last night I saw 3 people leave during the national anthem. Rude!

[emsworthian]

I was once an early leaver and although it happened about 30 years ago I still feel guilty. I went with my future husband to see "Marika's Café Theatre" at Hammersmith studio Theatre, where Marika Rivera gave a one-woman show about her life. We had booked to go to dinner afterwards and I misjudged how long the show would last. Eventually, fearing that we would be too late for the restaurant, we crept out before the end. The meal was disappointing and I immediately started feeling guilty about the snub; especially as I had been really enjoying Marika's account of her extremely interesting life. I meant to write a letter of apology to her but it became one of those letters you endlessly compose in your mind but never send.

[Deleted]

I've never left a performance early (yet) - although I have been strongly tempted at Doctor Faustus at the Duke of York's this year, purely based on severe discomfort, combined with appalling views and the terrible play itself. I've always assumed those who leave roughly halfway through are really not enjoying the material - two older audience members at Cleansed at the Dorfman - and those who leave before the last song I generally assume want to avoid the crushing herds of patrons bottle necking out of limited exit doors. This, or, my brother had a habit of dashing towards the end of a concert because his paranoia was so strong that he feared he'd miss the last train home, which could also be factor.

[d'James]

I guess it could work for fans wanting to see the second half of a show. There are a couple of shows I would happily just see the second half of.

It should only happen at the interval though.

[andrew]

Thus far I've never left a show early, even if I absolutely loathed it, in case something amazing turns it around just after I leave. If I have to suffer, so too should everyone.

[shady23]

Sometimes people leave early to be the first at the Stage Door.

Crazy.

[Deleted]

I've never left early. I considered it once tho, at the New London Theatre; War Horse was so incredibly boring. But I thought, 'maybe this will get better?'. It didn't.

[Deleted]

I've left early a handful of times. Once in Sheffield with my parents - we left at the first interval of Simon Russell Beale in Jumpers as we just hated how pretentious and pompous it was. We weren't alone! We walked into the car part with at least 40 other people, and the car park guy was all *oh, interval at the Lyceum is it? There's even more of you than last night!*

I also left at the interval for a very dull production of The Crucible, where all the woman had big bonnets covering their faces and I was right up at the very back of the balcony and couldn't tell who was talking at any point, because of the bonnets.

I also left at the interval of Antony Sher's Tempest in Sheffield once. I think the production was quite good, it was all African dancing and drummers and things, but the snooker was on next door at the Crucible and my friends were watching on the big screen outside the theatre and I couldn't concentrate on the play.

If I'd been alone, I'd also have left at the interval for No Man's Land recently, and Single Spies.

[Flim Flam]

They should copy Wimbledon. At the tennis any returned tickets for the major courts are resold for charity.

If people returned their tickets into a container at the box office on their way out, the tickets for the 2nd half could be resold in return for some money put in a charity box. Assuming its a theatre where the box office stays open?

I do think some people would go and see the 2nd half of some productions, (maybe more likely with a musical perhaps) just to get a taste of a production or to see inside a particular theatre.

[oxfordsimon]

I have left early on a number of occasions. There was an occasion at the RSC where the show was running so late that if I didn't slip out before the end, I wouldn't be able to make my last train home. So I never did see the very end of Morte d'Arthur.

[Deleted]

Sept 11, 2016 15:52:35 GMT @elanor said:

I've left early a handful of times. Once in Sheffield with my parents - we left at the first interval of Simon Russell Beale in Jumpers as we just hated how pretentious and pompous it was. We weren't alone! We walked into the car part with at least 40 other people, and the car park guy was all *oh, interval at the Lyceum is it? There's even more of you than last night!*

I also left at the interval for a very dull production of The Crucible, where all the woman had big bonnets covering their faces and I was right up at the very back of the balcony and couldn't tell who was talking at any point, because of the bonnets.

I also left at the interval of Antony Sher's Tempest in Sheffield once. I think the production was quite good, it was all African dancing and drummers and things, but the snooker was on next door at the Crucible and my friends were watching on the big screen outside the theatre and I couldn't concentrate on the play.

If I'd been alone, I'd also have left at the interval for No Man's Land recently, and Single Spies.

You reminded me that I too left a performance of Jumpers, Aldwych Theatre 1985, with Felicity Kendall and Paul Eddington. (Obviously the casting director thought they'd cash in on the previous popularity of The Good Life.) Hadn't a clue what it was all about... Never seen a Stoppard since. (That's a bit of a fib, as I once saw him and the family in The Ivy!)

[loureviews]

I liked both Jumpers and that African Tempest.

But I have left early four times - Macbeth with Pete Postlethwaite at Bradford (interval, misguided production), RSC Midsummer Night's Dream at Bradford (interval again, lots of sellotape, rather dreadful - then at the bus station the PA suddenly played the National Anthem as the death of the Queen Mother had been announced), musical Gone With The Wind (during act two, we escaped along with about 20 others because we just couldn't stand it), Globe Macbeth this year (messed up on the seat booking and my bad back couldn't cope with the benches).

There was also Ken Dodd in Kingston - no reflection on the quality of his act but he had been on three hours and it was only the interval ... He finished after 1am apparently and the car park had closed leaving many patrons unable to retrieve their vehicles.

[Jan]

I think leaving early is ill-mannered and should be avoided in all but the most desperate circumstances - in my case (with dozens of others) this was Peter Barnes' version of Feydeau's "Scenes from a Marriage" directed by Terry Hands for the RSC.

[martin1965]

Shock horror! I agree with Jan on this. O remenber hearing about that oroduction at the Barbican, didnt it gave a famousely bad pressnight?😃

[alece10]

Best early leaver was when I was at a John Wilson prom and 2 people left just before the encore and walked into dancers who were coming down the steps onto the stage to perform Tap your troubles away. It was very funny and I think it must be on you tube.

[Dawnstar]

I've left 2 operas in the interval when I couldn't bear the productions: WNO's Il Ritorno D'Ulisse in Patria & ENO's Peter Grimes. 1 apiece for each Alden twin! I don't mind sticking something out if I'm just bored bu on these occasions I was actively detesting what I was seeing onstage. I very occasionally leave during curtain calls, if something is running much longer than scheduled & I have to get a train or get to another show, but I feel guilty about doing so.

[CG on the loose]

I had to leave a show at the Menier at the interval because it started so late I'd have missed my last train home (and didn't want to leave DURING the second half).

[Deleted]

Sept 11, 2016 16:06:10 GMT oxfordsimon said:

So I never did see the very end of Morte d'Arthur.

Nevr mind. The title is a spoiler of the end.

[Deleted]

Sept 11, 2016 19:44:06 GMT Dawnstar said:

I've left 2 operas in the interval when I couldn't bear the productions: WNO's Il Ritorno D'Ulisse in Patria & ENO's Peter Grimes. 1 apiece for each Alden twin! I don't mind sticking something out if I'm just bored bu on these occasions I was actively detesting what I was seeing onstage. I very occasionally leave during curtain calls, if something is running much longer than scheduled & I have to get a train or get to another show, but I feel guilty about doing so.

We left No Man's Land as soon as the curtain went down, because we hated it, and decided it was worth getting to the car park before everyone else.

[Deleted]

The only time I was tempted to leave a show was earlier this year when I saw ' the flick' at the national. It was so dull but in all the reviews it said that people who leave at the interval miss out on something really good and I sat there waiting for something to happen and nothing did. Looking back I should have left at the interval.

[Jan]

Sept 11, 2016 18:56:40 GMT martin1965 said:

Shock horror! I agree with Jan on this. O remenber hearing about that oroduction at the Barbican, didnt it gave a famousely bad pressnight?😃

See ... that wasn't so hard ... you should now be able to agree with me more often.

The appalling Scenes from a Marriage had quite good reviews actually. The bad RSC press night you are thinking of was probably for The Happiest Days of you Life which had a great cast (Peggy Mount etc.) but on the press night one of the actors kept forgetting his lines which pretty much kills a comedy stone dead. I saw it later in the run and it was OK, nothing special, nowhere near as bad as the Feydeau abomination.