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| Theater rest room traffic in Europe | |
| Posted by: aleck 09:44 am EST 01/09/22 | |
| In reply to: Corsets - AlanScott 09:59 pm EST 01/07/22 | |
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| I'm been to many theaters, concert halls and opera houses throughout the UK and Europe. There is NEVER any kind of line or stampede to the restrooms during intermission. And those folks are chugging down coffee and other drinks before the performance and during intermission. This weak bladder behavior seen here is seemingly a unique and recent American phenomenon. Indeed, years ago there was none of this bathroom traffic. In fact, in London theaters they used to serve tea on trays that would be passed to your seat by other people in the row. There was no jumping up to run to the rest room. Somehow that first act curtain ringing down has become like a Pavlov dog signal to rush to the rest room. Or perhaps what it really means is that a large portion of the audience would rather be somewhere else. That was certainly the case for me at a recent performance of Flying Over Sunset. Should I go to the rest room or should I leave? I chose to go to the rest room. A large number of audience members chose to leave -- although they first made a stop at the rest room. There used to be a time when you would go to the theatre and hope the experience would never end. Now there's celebration when you hear the show is going to be over in 75 minutes! And if it's not over in 75 minutes, you can comfort yourself in knowing that you can bear sitting through the rest of it if you could just get some bladder relief. Otherwise the productions are not transporting enough to keep your mind off of your own body functions. After a while, counting your teeth while putting up with nonsense (like Flying Over Sunset) gets boring. Can you image hoping that something like Annie Get Your Gun would be over in 75 minutes? |
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| re: Theater rest room traffic in Europe | |
| Posted by: WWriter 02:29 pm EST 01/09/22 | |
| In reply to: Theater rest room traffic in Europe - aleck 09:44 am EST 01/09/22 | |
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| I've been going to shows since the early 70s, and there have always been lines at the ladies rooms. The lines at the men's rooms are more recent. I suspect that may reflect the prostates of an older male audience. The theatres that have expanded their restrooms are a pleasure. I have had some wonderful conversations on bathroom lines, which is the upside. I heard about Laurette Taylor and original Tennessee Williams productions and Pal Joey and Rogers and Hammerstein premieres. And then, later, I got to be the older person talking about seeing Meryl Streep on stage and the original Chorus Line and Merrily We Roll Along. |
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| My best rest room line story | |
| Posted by: aleck 09:28 am EST 01/10/22 | |
| In reply to: re: Theater rest room traffic in Europe - WWriter 02:29 pm EST 01/09/22 | |
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| At the 100 birthday celebration for Noel Coward at Carnegie Hall I found myself standing in line to the men's room directly behind Edward Albee. Albee had been a hero of mine since early youth. I had always imagined that one day I would get to meet him. Well, there I was standing right there and suddenly I was a tongue-tied 12=year-old. I didn't want to say something too embarrassingly fawning or something just plain stupid. Finally, after the line didn't move and didn't move and didn't move I said to Albee "I forget why I'm standing in this line." Albee turned slowly to me and with a dead pan expression said: "I wish I could." | |
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| re: My best rest room line story | |
| Posted by: schauspieler 12:10 pm EST 01/10/22 | |
| In reply to: My best rest room line story - aleck 09:28 am EST 01/10/22 | |
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| Classic! Thanks | |
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