Theater Queens Know How To Behave, Darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                       I know, I know, you have been waiting for me to weigh in on the "Mama Mia!" incident, and I will, but I had to wait till I found an incident demonstrating how Theater Queens behave properly.

                                        As a refresher, an unidentified man and his wife brought their teenaged nieces to a matinee performance of  "Mama Mia!" on January 3.  What show could be a more perfect choice?????  A group of obnoxious women sat behind them and let me tell you two things--these women were not from New York, and they were loaded the minute they walked into the Winter Garden Theatre.  They carried on loudly singing, as though at a party of their own, interrupting those in front and around them.  The unidentified man, who I wish would reveal himself because I think he is a hero, waited graciously until Intermission to confront these harridans, and when he did, he let lose, with the end result being the women deciding to leave the theater.  This was great for the audience, but can you imagine how stupid these women are?  To leave a show midway, having paid top prices to sit in the orchestra is senseless.  Because they weren't willing to control themselves?  Or did they think they had the right to act like this?  I bet they did, and Theater Queens, and others, do not want this type of audience member near them.

                                          "Mama Mia!" does have an interactive segment at the end of the show, where the actors sing some of the favorites, and the audience gets to sing along with them.  It is a lovely moment, and had the women waited till then, they could have seen the show and had this experience.

                                               This reminded me of the end of "HAIR," when the cast sings "Let The Sunshine In," and the audience is invited up on the stage.

                                                 Next week we are seeing a revival of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," and if it goes like the original, audience members are called upon to be spelling contestants.

                                                     But none of the aforementioned interrupt the flow of the show.  The women at "Mama Mia!" did.

                                                        Here is an incident where audience members knew enough to behave accordingly.

                                                         Last year, David and I went to see "The Baker's Wife" at CSC.  I was curious to see the show, and to see how Ariana DeBose would handle the famous song, "Meadowlark," which had been covered by the likes of Patti LuPone, Lindsay Mendez, Betty Buckley, Liz Callaway, and others.  It is the most important moment in the show, and this audience knew it, because, as the time drew near for the titular character to sing it, the house went silent and was so for the five plus minutes it took for her to sing this song.  She stopped the show with tumultuous applause, and the audience recognized the importance of this moment as almost a tribute to the song and its singer.

                                                               So, people do know how to behave at the theater.

                                                                I have always said people should be screened before entering a t theater.  As well as their bags, check their personal behavior.  If it is off, deny them entry.

                                                                  May those "Mama Mia!" women never show their faces on Broadway again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!