Theatre etiquette in the spotlight after The Bodyguard incident in Manchester

Should you beryllium allowed to sing on astatine a musical? After unwanted assemblage information led to The Bodyguard being chopped abbreviated and constabulary being called, the contented of assemblage behaviour - particularly since the pandemic - has been thrust into the spotlight.

"Please refrain from singing along."

Those words greet audiences connected posters connected the doors of Manchester's Palace Theatre, and wrong the foyers.

Singing on astatine a philharmonic mightiness not dependable similar a large issue. It's often portion of the fun.

But connected Friday, 1 overenthusiastic assemblage member's backing vocals during the large climax of I Will Always Love You led to a row, a scuffle - and a quality communicative that went astir the world.

"If radical had spoiled it for everyone else, I would person been perfectly devastated," said Zoe from Burnley, connected her mode successful to spot the amusement the adjacent night.

"I volition beryllium singing - but debased key," she added.

There is simply a quality betwixt a theatre amusement and a concert, she said. "It's a philharmonic and you're determination to perceive the lyrics, perceive the words, emotions, everything.

"It's not a gig wherever you're lasting connected chairs and things similar that. You're present to consciousness the emotions of The Bodyguard, and that's what I'm present for."

Other assemblage members connected Saturday besides said they liked to sing - up to a point.

"I don't spot what's incorrect with singing on to immoderate degree," said Anna from Hyde successful Greater Manchester.

"But if it's the rules past you've got to travel the rules... When drink's involves, it tin get a spot annoying."

Amanda from Burnley said: "We've been to rather a fewer [shows] and we've sung - but not wanting to bash a solo oregon thing similar that. You wouldn't basal up and basal retired from the crowd."

Husband Simon added: "If different radical astir you are doing it, you conscionable articulation in, don't you? There are Tina Turner and Abba musicals wherever everyone's singing, truthful it's portion of it sometimes."

The Bodyguard is adapted from the 1992 movie starring Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, and the philharmonic version, starring Pussycat Doll Melody Thornton, features galore different Whitney hits.

It's an often tender and tense emotion story, alternatively than a raucous sing-a-long. The foyer posters amusement determination person been issues before.

And not conscionable successful Manchester - a erstwhile venue connected the tour, the King's Theatre successful Glasgow, asked patrons to guarantee "the professionals connected signifier are the lone radical entertaining america with their performances".

Host Alison Hammond said she would beryllium "devastated" if she wasn't allowed to sing along. "I'm not adjacent going to spell to that amusement now," she said.

Vanessa Feltz added: "Isn't the full constituent of going to a philharmonic that you know, that you sing on to each the bits you know... very, precise loudly portion eating an crystal cream."

Co-presenter Dermot O'Leary reasoned: "Here's the thing. There's singing along, and there's singing along, right? No-one minds idiosyncratic adjacent to you conscionable singing the words to themself.

"[If] I've paid wealth to spot Pussycat Doll subordinate Melody Thornton, I would not privation someone, similar with a cat's chorus adjacent to me, drowning her out."

He was dismissed arsenic "a spot spoilsporty" by Feltz, who - on with Hammond - has since felt the ire of theatre Twitter.

But this is not conscionable astir singing.

One idiosyncratic who identified themselves connected Twitter arsenic a Palace beforehand of location supervisor wrote: "The constabulary were not called due to the fact that of a fewer patrons singing along, they were called due to the fact that of the UNPRECEDENTED levels of VIOLENCE asking them to halt caused."

Bad assemblage behaviour successful wide has go an expanding problem, according to galore performers and theatre workers.

Actor Charles Brunton told BBC Breakfast: "It's been truly [worse] since the pandemic, since theatres person reopened up. It seems to beryllium connected a play ground [that] I perceive a fearfulness communicative of immoderate lawsuit and an assemblage subordinate going crazy, oregon immoderate concern that disrupts the show connected stage.

"Pre-pandemic, it was beauteous uncommon that instances would happen. In lockdown, we were sat watching tv shows oregon theatres' productions that were enactment connected television, and evidently we were doing that successful our lounge. We could chat away, we could argue, we could fight, we could bash what we like. And radical look to person brought that into the theatre."

They could besides look astatine their phones oregon devour takeaways.

"It truly does impact you," histrion Kieran Brown told BBC Radio 5 Live. "It's not adjacent conscionable singing on and chatting and stuff. I've heard different stories astir radical pulling retired Chinese takeaways successful the beforehand row, oregon McDonald's.

"It's truthful disheartening to look down and spot someone's look lit up by a telephone, oregon conscionable spot radical chatting oregon walking successful and out," helium continued. "You're truthful easy distracted arsenic a performer, and we've got a batch to deliberation about."

Brown said helium thought overmuch atrocious behaviour was fuelled by alcohol. "Our beforehand of location unit are determination for your comfortableness and safety," helium said.

"They spell to enactment not to beryllium threatened with violence. They don't get paid capable to woody with drunken punters and beryllium threatened to beryllium thrown implicit the borderline of the balcony, arsenic I've heard has happened.

"I judge a batch of the trouble's not travel needfully from radical singing, but the absorption erstwhile they person been asked to halt singing. That's erstwhile they commencement to get violent."

Performers person pointed retired that fans are often encouraged to sing on - but usually lone astatine the end, during a finale erstwhile the formed members inquire the assemblage to get connected their feet.

At The Bodyguard, that happens erstwhile the formed stitchery to present 1 past show of I Wanna Dance With Somebody. Or astatine least, it usually does.

On Friday, the amusement was ended earlier astir of the assemblage had the accidental to articulation in.