#i don’t want my fandom experience to be ruined by my stress yknow

[ahalliance]

folks im doing a pruning spree of my following for the sake of my own sanity (i follow too many people and it is stressing me out) and i apologise in advance if i accidentally unfollow any mutuals with whom i talk less 🫶 feel free to shoot me a msg if that happens

[hadmysushi-blog]

hey i just got back from seeing be more chill @ the strand in lakewood nj and i have to make this post because hoo nelly that was... one of the most stressful shows ive ever been to

now lemme preface my explanation with this:

the show was great! exit 82 did a great job, props to the cast for such a massively successful run orchestrated by a troupe of talented individuals. they ran a fantastic show and you can tell they all really enjoyed the material they were working with. the portrayals were all true to the original work while adding their own little flairs and traits to the characters, played by some really outstanding actors. they played the parts with heart and passion that i really loved watching and im glad they brought this show back and that i got to go see it and be a part of that. it was really special, and the strand was a beautiful theatre. i work in a theatre in new jersey myself (similar era, capacity, & construction) and not gonna lie, i was partly jealous of the architecture and design. really a beautiful building, beautiful auditorium, beautiful design. v impressed, would definitely see this cast and attend that theatre again.

but heres whats not cool:

the amount of Fandom that was present there.

im passionate about the show, too. i fucking adore it, thats why i traveled halfway across my state in subfreezing temperatures to see it. ive listened to it countless times, this musical is fucking great. i get it.

but what i just watched happen in that threatre was not okay

the amount of shrill, ear piercing screaming that happened after every musical number. as a theatre kid and employee, lemme tell you, that was not okay. that’s not what you do. in drama, in theatre, in choir, they tell you one thing over and over: don’t applaud til the musical number is done. dont shout. dont disrespect the performer(s) or the audience. the applause should compliment the program, not distract from it.

after every song, the entire audience would scream. theyd interrupt musical numbers with bouts of screaming and applause. it actually LEGITIMATELY HURT my ears and thank god my (equally mortified) best friend was sitting to my left or other boTH my eardrums might be fucking numb right now. thats not cool. thats not the etiquette. thats just not how we do it.

now dont get me wrong, i can understand cheering for certain things, when your favorite character takes the stage the FIRST time (not EVERY TIME) or after major important musical numbers or solos (more than survive) but screaming every time a character (coughMICHAELcough) shows up or after every single song or even 1-refrain reprises? literally screaming yourself shrill at top volume? 

like i dont know whats worse, how disrespectful it is to the actors when you scream over their dialog, or how inconsiderate it is to your fellow theatre goer to scream in their ear

dont get me wrong, im not trying to shame or embarrass anyone who was at the show tonight (uhhhhhhh sup) but jesus christ, i just cant believe i even have to say it? like “Don’t Yell During a Musical” its pretty, like its common sense.

i get that you’re excited. me too!! i was SUPER excited to see this show. but yknow what? it got to the point where a couple seconds before the end of a song, i would cover my ears. i dreaded certain musical numbers or lines, because i know they would incite thunderous roars from the gallery. i couldnt really relax or ENJOY the show because the crowd literally MADE MY EARS HURT. i was WAITING for it to be over so i could LEAVE and be out of that environment

thats not cool. everyone was seeing it for the first time just as you were and you took it away from being about the musical and made it all about you. this theatre has like 1,020 seats. one Thousand other people besides you were seeing that musical for the FIRST TIME. when you act like that? you disrespect your fellow fans and thats not cool. we’re all trying to enjoy ourselves. not screaming wouldnt have ruined the show for you, while screaming effects those around you. this isn’t a fucking concert. this is a theatre performance. like.. theres no getting around saying it, however pretentious it sounds: theres a goddamn level of tact.

i have a headache now. im high, and i still have this fucking headache.

also like hey can we just like. leave some fandom shit at the door? like.. cosplay okay i wasnt thrilled about but thats just some “euugh cant we pretend to be normies for one night” level of shit, but like, so they had a (??)twitter(???i guess?) hashtag livefeed and yknow it just.. it woulda been really nice to see shit like “break a leg, exit 82!” or “clap if you love joe iconis!!” or something instead of shit like... “boyf riends is canon,” “clap if youre gay,” and george salazar memes. and the fan favoritism and coddling of michael was just way too over the top. like hey dont get me wrong i fucking love michael mell (i mean... clearly) but jesus christ. spread the love around guys. we’re lucky enough to have a multifaceted cast with not one unlikable character. 

like speaking of which, tomorrow theres a talkback? with original cast members and iconis? and i have fear for that event. i was gonna go! i was thinking about going to see tomorrows matinee and attend the talkback, not doing that now. so glad i didnt buy tickets to the party. i was gonna get a motel about it and i LITERALLY went the 60 miles back home. just got in the car and drove.

man that was stressful. that hurt. i really wanted to have a fun night but some fans just.. had to make it all about them, and that really sucked. 

so if you’re going tomorrow? could you please do your neighbor a courtesy and just... be quiet? so hopefully someone can have a better experience than we did. thanks