Noises off

At first glance they didn’t look like they were going to be trouble. A boy and a girl in their late teens, possibly early twenties. He wore glasses and looked preppy, she was demure with her hair neatly tied in a ponytail. When they began talking during the overture, I thought little of it. As they chattered and giggled their way through the opening number, I kept telling myself they were probably excited to be at the theatre and would quieten down soon enough. When they were still talking during the second number I tried not to panic. When they were getting stuck into a full-blown conversation about life as Oliver began to sing ‘Where Is Love’ I started to worry that they didn’t know what the theatre was. Should I turn round and explain that it was received practice to sit quietly facing front in order to watch the action on stage?

I decided to attempt a mild shushing exercise.