THE STANDING OVATION

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 5:46pm

Can anyone explain what the STANDING OVATION signifies on BROADWAY please?

It cannot mean OUTSTANDING as I don't think I have ever been to a BROADWAY show that didn't end with the audience on their feet no matter how c**p the show was.

Does it have any value in NYC? I need to know.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 5:49pm

you 'need' to know?

well since it's apparently a matter of life and death, the standing ovation means the audience loved the performance and wants to show the cast. sure you could just sit there and clap but it seems to mean so much more when the audience rises to their feet to 'salute' the cast.
and for the record, i have been to shows without standing ovations...and deservedly so.

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 5:52pm

Jess it wasn't a matter of life or death but curiosity can kill the cat!

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 5:55pm

it just seems like such a trivial thing to 'need' to know, that's all...

[jv92]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:00pm

I really hate it when people stand up after everyone has bowed and the whole cast bows together. Why not stand for the entire curtain call? Every show I've been to for the past 10 years or so ends with people at their feet AFTER the players have all bowed. The one exception is Doyle's production of Sweeney Todd, where everyone in the house stood for every cast member's individual bow. The full company ovation lasted at least ten minutes.

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:03pm

It may be trivial to you but I feel it devalues the recognition of truly great performances. It is now a ritual in NYC (INHO) - like tipping (and you daren't not do that either)!

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:05pm

it's not a NYC thing, it's a common courtesy thing! if you thoroughly enjoyed a performance, stand up and show it. and if you didn't, then stay in your seat. same thing goes for tipping...if you had great service, be nice and give a good tip. if you didn't have good service and were disappointed, either give a crappy tip or don't tip at all.

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:06pm

They only do it in LONDON by exception so maybe it is a USA thing but I can't say.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:07pm

only do what in london? stand up for every performance and never tip?

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:14pm

Jess. I'll leave that to you to figure out.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:16pm

hehe wow you're getting so defensive over this...

my only point was that 1) it was a random thing to 'need' to know and 2) it's not something strictly NYC, it's universal (at least american) and common courtesy.
Updated On: 11/16/06 at 06:16 PM

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:17pm

Jess sorry I thought you were being a tad pedantic so responded appropriately. Forgive me!

[DRSisLove]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:18pm

As someone said, it shows you enjoyed the show enough to want to stand up and clap, versus staying in your seat.

Honestly, its up to you to stand or not.
No one's gonna tell you whether you should or shouldn't do it, but even if you didn't have a great time, its just like a common respect for the actors, IMO.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:20pm

that was exactly my point...

[Theatrical Landladies]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:24pm

I don't disagree that people stand out of "common respect" but the standing ovation is used by commentators to mean the show is TERRIFIC, OUTSTANDING etc as in "received a standing ovation every night". It just seems that some people now think it is what you do at the end of a show and even if you don't want to signify how great it was you stand so you can see!

There are no lessons on theatre going so people learn from the behaviour of others and my only point is that the STANDING OVATION doesn't mean what it used to. So long as people don't believe it indicates unanimous praise then that's fine but I do think plenty of people think that it does.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:31pm

I think it's really a matter of opinion. If you like the show, then you stand up and let it be known. I know that I personally don't stand if I didn't enjoy the show.

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:32pm

right. that's what i was trying to say. it doesn't seem like something that's too difficult to understand...

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:35pm

It's not difficult to understand. I don't get what the big deal is, either. If you don't like it, don't do it.

And also, I guarantee you that not EVERYONE in the theatre is going to think that the show is crap, regardless of your opinion.

Updated On: 11/16/06 at 06:35 PM

[jess20882]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:38pm

[bwaynut2]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:53pm

I have to say that I tend to agree more with Theatrical Landladies on this. I am bothered by the plethora of standing ovations. My interest in theatre first started when I was in junior high and my English teacher spent most of a semester covering plays and theatre. A big part of what he taught was theatre etiquette and how to behave at the theatre. We were taught that standing ovations were for the exception - that if a show was average or even above average, it deserved a very nice round of applause, but not a standing ovation. Standing ovations were to be reserved for plays, or even individual performers, who you thought were truly exceptional.

It seems that 99% of the shows I see get standing ovations, yet only a few of them I would put in the exceptional category. I usually do not stand. However, if it is a musical there is very often a number that the cast performs as part of the curtain call. If you stay in your seat, you can't see a thing, so you are forced to stand. I have had other theatre patrons glare at me for not standing and have even had people say something to me about how rude it is for me to sit and indicating that you should always stand for a curtain call. My feeling is that it is rude to stand and give the cast a false sense of the quality of their performance.

[americanboy99]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 6:54pm

i don't get this thread.

seems like a thread BroadwayfantasticFREAK would start.

[Anna_Elizabeth]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 7:15pm

I think it does mean something different nowadays, and it is very random when I see people standing because it was an outstanding performance. If people are standing around me, but I don't think it was that good, I will stay seated, but I always stand for the conductor/orchestra bows if people around me are standing. I'll even stand if I think a particular actor did the best s/he could though the show was crap.

[actor]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 7:18pm

Americanboy99 - you're incorrect...it was BroadwaytasticFREAK.

[actor]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 7:18pm

DOUBLE POST Updated On: 11/16/06 at 07:18 PM

[Julian2]

Posted: 11/16/06 at 10:37pm

I agree with bwaynut2 and Theatrical Landladies. Nowadays, the only way to tell if your audience thought you were the best thing since Jerry Herman [This is a personal example], is how quickly they stand. Pretty much any show these days will get a standing ovation, but an exceptional show will have them at their feet before you can say "bob's-your-uncle". I really wish they meant as much as they used to.