I recently sat next to a few people at a concert that left half way through it and I wondered if it's considered rude? Because I kind of thought it was...

 

I mean, if they would have gotten a call like "Oh, your kid is sick" or "Something terrible has happened" and they had to leave immediately, I get that. But that's not what happened.

 

Here's what happened: I went to see the Broadway musical Pippin at the Old National Events Center on Monday night. It's one of my favorite musicals and I'm so glad the tour decided to stop here. Now, since it's one of my favorite musicals, I shelled out some cash to get a 4th row seat. Call it an Easter present to myself.

 

Any-who...I was seated next to these two older ladies, who I thought were enjoying the show when it started. But when the lights came up for intermission they were 'pshaw-ing' about it. "Oh I didn't like that part" and "Well, I think it's a bit too much..." Lady, it is a musical about a young man's coming of age set to a backdrop of the circus...What did you expect??? It's a broadway show + a circus act, a two-for-one-deal that you paid a lot of money to see.

 

I don't know if she mean that the whole "circus" acts were a bit too much, or the one song that was a giant metaphor for sex and had the dancers being all sexy and dancing "suggestively" was. (That was probably it...) Either way, they left during intermission and didn't come back for Act 2, which is THE BEST, by the way...

 

And I thought to myself, if I paid THAT MUCH for a 4th row seat to a Broadway show...I'm going to get my money's worth and sit through the whole thing. You don't walk out on a concert because you don't like ONE song or think the background dancers are being "too slutty" during said song. It's almost like leaving a concert because you didn't like the opening act. And if you leave that soon, it's kind of a waste of money, don't you think?

 

Continuing with my "concert" analogy: When you by a ticket to a show, you get the tickets because you like that band and the songs they sing. Same goes for a Broadway show. You buy tickets because you heard about the plot and want to know more or you actually have heard all the songs and want to see them performed. You know something about the show before you go see it. You don't just think "I'm bored and have a lot of money to waste. Let's go see this show that I know absolutely nothing about." If you don't know any songs the band does/anything about the show, there's a slim chance you're going to enjoy yourself. Also, you're probably going to be judging the show super hard if you do that. It's like you're a King or Czar or something and you sit down and think "Alright peasants, I've given you my money. Now entertain me!" That's not how it works. You have to have a respect and appreciation for the craft that you are witnessing on that stage.

 

I, of course, think there are exceptions to my "you paid for these tickets, you're going to enjoy yourself for the entirety of the show" rule. If you leave a couple songs before the end because you want to get to your car so that you won't be stuck in "leaving the concert" traffic, that's fine.

 

If you go see a concert and you only know 2 of the 3 bands and the one band you don't know is the last to perform....okay, you can leave. But you really should hear them out for at least a few songs. Maybe you'll end up liking them?

 

What I don't like is when you spend all this money on tickets, don't like ONE SONG, and then leave half way through because of said song. Rude.

 

Am I getting to worked up about this? Am I just biased because these ladies left during one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE SHOWS...Or is my anger justified?

 

Leaving a show early: Rude or Not Rude?

 

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