I can't think of a title for this.
I have worked on the bar at the New Vic Theatre near Stoke for 15 years, on and off. I was back pulling pints on Boxing Day this year when I went back to stay with my parents for a couple of days. Well, I needed an escape.

I genuinely love the place and the people there. Well - most of them. Sasha the Slasher is a bit odd; Sticky Phil is downright sinister. He plays the bongos and keeps dead prostitutes in his freezer. Possibly.

Stereotypes are lazy, but you can usually make predictions about the audience from what's on. Audiences for Aykbourn plays are universally hateful: they think they're cultured, but they're usually just up themselves, and their vision of theatre staff is that we should all be wearing bowties and waistcoats. They look down on us for having the temerity to wear jeans and t-shirts. That they think we're below them is ironic given the number of orders for pints of larger in the interval drinks and the fact that most of the bar staff have several degrees.

For other shows, the punters are nicer - but not traditional theatre types. One punter once wanted a glass of wine. It was given to him. He refused to take it. We asked what was wrong. His complaint was that it had come out of a bottle.

He'd only ever experienced wine out of a Stowell's box.




God, that was boring, wasn't it?
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Fri 6 Feb 2009, 12:58, 2 replies)

Nope.
Not as boring as Ayckbourn.
(ThomsonsPier consumes, Fri 6 Feb 2009, 14:23, closed)

no
but only because I heard it in Alan Bennet's voice.
(happylittletulip helpless and delicious, Sun 8 Feb 2009, 11:26, closed)