Have you ever walked out of a performance?

I too was schocked by Avenue Q overthehill however the person I was with thoroughly enjoyed it. I’m not sure I could bring myself to walk out mid-performance though, however much I might want to!

We left in the interval at the Globe Theatre it was Anthony and Cleopatra , Frances Barber was in it, but it was in the afternoon, we were standing in direct sunlight and I thought I was going to faint, my silver necklace was burning my neck, I hadn’t thought to wear a sun hat. I asked the ushers if I could sit somewhere shady but they said no, even though there was space. Now always book a seat under cover if I go to the Globe. We have left other performances if we aren’t enjoying them - life too short!

Dr. Zhivago, all that snow caused a panic attack

When I was in school in the ‘60s our English teacher decided to bring us to a performance of a Greek tragedy, Antigone. It was the first night, so there hadn’t been any reviews. The theatre company did some kind of “alternative” production, with all actors wearing flesh colored bodysuits, so they looked sort of naked. All I can remember was they seemed to be simulating sex on stage! Our teacher escorted us out at the interval (along with a lot of the audience).

More recently we were given free tickets to a performance at our local arts centre, which we support. It was flagged as coming from Edinburgh fringe, which should have been a warning. Performers were 2 men who p**ed into a bucket onstage (not simulated). We would have walked out but the show was only about 45 min long. Afterwards someone from arts centre phoned us to apologize! They hadn’t known what show involved either.

DH and I bought tickets for the Pantomime in Glasgow as a Christmas treat for our DGC. The theatre was full of children but the performance was full of thinly veiled, cringe worthy inuendo. My DGC did not understand any of it and were thoroughly bored. We left at the interval. My DD sent the theatre an email expressing our disappointment but nothing came of it.

Didn't exactly walk out but left after the first act of 3.
It was at the Theatre Royal in Nottingham many years ago and it was a Eugene O' Neill play, so memorable I can't remember the title, it was dire.
I couldn't have sat through another minute.

I've sat through some fairly awful performances but I think the only time I left at the interval was a truly dire version of Little Women performed by a WI.

I have often left at the interval. I even leave concerts. Nigel Kennedy was booked to play a Brahms violin concert after the interval, the seats were expensive. When we arrived there was a notice to say he didn’t feel like playing a whole symphony but would come on stage and interact with the audience!

We enjoyed the first half of the programm and then collected our coats and left. Most stayed and I assumed many had been bussed in and had no choice. There were certainly a lot of busses parked along the roads.
We got no money back as it was not the theatre's fault

I never stay just because I've paid but a many do.

Many years ago DH wanted to leave a performance at the Edinburgh festival, but I wouldn't let him! There were only eight people in the audience and the performers would have noticed! It was quite an interesting play about Mary queen of Scots badly acted by a family who has come all the way from California. The chap playing Darnley was skinny with wrinkled tights!

I got up and left, mid way through a "comedy act" because the "comedian" had mixed up being crude, lewd and coarse with being funny. As we got to the doors to leave, he heckled us about having no sense of humour. Then 2 other couples got up and followed us!

We took some friends to the theatre once - they were not theatre goers and it took a lot of persuading to get them to accompany us. We chose a light hearted musical, Half a Sixpence, with Tommy Steele. Thought we couldn't go wrong with that. Oh, how sorely mistaken were we! It was absolutely dire, so old-fashioned, such a tired old storyline, and the music, oh dear! It may have been enjoyable in the 60s, but in my opinion it really didn't stand the test of time! We discreetly left in the interval, hands clasped over our mouths to stifle our giggles, and full of apologies to our friends. I think it's safe to say that was their first and last theatre trip

New to London I bought tickets to the thee-ay-ter for husband and I to see a Sam Shephard play, can't remember what it was called. Our seats were so high up, we could see the tops of the heads of the actors, and we could see them too when they were off-stage awaiting their entrance cues. We got the giggles and left. The play was depressing, anyway.

Years ago, a very odd theatre production. Couldn't understand it and hate audience interaction type performances so we didn't return after the first of two intervals!

I've seen a comedian walk out of his act after just a few minutes.
He was booed offstage, as he was just really not funny.
It was awful though, the poor man looked so dejected.

We love the theatre and have travelled from Australia to see shows. One trip we saw 14 shows and there were still some we didn't have time to see. The only show we left at the interval in London was Phantom of the Opera.Our seats were so high up we couldn't see the top part of the stage and we weren't enjoying it that much anyway. The other show we left at the interval was in Australia - Les Miserables. It was just too depressing! I know it's a sad story but sitting on concrete benches and being bored was not worth the time.

Life is far too short to sit through performances that fail to engage. I have walked out of plays and concerts – not often – but I have never seen any reason to stay and endure something I saw as mediocre or truly bad, dull and unimaginative, offensive and disgusting. I have also returned to performances more than once to share again the pleasure I enjoyed with family and friends.

These days I don't bother to finish books that I don't like or find fascinating either.

We walked out of an opera at the King's Theatre, Edinburgh in 1981. So long ago I can't remember what it was. The singing was dire, I was 7 months pregnant so we cut our losses and left at the first interval - oh, the relief

Many years ago we took our two children to the panto in Plymouth. DS2 was about three and after only a couple of minutes Harry Worth came on the stage and fired a shotgun at a pigeon (stage props, of course,). DS2 didn't 'do' loud bangs when he was little so I took him out, leaving DH and DS1 to enjoy the rest of the show. We wandered round the shops for the rest of the afternoon.

I remember walking out of the cinema many years ago during a film called The Devils starring Oliver Reed. I was only young and didn't realise how awful it was going to be and my boyfriend was also happy to leave.

Twice I have walked out ... once was a Matt Munroe Tribute, the other a Frank Sinatra Tribute ... both were dire, but we did wait till the interval so as not to offend anyone !!

We walked out of a play at Watford Palace. It was a translation by Tom Stoppard. We were in the middle of the front row and didn’t even last till the interval. Twenty minutes in, the lights dimmed and I grabbed my friend and pulled her along. There were other people already in the foyer who had beaten us to it,
My mother and I walked out of a movie ‘The Royal Tennenbauns’. As we stood up to leave the woman behind us said ‘oh good, has it finished? I don’t know if she stayed or not.
Sometimes performance are so bad they are riveting. Like Pride and Prejudice where the sisters came on miming to The Spice Girls and Mr Darcy was played by a woman.

Not walked out, but flopped forward in seat, head on lap asleep and snored loudly. I could hear some woman shouting on and on from the stage disturbing me. I believe it was the Mousetrap.

Yes, once from a rolling stones tribute band, but so glad we did as it had snowed heavily when we were inside and we had to walk two miles home as all buses had been cancelled and not a taxi in sight. Another time from a Barber Quartet, I hated it but my husband loved it so I sat in the bar. Oh and I walked out on my first husband!

Rubysong.. That brought back memories. We were given tickets to see Harry Worth in Cinderella in what was then the new theatre in Plymouth. We had a tour of the theatre and met Harry Worth. DD was more impressed by being taken to see the white ponies who pulled the coach!! Harry knew where we were sitting and threw some chocolates our way. A lovely day.