Noises Off - Complaint Letter, 2001
Title
Noises Off - Complaint Letter, 2001
Date
19 April 2001
Description
Complaint letter sent to the Theatre Royal following production of Noises Off in April 2001.
What's the story?
In April 2001, the Theatre Royal presented the National Theatre touring production of Michael Frayn’s comedy Noises Off.
The following week this complaint letter was sent to Jonathan Saville, who at the time was Marketing Manager for the venue.
Despite stating at the start of the letter that he and his wife had “thoroughly enjoyed” the production, the complainant was clearly not happy with the language used in the show.
They also had concerns about the audience, particularly male members and the apparent need for the Theatre Royal to introduce a dress code.
The letter in full:
19 April 2001
Dear Mr Saville,
“Noises Off”
Last Saturday my wife and I attended the last performance of the above production which we both thoroughly enjoyed.
However, the evening was marred for two reasons.
1) The unacceptable mode of dress of the majority of the male members of the audience. In a theatre of some standing I would expected some form of dress code, i.e. a collar and tie and not open-necked shirts, baggy sweaters and equally baggy … The ladies made an effort why shouldn’t the gentlemen?
2) This is a more serious complaint. When I saw the original production at the Savoy Theatre in 1982 the ‘F’ word was used only once, it was when Lloyd made his entrance during the middle Act, it caused quite a stir as it was a rarity at that time and was totally irrelevant to the play. Since then I have seen the play three times, prior to this production and the ‘F’ word was only used once so I was prepared for it. Two were by Amateurs and one by a Professional Company.
This production was littered with obscenities which were quite irrelevant and embarrassing in mixed company.
Nowhere does it state in your publicity material that strong language is used and that it may cause offence.
In view of my legitimate complaints I am enclosing ticket stubs, to prove my attendance, and request full reimbursement of the cost of them. I am not prepared to discuss the matter further nor will I accept any form of voucher.
Yours sincerely.
…
The following week this complaint letter was sent to Jonathan Saville, who at the time was Marketing Manager for the venue.
Despite stating at the start of the letter that he and his wife had “thoroughly enjoyed” the production, the complainant was clearly not happy with the language used in the show.
They also had concerns about the audience, particularly male members and the apparent need for the Theatre Royal to introduce a dress code.
The letter in full:
19 April 2001
Dear Mr Saville,
“Noises Off”
Last Saturday my wife and I attended the last performance of the above production which we both thoroughly enjoyed.
However, the evening was marred for two reasons.
1) The unacceptable mode of dress of the majority of the male members of the audience. In a theatre of some standing I would expected some form of dress code, i.e. a collar and tie and not open-necked shirts, baggy sweaters and equally baggy … The ladies made an effort why shouldn’t the gentlemen?
2) This is a more serious complaint. When I saw the original production at the Savoy Theatre in 1982 the ‘F’ word was used only once, it was when Lloyd made his entrance during the middle Act, it caused quite a stir as it was a rarity at that time and was totally irrelevant to the play. Since then I have seen the play three times, prior to this production and the ‘F’ word was only used once so I was prepared for it. Two were by Amateurs and one by a Professional Company.
This production was littered with obscenities which were quite irrelevant and embarrassing in mixed company.
Nowhere does it state in your publicity material that strong language is used and that it may cause offence.
In view of my legitimate complaints I am enclosing ticket stubs, to prove my attendance, and request full reimbursement of the cost of them. I am not prepared to discuss the matter further nor will I accept any form of voucher.
Yours sincerely.
…
Type
Letter
Location of item
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Rights
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Contributor
Researcher: Colin Barnard
