American Shakespeare Center
5
上午9:30 - 下午6:00, 下午7:30 - 下午10:00
星期一
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
星期二
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
星期三
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
下午7:30 - 下午10:00
星期四
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
下午7:30 - 下午10:00
星期五
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
下午7:30 - 下午10:00
星期六
上午9:30 - 下午6:00
下午7:30 - 下午10:00
星期日
下午2:00 - 下午4:30
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143
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35
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3
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118
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5.0
903 条点评
极佳
809
非常好
71
一般
13
较差
7
很糟糕
3
Allan C
4 条分享
2022年4月 • 夫妻情侣
My wife and I just saw Romeo and Juliet at the American Blackfriars Center in Staunton Va. we had an amazing time, the actors were amazing, the venue is awesome and the staff were tremendous. We highly recommend this activity to everyone!!
撰写日期：2022年5月4日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Pamula P
弗吉尼亚弗吉尼亚海滩2 条分享
2022年4月
Decent performance. The staff is incredibly Rude!
A family of five spending roughly $300.00 to attend, which pales in comparison to other theaters but the treatment was nasty! Their mask policing is very targeted and over all unwelcoming in any way. One my sons has severe asthma and would briefly pull his mask away from his nose, it was as though we were under surveillance. While we visibly watched two other patrons make zero attempt to completely cover as required. I am fine with a policy, I am NOT fine with picking and choosing who obeys the rules and I even expressed a health issue but indicated that it, in No way, meant he would not follow the policy. Very disappointing! Will not be returning or making the donation that we intended.
Also, seats from the side have poor visibility. You see about 50%.
A family of five spending roughly $300.00 to attend, which pales in comparison to other theaters but the treatment was nasty! Their mask policing is very targeted and over all unwelcoming in any way. One my sons has severe asthma and would briefly pull his mask away from his nose, it was as though we were under surveillance. While we visibly watched two other patrons make zero attempt to completely cover as required. I am fine with a policy, I am NOT fine with picking and choosing who obeys the rules and I even expressed a health issue but indicated that it, in No way, meant he would not follow the policy. Very disappointing! Will not be returning or making the donation that we intended.
Also, seats from the side have poor visibility. You see about 50%.
撰写日期：2022年4月19日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Bernburgerin1
德国海德尔堡82 条分享
2021年12月
Some of us have seen the same play here 5 years ago – enjoyed it back then and invited a large group of people. The new performance was even better. We all loved the music before the show, the performance itself and the music during intermission. Scrooge was played brilliantly – hunched over a lot in the beginning and straitening up more ad more during the play.
撰写日期：2021年12月28日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
booradleyyy
12 条分享
2021年9月 • 好友
Oh, so you claim you’ve seen plays before, and they’re just, “okay”? That live theatre doesn’t do anything special for you? That you’ve never had your mind jollies tickled by professional Shakespearean actors?
(***note: it’s important to understand that this is a replication of the original Blackfriars Theatre and that the actors are trained to follow Shakespearean practices, which is why you’ll notice there is no other lighting besides artificial flames, no microphones, etc.)
I’ve seen a total of six plays performed at this theatre. Tragedies, comedies, musicals. The casts are so unbelievably TALENTED in their crafts that they convince you you’re actually IN the story; you’re not just a spectator.
Example: during Julius Caesar I was made to believe that I had an actual stake in the death of said character. When he died I started uncontrollably worrying about the fate of my livestock and small children. I do not tend livestock nor do I care about my children.
Sometimes when an actor would make eye contact with me during a soliloquy I felt an ineffable urge to keep my mouth shut and look pretty, which is ironic considering I’ve never consciously done that even when my husband tells me to. THAT’S how powerful these actors are.
The SET IS THE BEST PART of this one-of-a-kind experience. The lighting fixtures, the woodwork, the seating, the balconies, the echo, the props, the live music, it’s all beautifully woven for each performance. Audience members are captivated from start to finish. And if you’re anything like my next door neighbors, you will oddly pine for more of the prolonged silence.
If you don’t already, you will develop a love and appreciation for Shakespeare after being here. Just like how I grew to love and appreciate wart-less feet – you never know what you’re missing out on until you experience it for the very first time!
(***note: it’s important to understand that this is a replication of the original Blackfriars Theatre and that the actors are trained to follow Shakespearean practices, which is why you’ll notice there is no other lighting besides artificial flames, no microphones, etc.)
I’ve seen a total of six plays performed at this theatre. Tragedies, comedies, musicals. The casts are so unbelievably TALENTED in their crafts that they convince you you’re actually IN the story; you’re not just a spectator.
Example: during Julius Caesar I was made to believe that I had an actual stake in the death of said character. When he died I started uncontrollably worrying about the fate of my livestock and small children. I do not tend livestock nor do I care about my children.
Sometimes when an actor would make eye contact with me during a soliloquy I felt an ineffable urge to keep my mouth shut and look pretty, which is ironic considering I’ve never consciously done that even when my husband tells me to. THAT’S how powerful these actors are.
The SET IS THE BEST PART of this one-of-a-kind experience. The lighting fixtures, the woodwork, the seating, the balconies, the echo, the props, the live music, it’s all beautifully woven for each performance. Audience members are captivated from start to finish. And if you’re anything like my next door neighbors, you will oddly pine for more of the prolonged silence.
If you don’t already, you will develop a love and appreciation for Shakespeare after being here. Just like how I grew to love and appreciate wart-less feet – you never know what you’re missing out on until you experience it for the very first time!
撰写日期：2021年9月20日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Dave48838
密歇根Greenville482 条分享
2021年8月
This is a great little theater that is beautifully proportioned and furnished. In a classic design, the wooden structure gives a feeling of warmth and welcome. Fully handicap accessible, there is an elevator to the second level. All seats are good and the acoustics are terrific. Some seating is on benches but the cushions are thick and addition back supports are available. The staff is very careful about distancing and Covid protection which was greatly appreciated. Perhaps one of the best features is that there is plenty of inexpensive nearby parking so getting around that part of town is easy.
撰写日期：2021年8月17日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
woodywoodrowski
1 条分享
2021年7月
We saw Macbeth a couple of weeks ago and basically had a horrible time, A total ripoff. First, Get rid of all the support posts on the 2nd floor, get rid of the horrible bench seats, even with the cushions they are incredibly uncomfortable, almost everyone in the balcony got up and got more cushions from the lobby, replace them with comfortable seats with backs, have the directors/choreographers of plays center the actors so everyone can see what is happening, we sat in the balcony on the left side facing the stage row KK seats 1,2,3 and most of the play took place on the left side of the stage, between the support posts, the couple directly in front of us who were constantly squirming because the seats were so uncomfortable and the design of the balcony it's self we basically missed about 1/2 of the play. Even people in the first row of the balcony on the left side had to lean over the railing to see what was happening. It seems the only good seats in this place are on the floor or directly in front of the stage on the balcony. Not allowing or offering food or drinks was ridiculous. If you want something to drink you have to drink from the sink in the bathroom. Overrated and way overpriced for the novelty. We will never go back.
撰写日期：2021年8月4日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Joyce D
卡罗莱纳州温斯顿塞勒姆28 条分享
2021年6月
Just give me Shakespeare, please!
I saw Macbeth outdoors at the Mary Baldwin University Rose Garden and Henry V inside the Blackfriar’s Playhouse. I drove close to four hours to see these shows, as I had wanted to check out the ASC for many years. I was disappointed.
As for Macbeth, the play was difficult to follow because character parts seemed, at least to me, assigned arbitrarily male/female, younger/older, etc. and several actors played two or more parts, sometimes alternating between male and female. Lines were well-memorized, but often spoken “at” other actors, very quickly, with exaggerated emotions in chatty, contemporary conversational tones. Many characters lacked depth and did not relate to others; some actors were simply not “in character.” The actors may in fact be very good, but the way the show was presented, their talents were wasted. In addition, some costumes were frontier American, others were sort-of-pseudo-Elizabethan, some made no sense at all and, also, as there was as tradition no scenery; this all added to the confusing, farcical, and less-than-respectful-to-Shakespeare vibe for this very serious play.
Henry V was presented in the Blackfriar’s Playhouse, which is a wonderful experience to see. I found my bench well-padded and comfortable, and I could view the stage very well from my side orchestra seat. Acoustics were good, without microphones. Incidentally, an actor announced to the audience at the beginning of Henry V that there is no current director. It was, performance-wise, a more extreme version of my Macbeth experience, obliterating the serious elements of this play and presenting only the comedic, and again, becoming farcical. In addition, two actors within the first half hour or so, playing soldiers, I think, spoke only in Spanish for a considerable number of lines: one sounded fluent, the other, phonetic. If one was not a Spanish speaker some possibly important dialogue was missed. Why was this done, as this play deals with a conflict between England and France?
I believe that Shakespeare is timeless, and performances can be contemporized effectively. I have seen such a production in the past. This was just not the way to do it. I am not a Shakespeare expert, nor a former English/Literature major, etc. I just wanted a fun, enriching, enjoyable theater experience. I saw, instead, arrogance at best, more likely hubris.
Before the shows, the actors sang a few songs and played instruments. Selections were oldie pop songs, show/other tunes, and some folk/rock typical to this area. At the Henry V show, two of the songs’ lyrics were politics/social/generationally motivated and could have potentially offended many in the audience. I was more disappointed in that they just weren’t very good; the very diverse local theater in my city has far better singers and more accomplished instrumentalists, from my experience.
Also, to note: The ASC currently has a “Safe Start, “universal masking” policy which is possibly not safe and quite hypocritical. The actors announced at the beginning of both shows that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. We, the audience, had to always be masked inside and masked outdoors unless sitting in our seats. There were at least four mask observer/volunteers at the outdoor Rose Garden show, one calling out an audience member, who stood up at his seat at intermission, but did not immediately put his mask on. Right outside the Rose Garden almost all unmasked and congregated during intermission and after the show. Inside the somewhat stuffy Blackfriar’s Playhouse, there were at least two observer/usher/volunteers scanning the audience of about 100, presumably to enforce masking. All faithfully, perhaps fearfully complied. The actors, of course unmasked for both shows, sometimes came up very close, less than six feet to the audience. This could have easily been avoided but was not. So, if ASC established their policy because they don’t trust their audiences to be vaccinated or wear a mask per state regulations, why should the audience trust the actors just because “they say” they are vaccinated? Note this reviewer is fully vaccinated. Arrogance and lack of respect for their audience, observed again.
Incidentally, the digital programs contained only a very abbreviated description of the main points of the plots of each play and no historical background. More in-depth information would have been helpful, at least to me. Of note, the actors’ bios in the programs did include their pronouns.
So, if you live close to the theater and want a unique experience, do go, if you think this will interest you and that it’s worth your hard-earned money. Or, if you can, just tour the theater when they offer tours. As for me, I will not return anytime soon, if ever.
I saw Macbeth outdoors at the Mary Baldwin University Rose Garden and Henry V inside the Blackfriar’s Playhouse. I drove close to four hours to see these shows, as I had wanted to check out the ASC for many years. I was disappointed.
As for Macbeth, the play was difficult to follow because character parts seemed, at least to me, assigned arbitrarily male/female, younger/older, etc. and several actors played two or more parts, sometimes alternating between male and female. Lines were well-memorized, but often spoken “at” other actors, very quickly, with exaggerated emotions in chatty, contemporary conversational tones. Many characters lacked depth and did not relate to others; some actors were simply not “in character.” The actors may in fact be very good, but the way the show was presented, their talents were wasted. In addition, some costumes were frontier American, others were sort-of-pseudo-Elizabethan, some made no sense at all and, also, as there was as tradition no scenery; this all added to the confusing, farcical, and less-than-respectful-to-Shakespeare vibe for this very serious play.
Henry V was presented in the Blackfriar’s Playhouse, which is a wonderful experience to see. I found my bench well-padded and comfortable, and I could view the stage very well from my side orchestra seat. Acoustics were good, without microphones. Incidentally, an actor announced to the audience at the beginning of Henry V that there is no current director. It was, performance-wise, a more extreme version of my Macbeth experience, obliterating the serious elements of this play and presenting only the comedic, and again, becoming farcical. In addition, two actors within the first half hour or so, playing soldiers, I think, spoke only in Spanish for a considerable number of lines: one sounded fluent, the other, phonetic. If one was not a Spanish speaker some possibly important dialogue was missed. Why was this done, as this play deals with a conflict between England and France?
I believe that Shakespeare is timeless, and performances can be contemporized effectively. I have seen such a production in the past. This was just not the way to do it. I am not a Shakespeare expert, nor a former English/Literature major, etc. I just wanted a fun, enriching, enjoyable theater experience. I saw, instead, arrogance at best, more likely hubris.
Before the shows, the actors sang a few songs and played instruments. Selections were oldie pop songs, show/other tunes, and some folk/rock typical to this area. At the Henry V show, two of the songs’ lyrics were politics/social/generationally motivated and could have potentially offended many in the audience. I was more disappointed in that they just weren’t very good; the very diverse local theater in my city has far better singers and more accomplished instrumentalists, from my experience.
Also, to note: The ASC currently has a “Safe Start, “universal masking” policy which is possibly not safe and quite hypocritical. The actors announced at the beginning of both shows that they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. We, the audience, had to always be masked inside and masked outdoors unless sitting in our seats. There were at least four mask observer/volunteers at the outdoor Rose Garden show, one calling out an audience member, who stood up at his seat at intermission, but did not immediately put his mask on. Right outside the Rose Garden almost all unmasked and congregated during intermission and after the show. Inside the somewhat stuffy Blackfriar’s Playhouse, there were at least two observer/usher/volunteers scanning the audience of about 100, presumably to enforce masking. All faithfully, perhaps fearfully complied. The actors, of course unmasked for both shows, sometimes came up very close, less than six feet to the audience. This could have easily been avoided but was not. So, if ASC established their policy because they don’t trust their audiences to be vaccinated or wear a mask per state regulations, why should the audience trust the actors just because “they say” they are vaccinated? Note this reviewer is fully vaccinated. Arrogance and lack of respect for their audience, observed again.
Incidentally, the digital programs contained only a very abbreviated description of the main points of the plots of each play and no historical background. More in-depth information would have been helpful, at least to me. Of note, the actors’ bios in the programs did include their pronouns.
So, if you live close to the theater and want a unique experience, do go, if you think this will interest you and that it’s worth your hard-earned money. Or, if you can, just tour the theater when they offer tours. As for me, I will not return anytime soon, if ever.
撰写日期：2021年8月3日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Mika G
25 条分享
2021年7月 • 家庭
Saw Macbeth in the Rose Terrace Theatre. A great outdoor venue for theatre in the summer. Great production although occasionally the dialogue was hard to hear. The actors doubled as the house band before the show and during information. Delightful experience with good theatre.
撰写日期：2021年7月3日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
snarisley
弗吉尼亚Stafford15 条分享
2021年5月
Amazing performance by a very gifted bunch of entertainers. I say entertainers because singing and accompanying with musical instruments by every cast member added to the acting, and put the show over the top for me. The performers seemed to really enjoy themselves and one another (perhaps they were just acting really well? That is their profession after all...) and their enthusiasm was infectious. I was disappointed to not be in Blackfriars, but considering the current situation, I am happy to have been to a live theatrical performance. Per haps next time? And there will be a next time!
撰写日期：2021年5月31日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Lana D
马里兰贝塞斯达28 条分享
2021年5月
I can't believe I'm doing this. There would have been no way I would have given this place anything less than five stars because of the years of joy the ASC has brought us. This is the place that actually made my kids LIKE Shakespeare, and it has kept us coming to Staunton again and again for about a decade, supporting as many local shops, restaurants and hotels as we can. We have spent a lot of money here, through tickets, raffles, merchandise, the money hat and fundraisers, and I have never been disappointed in a show. Every performance is always STELLAR and the actors immensely talented. This place is a true gem.
BUT. Last weekend's experience with Macbeth was so bad I had to knock off a star because it just wiped out so much goodwill I had toward the ASC. It is absolutely not the actors' fault, as they put on their usual, flawless, actor-directed performance. It is the fact that because of Covid, they are holding outdoor performances at Mary Baldwin College. They will be moving back into the theatre soon, but in the meantime, the actors are under a tent on a terrace, and the audience is on chairs on the lawn in somewhat socially distanced seating.
I do realize the theatre is trying to recover because of Covid and that it has fallen on hard times. However, I do not think that the recovery of this theatre rested on this single performance. The night we went it was pouring rain. I couldn't believe they did not call off the performance for inclement weather, but they didn't. They played it off as a true Scottish experience. That is code for "We are not giving you your money back."
So the audience was herded into chairs which were kindly "wiped down" for us, even though they were soon soaked again as you sat there or stood up for a few seconds. Then the ushers told us we could not use umbrellas unless we were in the back row. This is understandable because of viewing reasons, but what it also basically meant was that you sat in your wet chair and got your clothes completely soaked in 40 degree weather. This is the kind of Scottish experience I did not care to have, much like I do not care to have the experience of fighting at Culloden.
When I asked an usher why the performance was not called off, I was very rudely told, "Well, that's just outdoor theatre!" First, is it? Is it really? Does every outdoor theatre performance go on when God lets loose like this on an uncovered audience and the staff is in no way prepared to handle it? I would think not. Second, I can't believe a representative of the theatre would have the audacity to be that rude when we've paid $38 a ticket to sit in the pouring rain, with no option for a refund or to reschedule. Shouldn't she have been more ... apologetic? Or grateful for an audience again? Like, "I appreciate you and your family making a four-hour round trip and spending a lot of money on our local shops/restaurants/hotels to come to support our local theatre after a pandemic even in such horrible weather from which we are offering you no way to shelter yourselves, but if you find it's really too much for you, you do have the option of rescheduling." It's not so much that they kept our money, it was that they forced us to go to THIS PARTICULAR SHOW without giving us any other option. I have paid $39 for musicals at the Kennedy Center. I realize that's a dollar more, but that was a hell of a dollar's worth.
I pointed out to the usher that Friday's performance had been canceled due to inclement weather and Friday's weather was better than today's. She mumbled something about different circumstances and just walked away. Because she did this, and I don't speak mumble, nor do I speak to people's backs, I have no idea what those circumstances were. Maybe there was thunder or something, I can only guess. Later an actor came on stage and said if there was thunder the performance would be halted for 20 minutes to see what happened. And I was like, really? You're just willing to drag and drag and drag this out? You wanna drench the audience for 20 MORE minutes while you "wait and see?" It was infuriating.
Well, we decided to give it a go and sat in our "wiped-off" chairs while it poured on us. I would say only half of the seats were filled. This was odd for a Saturday night as most tickets online were sold out for Saturday shows. So I guess these might have been lucky season-holder tickets who could reschedule. But for people who drove from out of town to see the show, had NO OTHER CLOTHES to change into, NO OTHER SHOES, NO OTHER SOCKS, and NO DRYER to put those clothes into, and limited time in town, this was just a crap move.
After about a half-hour of the "Scottish experience," I saw some audience members really start to get miserable. They were rubbing their legs from the chill, bouncing around and getting jittery. I shifted my seat to the back so I could have an umbrella. That meant, unfortunately, that I then could not hear the actors because of the tappity-tap-tap on the umbrella. So I ditched the umbrella and moved under a tree to see if that would help, but I got huge drops coming off the leaves and that turned out to be a disastrous plan. My son was completely soaked as he was completely out in the open dressed in just a very light rain jacket with a T-shirt beneath, and I could see his shoes and socks were soaked through like mine. He was just looking down at the ground and shivering. I saw some people leave and come back with blankets, but as we were at a hotel, this was not an option for us, because we needed those blankets to sleep on.
At this point, I wasn't even paying attention to the play because I was so focused on how cold and wet my family was. My daughter was fortunate enough to have brought a heavy jacket, so she was faring better, but wasn't in the best mood. But also, as an actor herself, she said she would feel bad leaving the actors. And she had been studying Macbeth so she was determined to stay come hell or high water. And hell and high water it was. This was not a light sprinkle. My husband was furious at whoever made this ridiculous decision but was not going to abandon our daughter. So my son and I left during intermission, as we did not want to walk out on the actors and have them think it was because we didn't like their acting, which was perfection, along with about another 20 percent of the audience.
The actors surely must have been cold in some of their costumes and bravely pushed on through but they did have the advantage of being dry. I missed a few familiar faces that had entertained us so much over the years. I have never seen Macbeth, so am really sad I missed this play, which I was so excited about seeing, but it just wasn't worth it. My husband and daughter came back from the performance looking like exhausted sled dogs, dried off, hung their clothes over the shower rod and I didn't hear from them till morning. My son was already just a big lump under quilts, I couldn't even see his face. I was in bed as soon as I saw my family was dry and in bed. In the morning our clothes and shoes were still wet, but that's all we had to change into. Yay.
So, to me, this just seemed like a big money grab, and I guess I'm just not used to that attitude from the ASC. I'm quite generous when it's my idea to give, but I despise money grabs. I would definitely recommend not going unless you have zero percent chance of rain or they are back in the indoor theatre. We will all continue to go (THOUGH NEVER AGAIN OUTSIDE) but our opinion of the ASC has really soured because of this. They have shown their true colors in how they feel about their audience. I will only go to indoor performances and I will donate less in the future. All they had to do was give us the option of rescheduling the show to smooth this all over, but unfortunately, they just couldn't bring themselves to do that, and our usher couldn't even be nice about it.
This is supposed to be fun, ASC. We've been locked up all year, too.
BUT. Last weekend's experience with Macbeth was so bad I had to knock off a star because it just wiped out so much goodwill I had toward the ASC. It is absolutely not the actors' fault, as they put on their usual, flawless, actor-directed performance. It is the fact that because of Covid, they are holding outdoor performances at Mary Baldwin College. They will be moving back into the theatre soon, but in the meantime, the actors are under a tent on a terrace, and the audience is on chairs on the lawn in somewhat socially distanced seating.
I do realize the theatre is trying to recover because of Covid and that it has fallen on hard times. However, I do not think that the recovery of this theatre rested on this single performance. The night we went it was pouring rain. I couldn't believe they did not call off the performance for inclement weather, but they didn't. They played it off as a true Scottish experience. That is code for "We are not giving you your money back."
So the audience was herded into chairs which were kindly "wiped down" for us, even though they were soon soaked again as you sat there or stood up for a few seconds. Then the ushers told us we could not use umbrellas unless we were in the back row. This is understandable because of viewing reasons, but what it also basically meant was that you sat in your wet chair and got your clothes completely soaked in 40 degree weather. This is the kind of Scottish experience I did not care to have, much like I do not care to have the experience of fighting at Culloden.
When I asked an usher why the performance was not called off, I was very rudely told, "Well, that's just outdoor theatre!" First, is it? Is it really? Does every outdoor theatre performance go on when God lets loose like this on an uncovered audience and the staff is in no way prepared to handle it? I would think not. Second, I can't believe a representative of the theatre would have the audacity to be that rude when we've paid $38 a ticket to sit in the pouring rain, with no option for a refund or to reschedule. Shouldn't she have been more ... apologetic? Or grateful for an audience again? Like, "I appreciate you and your family making a four-hour round trip and spending a lot of money on our local shops/restaurants/hotels to come to support our local theatre after a pandemic even in such horrible weather from which we are offering you no way to shelter yourselves, but if you find it's really too much for you, you do have the option of rescheduling." It's not so much that they kept our money, it was that they forced us to go to THIS PARTICULAR SHOW without giving us any other option. I have paid $39 for musicals at the Kennedy Center. I realize that's a dollar more, but that was a hell of a dollar's worth.
I pointed out to the usher that Friday's performance had been canceled due to inclement weather and Friday's weather was better than today's. She mumbled something about different circumstances and just walked away. Because she did this, and I don't speak mumble, nor do I speak to people's backs, I have no idea what those circumstances were. Maybe there was thunder or something, I can only guess. Later an actor came on stage and said if there was thunder the performance would be halted for 20 minutes to see what happened. And I was like, really? You're just willing to drag and drag and drag this out? You wanna drench the audience for 20 MORE minutes while you "wait and see?" It was infuriating.
Well, we decided to give it a go and sat in our "wiped-off" chairs while it poured on us. I would say only half of the seats were filled. This was odd for a Saturday night as most tickets online were sold out for Saturday shows. So I guess these might have been lucky season-holder tickets who could reschedule. But for people who drove from out of town to see the show, had NO OTHER CLOTHES to change into, NO OTHER SHOES, NO OTHER SOCKS, and NO DRYER to put those clothes into, and limited time in town, this was just a crap move.
After about a half-hour of the "Scottish experience," I saw some audience members really start to get miserable. They were rubbing their legs from the chill, bouncing around and getting jittery. I shifted my seat to the back so I could have an umbrella. That meant, unfortunately, that I then could not hear the actors because of the tappity-tap-tap on the umbrella. So I ditched the umbrella and moved under a tree to see if that would help, but I got huge drops coming off the leaves and that turned out to be a disastrous plan. My son was completely soaked as he was completely out in the open dressed in just a very light rain jacket with a T-shirt beneath, and I could see his shoes and socks were soaked through like mine. He was just looking down at the ground and shivering. I saw some people leave and come back with blankets, but as we were at a hotel, this was not an option for us, because we needed those blankets to sleep on.
At this point, I wasn't even paying attention to the play because I was so focused on how cold and wet my family was. My daughter was fortunate enough to have brought a heavy jacket, so she was faring better, but wasn't in the best mood. But also, as an actor herself, she said she would feel bad leaving the actors. And she had been studying Macbeth so she was determined to stay come hell or high water. And hell and high water it was. This was not a light sprinkle. My husband was furious at whoever made this ridiculous decision but was not going to abandon our daughter. So my son and I left during intermission, as we did not want to walk out on the actors and have them think it was because we didn't like their acting, which was perfection, along with about another 20 percent of the audience.
The actors surely must have been cold in some of their costumes and bravely pushed on through but they did have the advantage of being dry. I missed a few familiar faces that had entertained us so much over the years. I have never seen Macbeth, so am really sad I missed this play, which I was so excited about seeing, but it just wasn't worth it. My husband and daughter came back from the performance looking like exhausted sled dogs, dried off, hung their clothes over the shower rod and I didn't hear from them till morning. My son was already just a big lump under quilts, I couldn't even see his face. I was in bed as soon as I saw my family was dry and in bed. In the morning our clothes and shoes were still wet, but that's all we had to change into. Yay.
So, to me, this just seemed like a big money grab, and I guess I'm just not used to that attitude from the ASC. I'm quite generous when it's my idea to give, but I despise money grabs. I would definitely recommend not going unless you have zero percent chance of rain or they are back in the indoor theatre. We will all continue to go (THOUGH NEVER AGAIN OUTSIDE) but our opinion of the ASC has really soured because of this. They have shown their true colors in how they feel about their audience. I will only go to indoor performances and I will donate less in the future. All they had to do was give us the option of rescheduling the show to smooth this all over, but unfortunately, they just couldn't bring themselves to do that, and our usher couldn't even be nice about it.
This is supposed to be fun, ASC. We've been locked up all year, too.
撰写日期：2021年5月31日
此点评为 Tripadvisor 会员所写的主观评论，并不代表 TripAdvisor LLC 的观点。
Tracy M
弗吉尼亚里士满15 条分享
Which level is better- lower or uppper? How are the seats along the side?
viajero5
Washington, DC283 条分享
Hi, I've sat in both the upper and lower and really all of the seats are pretty good. They have a policy that they explain at the beginning of the show that once the show begins, you are allowed to change to any empty/available seat. So, unless the show is full/sold out, you can move.
PalomitaBlanca
Washington, DC248 条分享
Can we bring our baby to a show? 7 months old.
KSM67
宾夕法尼亚匹兹堡102 条分享
The theatre is very accommodating and I would encourage you to call. When we attended there were many youngsters in the audience. I cannot see any issue
j314
弗吉尼亚夏洛茨维尔42 条分享
If we want to make a reservation for a quick meal right before the show what restaurant do you suggest?
Mark K
BUCKEYE74 条分享
We are from Arizona so my knowledge is limited. However, we had enjoyable dinner at Indian restaurant named Taste of India. Food was good and prices were reasonable
nanlmille
马里兰哥伦比亚5 条分享
Do the "bench seats" have backs? At my age, not sure I can sit for hours on a backless bench... Thanks.
John C
Falls Church46 条分享
Yes the seats in front of the stage do have individual backs. In addition one can find a limited number of sleeve cushions to fit over the backs to make them even more comfortable. Ask the ushers where they are
Tom P
南卡罗来纳Simpsonville
Ok for kids? 5, 10 and 12?
UKBlonde
哥伦比亚特区华盛顿特区20 条分享
To be honest Tom it would depend on the play. I think it may be hard for the 5 year old to sit through a play. 10 and 12, I think would get a kick out of it. I would call the theatre and ask them what they suggest, they are wonderfully helpful. Good luck.
tallperson_12
宾夕法尼亚匹兹堡9 条分享
Are there any lectures available about the plays being presented?
Herbert_M1421
卡罗莱纳州索尔兹伯里7 条分享
The first time we went, we got into a separate tour/history walk-around in the afternoon. Check website for schedule. The guide talked about a number of the plays in terms of what influenced their writing and how the poverty>>wealth shift may have affected the Bard. And questions are welcomed!
john f
6 条分享
Is the front row too close. Like your neck will hurt looking up?
111valdosta
卡罗莱纳州夏洛特47 条分享
I sat on the front row. You can feel every swish of their capes! It was great! Not hard on the neck at all. They even invite people to sit on the stage with them.
bzymom422
阿拉巴马伯明翰38 条分享
What is the expected attire for evening performances?
southerngal61
弗吉尼亚斯汤顿38 条分享
It is not too dressy. Maybe not jeans, but business casual. Some people may be more casual.
关于American Shakespeare Center的常见问题
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