Cate Blanchett pleads with London audience to stop filming play on phones as theatre show hit by disruption
Cate Blanchett stepped forward after a curtain call at the National Theatre’s Lyttelton Theatre on Friday evening to urge audience members to stop filming.
The two-time Oscar winner was still wearing her stage costume of a black T-shirt and loose black trousers when she addressed theatregoers following the performance of Electra/Persona.
In clips shared by audience members on social media, Ms Blanchett said: “There are few places on this planet where we can simply be together and be present.
“I understand you like filming the curtain call, and it is kind of flattering in a way.
Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss star in the play
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“But for anyone who is filming the show, please don’t, because it spoils it for the next group of people who come in and are present with us. So thank you very much.”
Ms Blanchett’s intervention comes amid a broader, ongoing debate within the theatre community about mobile phone etiquette during live performances.
The National Theatre itself has notably committed to making some form of digital release available for all its productions.
Ms Blanchett is the latest in a long line of actors who’ve also decided to speak out.
Cate Blanchett is a two-time Oscar winner
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As recently as June, Rosamund Pike was applauded for calling out a theatregoer who had been using their mobile phone during a pivotal moment of her West End production of Inter Alia.
The Olivier Award-winning actress returned to the stage at Wyndham’s Theatre, where she took aim at the audience member spotted filming.
An attendee told The Times that Ms Pike “seemed genuinely upset” and suggested the texting had broken the bond she was trying to maintain with the audience throughout the 100-minute production.
During her address to the crowd, Ms Pike echoed the sentiment of Ms Blanchett: “I just wanted to say for anyone going to the theatre, it’s a huge thing that we’re trying to give you.
Cate Blanchett called out the audience at the end of the show
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“I am trying to tell you a story, and I’m feeling you, and I hope you’re feeling me too.
The actress gestured towards the stalls section where the offender had been sitting, adding: “You know who you are, and I’m not going to single you out.
“Maybe it was very important, and maybe you’re a doctor, and you’re saving someone’s life, and I hope you are, but we do see these, we do feel them.”
Benedict Cumberbatch is another notable star who has pleaded with ticketholders to keep their phones hidden during stage shows.
Electra/Persona is a bold theatrical fusion of Sophocles’ ancient Greek tragedy Electra with Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 film Persona, penned and directed by Benedict Andrews.
Ms Blanchett shares the stage with German actress Nina Hoss, and the pair swap roles nightly based on the outcome of a coin toss, alternating between Electra/Elisabeth and Clytemnestra/Alma.
The National Theatre has described the production as one that “fuses ancient myth and modern psychology in a powerful exploration of identity, and the fragile line between who we are and who we play.”
Ella Lily Hyland also features in the cast. The run at the Lyttelton Theatre continues until October 10.
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