Kenneth Branch: Lose the green glow

I read Roy Dicks’ Aug. 30 column “Put your phone away!” with particular interest. Though I’ve never seen Patti LuPone or Benedict Cumberbatch grace a Broadway stage, I’ve experienced stunning theater performances over the past 40 years, and Dicks is dead on. I’ve witnessed mobile phone misuse while sitting stage-side; even the green glow of a power-on signal distracts me.

Most recently, my partner and I attended the Gladys Knight concert. Sadly, our opportunity to board the midnight train to Georgia was interrupted by the crass behavior of fellow attendees. We could not even see the dazzling diva’s shapely self because of the oversized Samsung that the person in front of us was using, presumably, to post the performance on Facebook. (Ever heard of YouTube? Please.) The venue’s employees attempted, vainly, to control the cell phone incivility. We left at intermission.

I’m happy to add that in the same week we attended a concert at a different venue and did not suffer any delinquency. So, fellow theater-goers, there is hope for those of us who attend productions with the expectation of engaging our hearts and our minds – without the green glow.

This story was originally published September 7, 2015 at 12:24 PM with the headline "Kenneth Branch: Lose the green glow."