Cynthia Erivo stopped her one-woman West End show Dracula on Monday night after spotting an audience member apparently filming the performance. The incident occurred roughly an hour into the show at the Noël Coward Theatre, according to audience reports on the Theatreboard forum.
A spokesperson for the production confirmed the short pause. The following night, extra reminders about the ban on photography and filming were given to the audience. Illicit recordings are a growing concern for theatres, with some venues issuing stickers to cover phone cameras, as seen at Romeo and Juliet and Good.
In 2023, photos of James Norton in a nude scene from A Little Life were published online. Filming is generally forbidden except during certain musical finales. Actress Lesley Manville recently criticised phone use at curtain calls, calling it 'insulting' on BBC Radio 4's Front Row.
Manville, starring in Les Liaisons Dangereuses at the National Theatre, noted signs warning against phone use, including during bows. She recalled giving a stare to a phone user during previews, saying 'it never used to happen'. In New York, she said 'virtually the whole audience' films curtain calls.
The Noël Coward Theatre, owned by Delfont Mackintosh Theatres, prohibits recording equipment and requires mobile phones to be disabled. The venue allows GalaPro for captioning and audio description. Dracula, directed by Kip Williams, runs until 30 May and features sophisticated onstage camerawork.
