Lasers Curb Phone Use in Theaters

BEIJING — Audience members using cellphones bedevil performers and presenters around the world. But in China, theaters and other venues have adopted what they say is an effective — others might say disturbing — solution. Zap them with a laser beam. When ushers spot a lighted mobile phone, instead of dashing over to the offender, they pounce with a pointer, aiming it at the glowing screen.

Xu Chun, 27, who was in the audience for “Carmen” at the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing in February, said: “Of course it’s distracting. But seeing lighted- up screens is even more distracting.”

For the uninitiated, the appearance of a blazing colored beam in a darkened theater can be jarring.

“I remember the first time I saw the lasers, it was shocking to see that little red dot in the middle of a performance,” said Joanna C. Lee, a consultant for American symphony orchestras touring China. “Like someone was pointing a gun at the audience.” (Laser sights are a popular feature on firearms.)

Laser pointers have been used for years at many of China’s leading performance halls. Theatergoers are often noticeably younger than in the United States and Europe, with a corresponding lack of experience in concert etiquette. The lasers, theater managers say, are part of a larger effort to teach audiences how to behave during live performances.

Are the performers bothered by the use of lasers? “No, it’s very smart, very fast, very effective,” said Giuseppina Piunti, an Italian mezzo soprano. “They should use the lasers all over the world. I can see the lasers from the stage, but it’s much less distracting than the flash cameras, and the ushers running up and down the aisles.”

It helps matters that many big- name venues employ cellphone- jamming technology, so texting and ringtones are rarely problems.

The National Center has been using lasers since 2008, with increasing success. “It’s gotten better and better over the years,” said Yang Hongjie, a deputy director at the National Center. “We have much less interaction with the audience now, compared to before.”

In China, laser pointers are largely unregulated. Mr. Yang said ushers are trained to aim at patrons from behind, to avoid the eyes.

“It’s really only a risk if they hit the eye,” said Samuel M. Goldwasser, a laser expert and former professor of electrical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania.

There have been complaints when the lasers are used too much. Yet theater managers here say the lasers are the best solution they have found to a nagging problem. Many say such “uncivilized behavior” will stop only when people improve their suzhi, a Chinese term meaning quality or refinement.

“Hopefully, one day we won’t even need to take the laser pointers out of our pockets,” said Wang Chen of the Shanghai Grand Theater. “That would be a good day.”

Light beams shame those who disregard concert etiquette.