Singalong at Bodyguard musical ends in mini-riot
A PERFORMANCE of the musical The Bodyguard was interrupted by rioting audience members trying to sing I Will Always Love You over the actors.
The finale of the musical at the Palace Theatre, Manchester, had to be abandoned on Friday night after security guards stormed the auditorium and “forcibly removed” fans who were loudly singing along.
Melody Thornton, the former Pussycat Dolls singer who plays the lead role of a superstar who is protected from an unknown stalker, apologised to theatregoers, insisting she “fought really hard” to keep the curtain up before riot police were called.
The saga began at the start of the musical, when stewards held up signs asking people not to sing along. Two announcements repeating the request were also made.
Twenty minutes in, the stage adaptation of the 1992 film was halted because some had ignored the edict, according to an audience member, before they were removed and the show carried on.
But as the finale approached, two spectators in the higher tier began a countdown before attempting to hit the high notes in I Will Always Love You.
“And that’s when the chaos began,” Karl Bradley, who was watching, told BBC Radio Manchester. Videos showed women being dragged out and others reporting how “mini riots” broke out.
Mr Bradley said Thornton’s microphone cut off and “eventually the lights went off as the drama unfolded”.
Tash Kenyon, 27, a payroll clerk from the Wirral, told The Sunday Telegraph:
“The show had about 10 minutes left when the lead started performing I Will Always Love You. Someone shouted, ‘Does this mean we can start singing now?’”
A spokesman for the theatre said: “The show needed to be cancelled due to disruptive customers spoiling the performance for others”.
The theatre asked that “customers are considerate” during “future performances [which] will continue as planned”.
Greater Manchester Police said: “Officers were called to the theatre after staff reported a number of people in the audience causing a disturbance. Two people removed by security staff were spoken to by police and a decision about any further action will be made once the evidence has been reviewed.”