Rebecca Williams Review of Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
I really think the theatre need to review having b...
I really think the theatre need to review having big performances at football match time.
We booked tickets for Macbeth at 730pm on a Saturday and the theatre advertised easy access by car. We arrived near the theatre at 700pm and many streets were closed and many were filled with police, lines of police vans and football supporters walking across the roads. All car parks were full. At 720pm in desperation we called the theatre and asked for advice on where to park. They admitted they didn't know but suggested the shopping centre car park. We went and it was totally full.
Miraculously we managed to get a space at a different car park at 800pm (full hour driving around) and get to theatre at 810pm having obviously missed the first part of the play. The experience (we were two Muslim women) of driving amongst the footbal supporters, some of whom shouted at us and one of whom banged the car, was scary for my daughter and not pleasant at all. Then having to walk past all the pubs etc and bang a number of times ourselves on the theatre door to be let in!
Although I knew the seats were booked out we saw many empty seats presumably people who paid a load of money but couldn't park and get in.
When we came out about 1020pm the street outside was packed with very drunk rowdy football supporters and we and other theatre goers had a scary walk back to the car. It then took 35 mins wait to get out of the car park due to a police incident outside an adjacent nightclub..
The actors and play were superb but the theatre staff were very unprofessional. One kept walking up and down the aisle repeatedly which spoiled things. Three staff in the theatre kept talking to each other. They all had walkie talkies on very loud too. I have never ever been in a theatre where you have staff standing or sitting right next to you (one decided to sit right behind is for some of the time) with loud discussioms and static coming from their receivers .. over the actors of the play??? if it hadn't been horrendous enough getting there this really was an insult to the audience and the performers.
I'd never attempt to attend this theatre again. It would have been quicker and easier and far more pleasant to go to London and back (we had come from Birmingham).

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