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Playgoers to be told if actors will be smoking
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PLAYGOERS who are sensitive to cigarette smoke will be warned in advance if actors are going to be lighting up on stage, the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center said.
The move comes in response to complaints from audience members who said they were forced to inhale second-hand smoke while watching the Agatha Christie’ classic “And Then There Were None” in seats near the stage.
The center told Shanghai Daily that the use of real cigarettes is necessary to maintain the integrity of the play, which takes place in Britain in the 1930s when smoking was still very much an indoor activity.
“The crews considered using electric cigarettes to replace real ones,” SDAC official Chen Li told Shanghai Daily. “However, it would not achieve the same effect, as performers need to show their emotions by stubbing the cigarettes out.”
She added: “We will put up a notice in the theater to remind audience members of the use of cigarettes in the performance. We will also inform people when selling tickets so that those who are allergic to smoke can avoid sitting in front-row seats.”
Chen said warnings will be printed on tickets in the future when a plays require actors to smoke during the performance.
One audience member named Sylvia complained about actors smoking on her Weibo account after watching a performance last month.
“The play was good, but I can’t understand why they were smoking cigarettes throughout the play. It made me sick. What if there are children and pregnant women in the audience?” Sylvia wrote.
Her complaint was later reposted by SDAC general manager Yang Shaolin.
“You raised a question that has been globally discussed by people in the industry,” Yang wrote. “A theater needs approval from the fire authority if open fire is used in the venue. (I know this venue is already approved.)”
According to Shanghai’s regulations, smoking is banned in libraries, cinemas, theaters and musical halls and exhibition centers.
The regulation is very clear, and there should be no exception,” said Tang Qiong, a Shanghai Health Promotion Committee official.
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