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Did the actor like me?

So a few days ago I went with my family to watch a musical. Now this wasn't a small, local musical, but a west end one (quite famous) which is touring around the country. I'd say that there were several hundred people there, though most of them were quite old. We sat quite near the stage, 3rd row, and throughout the whole thing (three hours) I kept having eye contact with one of the actors. I noticed it about 10 or so minutes in, though I hadn't actually looked directly at the guy at all. And this continued throughout the WHOLE DAMN TIME. As I said I wasn't really looking at him at all, yet as soon as I'd turn his way I'd catch eyes with him, as if he was almost always looking at me. I know, I know it sounds like I have main character syndrome, but I'm genuinely curious. None of my accomplices reported having eye contact with him, though one did tell me she saw him looking at me. I have heard in some shows they're supposed to maintain eye contact with the audience, but according to some actor friends they're not supposed to usually. It's apparently forbidden or something, as it may be distracting or uncomfortable for the audience. So why was he looking at me? (He also smiled at me a few times too)

Reply 1

Crazy Jamie

I wouldn't go as far as saying this is main character syndrome, but even if you think about it just a little bit, there is absolutely no chance that this happened as you perceive it, for a whole host of reasons. First, it's actually very difficult for actors on stage to pick out individuals in the audience. Why? Because the light is on them and not you, so they really cannot see you very well. That individual almost certainly couldn't see you well enough to tell whether they found you attractive, let alone to make that assessment and then repeatedly come back to look at you specifically. Second, they are performing in a West End musical. Very much something you need to focus on, rather than scanning the audience for hot people. Third, whilst they don't scan the audience for attracting people, actors do look at the audience repeatedly and do things like smile. Sometimes they will be drawn to a particular area or section of the crowd because it's convenient to do so (and I say this as someone who speaks to groups of people as part of my job). Looking and smiling at the audience is part of the job. But looking and smiling at you consciously and specifically, let alone because they found you attractive? I'm afraid that just isn't plausible.

Reply 2

Admit-One

Universities Forum Helper

The answer is no, they don't.

Due to the lighting setup, especially at large venues, the cast can usually only see the first 2-3 rows at most. For that reason they very often make repeated eye contact with the audience in those rows as a way of engaging.

It's a bit like sitting in the front row of a comedy gig and being captivated by the comic talking to you. It is par for course.