Ticket holders for upcoming London performance given trigger warning over 'sound of people eating oranges'
8 April 2024, 10:43 | Updated: 8 April 2024, 10:51
Ticket holders for an upcoming London show have been given a trigger warning over performers eating on stage.
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Sadler's Wells, the country's most famous dance company, has issued a warning for ticket holders that the noise from its dancers eating during two performances of Out may be "uncomfortable".
The warning is aimed at those who have misophonia, a condition where sufferers have an "extreme emotional reaction to certain everyday sounds that most people would find relatively easy to ignore", according to the NHS.
Noises include the sounds of people eating.
The company has also specified the production involves oranges, which may not be suitable for audience members with citrus allergies.
"The performance references experiences of racism, transphobia and homophobia.
"The performance also contains sounds of people eating, partial nudity, haze, flashing lights and loud music.
"It also involves oranges and may not be suitable for those with certain allergies," it reads on the website.
A spokesman for Allergy UK confirmed that people may suffer a reaction to oranges from airborne particles: "Most people with citrus allergy will have skin reactions or irritation of the mouth and throat, but it can also cause more severe symptoms such as difficulty breathing and, in rare cases, anaphylaxis."
Out, to be performed at Lilian Baylis Studio in Finsbury from April 25-26, is advertised as a musical duet, which "defiantly challenges homophobia and transphobia" and aims to "reimagine, reclaim and celebrate aspects of Caribbean culture from a queer perspective".
The £17-per-ticket show has been marketed as an "interdisciplinary performance inspired by ongoing global struggles for LGBTQIA+ rights" and a "defiant challenge to the status quo.
"Bravely embracing personal, political and cultural dissonance, this work smashes through our violent colonial histories to reimagine, reclaim and celebrate our delicious queer future,” the description continues.
Out is an "intense and important dance work that conveys ambiguities around queer Caribbean identity" according to The Stage.
Everything Theatre said the performance breaks silences and reclaims cultural heritages "in a sensual, citrus-soaked live art exploration of shape-shifting identities".
Both theatre news companies have given Out four stars.
Earlier this year, casting advertisements offered dancers £1,000 a week.
Dancers had to meet the requirements of being "queer, trans+ or gender non-conforming black performers of Caribbean heritage", the Mail on Sunday reported.
Ray Young, the creator and director of Out, said "I am extremely excited to be bringing Out back in 2024, the themes in the work resonate more now than ever before.
"As queer people, we are still living in a world in which it is contentious for us to dare to thrive in our bodies, this is doubly so for our trans siblings whose lives are often under threat from the simple act of living authentically.
"Surely being able to do this is non-negotiable".
Trigger warnings have been issued in the world of show business before.
In July 2023, a theatre was slammed as "patronising" for issuing a trigger warning for 'Nazi Germany' content in the Sound of Music revival.
In addition, some actors have criticised the use of trigger warnings, with Cate Blanchett telling the Sunday Times that "tough conversations" are needed and that audiences should be challenged or even offended by what they see.
Schindler's List actor Ralph Fiennes said that audiences should be "shocked and disturbed" by what they see.
Meanwhile, LBC's James O'Brien has previously voiced his support for trigger warnings.
Speaking about universities coming under fire for placing trigger warnings on books which explore sensitive themes, James said: "It is a quick and innocuous heads up".
