An Evening With Cake – 02-17-18

Last weekend, John and I were able to go to The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan to see his favorite band, Cake. We originally purchased tickets for his birthday and the show was scheduled for October. It was postponed after the 1 October shooting, so we were happy the day had finally come!

It was an interesting experience, to say the least. We are VERY lucky that my parents are willing to watch Rosslyn so that we may occasionally enjoy a night out. We are so grateful to have them and they really enjoy spending time with the baby.

The next time I mention doing something like this, somebody please remind me to always avoid the Strip on Saturday nights. It was such a nightmare! We took backstreets to avoid Las Vegas Blvd, and it was still a hassle to get into the hotel. People were driving like maniacs and I suppose this should have been a sign of things to come.

We had our tickets printed in advance, so we were able to head straight to the theater. There was no line to enter, which was great. We purchased seats because we wanted to be able to relax, sit and enjoy the show. We stopped at the bar on the way in and I got a cocktail, which was outrageously priced ($32 for a double). I guess that shouldn’t be too much or a surprise, but it’s still ridiculous nonetheless. The show was supposed to start at 8PM, so we took our seats just before that time. There was no opening band, so we just waited for Cake to take the stage. We waited, and waited, and waited some more. The band didn’t end up taking the stage until around 8:45PM.

If you’ve ever been to the Chelsea, we were seated in the 3rd row of the back section, just behind the walkway. There were 2 or 3 rows on the other side of the walkway as well. In the front row of our section, there was an elderly Japanese couple, who seemed pretty excited for the show. Unfortunately, once the band started, a very tall gentleman in the row in front of them (on the other side of the walkway) stood up, blocking their view. The older Japanese man asked the usher if she could ask them to sit down, which she declined (understandable). I felt so bad for them – I am certain they didn’t pay for seats to look at someone’s back for an entire show. I yelled “SIT DOWN!” and the girl sitting next to our Japanese friends turned around and yelled back “STAND UP!” That is such an incredible response and it really pissed me off. After this interaction, she then decided that she would stand up, blocking everyone behind her (luckily not us). A young couple behind her tapped her on the shoulder and asked if she would sit down. She got a huge attitude and basically cursed them out. She was obviously standing just to spite everyone behind her! Once again, I am certain that all of us in that section didn’t buy seats just so we would have to stand for an entire show. Not to try and sound like a total geezer, but I am just too old to stand in one spot for 3+ hours any longer! We really just wanted to chill and enjoy the music without having to jockey around a big crowd.

So, this brings me to a question: The entire floor was general admission, standing room only. Do you think if someone buys a seat, they should be expected to sit for at least a majority of the show? I feel like, if you want to stand, you should be on the floor. There are some exceptions to this – I would say that there are some shows that everyone stands at, but this wasn’t one of them.  I also think it is disrespectful to have no concern for those around you. Things got a little bit worse – this girl ended up getting very drunk and falling on the older Japanese man a bunch of times. She never even apologized! At one point, she was very close to pouring her drink all over him, when her boyfriend grabbed it just before it spilled. Also, another guy with this group PASSED OUT and spilled his drink into the walkway. The usher came to clean it up with a towel, but didn’t even say anything to them (he was totally passed out in his seat!). I am all for people having fun – but this was out of control. These folks were not in their purchased seats and made the show less enjoyable for those around them.

I hate to sound like a total fuddy-duddy, but I just couldn’t believe someone would have such disregard for those around her. I can’t help but think that this is exactly why other countries hate us. Americans have a bad reputation for being selfish, self-absorbed, and that was clear that night. I genuinely feel bad for those folks who bought tickets in the center of the row so that they would have a good view, only to be blocked by the people in front of them (who were the only people standing in the seats, other than the drunk girl by us).

I am interested to hear what all of you think? Is my thinking totally out of line?