Unsuspected side effects of travelling

The other day a piece of serendipity happened to me and as generally occurs in these cases I was left in a very good mood.

I was in London for the day and due to a change of plans suddenly had the afternoon free, I was walking past the National Theatre on the South Bank, when I wondered if it was matinee day. So I went in to ask and it was, and even better a play I really wanted to see was on and even better than that because it was not sold out, they were selling off stall seats half price. How could I refuse to see the play after all of that!

Which is how I found myself the youngest person by about 20 years (at a conservative estimate) at a performance of "Once In A Lifetime" a joyous play about the coming of sound to Hollywood. One of the quotes outside the theatre says "A well oiled laughter machine" and they're not wrong. It's also stylish, beautiful to look at and superbly acted.

But to add to my enjoyment there was audience watching. Of course I could have come over all stressed at the tortoise like pace of the audience in seating themselves (hard to negotiate steps with rickety knees and difficult to see seat and row numbers when you don't bend easily anymore) but instead I decided to relax and observe. Of course the benefit of it being a largely grey haired audience was that it was terribly well behaved and considerate, which is a pleasant experience.

I was surrounded by Americans, both sides and behind me and the benefit of this to the single play goer is that you know they will be happy to talk to you and you don't have to sit in stony silence. Having been to the theatre before on my own and sat next to Brits, I know that this is more unusual with my fellow countrymen. However, I also know that my own attitude has changed as a result of travelling in countries where people are enthusiastic about talking to strangers. So instead of radiating a protective forcefield with flashing signs saying "Don't talk to me", that afternoon I opened the conversation! Interesting how far the effects of travelling stretch.