Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Theatergoer Vomits Onto Audience From Balcony At Broadway's <em>Grace</em>
By
Garth Johnston
Published Nov 15, 2012
Modified Nov 15, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Joan Marcus
By
Garth Johnston
Published Nov 15, 2012
Modified Nov 15, 2012
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
[Update Below] We didn't think bad theater behavior could get much worse than having a cellphone go off in the middle of a play but clearly we weren't thinking, or drinking, hard enough. Because last night a theatergoer vomited over the balcony and into the orchestra section during a performance of the new Paul Rudd play Grace. Still, the show must go on!
Theatergoer Lori Schwab, who was in the audience last night, sent us this account of the incident (the producers won't comment on it, but we have independently confirmed it happened):
Last night I was at the Cort Theater seeing the play Grace. In the middle of the show there was quite the ruckus. After hearing a loud gasp several people got up and left the theater, followed by several more. During all of this the actors carried on as best they could. At the end of the show, the cast came out for curtain calls, and just before making their call for $$ for Actors Equity fights Aids fund, Paul Rudd told us that someone in the balcony had vomited onto those in the orchestra.
What we want to know is how Rudd and co-stars Michael Shannon, Kate Arrington and Ed Asner decided who got to make that amazing announcement. Rock, scissors, paper? Regarding the reason for the vom, we hear the ralpher was inebriated (as opposed to not responding well to the show's use of flashing lights). Must have been some pre-show drink.
Meanwhile, we never want to hear another word from people complaining about Spider-Man jizzing onwebbing audiences in his Broadway show.
Update: Daily Intel also had a tipster in the audience who reports the vomiting man appeared to have been elderly, not drunk, and may have passed out before throwing up. Apparently he "fell forward so that he was leaning/hanging over the balcony. Then as people were trying to get him back up and into his seat, he threw up all over the people below him in the orchestra and then collapsed on the floor of the balcony." Further, "The stench of the vomit was a little overwhelming, and many people were noticeably uncomfortable, and of course everyone who was vomited on left." Still, their tipster also confirms that:
The actors kept it together, but Paul Rudd was trying to see what was going on during it all, and Michael Shannon was noticeably agitated by what was happening and started speaking much louder than before while staring at the huge group in the balcony. At the end of the show, they all made jokes about it, Paul Rudd saying how as an actor being able to move people to tears or to laughter is amazing but moving them to puking is a whole different league. Then after the show, at the stage door, the actors said how they almost stopped the show because they didn't know the severity of the situation.
Update 2: And here is another report from the theatrical frontlines.
Tagged
broadway
grace
paul rudd
theater
vomit
original
Garth Johnston
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Will Barnes and Noble in the East Village spell doom for smaller shops? It's complicated.
Independent booksellers are grappling with whether the big-box chain is a threat or an ally in the fight against Amazon.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 16, 2026
Can eligible NYC singles find love with 30 minutes and some really spicy food?
We went to the Spiciest Supper Club singles night to take the temperature of New York City's dating scene.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Can eligible NYC singles find love with 30 minutes and some really spicy food?
We went to the Spiciest Supper Club singles night to take the temperature of New York City's dating scene.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
How the NYC Marathon has changed in the last 50 years
By
Hannah Frishberg
A visit to Art of Play, the Brooklyn store in an animatronic bird beef with Kelly Clarkson
By
Sonia Rao
The hottest way to show you're an authentic New Yorker is… riding a Citi Bike?
By
Lindsay Lee Wallace
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .