Quiet, please: rock gig in progress (Reading)

Complete the following text with one suitable sentence from below.

Quiet, please: rock gig in progress

Talking loudly at a pop concert these days can get you told off - and don't even think of spilling your drink. Fiona Sturges welcomes this chande in attitudes.

Last week a well-known singer is reported to have shouted at an audience member in response to their talking loudly throughout his performance, after which he is said to have emptied a glass of water on their head. 1___ Who hasn't been to a gig at some point and had their night ruined by the behaviour of a stranger?

People's enjoyment of a concert relies on the good manners of others. At its bests, live music can be a life-changing experience. When everything goes right, the musiic coming from the stage can lift the soul and make you forget your surroundings. 2.___

Something like that happened when I went to see one of my favourite bands. It was a sit-down gig and I had a seat about ten rows from the front. Despite being so near the stage, I couldn't hear a thing thanks to a group of people sitting in front of me, who kept on gossiping and laughing all the way through the show. 3.___ And that's when I leaned forward and asked, as politely as I could, if they could keep it down. They were absolutely shocked. 'How dare you!' replied one of them.

When it comes to audience interaction, every art form requieres a certain amount of appropriacy although there are no formal rules. 4____ For instance, it's acceptable to move around and talk in art galleries but wild dancing is, as a general rule, not tolerated.

In the theatre you can sit down an fall asleep and no one will care, but anyone who talks at anything louder than a whisper or answers their mobile phone is asking for trouble. Actually, at one city-centre venue, posters on the walls forbid gig-goers from talking during performances altogether. But generally, when it comes to pop concerts it's more a case of attitudes starting to change. 5.____ Singing along loudly is unreasonable unless the artists specifically requests it. And drinks should be consumed by their owner and not split down the back of the person in front of them.

The habits of gig-goers vary according to the type of music being performed. From the hard-rocking gigs of my teenage years, I frequently emerged soaked in drinks and sweat, and thought nothing of standing in the middle of a crowd for hours. 6.____ Happily, I have learned that the further back you stand in a crowd, the less likely you are to be pushed or have someone step on your foot. As for the talkactive ones in the audience. I say pour cold water on the lot of them.



A. This noise went on for around twenty minutes before my patience ran out.

B. But there are also times when the greatest performers in the world can't compete with the idiot in the crowd who decides to sing along, spill drinks and casually push people.

C. These days, though, I am much less keen on all this,

D. If this reaction was a bit strong, the emotion behind it was understandable.

E. I always walk out whenever they start doing that.

F. Some unwritten ones, however, do exist.

G. Talking, for example, is acceptable but not to the point where the strangers next to you are forced to listen to details of your private life.

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