Manoeuvres in the dark

By Anonymous - 12/12/2009 21:13 - Canada

Today, I had to perform with my orchestra at an event. I hadn't eaten at all because I had to get my blood sugar tested. During the middle of a song, I passed out. No one helped me and no one stopped playing, "because the song wasn't over and they didn't want to ruin the performance." FML
I agree, your life sucks 31 716
You deserved it 6 270

Same thing different taste

Top comments

I´m a very dedicated performer, and have a bit of experience even though I´m still in school. I would stop a performance if someone onstage were to pass out, because you don´t always know why the person is passing out. I´d rather have a ruined performance than a harmed or even dead peer.

Yeah, but it's not that original. When I was in HS marching band, we performed in wool jackets in Florida. It happened more than once. Nobody stopped, because the band director was evil and would have given us probably 10 laps for stopping. I got 30 pushups for telling the girl in front of me to get back to where she was supposed to be and stop stepping on my feet.

Comments

GLEE! did you get slushed too? FYL, seriously.

brianr09 0

this is dumb... of course no one stopped playing. You arent supposed to. Last year our director fell off stage but we kept going. If you want to play music, suck it up and get over it.

Admirable professionalism on the part of your fellow musicians... But couldn't anyone off stage go and help you? THAT is the real problem. -_-

NotNegativeNews 0

This is the general rule all over the world.

gormer 0

Get a grip on your health or quit the orchestra. You want an entire show to fail because you don't feew good? Selfish.

Of course they carried on, you complete mong. That's what everyone is taught to do. If you're in a play and you mess up a line or you're singing and you forget the words or dancing and you fall over, you're told to carry on like nothing's happened then worry about it afterwards, not stop the entire thing just because you mucked up once. Fool.

To anyone who is saying something along the lines of 'Well the show must go on..' and 'You're selfish, of course they should carry on and leave a poor innocent person passed out on the floor..' that is absolutely ridiculous! So a good performance is more important than the health and welfare of a poor individual? I'm sure stopping it for 5 minutes, apologizing and starting again isn't too much to ask. To be quite honest, if I was in the audience and saw that, I'd find it much more admirable if people actually sacrificed one good performance to help out. I'm guessing most of the audience found the lack of compassion in the orchestra quite selfish themselves.

Yes, let's throw away a few months of work to help someone who obviously fainted. It is the convention of Western-style performance to finish. It is not like she was crying out in pain and clutching her chest. I've had similar problems during performance and I would have lost respect for my peers if they stopped. Sometimes, you just have to suck it up and do what is best for the group.

sportsnut 0

YDI for being ******* retarded. Why would you ever schedule that type of a test the day after a performance? Dont you know what hypoglycemia does? man, if you had any wit about you at all, you could have avoided this. Furthermore, why areyou mad at your orchestra for not helping you recover from something stupid that you did? I applaud them for continuing the performance without you

I don't agree with this whole, "It's not appropriate until the song ends" crap! What is more important - a human, or a stupid song they can hear somewhere else at another time? That is what is so F-ed up about orchestras, etc. They have some pretty stupid rules. What if it was a totally different situation? What if someone was having a stroke or a seizure or another life-threatening emergency? That person would have DIED because of that stupid rule! Sometimes rules are made to be broken. But then again, dumb people do dumb things. I'm sorry the op's life was in the hands of dumb people. Glad they're better (obviously).

Hmm... Because a performance isn't unique? Every performance is unique and months go into the rehearsal of a single performance. If she is obviously breathing, which she should have been since being unconscious makes you actually use air, then there is no problem. Musicians get used to people collapsing beside them from stress or fright. Now, if they were in obvious distress, that is different; then someone would help. But the performance would not end. You don't worry about the individual until the needs of the group are met.

shinyred 0

People don't help people who pass out! I pass out alot (reasons unknown) and its happened in public places and no one has ever helped me. So just get use to it!