Miss Manners Addresses Chatty Audiences at Outdoor Concerts

Outdoor concert settings - such as parks, amphitheaters, and public plazas - occupy an ambiguous social space where audience behavior norms are less firmly established than in traditional concert halls or theaters. Attendees often disagree on whether ambient conversation is acceptable, particularly when admission is free or seating is informal. The Miss Manners column, originally created by Judith Martin and now co-written with her son Nicholas Ivor Martin, is distributed through major regional newspapers nationwide. It regularly addresses interpersonal conflicts arising from contested or evolving social norms.