Cate Blanchett begs audience not to film her new play at the National Theatre and says 'it spoils it for the next group'

Cate Blanchett begged the audience in her new play at the National Theatre not to film her on stage as it 'spoils it for the next group'.

The actress, 57, is currently starring in Benedict Andrews' Electra/Persona, which combines the Sophocles tragedy Electra with Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 film Persona.

In a video shared on social media on Saturday, Cate is seen urging theatregoers at London's Lyttelton Theatre to halt the filming of the production as she called for folks to 'be together and be present'.

It comes amid calls for better etiquette in theatres after stars including the likes of Rosamund Pike and Cynthia Erivo recently chastised audience members for using their phones during their productions. 

And Cate, still dressed in her stage costume of a black T-shirt and loose-fitting black trousers, echoed that sentiment when she addressed the audience after the curtain call, telling fans: 'There are few places on this planet where we can simply be together and be present.'

The star continued: 'I understand you like filming the curtain call — and it is kind of flattering in a way — but for anyone who is filming the show, please don’t, because it spoils it for the next group of people who come in and are present with us. So thank you very much.'

Her impassioned message was met with applause from the audience who had gathered to watch the play.

Cate shares the roles of Electra/Elisabeth and Clytemnestra/Alma with Nina Hoss in the play, which encourages audience participation at the start when she asks a crowd member to flip a coin to determine which role they will play that night. 

The National Theatre’s synopsis reads: 'Electra. A daughter consumed by grief and rage, clinging to the idea of justice as her world comes apart. Persona. During a performance of Electra, an actress suddenly falls silent. What follows is a rupture: two women drawn into an intense, unsettling encounter where speech breaks down and the boundaries between self and role give way.'

Earlier this year, Rosamund Pike berated an audience member for texting during the finale of her 'devastatingly emotional' West End performance.

The actress and producer, 47, who plays a Crown Court judge in Inter Alia at the Wyndham's Theatre, returned to the stage after the curtain had fallen.

But instead of soaking in the applause, she hushed the audience and told the texter they had 'broken the bond' between cast and audience.

In footage captured by a theatregoer in June, Rosamund could be seen gesturing to a corner of the room.

She said: 'Somebody was texting in this part - you know who you are. I'm not going to single you out but you know it upsets the performance.

'Maybe it was very important. Maybe you're a doctor and you're saving someone's life and I hope you are.

'But we do see things - we do feel them and so when I feel that and see it it's hard.'

She added: 'I'm trying to tell you a story and I'm feeling you and I hope you're feeling me too.'

Meanwhile in April, Cynthia Erivo brought her latest West End performance in Dracula to a dramatic halt after an audience member was seen filming the production on their mobile phone. 

The actress took to the stage earlier this year at London's Noël Coward Theatre in director Kip Williams' contemporary, one-woman adaptation of Bram Stoker's classic novel. 

Cynthia curtailed a performance for close to ten minutes after spotting someone filming from their place in the audience, a direct breach of standard theatre etiquette. 

Footage circulating online captures bemused audience members – many of them unaware of the issue – watching in stunned silence as the curtain drops mid-act.

As nervous laughter ripples across the room, a production assistant can be heard urging ticket-holders to 'remain seated' with the assurance that the production will 'resume shortly'.  

Captioning a brief clip of the incident, one theatregoer wrote: 'Not Cynthia Erivo clocking someone filming in the audience during Dracula and stopping the whole show.' 

According to WhatsOnStage, another told how she 'she straight up called the guy out! Put her hand up – said "excuse me, are you filming right now?!" And the person said "sorry".' 

Other notable names, including Amber Davies (Legally Blonde) and Lesley Manville (Les Liaisons Dangereuses) have also lashed out at poor theatre etiquette, admonishing those who use their phone during theatre productions.

Amber revealed in July that she had a theatregoer thrown out of her latest show after catching them filming the performance. 

Taking to Instagram during the interval, Amber shared a video on her Stories urging her followers not to follow suit.

She began: 'This is your daily reminder not to film at the theatre.

'Unfortunately tonight at the Bord Gáis we've got a beautiful audience, but there's just one woman in the front row filming the entirety of Act One has had us all distracted.'

Amber continued: 'It ruined the morale of our wonderful eighth show on a Saturday night from selfish actions.'

Revealing she reported the theatregoer to staff, Amber added: 'Hopefully she's not back for Act Two, I've asked, can she go so we can just enjoy ourselves.

'But there has been a couple of people filming in Ireland this week and I'm the type of person, I will count how many seats away you are from what door and you will be told and asked to leave.

'So yeah guys, don't film. Let's just enjoy the two and a half hours together, we don't need to film everything.

'Okay, right I'm gonna go and do Act Two.'

Lesley meanwhile sparked a fierce debate in the theatre world after she blasted theatre-goers who took photos during curtain calls as 'insulting'.

The two-time Olivier Award winner, 70, appeared on stage at the National Theatre opposite Rivals' Aidan Turner in the latest adaptation of Les Liaisons Dangereuses.

And she recently revealed the production has banned the audience from taking any photos during the show and after, when the cast come out to take their bows.

Speaking on BBC's Radio 4 in April, Lesley lamented the proliferation of the practice, asking why the show attendees couldn't 'let it live in their souls for five minutes?'

The actress insisted that it had only recently begun to happen more on the West End, having trickled in from the US, and urged people to 'preserve theatre' and 'take the digital out of it just for a moment'.

Meanwhile, Heathers: The Musical star Kate Rockwell has launched a frustrated tirade at drunken audience members and rowdy superfans. 

Taking to Instagram, the American actress, dancer and singer, 42, raged over the behaviour of viewers and discussed appropriate theatre etiquette. 

The hit musical, based on the 1988 film of the same name, has run off-Broadway since 2014 and Kate joined the cast last year as a temporary replacement for Kerry Butler in the role as teacher Ms Fleming.

On Wednesday, she shared a note encouraging young 'incredibly passionate, devoted fans' not to singalong regardless of their love for the show, writing: 'Please, when you're in the audience, let us do the work. That's what you paid for!!'

As well as her message aimed at young fans, she also hit out at drunken hecklers for 'screaming s**t' and 'losing their ability to be a decent human beings', writing: 'If you want to talk through something, stay home and watch Netflix.'