The Royal Opera House was the scene of tense drama and intrigue yesterday as a man booed a child singer - and shouted " rubbish!" as the youngster gave the performance of a lifetime. Young Malakai M Bayoh has been training at the Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School and landed the role of Oberto in Handel's Alcina as his debut at the historic venue.
When he stepped onto the stage in Covent Garden, his nerves were no doubt frayed - but he gave a performance that some have described as "damn impressive". But it wasn't enough for one attendee, who cruelly booed the classically trained singer.
News of the incident broke on Twitter, when Josh Spero, associate arts editor of the Financial Times, tweeted: "The nastiest thing happened at the Royal Opera House tonight during Alcina.
"A 12-year-old boy was sweetly singing his lines when a man in the audience yelled 'rubbish!' and booed him.
"Who would do that to a child? Once the boy was done, the audience responded with wild applause and cheering."
Others began commenting on the post, saying that they too had heard the man.
Paul Halsall added: "He was in the row in front of me, three seats to the left. He left before the end of the second act or I think the amphitheatre audience would have dealt with him. He was a nasty old g*t."
Melinda Hughes then commented: "Appalling behaviour - I'm so angry. Apparently, he was removed in the interval."
And Hannah Jones said: "He left just before the end of the second act, basically to avoid the criticism he would have received at interval. I was sitting behind him and despite being shushed and told to stop repeatedly, he didn't. Atrocious behaviour."
Josh later shared a picture of Malakai, and wrote: "This was the chap - he did brilliantly."
Soon Malakai was heaped with praise, as one user added: "What an achievement! Bravo, Malakai!" Another commented: "I heard him in a rehearsal, his ability to grasp Handelian recit was damn impressive."
The man who booed Malakai has not been identified, but Twitter user George Kingston later posted: "CEO tells me the guy has been given a permanent ban."
The Royal Opera House said in a statement: "We would like to congratulate Malakai M Bayoh for his stellar performance as Oberto in our first night of Alcina.
"Malakai is astonishingly talented - bringing great acting and beautiful singing to the role - a huge accomplishment for such a young singer.
"Unfortunately, the opening night of Alcina featured an audience member who disrupted the show and Malakia's excellent performance.
"We are appalled that a member of the audience behaved in this way and our support is with Malakia and the cast and creative team of Alcina. Steps have been taken to ensure the audience member in question does not return to the Royal Opera House."
The Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School has been approached for comment.
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