Fiona MacLeod on solo culture nights, unexpected conversations, and the particular magic of the Royal Albert Hall
Nobody could come with me to the Proms this week, which meant either staying home entirely or going alone, and I chose alone, somewhat nervously, having never really done a proper concert by myself before without at least one familiar face nearby for company.
Prom Standing, As A Solo Experience
I opted for the arena, “promming” properly, and there’s something genuinely different about standing shoulder to shoulder with strangers who are all there purely for the music rather than the social occasion, a kind of quiet collective focus I hadn’t expected to find quite so moving.
The Actual Programme
A properly ambitious selection, the kind of concert that rewards close attention rather than background listening, and being alone meant I actually gave it that close attention rather than half-watching while chatting to whoever I’d normally have brought along.
The Stranger Beside Me
A man roughly my own age, clearly a Proms regular given how confidently he navigated the standing area, struck up conversation during the interval about the programme choices, and by the time the concert properly finished we were still talking, migrating the conversation to a nearby pub for what became a genuinely lovely hour discussing music neither of us expected to talk about with a total stranger that evening.
What This Taught Me About Going Out Alone
Genuinely liberating, in a way I hadn’t anticipated at all, removing the slight performance of managing someone else’s experience and letting me just properly absorb the whole evening entirely on my own terms.
Would I Do It Again
Absolutely, and I’ve already got my eye on another Prom later this month, quite possibly alone again, purely for the simplicity of it and the genuine focus it lets me bring to the actual music.