Bored At That Play? (Check Your Email)

“Once upon a time, checking your watch was the state-of-the-art response to a theatrical moment that bored you. The gesture can even exude a bit of critical panache: A universal pantomime for ‘Get me out of here!,’ it’s a succinct and crisp and relatively unobtrusive expression of personal pique. But now, the Treos and BlackBerrys and the multitasking superphones that do everything except rotate your tires are more than a momentary sideshow for the ticket buyer who might be less than enthralled with the main event.”