Eating during Wicked

[trinaaron]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 10:41am

I recently began seeing broadway shows again after a five year haitus. I took me 8 year old daughter to see Wicked last Wednesday and was shocked that they openly allowed eating during the performance. I know perfectly well that people always have eaten, but I always assumed that it was still frowned upon. Is this commonplace now? I have seen a number of shows this year, including Rent and Sweeney Todd, and don't remember people chowing down around me. My daughter was quite upset that I wouldn't buy her candy when lots of people around us had some. Quite frankly I find it disturbing. These aren't movies; those are actual real live people up there performing for you (although I did think the inside of the Gershwin looked like a movie theater).

[NJRae]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 10:53am

I have to say that the first time I went to a show and saw them selling food that you were allowed to bring back to your seats I was rather shocked. I can only guess that since people were going to sneak food in anyway, they decided they may as well make some money selling their own food. But come on . . . do the people up on stage want to watch you chowing down? Does the person next to you want to listen to you chomping? Who wants to listen to wrappers crinkling?

Now that I have been to see more shows I will admit that I have jumped on the bandwagon and have bought snacks during intermission . . . but I have a stomach problem and sometimes I just need to eat something. I try to get my munching done during intermission, and if I do feel the need to shove something in my mouth during the show, I try to do it as subtly and quietly as possible so as not to bother anyone around me. Can't say the same for others though!

[Londonskyguy]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:00am

I still will never get over the experience that I had about 15 years ago at a Broadway musical.. The group of five people in front of me showed up about a half hour into the first act,,and proceeded to talk to each other the whole time.. Then the same group showed up about 20 minutes late for act two.. and I swear to god they spent the rest of the evening talking and passing back and forth a bucket of KFC chicken.

[uncageg]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:10am

I either approach the people who are eating or making noise or I get an Usher. That has always taken care of the problem for me.

[HumATune]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:18am

I HATE it when people eat during live theater. Someone was eating Skittles at Chicago here in San Francisco on Wednesday night.

[Horton]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:18am

There is an interview with Megan Hilty on Youtube (it is perfectly acceptable to state the site because Megan Hilty.com links you to that site) where she talks about this.

[WiiCKED x3]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:24am

I can't stand it when people eat in the theatre.
It's so annoying.

[bwayondabrain]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:37am

yeah, eating can be extremely annoying
the only time i eat the theatre is during intermission (my family shares a box of Junior Mints :P ) but even then we dont bring it back to our seats
but yeah, eating while people are performing is rude

[BJC899]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 11:43am

did you GO TO Peter Pan at MSG? it was a circus.

"popcorn, get your popcorn!"

[DRSisLove]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 12:15pm

I ate once during a performance. I was 12 though, and was so into the performance Beauty and the Beast that I needed something to do with my hands, so I had some Resse's Bites, but I didn't make as much noise as the annoying people next to me.

My mom started eating Junior Mints at The Wedding Singer two weeks ago. I pulled the box away from her and was like "We're in the front row, show some curtosey woman."

[WiiCKED x3]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 12:20pm

^ That is soo funny!

[GreenGirl22406]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 12:22pm

I'm proud to say that I've never eaten during a show (ok, 1 mento during drs), but when I saw Wicked, a little girl was eating something in a very loud wrapper and my brother wouldn't stop complaining about it, so it was double-distracting... I just don't think it should be allowed, both for the theater and the audience.

[SirLiir]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 12:38pm

I ate Twizzlers during Mamma Mia once...but I was in the box! That being said, eating food at a theater is so distracting, to both the audience and actors. If someone really had to, for some reason, eat, I would hope that person would be courteous and option for a food that a) doesn't smell and b) does not make extreme audible noise as it is being masticated.

[folkyboy]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 1:12pm

in my opinion, i have found mostly Disney shows are the ones guilty of the food in the theatre. it doesn't surprise me that Wicked has started already, though. shows with a high drive for trash will do trashy things in theatre

[jess20882]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 1:33pm

i know i posted this on another thread but once, at wicked, people (tourists) sitting next to me actually had the nerve to eat pre-packaged SUSHI during the show! sure it's a quiet food but it smelled so gross...

[actor]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 1:41pm

When I saw Jersey Boys the people in front of me sucked on Twizzlers one at a time, then, without eating the Twizzler, proceeded to throw each of them over their shoulders onto my lap. I had to ask them to stop twice before they stopped.

I've also had an experience during Wicked when a little girl sitting next to me dropped all of her rasinettes on the floor. The mom asked me to help her pick them up during "Defying Gravity" and, forced to accept, I missed the entire flying sequence, which was frustrating.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 1:43pm

I'll admit I've eaten candy at the theater before but during intermission. And sometimes I've shoved an M&M or two in my mouth while they were performing, but that's only if I'm really hungry. I usually get hungry even when I've eaten before the show, and if I don't have something in my stomach I feel sick. But I would never bring a KFC bucket or prepackaged sushi to a show and eat it right in the theater, intermission or not.

When I saw Drowsy Chaperone, the people next to me had a sandwich and salads or something like that. I think they were still eating as the show began...I forgot.

[JarNerdAV]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 1:55pm

It's bad enough when people bring in candy, but at least most candy doesn't make noise. I was thoroughly disgusted last year at the Christmas Spectacular that the greedy producers sell and encourage the eating of POPCORN in the beautiful, historic Radio City Music Hall! All around me "chomp, chomp, chomp." I thought I was going to lose it (in fact I glave the evil eye to all chomping people all around me).

[Luckydave14]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 2:20pm

Hairspray actually sells popcorn.

[Mandi Moo]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 2:28pm

When I see shows with my school, a lot of the kids stock up on snacks during intermission and eat throughout the second act. It's annoying...but I don't say anything. I just try to sit near my teachers so I'm not near them.

However, I did have to tell people to stop text messaging during The Drowsy Chaperone. That was too much.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 2:47pm

the popcorn at hairspray drives me fifty kinds of crazy.. especially when it is people down front chomping away... and I KNOW that the cast sees, smeels, and hears it. Not to mention those poor ushers who have to scramble to clean it up in the aisle, which happens just about EVERY show without fail, in the dark, so that the cast won't track crushed bits onto the stage...

[bwayondabrain]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 2:52pm

i dont like it when people drink heavily during shows...at DROWSY there were these people who arrived at the theatre drunk, got glasses of wine when they got inside, and proceeded to talk loudly and laugh for no reason throughout the show

oh well, at least they seemed to enjoy the show...even if it was under the influence

:P

[Jane2]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 3:32pm

We have a staff member who goes into each theater equipped with snacks. Candy, ice cream, bottled water, and in some instances, shots of booze. It's a way of making money.

[Renthead#1]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 3:36pm

When I saw 42nd street in the very last row of the theatre all you could hear were people opening there coke cans.

[Claire2141]

Posted: 10/28/06 at 3:37pm

Question about eating in theaters...just curious really.

Here in the UK it's a tradition that the ushers sell tubs of ice cream during the interval which invenitably I end up eating during the first part of the second act. Is this the same in the US as no one has mentioned ice cream.

Even in the far reaches of London, when I saw Wicked a middle aged woman was eating mints and rustling her packet all the time. Drove me nuts. Although I've never seen more than sweets (normally mints) being eaten in a theater here.