Quick Poll: Drinks at your seat at the theatre? — Page 2

Official Shubert and Jujamcyn theater policies state that OPEN drinks (i.e., without lids) cannot be taken back to your seat. Outside food and drink are prohibited. Any snack "foods" purchased at concessions may be brought back to your seat. I believe since most of the shows at Nederlander-owned houses use cups with lids (with the exception of RENT) they allow drinks to brought back to your seats at all their houses.

Can't we go for two hours without sucking down a soda or chomping some nachos?

As John Adams says in 1776, "Diz.....gusting."

I'm thinking that no one actually "needs" an alcoholic drink to get through any show. I think that many people enjoy a show, film, other entertainment more after a drink. It's their leisure time and they may like to have a drink.

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Most of the regionals on the West Coast only allow bottled water into the theatre. Though Sacramento Music Circus, as a summer stock company, allows food and drinks. It harks back to their tent days. And I admit I love taking an ice cream cone back to my seat.

I enjoy having a coke every so often during an intermission. That being said, I used to buy a can of coke from the hot dog cart, put it in my pocket go to the show and go outside at intermission and take it out and drink it.

I saw a performance of the revival of Les Miseralbes where I was doing this. For some reason I got caught. They told me that I had to throw it away unless I had a good reason as to why I was bringing it into the theatre. I told them that I know that I can't eat or drink during the show, but this is for intermission. I refuse to pay 4 dollars for a coke. They guy corrected me by saying it was only 3 dollars, and that if I wanted to enter the Broadhurst I had to throw it away. I did, but I thought that they were being a bit over the top.

Ten minuets later when I sat down and the show started, this girl brought out an onion bagel which stank to high heaven and no usher in sight to stop her.

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Word, Sally.

I don't understand the noisy snacks. Almost all the snacks sold in theatres are in noisy cellophane. At LB recently, all I could hear was cellophane, cellphone tones and the sounds of the the bare feet of the woman in the row behind me slapping against the arm rests of the seat next to me. It was either that or Laura Bell Bundy, so it was actually a toss up.

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They should not allow ANY type of refreshment back to the seats. At Young Frankenstein last night, I was disgusted on the state the theatre was left in as I was exiting. Bottles, plastic cups, candy wrappers were strewn across the floor worse than a movie theatre. I was disgusted at the disregard people were showing.

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The Zipper on 37th allows drinks from their bar to be brought in.

They allow snacks and bottled water out here at the Orpheum. Most people are polite but I agree, except for cough drops, Life Savers, nothing too noisy, I wish people would not eat at their seats in the Theater during a show. People still leave Playbills and napkins behind. They think it's a drive-in. I'm especially concerned because of what Movie Theaters look like after a show. Pretty disgusting.

They have enough trouble trying to keep things nice and ticket prices down as it is. I'm happy about the water, in a bottle. If drinks come with lids that's better. My coffee fell over at the airport and I had a mess to clean-up with a lid on top of it. So even lids don't prevent spills.

At Club Fugazi though, we had ledges for our drinks and that wasn't too bad? We also had waiters which was amusing. I was looking for peanuts and hot dogs but alas, only booze. I believe it was served in small bottles so that also probably reduces spills, perhaps? They also have tables on the floor level so that doesn't bother me if people drink. Food is just too dangerous.

I don't know how my Mother would have gotten through a Church Service though without Life Savers with us as children? So, if they can sell stuff that isn't too messy or noisy, I guess I don't really mind. I was amused at the bucket of chicken and cheap wine. I guess on an off night, outdoors maybe? I don't see how you can eat that though and not make a mess. Please tell me you brought a dust buster and wet naps, right? Either that or you should tip the ushers or janitors who have to clean-up your mess.

Seating is too close in a Theater so that makes it even more uncomfortable. At Wicked in the Pantages, the ushers actually went around announcing to put stuff away. People still were PMing on their phones, which is distracting but at least they weren't ringing. The sad thing is they had to do this but it is the lesser of two evils.

I think a lot of people overreact to food in the theatre - now don't get me wrong, some people go too far and bring in entire McDonald's meals and buckets of chicken and stuff, which is inappropriate in my opinion. I think that a bottled drink and a bar of chocolate is a perfectly reasonable snack for the theatre - I mean really! three hours in a hot crowded room - you'd be gasping!

Some food should be allowed as well as drinks, I understand that they're messy, but it shouldn't be about having rules to prevent mess, it should be about the audience members having the courtesy to not make a mess in the first place. What's the harm in a light snack and a drink while you see a show?

Now cell phones and kid's with handheld video games is a different story...

Well, the pivotal moments of musicals are more likely to be noisy song-and-dance numbers, while the pivotal moments of plays are more likely to be quieter and dialogue-based. While I could forgive someone for munching crisps or clinking ice through, say, 'Defying Gravity', I'd be incredibly teed off if they tried the same malarkey during the climax of act one of 'Amadeus'.

Seriously though; let's say you eat your breakfast at 8am, your lunch at 1pm, and your dinner at 7pm. You can wait five or six hours between meals, but as soon as you enter a theatre you MUST MUST MUST start snacking? I don't buy that at all. A bottle of water is fine for any situation you may find yourself in, but anything beyond that is just taking the mick.

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Updated On: 8/30/08 at 08:39 AM

nmi

Updated On: 8/6/11 at 03:51 PM

The only time I've taken a drink into a show was at The Merchant of Venice last year. Not sure if it was 'allowed' but I was developing a cold & thought it better to swig the odd mouthful of water than cough and disturb people. I was in the front row though and felt guilty doing it when the actors could see me, lol