What to wear??? — Page 2

I like the idea of dressing down for the theatre. If you're dressing up, then it's like a special occasion, and if it's a special occasion, it's probably not that regular an occurrence. I'd rather spend my money on theatre tickets and see many shows in jeans than buy smart dressy clothes and only go to the theatre a few times a year.

Nice jeans with no rips, clean tops, and no foul smells emanating from my person, of course.

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I agree that one should wear whatever one is comfortable in, but the notion of deliberately dressing down I simply don't get. You make it sound as though the options are going as a slob or buying something new to show off.

I frankly like dressing up a bit (though that may simply mean jeans and a blazer). I like it to have a sense of occasion. I don't think it is like going to McDonalds.

It's like any social occasion: showing a bit of effort indicates, to yourself as well as to others, that it matters.

But perhaps that's just me . . .

Updated On: 6/19/08 at 10:56 AM

i dress up for things that are important to me, so i dress up for broadway

I've worn nice jeans and a sweater before, but lately, i've felt out of place in the summer if i wasn't wearing a causal dress to evening shows.

Many of the tourists choose to wear sundresses and dress up for theater, and personally, i'd rather feel over dressed than underdressed.

If you're a girl, i'd say a light sundress, or a skirt/shirt.

Guys, kakhi pants, or very nice jeans and a polo would work, or consider a buttondown shirt and a blaizer (spelling?)

no one is going to throw you out if you don't wear nice clothes, but i would like to think the performers appreciate you showing repect for their show, you're paying a lot of money to see it, whether you choose the $35 nosebleeds or the $300 premium seats, its significant money spent on one evening of entertainment

Weez, I think we're all saying the same thing with regard to the particulars: nice jeans, khakis, polos, a blazer if you want.

I take your point about not making theater going into an occasion for snobbery. But I don't think anyone is in actuality, and I certainly don't think anything anyone said on this board indicates that.

But I have to say that I object even more strongly to the erosion of the idea of a public event and of public space. I put it (i.e., the blurring of public and private) down largely to the advent of the cellphone, but it seems that far too many people think that being in a theater is the same thing as being in their living rooms watching television. They talk, they text, they take off their shoes and put their feet up.

And I think dressing down (though I accept that that's not exactly what you meant) contributes to that erosion.

Again, maybe that's just me.

End of pontification.

Updated On: 6/19/08 at 12:12 PM

Jules, some things never go out of fashion.

While I personally try to look nice (I generally go in a nice shirt and jeans), but as long as someone is clean and doesn't smell, I don't honestly care what someone wears.

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