A Thought on the Theatre

Time: Early 1920's
Place: Palace Theatre in New York City  

A large crowd was gathering outside the Palace Theatre to see the hit play, Sally starring Marilyn Miller. Going to the theatre was not an everyday event, tickets ran at $3.50 a seat. The cost prohibited some of the working class from being able to attend such an event. It was a real treat to those that were able to attend.  

Some of the lucky patrons had the opportunity to attend dinner at a local restaurant before seeing the show. Everyone in attendance would treat the $3.50 seat as a special night. The men would pull out their three piece suits and the women would wear their tailored suits or flapper dress showing the night was not just any other and was special which required the best clothing they owned. They all looked like a million bucks and were ready to have a night at the theatre.

Time: 2013
Place: Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City  

Sheila and I enjoy going to the theatre. We went to see Jersey Boys, a show which Sheila really enjoys and has seen two times before this showing. Going to the theatre is a treat, the tickets are slightly more expensive than the $3.50 of an a few years back. For that reason we like to make a date of going to a show. We feel the theatre is still a place where people should dress up. Sheila will wear a skirt and blouse and I will wear my suit (I do not own a three piece suit) or a shirt and tie. We don't wear our most expensive outfits, but still look pretty nice, especially Sheila. She is always beautiful.   

We usually go out to dinner prior to the play. When we go to a play at Capitol, Sheila enjoys going to the Olive Garden as it is just across the street from the theatre. I enjoy going to Olive Garden because you get a nice deal on parking by saying we are there to see the show. After dinner we take the short jaunt across the street to take our seats for the show.  

Times have changed since the theatre days of our grandparents. People don't dress up as much as would have been expected in earlier times. Perhaps it is the fact that the general public has more expendable income and feel the theatre is not as special as it once was. It is no longer a novelty and is common enough people to feel the theatre is not a special occasion. Why get dressed up if you are not going to a special occasion?   

This show we saw a very interesting gentleman. What was he wearing? He was wearing jeans, many people now wear jeans to the theater, a t-shirt, maybe it would have been more appropriate to wear at least a polo shirt, and on top of his head he was wearing a baseball cap.  

To me, and many others that still believe in etiquette, this is not something that should happen. Lisa Mirza Grotts, a proclaimed expert in proper etiquette, states that it is never appropriate to wear a hat indoors, even informal events. Why did this man then not take his cap off at the theater? I am not sure and I can't blame his age for not knowing etiquette. The man was probably in his early 60's so I would have expected he grew up in a time where actions, like wearing your cap to the theatre, was not acceptable. Maybe he grew up in a household with very strict parents that made him takes his hat off whenever he went in a building. If that were the case, I would expect that to carry into adulthood.  

Why do I care? Obviously, it is a free country and the theatres do not impose a dress code when coming to see a show. Maybe theatres should have a dress code. If a person were going to a business meeting they would dress up, probably a shirt and tie or, in some cases, a suit. I think theatre should be treated like a business meeting, after all the actors on stage do this for a living and performing is their business. Okay, maybe every theatre instance doesn't require you to dress up. For example, if you are going to a local theatre without professional actors you need not dress up or your kid's school play in the first grade. However, I still don't think you should ever wear a hat to the theatre. It doesn't matter if it is a school play, leaving your hat on, no matter how trendy you feel it is, does not follow proper etiquette and should not be done.  

1. Mirza Grotts, Lisa (February 22, 2012) Hat Etiquette, Huffington Post on the Web Retrieved July 10, 2013 www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-mirza-grotts/hat-etiquette_b_1292589.html