Dinner theater
Encyclopedia
Dinner theater is a form of entertainment
that combines a restaurant
meal
with a staged play or musical
. Sometimes the play is incidental entertainment, secondary to the meal, in the style of a sophisticated night club, or the play may be a major production with dinner less important, or in some cases, optional. Dinner theatre requires the management of three distinct entities: a live theatre, a restaurant, and usually, a bar.
in the Middle Ages
might be considered the earliest Dinner Theater. The earliest dinner theatres served dinner in one room, and staged the play in another. Those are now known as theatre restaurants, a dinner theatre subclassification.
in Richmond, Virginia
, founded in 1953 by David & Nancy Kilgore at the historic Hanover Tavern
was the first formal dinner theater in the United States.
After the theatre was established, an adjoining room in the theatre was changed to accommodate a buffet dinner for groups attending the performance, eventually becoming available to all patrons. However, "Barksdale prefers to be known as a theatre that happens to have a restaurant, and dinner is optional," their brochure states. They are a professional, non-profit theatre.
, located half an hour from Manhattan, was the location of the second dinner theatre, the Meadowbrook Theatre Restaurant, which opened in 1960. It lasted only 13 years, in part due to 700+ seats of table service, nearby competition from Broadway
, and Actors' Equity Association
requirements that the facility follow the rules that applied to Broadway Theatres, including pay scales and other restrictions.
opened the Martinique Restaurant in Evergreen Park
and began producing plays in 1949 in a tent adjacent to the restaurant to attract customers. The enterprise was successful, prompting him to build his first theatre, Drury Lane Evergreen Park in 1958. It was the first of six dinner theatres he started and a local entertainment landmark for 45 years before closing in 2003.
Drury Lane North began operations in 1976, but was soon sold to the Marriott Lincolnshire Resort and became the Marriott Theatre
.
Drury Lane Oak Brook Terrace opened in 1984, and benefited from what DeSantis had learned over the years. The facility uses local performers to keep costs down; the theatre is surrounded by bars, restaurants and banquet rooms; shows are limited to musicals; and there is no charge for parking.
. Bill Pullinsi was a theatre student in 1959 who conceived and implemented the entertainment concept at the Presidential Arms Hotel during summer breaks at Catholic University
. The venture was successful, but Pullinsi was unable to convert to a year-round operation, due to the hotel's convention business. Pullinsi returned to his Chicago home and opened the Candlelight Dinner Playhouse, first in a building owned by his grandfather, then in a new facility with seating for 550, constructed with the help of his family. The Candlelight introduced several innovations, including the hydraulic stage, lighting equipment located in the mezzanine, and stage wagons on wheels.
who created the Barn Dinner Theatre franchise
. Beginning in 1961, the chain included 27 theaters in New York
, Virginia, North Carolina
, Tennessee
, Texas, Louisiana
, and Georgia
. Each franchise featured his architectural barn designs, farm-themed decorations that included a plow and other tools, and Wolfe's elevator, which he patented as the "Magic Stage". At the end of an act or scene, the stage would disappear into the ceiling, then reappear ready for the next scene. The whole process took less than a minute. During the franchise phase of The Barn, all the productions were staged at a studio in New York City
, then sent out to the individual theaters. At the break-up of the franchise, the production facilities were moved to their present location in Nashville. Back in its early days, the performance's cast not only acted on stage, they were the waiters and waitresses. Actors were selected and cast in New York and resided in living quarters above the theatre for the duration of the productions. Robert De Niro
reportedly acted at The Barn in Greensboro until he was fired in the middle of a show. Mickey Rooney
and many other well-known performers have also acted in roles at The Barn. The Barn in Greensboro, North Carolina
, was founded in 1964 and is the oldest continuously running dinner theater in America and the last of the original Barn Dinner Theatres, though a Barn franchise opened in Nashville in 1967 (now called Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre) is also still in operation.
A memorial at Roselawn Cemetery in Marion, Virginia cites "Father of Dinner Theater" among Wolfe's accomplishments.
in Jacksonville, Florida
was opened in 1967 by Leon Simon. It was purchased in 1985 by Tod Booth, who left Chicago's Drury Lane Theatres. The Alhambra is the second oldest dinner theatre still open in the United States and the oldest in Florida. The facility uses a thrust stage
to provide all 400 seats with an unobstructed view.
near Lake Minnetonka
subsequently constructed and operated Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. Interestingly, the Old Log Theater has an attached dining room and revenue from food sales is necessary for financial success, but they are not a dinner theatre. The Chanhassen claims to be the largest professional dinner theatre in the U.S.; the main theater seats 577, the Fireside Theater contains 230 seats for non-dining patrons, and the Playhouse Theater has tables for 126.
in 1988 to what had been a nightclub with the style and glitz of Las Vegas
. The theatre was a victim of the late 2000s economic crisis that tightened credit after years of bad investments by major financial institutions.
Particularly popular were the dinner theaters who used former movie names to star in the productions. Van Johnson
, Lana Turner
, Dorothy Lamour
, Tab Hunter
, Martha Raye
, Roddy McDowall
, Jane Russell
, and Ann Miller
are just of few of the stars of the golden era of Hollywood who found success in the field. Also popular were stars and character actors from well remembered television series from earlier years such as Ann B. Davis
, JoAnne Worley, Nancy Kulp
, and Frank Sutton
.
Burt Reynolds
owned a dinner theater in Jupiter, Florida
from 1979 to 1997, as did actor Earl Holliman
, who owned the Fiesta Dinner Playhouse in San Antonio, Texas
.
The Derby Dinner Playhouse
in Clarksville, Indiana
opened in 1974 and was still open in 2009, operating continuously for 35 years. They utilized a "magic stage" similar to those used by the Barn Dinner Theatre. An orchestra, if utilized, plays in the "attic", out of sight.
owner Tod Booth commented, "They could make more in a day doing a commercial than they could make during the entire run of dinner theater show, and they didn't have to travel. Plus, a lot of the stars just started dying off. It was a fine gig for a while."
Booth went on to say that in 1999, you could count the number of surviving professional dinner theatres on two hands. There was a stigma attached to dinner theatre and audiences got tired of fluff shows such as The Last of the Red Hot Lovers
and Arsenic and Old Lace
. According to Booth, "A lot of that was crap".
In response to criticism and the change in available talent, many theatres started using up and coming but relatively unknown actors and began to offer new Broadway shows. They promoted the shows, rather than the stars.
was founded in 1976, but closed in 1983. A new, $7 million version opened on May 18, 2004.
The Desert Star Theater
in Murray, Utah
opened a dinner theatre in 2004, and the Gathering Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville opened in early 2009. Still, it's a tough business that requires at least half a million residents within 50 miles to provide the customers needed to turn a profit. At the end of 2006, the National Dinner Theatre Association only 32 members, up from 9 in 1999.
(AEA), the union that represents professional stage actors and stage managers. Professional shows generally have a higher overhead because Actor’s Equity contracts typically require the theatre to pay for lodging, a minimum salary, insurance and pension payments as well as other work rules regarding auditions and hiring.
The reduction in professional dinner theaters from 147 in 1976 to 9 in 1999 was not because the facilities went out of business; those theatres changed to non-union to reduce expenses. However, professional actors have distinct advantages over amateurs. Pros can generally be counted on to know their lines, learn their moves quickly and incorporate changes from the director immediately. There is no learning curve.
Also, professional actors don't rely on another job that can conflict with rehearsals and weekday matinees. It is usually easier to locate and cast older character actors from the Actors Equity pool of talent.
While many theatres operate as not-for-profit organizations in order to take advantage of grants and funding from government agencies or private foundations, most dinner theatres are commercial businesses due to the management and capital requirements of both theatre and restaurant operations. Commercial dinner theatres will have shows six or seven nights a week, as well as matinees. They will also have short breaks between shows, usually less than a week.
A typical non-profit is the Starlight Dinner Theatre in Lansing, Michigan
, where the dinner is catered, the shows are staged at a school cafetorium and the season includes only four productions with four performances per production (on Friday and Saturday nights). Most non-profits also use amateur actors or the leading role may be a professional with the rest of the cast composed of amateurs.
, Destin, Florida
, Branson, Missouri
, Anaheim, and Los Angeles
have seen the emergence of specialty dinner theatres, where the show stays the same for an extended run because the vast majority of their customers are tourists, not local residents. The most popular vacation destination in the United States, Orlando, Florida
, had more than a dozen competing for a share of the $17.3 Billion that tourists spent in 1999. Through the 1990s, sixteen Dinner Theaters opened and closed there.
(MM) is interactive dinner theatre that has become a popular segment of its own. The production may be public, where anyone can attend for the price of admission, or private, where a company, social group or organization sponsors the event for its members. Murder Mystery Players, Inc., established in 1987, has franchises in 36 major cities that offer both public and private shows, many staged at Dave and Busters. Their professionals utilize period costumes and props based on the production's theme and claim over 35,000 performances nationwide. Many of these type MM's are organized by acting troupes that evolve to run a business. One good example of non-theater people producing a dinner show is Hulett and Wilson Productions Inc. The company that produces The Gourmet Detective in Southern California. This company opened in 1990 and performs in both Riverside and Orange Counties. Most interesting is that it is run by two producers with non-theater backgrounds, which for the murder mystery dinner show business creates an opportunity for writers, directors, musicians and actors of a more egalitarian nature; meaning, the best performers and creative people have their chance based on talent, rather than simply getting on stage because they're part of the troupe that founded the group in the first place.
Extending that concept, Killer Entertainment, LLC also creating and performing dinner theater and atmosphere events in Southern California, invites a high level of professionalism by freeing its performers from wait service duties, opening the genre to a variety of actors and musicians in SAG
, AFTRA, AGVA, and Equity
.
Poison Ivy Mysteries, LLC located in Utah provides high quality Murder Mystery for the Salt Lake Valley and surrounding areas. They have original music, scripts and provide prizes to the winners.
Without A Cue Productions, LLC is central to the Philadelphia area, with satellite companies in Baltimore, MD and Syracuse, NY. Without A Cue is unique in its two regular, year round restaurant locations, paired with a travelling company that serves corporate and fundraising events.
While utilizing the “dinner and a show” concept, MM generally targets a smaller audience than typical dinner theatre, with public performances featuring professional actors while private showings may offer "roles" to the guests, who participate in the production as either characters or detectives. Some companies, such as Murder Ink Productions, offer the production at the customer's choice of location, such as a private residence, the banquet room at a restaurant, a hotel or a corporate facility. Others, such as Act4Murder based in Northwest Florida, not only perform in both public and private (by request) venues, but customize each performance with unique table decorations, written handouts and clues, table names and other touches that add to the performances, without benefit of a set. In other words, each professional murder mystery company is different, but all fall within the realm of dinner theater.
was written by Darlyne Franklin in 1992 and the franchise rights were sold in 2001. Other examples include Tony n' Tina's Wedding
, Frankie & Gina's Comedy Wedding and a gay version, Joni and Gina's Wedding.
Atmosphere Events present Murder Mystery
with or without a meal. Characters are released from the strictures of scripted material, and pass clues among the audience solely by improvisation while interacting with audience members, or utilizing only a very brief scene (5 minutes or less) at the beginning and/or end of the event, to provide collective information to the audience. This form of entertainment is particularly favored by groups who have members attending an event from disparate offices, giving them a shared experience to refer to, as an ice-breaker, and giving the performers the leeway to discern whether individual audience members are enjoying the interaction or not, to control the level of interaction with that individual.
Riverboat Dinner Cruises combine Showboat
with a meal. Obviously, they are limited to locations on a navigable body of water, such as the Showboat Branson Belle
or the Goldenrod Showboat
. There are numerous Murder Mystery Dinner Cruises.
s aka Madrigal Feasts are seasonal, typically held during the Christmas season. They are often staged by educational or religious entities for fundraising and include food, music & singing, poetry & humor, costumes and a play from the Middle Ages
, ranging from medieval to the renaissance
periods.
Entertainment
Entertainment consists of any activity which provides a diversion or permits people to amuse themselves in their leisure time. Entertainment is generally passive, such as watching opera or a movie. Active forms of amusement, such as sports, are more often considered to be recreation...
that combines a restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
meal
Meal
A meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared food.Meals occur primarily at homes, restaurants, and cafeterias, but may occur anywhere. Regular meals occur on a daily basis, typically several times a day...
with a staged play or musical
Play (theatre)
A play is a form of literature written by a playwright, usually consisting of scripted dialogue between characters, intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. There are rare dramatists, notably George Bernard Shaw, who have had little preference whether their plays were performed...
. Sometimes the play is incidental entertainment, secondary to the meal, in the style of a sophisticated night club, or the play may be a major production with dinner less important, or in some cases, optional. Dinner theatre requires the management of three distinct entities: a live theatre, a restaurant, and usually, a bar.
History
The Madrigal dinnerMadrigal dinner
A Madrigal Dinner or Madrigal Feast is an American form of dinner theater often held by schools and church groups during the Christmas season. It is set in the Middle Ages and is generally comedic in nature. The meal is divided into courses, each of which is heralded with a traditional song...
in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
might be considered the earliest Dinner Theater. The earliest dinner theatres served dinner in one room, and staged the play in another. Those are now known as theatre restaurants, a dinner theatre subclassification.
Barksdale Theatre
Barksdale TheatreBarksdale Theatre
Barksdale Theatre in Richmond, Virginia, United States is Central Virginia’s first nonprofit professional performing arts organization, founded in 1953 at the historic Hanover Tavern by Tom Carlin, Stewart Falconer, David 'Pete' Kilgore, Priscilla Kilgore, Muriel McAuley and Pat Sharp...
in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, founded in 1953 by David & Nancy Kilgore at the historic Hanover Tavern
Hanover Tavern
The Hanover Tavern in Hanover Courthouse, Virginia and Hanover County, Virginia, is one of the oldest taverns in the United States. The first tavern was licensed at the site beginning in 1733....
was the first formal dinner theater in the United States.
After the theatre was established, an adjoining room in the theatre was changed to accommodate a buffet dinner for groups attending the performance, eventually becoming available to all patrons. However, "Barksdale prefers to be known as a theatre that happens to have a restaurant, and dinner is optional," their brochure states. They are a professional, non-profit theatre.
Meadowbrook
Cedar Grove, New JerseyCedar Grove, New Jersey
-Climate:Cedar Grove has a humid subtropical climate, with warm/hot humid summers and cool/cold winters. The climate is slightly colder overall during the summer than in New York City because there is no urban heat island effect....
, located half an hour from Manhattan, was the location of the second dinner theatre, the Meadowbrook Theatre Restaurant, which opened in 1960. It lasted only 13 years, in part due to 700+ seats of table service, nearby competition from Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
, and Actors' Equity Association
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
requirements that the facility follow the rules that applied to Broadway Theatres, including pay scales and other restrictions.
Drury Lane Theatres
Tony DeSantisTony DeSantis
Anthony DeSantis, KStJ was an American entrepreneur and theater owner in Chicago, Illinois and its suburbs. He is most well known for the foundation of the area's Drury Lane theaters...
opened the Martinique Restaurant in Evergreen Park
Evergreen Park, Illinois
Evergreen Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 25,044 at the 2009 census.-Geography:Evergreen Park is located at . The suburb is surrounded by the city of Chicago on three of its sides, while Oak Lawn and Hometown border it on the west...
and began producing plays in 1949 in a tent adjacent to the restaurant to attract customers. The enterprise was successful, prompting him to build his first theatre, Drury Lane Evergreen Park in 1958. It was the first of six dinner theatres he started and a local entertainment landmark for 45 years before closing in 2003.
Drury Lane North began operations in 1976, but was soon sold to the Marriott Lincolnshire Resort and became the Marriott Theatre
Marriott Theatre
The Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, Illinois, USA is a respected Chicago area regional theatre. Attached to the Marriott Lincolnshire Resort, the theatre produces an average of five musicals each year, presented in the round, as well as productions aimed at younger audiences...
.
Drury Lane Oak Brook Terrace opened in 1984, and benefited from what DeSantis had learned over the years. The facility uses local performers to keep costs down; the theatre is surrounded by bars, restaurants and banquet rooms; shows are limited to musicals; and there is no charge for parking.
Candlelight
The first facility where dinner and the show were together in one room was the Candlelight Theatre Restaurant in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. Bill Pullinsi was a theatre student in 1959 who conceived and implemented the entertainment concept at the Presidential Arms Hotel during summer breaks at Catholic University
The Catholic University of America
The Catholic University of America is a private university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops...
. The venture was successful, but Pullinsi was unable to convert to a year-round operation, due to the hotel's convention business. Pullinsi returned to his Chicago home and opened the Candlelight Dinner Playhouse, first in a building owned by his grandfather, then in a new facility with seating for 550, constructed with the help of his family. The Candlelight introduced several innovations, including the hydraulic stage, lighting equipment located in the mezzanine, and stage wagons on wheels.
Barn Dinner Theatre, Roanoke, Virginia
Howard Douglass Wolfe was an entrepreneur from VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
who created the Barn Dinner Theatre franchise
Franchising
Franchising is the practice of using another firm's successful business model. The word 'franchise' is of anglo-French derivation - from franc- meaning free, and is used both as a noun and as a verb....
. Beginning in 1961, the chain included 27 theaters in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Virginia, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, Texas, Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
, and Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. Each franchise featured his architectural barn designs, farm-themed decorations that included a plow and other tools, and Wolfe's elevator, which he patented as the "Magic Stage". At the end of an act or scene, the stage would disappear into the ceiling, then reappear ready for the next scene. The whole process took less than a minute. During the franchise phase of The Barn, all the productions were staged at a studio in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, then sent out to the individual theaters. At the break-up of the franchise, the production facilities were moved to their present location in Nashville. Back in its early days, the performance's cast not only acted on stage, they were the waiters and waitresses. Actors were selected and cast in New York and resided in living quarters above the theatre for the duration of the productions. Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro, Jr. is an American actor, director and producer. His first major film roles were in Bang the Drum Slowly and Mean Streets, both in 1973...
reportedly acted at The Barn in Greensboro until he was fired in the middle of a show. Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney
Mickey Rooney is an American film actor and entertainer whose film, television, and stage appearances span nearly his entire lifetime. He has won multiple awards, including an Honorary Academy Award, a Golden Globe and an Emmy Award...
and many other well-known performers have also acted in roles at The Barn. The Barn in Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
, was founded in 1964 and is the oldest continuously running dinner theater in America and the last of the original Barn Dinner Theatres, though a Barn franchise opened in Nashville in 1967 (now called Chaffin's Barn Dinner Theatre) is also still in operation.
A memorial at Roselawn Cemetery in Marion, Virginia cites "Father of Dinner Theater" among Wolfe's accomplishments.
Alhambra
The Alhambra Dinner TheatreAlhambra Dinner Theatre
The Alhambra Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville, Florida is the oldest continually operating Dinner theater in the United States, and the only professional resident theatre in the area south of Atlanta, east of New Orleans and north of Orlando.-History:...
in Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
was opened in 1967 by Leon Simon. It was purchased in 1985 by Tod Booth, who left Chicago's Drury Lane Theatres. The Alhambra is the second oldest dinner theatre still open in the United States and the oldest in Florida. The facility uses a thrust stage
Thrust stage
In theatre, a thrust stage is one that extends into the audience on three sides and is connected to the backstage area by its up stage end. A thrust has the benefit of greater intimacy between performers and the audience than a proscenium, while retaining the utility of a backstage area...
to provide all 400 seats with an unobstructed view.
Chanhassen
Chanhassen Dinner Theatres in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota were founded in 1968. Herb Bloomberg, who designed and built the expanded Old Log TheaterOld Log Theater
The Old Log Theater is the oldest professional theater in the state of Minnesota. It is sometimes cited as the oldest continuously operating professional theater in the United States, although other much older theaters such as the 200-year-old Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia would seem to...
near Lake Minnetonka
Lake Minnetonka
Lake Minnetonka is a lake in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Throughout its recorded history, the lake has been a resort destination. It is located west-southwest of Minneapolis-St. Paul. The lake is an irregular shape with numerous bays and islands which make up about of shoreline...
subsequently constructed and operated Chanhassen Dinner Theatre. Interestingly, the Old Log Theater has an attached dining room and revenue from food sales is necessary for financial success, but they are not a dinner theatre. The Chanhassen claims to be the largest professional dinner theatre in the U.S.; the main theater seats 577, the Fireside Theater contains 230 seats for non-dining patrons, and the Playhouse Theater has tables for 126.
Carousel Dinner Theatre
The Carousel Dinner Theatre, with 800 seats, was the largest dinner theatre in the United States until it closed on January 4, 2009. It was first opened in 1973, then moved to downtown Akron, OhioAkron, Ohio
Akron , is the fifth largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Summit County. It is located in the Great Lakes region approximately south of Lake Erie along the Little Cuyahoga River. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 199,110. The Akron Metropolitan...
in 1988 to what had been a nightclub with the style and glitz of Las Vegas
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is the heart of the Las Vegas-Paradise, NV MSA also known as the Las Vegas–Paradise–Henderson MSA which includes all of Clark County, Nevada, and is a metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada. The Valley is defined by the Las Vegas Valley landform, a ...
. The theatre was a victim of the late 2000s economic crisis that tightened credit after years of bad investments by major financial institutions.
Royal Dumpe Dinner Theatre
The Royal Dumpe Dinner Theater, with 235 seats, opened in 1973. It currently resides at 809 North Second Street,(on Historic Laclede's Landing) in St. Louis Mo. It boasts St. Louis's largest dinner theater cast, and has ran with the same script since it opened. It has several variations to it's show, including a Christmas style show, and a very kid friendly environment. Billed as the poor man's Medieval Times, it has a four course meal, and a two hour show. It's current owner, Jim Dannek, plays the role of Itchy Rumpe (Innkeeper) who keeps watch over the ruckus house, until his Majesty, King Henry VIII, arrives. Along the way you meet a familiar cast of characters, including his jester, Master Patch Piece, Rosie Rumpe, and a slew of other cast members with equally bawdy names. Of it's type, no other "medieval style" dinner theatre has been entertaining guests as long as The Royal Dumpe has.Popularity
The 1970s were the heyday of dinner theaters, which provided popular regional entertainment for local audiences. Alhambra Dinner Theatre owner Tod Booth noted that in 1976, there were 147 professional dinner theaters in operation.Particularly popular were the dinner theaters who used former movie names to star in the productions. Van Johnson
Van Johnson
Van Johnson was an American film and television actor and dancer who was a major star at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer studios during and after World War II....
, Lana Turner
Lana Turner
Lana Turner was an American actress.Discovered and signed to a film contract by MGM at the age of sixteen, Turner first attracted attention in They Won't Forget . She played featured roles, often as the ingenue, in such films as Love Finds Andy Hardy...
, Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour
Dorothy Lamour was an American film actress. She is best remembered for appearing in the Road to... movies, a series of successful comedies starring Bing Crosby and Bob Hope .-Early life:Lamour was born Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton in New Orleans, Louisiana, the daughter of Carmen Louise Dorothy...
, Tab Hunter
Tab Hunter
Tab Hunter is an American actor, singer, former teen idol and author who has starred in over forty major films.-Background:...
, Martha Raye
Martha Raye
Martha Raye was an American comic actress and standards singer who performed in movies, and later on television....
, Roddy McDowall
Roddy McDowall
Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude "Roddy" McDowall was an English actor and photographer. His film roles included Cornelius and Caesar in the Planet of the Apes film series...
, Jane Russell
Jane Russell
Jane Russell was an American film actress and was one of Hollywood's leading sex symbols in the 1940s and 1950s....
, and Ann Miller
Ann Miller
Johnnie Lucille Collier, better known as Ann Miller was an American singer, dancer and actress.-Early life:...
are just of few of the stars of the golden era of Hollywood who found success in the field. Also popular were stars and character actors from well remembered television series from earlier years such as Ann B. Davis
Ann B. Davis
Ann Bradford Davis is an American television actress.Davis achieved prominence for her role in The Bob Cummings Show for which she twice won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series...
, JoAnne Worley, Nancy Kulp
Nancy Kulp
Nancy Jane Kulp was an American character actress best known as Miss Jane Hathaway on the popular television series The Beverly Hillbillies.-Early life:...
, and Frank Sutton
Frank Sutton
Frank Spencer Sutton was an American actor best remembered for his role of Gunnery Sergeant Vince Carter on the CBS television series Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.-Early life:...
.
Burt Reynolds
Burt Reynolds
Burton Leon "Burt" Reynolds, Jr. is an American actor. Some of his memorable roles include Bo 'Bandit' Darville in Smokey and the Bandit, Lewis Medlock in Deliverance, Bobby "Gator" McCluskey in White Lightning and sequel Gator, Paul Crewe and Coach Nate Scarborough in The Longest Yard and its...
owned a dinner theater in Jupiter, Florida
Jupiter, Florida
Jupiter is a town located in Palm Beach County, Florida. As of the 2000 census, the town had a total population of 39,328. The estimate population for 2009 is 50,606. As of 2006, the population had grown to 50,028, according to the University of Florida, Bureau of Economic and Business Research....
from 1979 to 1997, as did actor Earl Holliman
Earl Holliman
-Early life:Earl Holliman was born at Delhi in Richland Parish of northeastern Louisiana. Holliman’s biological father died before he was born, and his biological mother, living in poverty with several other children, gave him up for adoption at birth...
, who owned the Fiesta Dinner Playhouse in San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
.
The Derby Dinner Playhouse
Derby Dinner Playhouse
Derby Dinner Playhouse is a dinner theatre located in Clarksville, Indiana that opened in 1974. The Derby is the only dinner theatre in the Louisville, Kentucky area and in southern Indiana.-History:...
in Clarksville, Indiana
Clarksville, Indiana
Clarksville is a town in Clark County, Indiana, United States, along the Ohio River as a part of the Louisville Metropolitan area. The population was 21,724 at the 2010 census. The town, once a home site to George Rogers Clark, was founded in 1783 and is the oldest American town in the Northwest...
opened in 1974 and was still open in 2009, operating continuously for 35 years. They utilized a "magic stage" similar to those used by the Barn Dinner Theatre. An orchestra, if utilized, plays in the "attic", out of sight.
Shrinkage
The boom seemed to end in the mid-1980s, with many of them closing and most no longer able to afford or attract celebrities, even faded ones, to star in their productions. Aging stars started receiving offers for television and commercial work and they stopped doing dinner theatre. Alhambra Dinner TheatreAlhambra Dinner Theatre
The Alhambra Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville, Florida is the oldest continually operating Dinner theater in the United States, and the only professional resident theatre in the area south of Atlanta, east of New Orleans and north of Orlando.-History:...
owner Tod Booth commented, "They could make more in a day doing a commercial than they could make during the entire run of dinner theater show, and they didn't have to travel. Plus, a lot of the stars just started dying off. It was a fine gig for a while."
Booth went on to say that in 1999, you could count the number of surviving professional dinner theatres on two hands. There was a stigma attached to dinner theatre and audiences got tired of fluff shows such as The Last of the Red Hot Lovers
The Last of the Red Hot Lovers
This article is about the Broadway production. For the film adaptation see Last of the Red Hot Lovers .Last of the Red Hot Lovers is a play by Neil Simon....
and Arsenic and Old Lace
Arsenic and Old Lace (play)
Arsenic and Old Lace is a play by American playwright Joseph Kesselring, written in 1939. It has become best known through the film adaptation starring Cary Grant and directed by Frank Capra. The play was directed by Bretaigne Windust, and opened on January 10, 1941. On September 25, 1943, the...
. According to Booth, "A lot of that was crap".
In response to criticism and the change in available talent, many theatres started using up and coming but relatively unknown actors and began to offer new Broadway shows. They promoted the shows, rather than the stars.
Resurgence
After 2000, there seemed to be a resurgence, with a number of new dinner theatres opening. Chicago's original Drury Lane Water Tower PlaceDrury Lane Water Tower Place
Broadway Playhouse at Water Tower Place is operated by Broadway In Chicago, a Nederlander Presentation. Located at Water Tower Place in Chicago, Illinois, it was formerly known as Drury Lane Theatre Water Tower Place.-History:...
was founded in 1976, but closed in 1983. A new, $7 million version opened on May 18, 2004.
The Desert Star Theater
Desert Star Theater
Desert Star Theater is a dinner theater establishment in Murray, Utah. It started out as a small theater called the Gem, which showed silent movies with a piano for music. It was later closed down and demolished, but rebuilt and expanded into the Iris Theater by owner Tony Duvall...
in Murray, Utah
Murray, Utah
Murray is a city situated on the Wasatch Front in the core of Salt Lake Valley in the U.S. state of Utah. Named for territorial governor Eli Murray, it is the state's fourteenth largest city. According to the 2010 census, Murray has approximately 46,746 residents.Murray is close to Salt Lake City,...
opened a dinner theatre in 2004, and the Gathering Dinner Theatre in Jacksonville opened in early 2009. Still, it's a tough business that requires at least half a million residents within 50 miles to provide the customers needed to turn a profit. At the end of 2006, the National Dinner Theatre Association only 32 members, up from 9 in 1999.
Professional vs. amateur
There is a basic distinction between professional and non-union theatres. The former are known as Equity theatres, where performers are members of the Actors' Equity AssociationActors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
(AEA), the union that represents professional stage actors and stage managers. Professional shows generally have a higher overhead because Actor’s Equity contracts typically require the theatre to pay for lodging, a minimum salary, insurance and pension payments as well as other work rules regarding auditions and hiring.
The reduction in professional dinner theaters from 147 in 1976 to 9 in 1999 was not because the facilities went out of business; those theatres changed to non-union to reduce expenses. However, professional actors have distinct advantages over amateurs. Pros can generally be counted on to know their lines, learn their moves quickly and incorporate changes from the director immediately. There is no learning curve.
Also, professional actors don't rely on another job that can conflict with rehearsals and weekday matinees. It is usually easier to locate and cast older character actors from the Actors Equity pool of talent.
Commercial vs. non-profit
Tony DeSantis had a lifetime of experience with restaurants and dinner theater. He claimed that you could make money with a restaurant, but it was the alcohol sales that were profitable; if you broke even when operating a theatre, you were successful.While many theatres operate as not-for-profit organizations in order to take advantage of grants and funding from government agencies or private foundations, most dinner theatres are commercial businesses due to the management and capital requirements of both theatre and restaurant operations. Commercial dinner theatres will have shows six or seven nights a week, as well as matinees. They will also have short breaks between shows, usually less than a week.
A typical non-profit is the Starlight Dinner Theatre in Lansing, Michigan
Lansing, Michigan
Lansing is the capital of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located mostly in Ingham County, although small portions of the city extend into Eaton County. The 2010 Census places the city's population at 114,297, making it the fifth largest city in Michigan...
, where the dinner is catered, the shows are staged at a school cafetorium and the season includes only four productions with four performances per production (on Friday and Saturday nights). Most non-profits also use amateur actors or the leading role may be a professional with the rest of the cast composed of amateurs.
Tourist
Vacation destinations such as Las Vegas, NevadaLas Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
, Destin, Florida
Destin, Florida
Destin is a city located in Okaloosa County, Florida. It is a principal city of the Fort Walton Beach-Crestview-Destin, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.Located on Florida's Emerald Coast, Destin is known for its white beaches and emerald green waters...
, Branson, Missouri
Branson, Missouri
Branson is a city in Taney County in the U.S. state of Missouri. It was named after Reuben Branson, postmaster and operator of a general store in the area in the 1880s....
, Anaheim, and Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
have seen the emergence of specialty dinner theatres, where the show stays the same for an extended run because the vast majority of their customers are tourists, not local residents. The most popular vacation destination in the United States, Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, had more than a dozen competing for a share of the $17.3 Billion that tourists spent in 1999. Through the 1990s, sixteen Dinner Theaters opened and closed there.
Whodunnit
Murder MysteryMurder mystery game
Murder mystery games are generally party games wherein one of the partygoers is secretly, and unknowingly, playing a murderer, and the other attendees must determine who among them is the criminal...
(MM) is interactive dinner theatre that has become a popular segment of its own. The production may be public, where anyone can attend for the price of admission, or private, where a company, social group or organization sponsors the event for its members. Murder Mystery Players, Inc., established in 1987, has franchises in 36 major cities that offer both public and private shows, many staged at Dave and Busters. Their professionals utilize period costumes and props based on the production's theme and claim over 35,000 performances nationwide. Many of these type MM's are organized by acting troupes that evolve to run a business. One good example of non-theater people producing a dinner show is Hulett and Wilson Productions Inc. The company that produces The Gourmet Detective in Southern California. This company opened in 1990 and performs in both Riverside and Orange Counties. Most interesting is that it is run by two producers with non-theater backgrounds, which for the murder mystery dinner show business creates an opportunity for writers, directors, musicians and actors of a more egalitarian nature; meaning, the best performers and creative people have their chance based on talent, rather than simply getting on stage because they're part of the troupe that founded the group in the first place.
Extending that concept, Killer Entertainment, LLC also creating and performing dinner theater and atmosphere events in Southern California, invites a high level of professionalism by freeing its performers from wait service duties, opening the genre to a variety of actors and musicians in SAG
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
, AFTRA, AGVA, and Equity
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
.
Poison Ivy Mysteries, LLC located in Utah provides high quality Murder Mystery for the Salt Lake Valley and surrounding areas. They have original music, scripts and provide prizes to the winners.
Without A Cue Productions, LLC is central to the Philadelphia area, with satellite companies in Baltimore, MD and Syracuse, NY. Without A Cue is unique in its two regular, year round restaurant locations, paired with a travelling company that serves corporate and fundraising events.
While utilizing the “dinner and a show” concept, MM generally targets a smaller audience than typical dinner theatre, with public performances featuring professional actors while private showings may offer "roles" to the guests, who participate in the production as either characters or detectives. Some companies, such as Murder Ink Productions, offer the production at the customer's choice of location, such as a private residence, the banquet room at a restaurant, a hotel or a corporate facility. Others, such as Act4Murder based in Northwest Florida, not only perform in both public and private (by request) venues, but customize each performance with unique table decorations, written handouts and clues, table names and other touches that add to the performances, without benefit of a set. In other words, each professional murder mystery company is different, but all fall within the realm of dinner theater.
Others
Wedding Comedy is similar to Murder Mystery because the staging requirements are minimal and the audience has interaction with the actors while they perform. Joey and Maria's Comedy Italian WeddingJoey and Maria's Comedy Italian Wedding
Joey and Maria's Comedy Italian Wedding is an interactive dinner theater presentation and the longest-running presentation of its kind in the United States...
was written by Darlyne Franklin in 1992 and the franchise rights were sold in 2001. Other examples include Tony n' Tina's Wedding
Tony n' Tina's Wedding
-Film adaptation:The play was "freely" adapted for film by writer-director Roger Paradiso— "filmed primarily from the point of view of a lisping videographer"—with Joey McIntyre and Mila Kunis playing the title characters...
, Frankie & Gina's Comedy Wedding and a gay version, Joni and Gina's Wedding.
Atmosphere Events present Murder Mystery
Murder mystery game
Murder mystery games are generally party games wherein one of the partygoers is secretly, and unknowingly, playing a murderer, and the other attendees must determine who among them is the criminal...
with or without a meal. Characters are released from the strictures of scripted material, and pass clues among the audience solely by improvisation while interacting with audience members, or utilizing only a very brief scene (5 minutes or less) at the beginning and/or end of the event, to provide collective information to the audience. This form of entertainment is particularly favored by groups who have members attending an event from disparate offices, giving them a shared experience to refer to, as an ice-breaker, and giving the performers the leeway to discern whether individual audience members are enjoying the interaction or not, to control the level of interaction with that individual.
Riverboat Dinner Cruises combine Showboat
Showboat
A showboat, or show boat, was a form of theater that traveled along the waterways of the United States, especially along the Mississippi and Ohio rivers . A showboat was basically a barge that resembled a long, flat-roofed house, and in order to move down the river, it was pushed by a small tugboat...
with a meal. Obviously, they are limited to locations on a navigable body of water, such as the Showboat Branson Belle
Showboat Branson Belle
Showboat Branson Belle is a riverboat—more specifically, a showboat—on Table Rock Lake near Branson, Missouri. The lake is landlocked by the Table Rock Dam on one side and the Beaver Lake Dam on the other side...
or the Goldenrod Showboat
Goldenrod (showboat)
On December 24, 1967, the Goldenrod Showboat is a designated U.S. National Historic Landmark. She was placed on the ‘Threatened Historical Landmarks’ list in 2001....
. There are numerous Murder Mystery Dinner Cruises.
Holiday
Madrigal dinnerMadrigal dinner
A Madrigal Dinner or Madrigal Feast is an American form of dinner theater often held by schools and church groups during the Christmas season. It is set in the Middle Ages and is generally comedic in nature. The meal is divided into courses, each of which is heralded with a traditional song...
s aka Madrigal Feasts are seasonal, typically held during the Christmas season. They are often staged by educational or religious entities for fundraising and include food, music & singing, poetry & humor, costumes and a play from the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, ranging from medieval to the renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
periods.