According to the National Theater in Washington DC,  “The day when everyone dressed formally to go to the theatre has passed.” Despite being a historic theater – one that every U.S. president has attended since 1835 – the National has relaxed its dress code to allow patrons a freer choice. The theater’s website states, “To feel well-groomed, comfortable and good about yourself for a special occasion is really the guiding rule.”

I was upset to read this.

I believe that dressing up to go to the theater is a form of civility that should be resurrected.

Why have a dress code?

It’s important to dress properly to avoid the embarrassment of feeling underdressed.

At my shows, our published dress code is as follows:

A gentleman approached me before the show last weekend and gruffly asked, “Why did you make me wear a suit? This is a magic show, not a dinner with the President.” The answer that I gave him was, “This is a traditional show, and both the performer and audience are playing a role in that tradition.  Besides, we’re at the Waldorf, and everyone gets dressed up here.”

He calmed down, and thankfully enjoyed the show.

My goal has always been to encourage the public to treat magic with the same form of respect as the ballet or opera. Opera-goers dress in tuxedos and gowns out of respect to the opera experience. The respect I speak of is targeted not only to the artists involved, but to the overarching premise of the art itself.

If not for the actors, then please, for the Theater (with capital T).

The Magic Castle in Hollywood, California enforces a strict dress code – even stricter than mine at the Waldorf. Just off the entrance, they have a closet full of blazers in various sizes, as well as neckties, for men who forgot to dress properly.

I understand that tourists visiting from out of town may be walking and shopping earlier in the day, and may not have packed anything but casual wear. However, there is something to be said about dressing for the occasion.

I have happy Chamber Magic memories of my guests attending in tuxedos, military uniforms, and even a full kimono.

While such formal wear is not required, it certainly lends an air of elegance to the event – for all involved.

In Who Rules America, a book I find endlessly fascinating, the author takes this much further, and argues that such displays of extravagance are one of the ways that rich people communicate to each other their common membership in an elite group.

G. William Domhoff writes:

The more extravagant social activities of the upper class – the debutante balls, the expensive parties, the jet-setting to spas and vacation spots all over the world, the involvement with exotic entertainers – are often viewed by pluralists and Marxists alike as superfluous trivialities best left to society page writers. However, there is reason to believe that these activities play a role both in solidifying the upper class and in maintaining the class structure. Within the class, these occasions provide an opportunity for members to show each other that they are similar to each other and superior to the average citizen.

While I would never (!) go so far as to say that a nice suit makes one person superior to another, it’s easy to agree that the common denominator of dressing nicely at the theater helps to bond together a group of otherwise strangers.