There’s nothing quite like sinking into a comfy movie theater seat and immersing yourself into a 2024 movie release, preferably with a bucket of popcorn in tow. Of course, sometimes the theatrical experience can be sullied by inconsiderate seat neighbors chomping on snacks, talking, or pulling out their cell phones and giving us weird blue light distractions. A lot of these issues have kept people out of theaters in recent years, and we’re only now getting to a point where people are trickling back for tentpole movies like the well-reviewed Moana II and well-reviewed Wicked Part 1.
So, imagine my surprise when people like Dwayne Johnson and Cynthia Erivo came out this week to champion people singing in the theater to their respective movie musicals. Like, honestly y’all, what the heck?
What Dwayne Johnson And Cynthia Erivo Said About Singing In Theaters
Given there are two movie musicals in theaters right now, I suppose it was inevitable that celebrities involved with said films would be asked about their feelings. When asked about singing in the theater, Dwayne Johnson said,
Sing! You’ve paid your hard-earned money for a ticket, and you've gone into a musical, and you’re into it. Sing.
Cynthia Erivo was asked much the same question and her response was also positive in regards to people just belting out lyrics in theaters, calling the idea “wonderful” and telling Hoda Kotb during her appearance at yesterday’s Thanksgiving Parade that she’s “OK with it.” I saw this play out live on my TV screen and was floored.
Listen, I know we are in a period where it feels like the prevailing narrative is “you do you” and there’s a lot of positive that comes with giving people the freedom to be themselves. Having said this, and I'm speaking in the collective sense, “you do you” does not mean the world revolves around you and that every decision you make should be of the selfish sort.
In the case of singing in the theater, as The Rock noted, I paid my “hard-earned money” to get a premium theatrical experience and hear Erivo’s gratifying version of “Defying Gravity” (and all the other amazing Wicked songs). I am not holding space for the dude in Row 3 to belt it out in tandem, and that also shouldn’t be the type of behavior anyone should be expecting at the movie theater.
Of course, there are exceptions, and I’ll get into those below.
Why Sing-A-Long Screenings Are The Best Of Both Worlds
Look, I certainly wouldn’t get bent out of shape at a matinee screening of Moana II if some kids were a little rowdy and responding to the movie onscreen. There’s something charming about little kids going to the movies for the first (or second or third) time and kids interact more viscerally with what’s going on onscreen. I would be the jerk if I were to get upset at a little kid for yelling “Moana!” in the middle of a daytime screening. But this is also precisely why Moana still screens later at night for adults who still enjoy animated movies.
I saw Inside Out 2 at like 7 p.m. and I was able to enjoy it with a way different audience than if I’d gone to the movie at 2 p.m. on a Sunday, in which case I would have expected a very different outcome, and that’s OK.
Secondarily, there are some movie theaters that are putting on rowdy showings of movies like Wicked. These sing-a-long showings are expected to be interactive; singing is encouraged, and I LOVE that this option exists. But those need to be advertised and dictated in advance; they shouldn’t be hoisted on audiencegoers who paid good money to see a theatrical spectacle and not to be a part of a theatrical spectacle.
In South Korea, too, theaters have started creating private boxes for individuals and groups who want to have a more personalized theatrical experience. If that were an option in the U.S., I’d be all for singing in your individual boxes, too. But as it stands, a few hundred people pay money to hang together for a few hours in screenings of Wicked and Moana II. Part of that experience is understanding etiquette and reading the room.
I know neither Erivo nor The Rock were probably hoping to be asked this question, and I also know they are probably never in a situation where they are forced to see movies with the general public, so it’s a weird thing to ask them to weigh in on in the first place. However, if I were seeing Wicked performed onstage, it would be considered downright rude to interrupt the performers and sing in the middle of the performance.
The same is true in the movie theater. It is not cool and not nice to bust out into song and annoy your fellow moviegoers. Even if you're a huge fan. Even if you're a competent singer. Even if some people aren't bothered by it. Just wait for the movie to hit VOD and then throw your own sing-a-long screening, please. Or rent your own theater out! I mean seriously, PLEASE.
