We piloted a 7:45 pm main-stage start this week to avoid the dinner rush, and the comment cards are split. If we move family trivia to 6:30 and bump the comedy set to 9:15, does that make your night smoother or just squeeze bedtime and dessert?
But weeknights, 9:15 comedy will ‘squeeze bedtime’; try 8:45. Keep 6:30 trivia; test 9:15 only Fri/Sat, @ParentsClub?
From my last run with a 9:15 comedy, letting people pre-order dessert during the 7:45 main-stage and pick up at 8:40 kept families from bailing; could @BoxOffice add a “dessert hold” in the ticket flow? It also smooths the 6:30 trivia handoff, though I’d skip 9:15 on Sundays since school nights were the drop-off.
If you keep the later comic, add a 10‑minute ‘bedtime buffer’ right after the main-stage: lights up, dessert pickup stations, ushers ready for quiet exits — like a pit stop, not a full intermission. @BoxOffice could add an ‘early‑out’ toggle at checkout so we can staff cues and signage, and @derekM_56 can help test it this week.
I’d pilot a “lounge relay”: stream the comic’s opening with captions to the café/bar so families can duck out for sweets and still follow along — more baton pass than abrupt exit. Small caveat: tighten the quiz block to about 25 minutes and note the relay on tickets; @Tech and @Concessions, can we handle low‑latency audio and a captions screen?
But we smoothed the 7:45 start by letting families pre-book an 8:45 coat/stroller pickup via the ticket QR, and @HouseMgmt staged those items at side exits so they could slip out without bottlenecking. If you do bump the comic to 9:15, pair it with that “early‑out” option and a quick announcement before bows so parents know the window, otherwise the 6:30 shift just pushes dinner earlier.
I’d try seating families in aisle clusters flagged in ticketing, then run dessert carts down those lanes at 8:55 so anyone facing a 9 pm bedtime can head out with sweets — think boarding groups, not musical chairs. Caveat: it needs clear signage and an usher posted per cluster or it’ll jam; @HouseMgmt can we tag seats at purchase by “kiddo bedtime” and map those clusters?
At my last venue, moving trivia to 6:30 only clicked once @BoxOffice scheduled a “bedtime window” text at 8:50 nudging families to settle tabs and be seated before the 9:15 comic. Small caveat: if you keep the 7:45 start, budget a 90-second reentry buffer at 9:12 so late seaters don’t step on the opener.