View source for Dinner and a Show

{{trope}}
{{quote|Wow. Dinner ''and'' a show.|'''The comment of a guest as yet another [[Brothers and Sisters|Walker]] family dinner descends into an argument'''}}

{{quote|What is this, Cabaret? Entertainment while you eat?|'''The Cat''', [[Red Dwarf]]}}

When a family get together in a [[Sitcom]] for a big family dinner, expect [[Hilarity Ensues|hilarity to ensue]]. Sometimes this is treated as just normal craziness that happens when the family get together.

Not to be confused with [[At the Opera Tonight]].
{{examples}}

== [[Film]] ==
* In ''[[Meet the Robinsons]]'', the family dinner turns into a kung fu fight between Trudi and her brothers, armed with spaghetti and meatballs, while the rest of the family cheers.
{{quote|'''Lewis''': Is dinner always like this?
'''Art''': No, last night we had meatloaf.  }}
* In ''[[Ice Age]]'', when Manny, Sid and Diego steal a melon from the dodos, the dodos fight back hysterically (and ineffectually) prompting Manny (played by Ray Romano, who's [[Everybody Loves Raymond|seen this trope played out many times before]]) to comment, "Wow, dinner ''and'' a show."

== [[Literature]] ==
* The infamous dinner party hosted by Miles in ''[[Vorkosigan Saga|A Civil Campaign]]''.

== [[Live Action TV]] ==
* [[Arrested Development (TV series)|All in all, it was one of the Bluth family's better parties.]]
* ''[[Brothers and Sisters]]'', where Walker family dinners inevitably result in an argument. The only reason they're not the the page image is because deciding which dinner to use is a Herculean effort. They've started [[Lampshade Hanging]] it, especially Robert McAllister:
{{quote|Robert: Is this your first Walker family dinner?
Sarah's latest male friend: Yes.
Robert: Good luck. }}
* One of the defining characteristics of the Crane family from ''[[Frasier]]'', although usually some guests are involved as well. Recounting every time the family has thrown a disastrous dinner that descended into blood, tears, and chaos by the third act would take up half the page, but special mention should go to the time it was heavily [[Lampshaded]] in "Daphne Does Dinner", which featured a bizarre, [[Noodle Implements]]-filled opening scene, and in which Daphne's [[Epic Failure]] at her first lavish dinner since marrying Niles causes Frasier to proclaim that she is now [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|"officially a Crane."]]
* ''[[Soap]]''
* For those in the United Kingdom of a certain age, this should bring the TV series ''[[Bread]]'' to mind...
* Basically every episode of ''[[Everybody Loves Raymond]]'', whether or not more extended family members or Debra or Amy's parents are involved.
* Michael and Jan's dinner party in "The Dinner Party" episode of ''[[The Office]]'' descends into a bitter fight between the two and utter chaos, much to the simultaneous amusement/horror of their guests.
* ''[[Titus]]'' was fond of this trope as well: There was the episode where Titus' family and Erin's family came for Thanksgiving and wound up in the hospital, twice with his mother making dinner (one time drugging the entire family and trying to kill his dad, another with her psychiatrist fiancé showing up and making Titus and his dad upset), and once when Tommy was dating a woman who had slept with Titus - they went to her restaurant. Ken Titus even used the trope title as things got more and more awkward.
* Lampshaded by [[Gilmore Girls|Lorelai]] when she and Rory once arrived for Friday Night Dinner and they watched an argument between Richard and Emily.
* In ''[[Due South]]'', Ray Vecchio's family seems to have this as their default setting.
* ''[[Malcolm in the Middle]]''. In fact, the family probably aren't any more [[Dysfunctional Family|dysfunctional]] at dinner than the rest of the time - it just brings them all [[Cabin Fever|into close proximity]].
* If we are to go by ''[[Six Feet Under]]'', family dinners can get quite interesting when one member of the family has had ecstasy. Without him knowing about it.
* So common on ''[[Picket Fences]]'' whenever they have dinner guests, that lawyer Wambaugh [[Lampshade Hanging|lampshaded]] it when urging another guest to accept an invitation: "Strange things happen when they ''eat''."
* ''[[Californication]]'' seems to be going out of its way to have one of these every series. They're yet to top the one from series 2 though.
* One [[Saturday Night Live]] sketch was an advertisement for the greatest hits of dysfunctional family holiday dinners (for those who can't make it home this year). Each one ended with the father (Will Ferrell) yelling "*BLEEP* this, I'm leaving!" and flipping his dinner plate into the air. What really made this funny was that Ferrell's plate flips just got harder every time until the last one where he practically launches it across the table.
* On ''[[Heroes (TV series)|Heroes]]'', Thanksgiving dinner at the Bennet house starts with a massive argument and ends with Claire self-mutilating in order to demonstrate her [[Healing Factor]], causing her mom's new boyfriend to pass out. Meanwhile, at the Petrelli house, they discuss {{spoiler|how one of the brothers is actually dead, with his memories transferred into the body of a mindwiped shapeshifting villain}}.

== Theater ==
* This is the basic premise of the stage comedy ''[[You Can't Take It with You]]'' by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart.

== Western Animation ==
* [[Doug|"There's a bomb in the lasagna!"]]
* ''[[Hey Arnold!]]'' had quite a few of these, too.
** Most notably the Thanksgiving episode where the phrase is uttered during Mr Simmons Thanksgiving dinner. When the girl known as Joy starts choking, Mr Simmons' "friend" Peter dryly states this as he sips some red wine.

{{reflist}}
[[Category:Comedy Tropes]]
[[Category:Family Tropes]]
[[Category:Food Tropes]]
[[Category:Scenes]]
[[Category:{{PAGENAME}}]]