My daughter and I went to see the Broadway musical “Wicked” at the Civic Center theater last week. Good production, but that’s not what I wanted to talk about here.

There was a time when audience members were expected to be quiet and well-behaved at a theater, whether live or cinema. There was a time when ushers would enforce such rules. But those days appear to be over for many reasons, which I guess is seen as a positive change among the general public, as no one seems to care.

First, cell phones. People around us had their cell phones on their laps, and they would light up regularly as they got notifications. They did nothing to turn down how bright they were, let alone put them away or on “focus” or something to keep them from notifying them. So things are blinking on through the whole show around us, and those people are distracted from the show and (presumably) texting their friends for a short time each time it happens. No thought as to how that will distract others around them.

Next, the Civic Center allows drinks, snacks, etc., in the theater, so that the crowd is crinkling paper and opening containers during the show. Sounds kinda like a cafeteria at times. It used to be that one would go out to eat for dinner before a theatrical production, and then not eat or drink during the show. But I guess it’s kind of a dinner theater of sorts now?

And then there’s the talking. People don’t feel any self-control over talking to their friends out loud during the show. Fortunately, there wasn’t too much of that. They would get more into the show and be quieter, but at the beginning of each act, there was a lot of chattering — not just with small children, but even among adults!

Finally, unrelated to noise, there used to be an understood expectation for dress code when going to a theatrical production — normally business casual. Well, let me tell you, those days are way over. Almost everyone looked like they just came in from mowing the lawn in their shorts, t-shirts, and Crocs.

I guess my old-fashioned thoughts are still expected in New York, but here in Peoria, you just act at the Civic Center theater as if you’re heading down to your private basement by yourself to watch a movie.