Tribute concert or dinner feud?

The short version

These two tickets answer different questions. The tribute asks whether you want to hear songs, and keeps everything else out of the way: no meal, no cast, no stunts, just one performer working through two famous catalogues in a small room. The dinner feud asks whether you want an evening that looks after itself from the moment you sit down, with food arriving before the show and a large, noisy production afterwards. Neither is the better night in general. One is better for you, depending on who is in your party, how hungry they are and what you have already seen in Pigeon Forge.

What each evening is

The tribute is a concert. A single tribute performer sings the hits of Johnny Cash and Elvis Presley for ninety minutes in a small theatre, with seats taken in the order people arrive. The dinner feud is dinner theatre, a form that pairs a restaurant meal with a staged show. Its story is played for laughs: two mountain families, their quarrel and a great deal of chaos, with comedy, high-diving stunts, singing and dancing, and feats of strength. The tribute is built for listening; the feud is built for spectacle and a full stomach.

Food is the deciding question

If you only remember one difference, make it this one. The dinner feud includes an all-you-can-eat Southern feast, served before the show, and the price reflects that. The tribute includes no food at all, which keeps its price down and leaves you free to eat where you like, before or after. For a family that would otherwise spend an hour choosing a restaurant, the feud's built-in supper is a real convenience. For a couple who already have a favourite place to eat, or who would rather have a light meal and keep the evening flexible, the tribute leaves room. Check any dietary needs carefully before booking a dinner show, because the menu is the venue's, not yours.

How long each one takes

Both shows run for ninety minutes, but the evenings around them differ. The feud asks you to arrive up to an hour before the show for dinner and pre-show entertainment, so the whole visit can run to about two and a half hours. The tribute needs only enough time to park, walk in and choose a seat, though in a general-admission room an early arrival wins the better chair. If you have a long day in the national park behind you, that difference in length may decide things on its own. Each confirmation carries its own start time.

On the stage

The tribute's appeal is closeness and familiarity: a small theatre, a performer in reach of the front row, songs you can sing back. Expect invitations to join in on the choruses. The feud's appeal is variety and scale. The feud's own description promises singing and dancing, side-splitting comedy, jaw-dropping stunts including high dives, and diving dogs in a swimming hole, all woven into the story of the two families. If your party includes children who struggle to sit still through a concert, the feud's constant movement is an advantage. If your party came to Pigeon Forge for country music, the tribute is the closer fit.

The feud behind the dinner show

The show plays a real piece of American history for laughs. The Hatfield–McCoy feud involved two families of the West Virginia–Kentucky border along the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy River, and ran from 1863 to 1891. The Hatfields lived mostly on the West Virginia side, the McCoys mostly on the Kentucky side, and one of the early disputes was over the ownership of a hog. The feud gained national attention through tabloid coverage and has entered American culture as shorthand for any bitter rivalry. In 2003 descendants of both families signed a declaration of truce. The dinner show takes the outline and turns it into family comedy.

Dinner theatre as a form

Dinner theatre pairs a restaurant meal with a play or musical staged the same evening. Sometimes the play is the main event and dinner comes second; sometimes the meal is the point and the show is the entertainment around it. Running one means managing three businesses at once: a theatre, a restaurant and usually a bar. That is why the format suits big rooms and big productions, and why the price is higher than a show-only ticket. A tribute concert sits at the other end of the scale, a single performer and a room built for listening rather than eating.

Cancellation and booking terms

On GetYourGuide both tickets refund in full if you cancel in time, but in time means different things. For the tribute the cut-off is 24 hours before showtime, and payment can be deferred until closer to the date. For the dinner feud the cut-off comes a full two days ahead. Both are wheelchair accessible. Both shows can sell out. At the feud, everyone passes through a security scanner on entry, and bags may be searched. If your plans are uncertain, the tribute's later cancellation deadline gives you more room to change your mind.

Families and groups

The feud presents itself as family fun, and its mix of food, slapstick and stunts is designed for a mixed-age table. The tribute suits families too, especially ones where a parent or grandparent grew up on these records and wants to share them, but it asks children to sit and listen for ninety minutes. For a group at the tribute, think about seating: general admission means a party needs to arrive together, and early, to sit side by side.

Who should pick which

Most of the decision hinges on two questions: is the meal part of the plan, and are you after music or spectacle? Answer those and the choice usually makes itself. The list below gathers the main cases.

• Pick the tribute if you came for the music, want a lower price, or already have dinner planned.
• Pick the tribute if you need a later cancellation deadline.
• Pick the feud if you want dinner and entertainment in one booking.
• Pick the feud if your party includes restless children who would enjoy stunts and slapstick.
• Pick either if wheelchair access matters: both are accessible.

Doing both

With several nights in town, there is no reason to choose. Put the dinner feud on an evening when you have been out all day and want food without decisions, and the tribute on a lighter evening when you can eat early, drive along the Parkway and settle into a small room for the songs. The planning guide covers timing, seats and how to fit an afternoon on the mountain coaster around a show.

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