We are attending the ballet at the Teatro Municipal. Do men need to wear a suit and tie or is less formal attire acceptable?

As you will see, there is nothing formal in the dress.

The theater is beautiful. However, I suggest swinging for the more expensive seats. We went with the "Peanut Gallery", the least expensive tickets. It literally was a peanut gallery. People started taking out their packs of peanuts or snacks! However, the problem was that we had to climb many stairs in what I'd describe as a "back servants' entrance". The seating was so near the top of the theater that I could touch the ceiling. I am 5'5" tall. We were so tightly packed in that the woman sitting next to me was pressed up against me. There were no handles on the chairs. Worst of all, it was unbelievably stuffy and hot.

My husband and I left as soon as there was a break. We had gone to some kind of modernistic dance show where people were rolling around as ocean amoebas or something. It was the only performance we could go to to see the theater. We try to go to all the national theaters in Latin American countries since they are always so fabulous. Just try to be on the floor or get a box seat in Santiago.

I didn't answer your initial question. People are conservative in Chile. Don't show up in jeans. A man (or woman) in dress pants and a dress shirt is probably alright at a matinee show. Jeans or shorts? No.

Would they kick you out our say anything to you? Probably not but it is not the way the locals dress.