As a first time Disney Cruiser, we wanted to see all the shows, and for the most part we did. Then, right after that we would rush off to get a seat for the evening event in the Tube or D Lounge or whatever. Or my kids running off to some event in the Vibe right after the main show. Too many things back to back. But because we hadn't seen any of the shows, we wanted to, and we were glad we did. But next time, we will skip some of them.
So to me, the best thing to do after dinner if I wasn't going to the main show would be to RELAX a bit. Slow down. Not have to rush to the next event. That way, we'd have say a half hour of down time, and THEN we could go to whatever was happening elsewhere on the ship after the show.
Have fun!