BWW Reviews: Denver Center's 5 COURSE LOVE

In the musical comedy FIVE COURSE LOVE three actors play 15 different characters in five different restaurants, all of them on the hunt for one true love. The evening begins at Dean's Old-Fashioned All-American Down-Home Bar-B-Que Texas Eats, where a blind date goes char-broiled wrong. Next, at the Trattoria Pericolo, a mob wife has a secret rendezvous behind her husband's back. At Der Schlupfwinkel Speiseplatz, a waiter, a dominatrix and her kept man discover a love triangle gone awry. In Er-nesto's Cantina, a hill bandit and his rival battle for the hand of the beautiful Rosalinda. And at the Star-Lite Diner, a waitress pines for her true love and gets a little help from Cupid in making her dreams come true.

So I'm not an evil genius. Or lazy. Really, I'm not. But there is a reason I didn't review this show until a couple of months into their five-month run. At this point in the game, the production should be like a well-prepared meal, all of the courses complimenting one another in delicious harmony. So, while the musical is palatable overall (the poster calls it a "lip-smacking musical comedy"), there were a couple of bitter lumps in the appetizer course of the FIVE COURSE LOVE fest that made it more of a "what did he say?" mumbling fiasco than a delicious dish. In the first two songs, the lyrics were hard to understand (the verbal articulation just wasn't there), and the piano was so loud it overwhelmed the singers rather than compliment them. Then, as if by adding some extra special secret ingredient, the show... fixed itself. The characters' enunciation became clearer, the microphones on the actors were adjusted, and the piano notes dropped into the background, supporting the singers rather than competing with them. The actors seemed to relax and have fun with their roles. They started to interact with the audience, who gobbled up every yummy bite the performers delivered.

The show opens with a barbershop quartet performing the announcements, setting the expectation for a fun, music-filled ninety minutes. The live band, under the direction of Troy Schuh, provided wonderful stage presence, and the actors showed lighthearted enthusiasm when interacting with the musicians. One criticism I have of the "pit" is that if a production calls for a fun comedy bit - like putting on different hats for each vignette - there should have more consistency. The "five courses" (five vignettes) included BBQ (Country-Western), Italian, German, Mexican, and 1950's Diner. The dream sequence in the last scene satisfied my craving for an acceptable resolution -and improved production quality - and I was amazed at the quick speed of the costume changes (kudos to the unseen stage hands and assistants!) The final course was a big, gooey, marshmallowy, syrupy, sweet puff of love that left the audience patting their bellies contently.

While Daniel Langhoff and Jordan Leigh (who looks so much like Jerry Lewis it's uncanny) did an excellent job in the various roles, it was Sarah Rex who owned the stage. The pipes on this remarkable actress alone could possibly convince me to choke down my top five most annoying musicals: The Fantasticks, Grease, South Pacific, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. (There. I said it. So stick a fork in my eye if you disagree)

All-in-all, FIVE COURSE LOVE, under the direction of Ray Roderick, is a tasty musical buffet, each course served with love, care. FIVE COURSE LOVE plays the Garner Galleria Theatre at the Denver Center, now through June 19th. Call for tickets and show information 303.893.4100 or visit www.denvercenter.org.

PHOTO CREDITS:  Terry Shapiro