YESTERDAYS

When Broadway Palm West Dinner Theatre Executive Director William Prather took the stage before the customary curtain speech on opening night of their latest offering, Yesterdays, he was beaming with pride. His company was celebrating a triumph of sorts, just about to offer their final presentation of their inaugural season. There were some critics, myself included, who kept ominously warning the company about the pitfalls of summer theatre in the valley. In his speech, he crowed about having attracted 32,000 people to the theatre during the doldrums of summer. I, for one, am glad that their professional operation has survived, even if I'm not entirely enthralled with their current production. This is a dinner theatre that takes chances, and much more often succeeds than misses. From here on in, you will no longer hear the phrase "if they can survive the summer." They have done so with elan, and their second season is already creating a buzz.

This time around, the dinner menu is pretty much dwarfed by the desserts. The Carved Sirloin Of Beef was a hit, as was the Baked Stuffed Hokie Fish with Tomato Basil Cream Sauce. Neither I, nor members of my party tried the Stuffed Pork Loin, but we agreed that the Linguini Provencal with Clams was a worthy attempt, and the Lemon Citrus Chicken with Caramelized Leeks a dud. The vegetables did not fare as well, with only the Roasted New Potatoes succeeding, the rest achieving only blandness. It is in the sweets that the chef's experimentation is welcome, including a new Boston Crème Pie and a Banana Whip Cream Pie making it worth multiple trips back to the dessert table.

Yesterdays is a musical revue of pop music from the 50s and 60s, and everyone should be aware of my dislike of staging Rhino compilation albums onstage, despite my mellowing on the topic in recent years. Victor Legarreta's production (he not only created the piece, but he Directed, Choreographed and is a hard-working member of the ensemble) is schizophrenic in many ways. It will do anything for a laugh, often retreating to sophomoric jokes and hackneyed ploys to solicit them, but it's only on those occasions when finding the soul of the songs that it achieves any real success. The ensemble is vocally talented, but lean to the side of musical theatre presentations. They only seem comfortable selling songs of heavier content, which means that the first act is pretty much a wash until the bubblegum pop is traded for the more emotionally powerful ballads of the 60s. Their voices are well handled by Mr. Legarreta and impressive musical director Brian Pia, who also gets to showcase his vocal talent, but the choreography is either frenetic or languishing, leaving a few too many songs to be sung while seated.

The ensemble is lead by Mr. Legarreta, who has a very good voice and oodles of energy. He'll self-efface, jump into the audience to serenade the patrons, and push for every laugh. Jeff March has a pleasant voice, and is one half of the reason the first act's most successful song, a medley of "16 Tons" and "Fever," works as well as it does. The other half of the equation is Damaris Lopez, a picture of whom can be found next to the definition of "sultry" in the dictionary. Ms. Lopez not only nails "Fever," but drives home "R-E-S-P-E-C-T" during the battle of the boys and girls in the second act. Elizabeth Loos, returning following her success as Miss Hannigan in Annie, is equally effective. Her takes on "Crazy" and "Bobby McGee" are like a channeling of Patsy and Janis. Erik Hogan has a pleasant voice, and gets to help re-imagine "Happy Together" as a potential stalker song, while an overwhelmed Stacie May Hassler finds herself surrounded. Ms. Hassler is the most unremarkable of the women: I can't honestly remember anything good or bad about her performances.

What is it that makes the show only truly start in the second act? For some reason, Mr. Legarreta doesn't seem to "get" the bubblegum pop of the 50s. As my parents explained it, when you sang such simpering songs as "Earth Angel," it was your one big chance in the 50s to dance really close to your partner, and all of the subtext of this moment seemed lost on the performers, who err on the side of "stand and deliver." When this group is able to latch onto the more theatrical songs of the 60s, such as "Aquarius" and "California Dreamin'" they seem to feel more in their element.

As often happens, the lighting designer has become the focus of the design element of this revue. Russell A. Thompson's work is excellent, utilizing gobos and gel scrollers to transition between moods and eras. John C. Rager's set is unobtrusive, creating the obvious types of visual jests and elements that support the level of humor of the script. Mr. Legarreta and Timothy Slope's costumes are even more visual cues, sometimes unflattering ones, though when the girls come out in their red sequin dresses in the second act, any errors in prior judgment are forgiven. Pianist Mr. Pia, the successful seventh member of this six-person ensemble, does a good job leading the four-piece orchestra featuring Tyson Friar on guitar, Jim Jeffrey on bass and David Jolley on drums.

The temperatures are still blistering, and the summer remains, despite the calendar. For pure summer entertainment, Yesterdays still sets the toes a-tappin'. Among the greatest hits compilation of two decades, there are some very successful performances. As for me, I'll just anxiously await the darker, more dramatically fulfilling Ragtime debut in October.