Dinner theatre serves up laughs, music, food and fun

By Tina Comeau

THE VANGUARD

NovaNewsNow.com

One couple comes bouncing in. All lovey-dovey, sickeningly sweet, the can’t-keep-their-hands-off-each-other type.

The other comes storming through the crowd, arguing, arms waving. Obviously for them the honeymoon was over waaayyyy long ago.

In any other circumstance it would probably feel a little awkward to stand there and gawk. But you can’t help but stare…and laugh.

Meanwhile those who aren’t quite sure what to make of the scene are quickly being reassured, “It’s part of the show.”

The “show” is the latest installment of the Rodd Grand Dinner Theatre, Can’t Buy Me Love, where mending broken hearts and re-igniting the spark in relationships in on the menu – along with a choice of chicken cordon blue or salmon, and all of the mussels you can eat.

Three members of this year’s cast are from the local area – Ed Kennedy, Jenna Morton and Rose Madden. Rounding out the cast are Kim Moore, Christian Young and Luke Salmon. None are strangers to the dinner theatre concept, either having performed in past ones or being so bitten by the dinner theatre bug that they had to flock to the stage themselves.

“What drew me to my first dinner theatre was actually watching the show two years ago,” says Madden of Surettes Island. “I saw the show and thought next summer I want to do that. The fun is definitely interacting with the people, especially the people that you know because they’re like, ‘Hi Rose’ and I say, ‘It’s not me. Call me by my character’s name.’”

When you ask any member of the cast what they love most about dinner theatre, they all say it’s that interaction with the audience. They don’t just feed these people their meal and a show, they’re feeding off of the audience to make the experience an even better one for everyone involved.

“It’s actually the most fun part of dinner theatre, the floor time, because you don’t have to worry about scripting that,” says Salmon. “It just kind of flows and it’s really interesting to see what you can create that actually goes with the show. You’re making stuff up as you go along.”

Moore couldn’t agree more. With eight years of dinner theatres under his belt, he calls the audience interaction the best part of the show.

“They get a laugh, I get a laugh, some people can come up with some pretty funny stuff in the audience,” he says.

That’s what is unique about dinner theatres like this one, and other ones on the East Coast says Kennedy who brings a lot to the dinner theatre table. He’s the director, producer and writer of the show and also one of the actors. He says the fact that the cast is also the servers during the evening is different than having an audience simply sit and watch what’s happening on the stage. In this case, the entire room is the stage. And the concept really works.

“When you have the character interacting with you and talking to you, it’s pretty special. That’s definitely the funniest part of the evening,” he says.

But it’s not only the spoken word that gets the laughs. The body language and facial expressions also say a lot. And perhaps no one is better at this than Morton.

“I always found it really entertaining when going to a dinner theatre to watch someone give a big reaction,” she says “So I picked up on that when I started doing shows. People have told me that I have funny expressions and it always came pretty naturally to me, so I always try to incorporate that into the show.

But whether it’s ‘Dave’ complaining about his wife ‘Vera’ as he’s taking your dinner order, or Dr. Lex L’armour, the Doctor of Love, trying to push his latest paperback book in the foyer, it’s all funny.

On opening night the script had the audience in stitches and it’s been the same reaction during the performances since.

Aside from the scripted part of the show – which sometimes goes a little off script – this show has more music in it than any other show before.

But what else could you expect? After all, the theme is the Beatles.

Kennedy, a huge fan of the fab four, always wanted to do a Beatles theme. And he certainly had no shortage of material to work with. He says there are about 35 songs in the show, taken from a list of about 70 possibilities.

So if you’re a fan of the Beatles, and even if you’re not, you should come to the show says the cast.

“You should come because it’s fun, it’s a good time and it’s a good experience. You should know all of the songs and if you don’t you’ve had a poor upbringing,” jokes Young.

On a more serious note Kennedy says you should come because it’s a good value.

“For a night’s entertainment you can’t get a better deal,” he says. “Live entertainment, comedy, a band and you get stuffed.”

ABOUT THE SHOW:

•Performance nights are Monday to Saturday (no shows on Sundays) up to Aug. 31.

•Seating is at 6:30 p.m.

•Cost is $32.95, plus tax, per person

•Box office open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Rodd Grand Hotel, or call 881-3015

THE CAST:

Jenna Morton as Vera Johnson

Ed Kennedy as Dave Johnson

Rose Madden as Jenny Simmons

Luke Salmon as Jerry Stevens

Christian Young as Mortimer Miller

Kim Moore as Dr. Lex L’amour (The Doctor of Love)