The gentle thud of the walker against the barn floor, the rustle of Ugly Kitty Sweaters, and the faintly audible ringing of too many hearing aids in one place, one might instantly be transported back in time. Another evening of the dreaded "Dinner Theatre Experience" seems to be lurking to close for comfort, and throws the patron back to the memories of their grandparents dragging them to see another production of Hello, Dolly!
Dining on a delicious buffet, any individual aged from 15-50 will find their meal to be rather tasty. However, their minds may drift to a fantasy of Hooters girls, sports, and their local bar. Worry, stress, and indigestion overcome the younger person who fears the dreaded tacky showbiz machine may take them victim with another underwhelming performance at their local theater. As they order a drink from the bartender (Who gives any Hooter's Girl a run for their money), they prep their mind to survive Andrew Lloyd Webber's furry, hissy, and repetitive musical CATS! The lights dim, the overture starts, and within a few minutes the fans of musical theatre are born.
New Candlelight Theatre redefined what is possible for a dinner theatre production. Few professional theatres in Delaware have survived outside of Wilmington's City Limits, let alone any dinner theatres. Many theatres may work only to maintain the business they have left, but NCT, by producing CATS, makes a statement that nothing will deter NCT from creating new audiences, new memories (HA!), and remain culturally relevant in Delaware. It takes an enormous set of Jellicle Balls to flawlessly re-create a multi-million dollar, world-renowned, and challenging spectacle of a musical. (Not to be confused with Full Monty balls) Congrats to Dann Dunn, Chris Alberts, Clint Williams, Jeff Reim, and Jackie Alberts for taking on a challenging piece that has started a new chapter of possibilities for NCT!
Review, after review, after review has praised this production. It is an honor to watch this show night, after night, after night. I am proud to call many of the cast friends. Each of them performs show stopping numbers. Lindsay Mauck, Kaylan Wetzel, Timm Cannon, Colleen McGinnis, and Dave Snyder, give the audiences exactly what they want: Perfection. Every other cast member is exceptionally talented, and diversified. Tim Osgood, Anastasia Bokas, Billy Hart, Mike Angelini, Holly Becker, Justina Ercole, Alexis DeDonato, and many more provide memorable moments on stage. Alas, every show has its crucial and memorable moment. Griz limps onto stage to make one final plea to be awarded a new life. The all too familiar and typically poorly executed song begins, tonight, the performance is not typical or poorly executed. Erica Harr as Grizabella begins to sing the iconic song Memory. As you can tell, I love to hear myself talk, but for a few minutes during every performance I am silent, amazed, and welled up with tears. (Maybe it's the red wine I have during Act 2!)
Sadly, by the end of March the packed houses, standing ovations, enthusiastic applause will become “a memory, too.”All good things must come to an end. However, not everything ends this gloriously. Kudos to everyone working on CATS, I am proud to be a performer/volunteer at NCT because of people like you!
Everyone aged 15-50 needs to come enjoy an evening at NCT. It isn't your grandparents' dinner theatre. It's a quality professional theatrical performance that happens to have dinner served 2 hours before show time! Come enjoy a show at NCT, where the size of your Jellicle Balls matter…and for that matter, the size of your Full Monty ones too!
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