Singin' in the Rain

With all of our sophisticated technology, including DVD players, digital recorders, and picture phones, it's easy to forget the often painful and laborious steps it took to get here. But barely a generation ago, there were people who remembered both the horse as the primary means of personal transportation and Neil Armstrong walking on the moon.

One of the most interesting examples of the effects of scientific advancement on the entertainment industry was the shift from silent films to "talkies"—a process immortalized in the film, and later stage musical, Singin' in the Rain. Everyone who saw the original remembers Donald O'Conner dancing up the walls and Gene Kelly's soft shoe in a downpour.

Boulder's Dinner Theatre is now reprising it's own fabulous version of this classic, which it last performed nine years ago with the same principles in the same roles. Remarkably, they don't show their age at all; rather, they've just gotten better.

Brian Norber brings his infectious optimism and lanky grace to the role of Don Lockwood, the silent screen matinee idol who, for publicity purposes, the movie studio has paired with the brassy Lena Lamont. Bren Eyestone Burron's Lamont is a curious mix of ambition and naiveté, wrapped around a voice and diction that is part scratchy record, part Mrs. Malaprop.

After The Jazz Singer changes the course of motion picture history, the studio is forced to look for a way to give Lamont a voice that is palatable to the public. Enter Kathy Selden, the angelic-voiced Shelly Cox-Robie, who sings and charms her way into everyone's heart. Lockwood is aided in his quest to romance the star-powered Selden by his good friend, the song and dance man Cosmo Brown, a perfect fit for Scott Beyette.

In addition to a number of memorable tunes, including Make 'Em Laugh, Good Mornin', You are My Lucky Star, and the title number, performed on a cleverly-crafted rain-drenched set, Boulder's Dinner Theatre's impressive orchestra and top-notch stagecraft make this production memorable. Singin' in the Rain runs through March 16th, 2003. 303-449-6000.

Bob Bows